The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1911-12-19

| DRY cherished wherever the American
| flag floats. The United Daughters OF
the Confederacy love the flag and are
proud that the nation so honored thel"
state as to name a manor war Tor
her; but prouder still that their state
possessed a man of such marked
ability and influence that he could, 'hN
one letter, accomplish what former
public men for years failed to do. Ihat
letter profoundly impressed the presi-
dent of the United States and the sec
retary of the navy, and as it gives an
insight to the character Of the man.
take occasion to read II:
LETTER TO THE SECRETARY.
UNITED STATES SENATE.
Washington, Feb. 14th, 1908
Ny Dear Mr.. Secretary; Believing
that the present congress VIII provide
for the construction of several new
battleships. in order that our country
may have an adequate navy, guarantor
of an honorable peace, and insurer, OF
victory if war should come, i have
taken the liberty OF addressing YOU
this letter to ask that one of such bat
tleships be christened the Florida
1t is my information that the single
turretted monitor named Florida ia
now being used as a practice target,
and therefore condemned for offensive
or defensive service to the country in
time of war or further use actually or
potentially. in time of peace.
Did not have the honor, Mr.. Secre-
tary. to represent the proud and pa
triotic people of the state Of Florida in
the United States senate, and be m
tereSted for. that reason, IN writing
you as / shall herein, / believe that
my sense of the fitness of things de-
rived from the study of the varying
and interesting history of Florida
| would impel me to suggest to you the
naming of one of these proposed bat
tleships for the state of Florida.
However this may be. the present
use, of the old discarded single tur
reted monitor Florida, as a target, is
not the sort of target that the state o.
Florida would choose for the ship that
is to represent upon the high seas the
invincible spirit of her sovereign peo-
pie. If the bearer of her, name is TO
be used as a target, her people would
prefer that it be as n great battleshi1
in the forefront and thickest of a real
fight, a target for the bullets of this
country'S enemies.
I do not mean to seem ungrateful,
Mr.. Secretary, or to represent the peo-
pie of Florida as ungrateful for the
naming of the monitor Florida" but
l can most emphatically assure You
i that no one could cause more sincere
| throb of patriotic pride in the loyal
| hearts of the people of Florida than
! would be caused by you in the naming
i of one of these battleships as herein
suggested. Conjured up in their minds
| would be the inspiring picture of a
| magnificent battleship of the first
| class, fiuttering the Stars and Stripes
| and with a bone in her teeth, facing
practically or aggressively as occasion
| demanded, a friendly or hostile world
| l am confident that If her officers
| and men should at ali imbibe the
| Florida" spirit. victory would in every
case be foreordained.
There are many reasons for naming
one of these new battleshipss for the
| state of Florida, which occur to me as
| l write, which i am satisfied will nat
/ urally Jsuggest themselves to YOU and
! conclusively determines you toS grant
{; this request. l ask it, not merely be-
| cause Florida contains the Oldest city
in the United States, or the most ex-
| tensive seacoast of any state in the
! Union, not only because Of a most in
| teresting and unique history, from the
| time Ponce de Leon made his search
| for the tabled fountain, on down
| through Spanish, French, English, In
dian, American, Border and Ctvif wars;
| not for the fame it has achieved in
| song, sentiment or story, nor because
! of the weird witchery of it's moss
hung live oaks. nor the far-famed balm
| of its sunny cline, but rather her peo-
| Pile possess, and believe the members
| or her crew and officers of the first
| class battleship Florida, would acquire
also, that invincible spirit which char
/ acteriZed the earlier contestants- for
the dominion of her territory, which
| demanded Old Hickory himself as her
| first provisional governor, which sus
| tanned her own gallant son, j. J. Dick
! enson, when in the war between the
| states he did what no other comman-
| der had ever done, charged and cap
| tured with his cavalry a federal gun
| boat, and which despite disasters OF
war, epidemics of disease, calamitoIs
visitations of freezes, wholesale de
| struction by fire. is causing the state
| of Florida at last to enter into her
| own as one of the greatest of the sis
| terhood of states, earnest and honest
| in all that goes 10 make a state great
| and powerful, unsurpassed in the pa
| triotism of her loyal sons and devoted
| daughters. ~
With great respect for all the othe-
| rames that may be suggested to You
| and with due Difference to your opinion.
I submit, Mr.. Secretary, no worthier
name could be chosen than Florida"
for one of Americas great defenders.
Respectfully.
w. ]. BRYAN.
| Honorable Victor II. Metcalf,
Secretary u. S. Navy,
| Washington, d. G.
NATIONS LOVE EXPRESSED