The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1910-07-28


thought that not less than 10000 ton
ship would satisfy the demands of the
navy. l told them that did not think
so, and illustrated my idea by the story
of the old man who wished his daughter
to marry a wealthy, steady-going man
of fifty years of age. She told him that
she had rather have two at twenty-five.
had the cheek to tell them that l could
take twenty ships of 1000 tons each and
sink and destroy the 10000 ton ship in
twenty minutes and send her to the bot
/ tom, provided there was water enough
in the Atlantic ocean. | then told them
that if the War of the Rebellion was to
| be fought over again the new navy is
not as well equipped for it as was the
old navy in 1865. Why? Too many big
ships and not enough small ones. The
big ships are nice in times of peace to go
around the world and terrorize other ma
/ tons, but in case Of war, and there are
inyasions to be made or to ward off, what
kind of show would 10000 ton ship
make in blockading the coast of Nova
Scotia in case of a war with England, or
what kind of defence would ship of
that size be to the coast of Maine in the
event of such a war, which is possible.
/ Why, such ship could not approach
with any degree of safety far inside
Mount Desert Rock. Her draught of
water would not be much less than ten
fathoms, sixty feet, while twenty one
thousand ton ships could put up quite
/ defence against any fleet or force that
could be sent against our dangerous rock
ribbed coast; or better yet, forty gun
boats of 500 tons each, about the size of
the gunboats Penobscot and katahdin,
built in this State during the war; and
which did excellent service both in block
aiding and fighting. Such a fleet could
defend our coast against almost anything
/ that could be sent against US, and yet
/ their combined tonnage would not equal
the one 10000 ton ship now in contem-
plation. Such ship could not enter
Penobscot bay with impunity. Have you
read the history of the U. S. navy during
the War of the Rebellion? How we had
one ship, the Minnesota, which was but
1900 TONS one-fifth the size of the one
IN contemplation, and yet she was too
large and drew too much water (28 feet)
for any practical use during that war.
She could not be gotten into the Missis-
sippi river to take part in the capture of
New Orleans, and she laid in Hampton
Roads during the entire war as the flag
ship of the North Atlantic blockading
squadron, and did not weigh her anchors
but once, and that was to 90 to the assist
ance OF the Cumberland and the Congress
when they We're attacked by the rebel
ram Merrimac, and she got aground and
lay at the mercy of the Merrmac until
the little Monitor came to her rescue
and saved her from destruction. At the
battle of Fort Fisher Admiral Porter
transferred his flag IRON that big ship
to the little Malvern, captured block
AIDE runner, and conducted the fight from
her decks, leaving the big ship at anchor
to ground on her beef bones III Hampton
Roads. Did you read the history of the
end of the rebel ram Virginia, or Merri-
mac, which can be found in the official
records of the United States and the
Confederate navies during the War of
the Rebellion? After the fight with the
Monitor she was destroyed by her Of
ticers, and those officers We're tried by
Confederate naval court martial held in
Richmond, and it came out in evidence
that she was destroyed not because she
was cut up and disabled in the fight with
the Monitor, but on account of her great
draught Of water they were unable to
get anywhere with her. Her very light
est draught was % 1-2 feet. She was
or Tered into the James river for the pro-
lection Of Richmond. They contemplated
running her out past Fortress Monroe
/ and to sea. They could not approach
Washington within forty miles on ac
count of her requiring % 1-2 feet of
water where there was only 16. She
could not approach Baltimore or Phila-
delphia for the same reason. She dare
not attempt to make a raid on Nav
York for two reasons: she was unsea-
worthy, and they knew that thousand
crafts of all descriptions would pounce
upon her and send her to the bottom be-
fore reaching that port. So she died OF
too much draught of water, and in my
opinion a 20, 900 ton ship would die of the
same complaint in case of war of in
vasion, and to my mind one of two things
are certain: either we of the old navy
are fools and gained no knowledge by the
light of experience, or the navy depart
ment and Congress have gone crazy on
the subject of naval science, and | am
inclined to the latter opinion. l saw that
| had interested them, but had convinced
no one. They thanked me, not for the
dissertation but for the history that |
had impaired and which appeared to be
new to them, and they no doubt will
keep on clamoring for the big ship, and
nothing will convince them but war of
invasion and 20, 900 ton ship which will