The National tribune., 1910-10-06


pencil. Il would wager almost any
thing" he declared, that this manu-
script was written by a Washington
High School boy" When asked why
he said: Because he can't SPELL
/ The work of raising the Maine from
Havana Harbor has commenced. Forty
five divers have been busily engaged fol
several days. Several bodies have beer
found in the cabin of the Maine, bu
remain untouched, following Capt. Fer
guson's orders.
The engineering experts of the Navy
are interested in the development fol
naval purposes of the internal combus.
ton engine supplied with gas from q
gas producer installed on shipboard, and
renewed activity may be expected or
our part with the news that Great Brit
ain has placed or will place such equip
ment in one of its large warships.
Congress will be asked for authority
TO divert s250,000 from the present APP
preparation for steam machinery to the
gas engine upon one of our naval col
liers. The naval experts believe that
the gas engine is worthy of more serious
investigation and experiment than has
yet been given to it in our Navy, and 1t
is thought that there can be designed
marine plant composed of gas produc-
erS using soft coal and furnishing gas
for powerful ship -prOpelling engines.
Such a plant, it is estimated, would be
of less weight and would take up less
room than steam boilers and engines
for corresponding horsepower.
Plans and specifications for the one
battleship and six tOrpedo-boat destroy
ers to be built in pursuance of the last
naval appropriation act. will be avail
able to intending bidders about Oct. /.
They will be given about two and one
half months to figure on the battleShip,
and therefore bids for the vessel will
probably not be opened before Dec. Is.
Bids for the two fleet collierS will also
be called for soon after the issue of
advertisements for the battleship and
destroyers, and bids for the submarines
are yet to be requested
Former L. S. Senator Rufus Blodgett
is thought to be dying at his home in
Long Branch, n. J. Mr.. Blodgett has
been Superintendent of the New York
& Long Branch Railroad for quarter
of a century. He defeated the late Leo
Abbott for United States Senator in1S87.
Hamilton King. Minister to Siam
from the United States is in very crit
ical condition at Johns Hopkins Hospi-
tai in Baltimore. He underwent an
operation a few weeks ago. but is be-
lieved to be improving. Mr.. Kings
home is in Michigan
There were people tearing their hair
down at the Treasury Department the
other day. A hundreddollar bill got
loose, and the hustle to find it was SIM
ply a tragedy. A clerk in the Pension
Office wanted to give hundred-dollar
IL l.. I.,,-
ent He sent Jackson, the colored mes
senger of the Commissioner of Pensions,
down to the Treasury Department with
a lot of small change to get new 500
bill Jackson, instead of putting the
bill in his pocket, as he thought he had.
tucked it into a wrinkle in his shirt. 1t
spilled out. and landed on the floor of
the Treasury Department. When Jack
son discovered his loss he nearly had
fit. He hustled back to the Treasury
however, and there they
told him il could not have gone far if it
wanted to. 1t had been picked up by
the time he got back, and put back in
the vaults with the expectation that
whoever had lost it would come after it.
Former Representative John F. Shaf-
roth and now Governor of Colorado,
has been nominated for reelection by
the Democratic State Convention.
Despite the awful accident on the
North Dakota the other day those who
go down to the sea in ships are quite
over the use of gasoline
and oil. Charles r. Flint, merchant.
banker and steamship line protector,
returned from Europe the other day
filed full of the idea of oil burners He
says:
The lighter weight Of the power
plant means that more weight can be
devoted to ordnance and amor" said
Mr.. Flint; more weight to fuel, and
a larger steaming radius
and greater speed Guns can be placed
in positions now taken by smokestacks,
and the gasoline dreadnought will drive
the steam dreadnought from the seas"
The frightfuI accident on the North
part of the Atlantic fleet. off the
Virginia Capes, has now been decided
to have been due to faulty design and
1t is stated by naval Off
GERS who investigated the accident that
10 days in the Navy Yard will be suffi-
cient time to~restore her to her former
condition. Lieut-Commander Mervin
and the members of the fire-roOm crew
have been exonerated from al blame
Ten million sheets of internaI-revenue
having face value Of about $1,000, ,0Oe,
have just been destroyed at the Bureau
of Engraving and Printing
These stamps had been distributed
among Sc Internal-Revenue Collectors.
but were made useless by the increased
tax imposed by the Payne-Aldrich tariff
act, the increase taking effect on July l
last.
The count of the 100000 sheets
was begun July II by a special commit
tee composed of Mrs. +. J. Brown, Miss
J. Gleason, Miss s. Walsney and Miss M.
Baulsir, appointed by Secretary of the
Treasury MacVeagh. The count was
completed several weeks ago, and then
the stamps were burned in bundles of
ton day.
The great-grandfather of Mrs. VIM
III. Taft, Gen. Oliver Collins was Dromi-
nent in the Revolutionary War, and the
Daughters of the American Revolution
recently placed Revolutionary marker
over the dust Of the General, who sleeps
in Middle Settlement Cemetery, a few
miles south of Utica N Y
Up to the present time it Is noted
that three splendid veterans of the war
of the rebellion have been turned down
at the primaries for denomination TO
the National House os Representatives.
Very shortly the Confederate veterans
in the House will largely exceed those
who fought for the Union
Two historic vessels on the naval list
have been ordered To be sold They are
the Bennington and the Eagre The
Bennington is the craft On which an
explosion occurred in San Diego Harbor
four years ago, resulting in heavy loss