The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-05-17
He WAS A JACKIE
George Wharton Returns After
Long Service in Navy.
Enlisted as Boy, Comes Back
a Full Grown Man.
MANY LONG CRUISES.
Visited Alaska and Ports in the
Orient.
Has Not Decided Whether He
Will Reenlist.
MANY LONG CRUISES.

| A growing boy changes so in the
| course of few months that it is no
wonder that George Wharton, Topeka
| boy who returned home last week after
| five years in the navy, was not recog-
nized by his mother and sister who
/ went to the railway station to meet
| him.
but of course" his mother says in
explanation and extenuation, ':it was
| not very light and he had his hat
pulled down on his forehead and L had
no idea he would have grown so TALL
Wharton is the son of Mrs. B. M.
Wharton of 1919 Lane street, and is
fine looking, manly chap. who was
| twenty-one years old April A. just three
days before he was discharged from
| the navy after almost six years service
as a seaman He enlisted in Kansas
| City and was sent to San Francisco.
| For the first nine and half months
| in the service he was at the San Fran
cisco training station learning the
| duties of a seaman, which include row.
| ing and swimming and navigation and
many other things. Then he was as
| signed to the Buffalo with which he
| made a cruise to Unalaska, and the
Comodorsl5i islands in the Behring sea,
Midway island (half way between San
Francisco and Guam) and Honolulu.
| Returning to Frisco the Topeka boy
| was transferred to the receiving ship
| Independence at Mare Island, where he
| spent a few months before he was as
| signed to duty On the Ohio. In April,
| 1905, he started on a long cruise with
| the ASiatfc squadron and before he re-
turned had visited Honolulu, Guam, the
Philippines. Japan, and China. The
IOhio was the flag ship Of the squadron
which was stationed much of the time
| at the Philippine ports from which it
made cruises to China and Japan and
| among the islands. 1t was during this
| cruise that Rear Admiral Train, in
| command of the squadron died. His
| death occurred at Chi-Fu, China, and
the Ohio, escorted by the entire squad
ron, took his body through the inland
| sea of China to Yokohama, where 1t
was sent home on one of the Empress
! steamers.
| Wharton was 10 months on the Ohio
at the end of which time he was trans
ferred to the Mohican. stationed at
| OIongapo, P. l.. 60 miles from Manila
and the next Is months he divided be-
tween the Mohican and Monadnock.
He was then sent back to San Francisco
on an army transport and again assign
4 ed to the receiving ship Independence
1 in San Francisco bay In July of last
wear he was assigned to the South Da-
| kota. of the Pacific fleet which in Aug
| ust started on a cruise to the South
Sea Islands. Each battleship in the
fleet towed torpedo boat The first
port was Honolulu where they spent ten
| days.
! From there they went to Pago Page,
Samoa An incident of the voyage from
Honolulu to Samoa was the crossing of
the equator with the horseplay cere-
monies which make it a memorable
| event in the seaman's life. The cere-
monies include the election of mem
Der of the crew to the Office of Nep-
tunus Rex and complete staff of lesser
| officials, and the new men who are
crossing the line for the first time are
| put through an ordeal prescribed by
| the sailors traditions, and ending in a
| backward plunge into a tank of water
| erected for that purpose on the fore
castle. Every man thus initiated is
given a certificate to that effect which