The San Francisco call., 1908-05-07

destroyers arrived at Rio to find the
fleet at anchor there.
PRECEDEs THE FLEET
The hoti1la left Rio ahead of the fleet
after stay of three and a half days,
during which all hands worked almost
day and night to get the little ships in
shape for the work before them
Four days We're spent at Buenos
Aires, where the fiotilla was ordered at
the solicitation of the Argentine gov
ernment. The fotilla was met at the
mouth of the River Platte by an Ar
gentine fotilla of six torpedo boats,
who led the way to port, where the
Yankee destroyers remained four days.
There was little work to be done on the
boats and the visit was given up to
entertainment. an art in which the
American officers and men found their
hosts to be past masters. Buenos Aires
wanted the big fleet. Failing. that the
people concentrated all their efforts
on the fotilla and the men on the de-
stroyers will never forget IT,
When the fiotilla reached Punta
Arenas and the men from the destroy
ers went ashore they found that the
fleet had cleaned out the entire supply
of postal cards. furs and feathers The
fiotilla left without a souvenir The
destroyers and the fleet left Punta
Arenas together.
Chilean warship led the way
through the straits and three destroy
ers skirted along on either side of the
batleships. Flotilla and fleet parted
company near the Pacific end OF the
straits. the fleet going straight ahead
to the Pacific through the main chan
mel, the fotilla taking the inside canal.
EXPERIENCE is ENCHANTING
This 400 mile cruise through the in
side waters the officers describe as the
most enchanting experience of the big
voyage. In places the channel was no
wider than destroyer's length. The
banks were walls of rock that rose
perpendicular for hundreds of feet.
Every bend in the canal opened a vista
of new wonders. On board the Whip
pie was Captain Rosas of the Chilean
navy, who had just completed survey
of these tortuous straits and whose
offer to pilot the fotilla had been glad
ly accepted Captain Rosas is CRATE
fully remembered as a skillful pilot
and rare good fellow.
Torpedo boat destroyers carry no
luxuries such as ice making machines,
and as even in cold weather. the in
side of a destroyer is more or less
tropical ice is almost a necessity. Ice,
however. had been very scarce with
the flotilla. The iceman of South
America WHOLESALERS his product at 10
cents pound, and as the fiotilla car
ried no money kings the butter had
been served in cream pitchers most of
the time since leaving Trinidad. While
steaming through the inside canal one
of the officers on the Whippie re-
marked as he poured out the butter:
'Oh, for chunk of icet'
DO YOU want some ice?' asked Cap
tain Rosas.
groan went round the table and
the Chilean officer was asked to re-
frain from joking on a serious subject.
But l mean it," he said. .sand to-
morrow l will get you some; all you
want"
SECURE ICE FROM GLACIER
He did. The fiotilla anchored in a
place where the channel widened and
the captain showed them a glacier
that was pelting a distant part of the
channel with real ice Boats were
launched and when the fotilla weighed
anchor an hour later every destroyer
carried a supply of ice that at South
American prices would have made all
hands wealthy
At Talcahuano. where Chile main
tains naval station, the hotilla re-
NAMED 10 days and officers and men
got the first real rest since leaving
Hampton roads They were treated
with the utmost cordiality by the
Chileans, who gave the officers of the
1otilla banquet aboard the Chilean
cruiser Esmeralda
The ffotilla reached Callao the day
after the departure of the fleet. Near
ly a week was spent at Panama. where
officers and men were given the time
Of their lives. They found there a lot