The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-09-03

| VI >. ,. PENNSYLVANIA
- y = - = q q - - Hsss s&s
ship fell out of the line, boat was
| lowered and in four and half minutes
the man was picked up, something of
! record rescue.
Wireless Works Far.
The officers were entirely satisfied
with the record of the wireless system
of the feet, and particularly with that
of the flagship which handled all the
long distance messages The transmit
ter and receiver aboard kept in COM
punication with the Pacific coast until
200 miles had been run out, when ali
communication was suddenly cut off
Tnev wondered why no word came
from Honolulu and were not aware that
their messages had been received here
at all until Tuesday night when the
local Naval Station announced that IL
was in touch Mr. Balch of the Inter
Island Telegraph Company, who went
aboard to discuss wireless matters with
the chief of staff, announced that the
Kahuku apparatus was not ready to
transmit messages yet, but the receiy-
ing end was O. X. and it had listened
to the West Virginia when that vessel
was about 1900 miles distant. The night
that the West Virginia was calling
Table Bluff, Cal, on which occasion the
Kahuku station "caught" the mes
sage, the West Virginia was $50 miles
from San Francisco. The iirst time
the West Virginia found herself in
wireless touch y3ith Honolulu was about
$3.50 p. m. Wednesday when Admiral
Swinburne notified Captain Rees that
he would arrive in Honolulu at u
o clock noon yesterday.
Buzzed Like Bees.
When Manager Balch of the Inter
Island Wireless Telegraph Company
visited the flagship yesterday it was
to ask a favor. During the day the
local wireless found itself interrupted
so often that messages could not be
sent to other islands or received. Mr..
Balch showed Captain Oliver a letter
from the Secretary of the Navy in
which authority is given to the local
wireless company to request warships
to refrain from working their wire
lesses in the day time. Yesterday the
feet wirelesses were buzzing like so
many bees. Captain Oliver laid the
matter before the Admiral and the
buzzing ceased 1t has been found
convenient to the warships to do all
their message work by wireless. 1t
not only annihilates time, but saves
time and bluejacket's shoe leather,
but it is mighty inconvenient to a mer
camille wireless company's business.
Coaling Begins Today.
When the warships arrived alongside
the wharves they were confronted with
big piles of coal. In short time war
rant and petty officers We're climbing
over the black masses with tape lines
measuring the distance from the top
of the cone to the outer edge of the
base and then measuring the base line.
Then by geometry the otflcers de-
termined Just how much coal was in
each pile. 1t is necessary to be exact
about such a little thing as a coal pile,
first, because a warship needs every
pound of coal she is entitled to, and
secondly. because if there is more coal
in a pile than a boat is entitled 10,
thus giving an error in tonnage, it IN
terferes with the men making a record,
especially if another warship has just
| exactly the amount on hand the coal
tags call for.
The feet will take on about nine or
ten thousand tons. The eolli4rs Saturn
and Justin win supply about 5000 tons.
| OF course, the little destroyers don t
require mueh coal, simply because they
lack capacity to take it.
Looked Like Hulks.
The destroyers, grouped outside the
channel entrance yesterday. while wait
| ing their turn to come inside, had a
strange appearance. On account Ct
| their low deck and short tunnels. they
/ looked like the hulks of wrecked YES
| sels whose 'masts had been broken
/ short off
As the warships came into the mar
Dor the vessels at anchor dipped
their flags. Among these vessels we're
the Japanese training ship Taisei Ma
ru, the British ship Carrad3lc, the
| British ship Hollywood and Sha Ger
man bark Alexander Tsenberg. The
Commercial Pacific Cable Company IS
schooner Flaurence Ward was decked
out gaily with flags and pennants
The positions of the warships are as
follows: Alakea wharf, flagship West
Virginia and Maryland. Naval dock
| No. >, Pennsylvania. Naval dock NJ
n. Solace and destroyers Hull, Hopkins,
| Whipple and Truxtun. 1roquois berth,
, destroyers Perry and Preble. Alakea
wharf. DESTROYER Stewart. Oceanic