The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1913-09-27

1s The battleship Ohio, still in the Atlantic
feet. but slated to leave b the near future never
to return.
IL The commerce destroyer Columbia so long
missing in the news of the navy that a genera
ton has grown up that knows her not. and she
of the flying squadron of 1898.
IS The commerce destroyer Minneapolis, a
speed breaking cruiser OF the late nineties.
sister of the Columbia and, like her, OF the
flying squadron OF 1895
10. The monitor Amphtrite.
20. The monitor Miantonomah-
81. The monitor Monadnock.
20. The monitor Cheyenne. formerly the Wyo-
ming
23. The monitor Ozark. formerly the Arkan-
"a. The monitor Tonopah, formerly the Nc
vada.
25 The monitor Tallahassee formerly the
Florida.
26 The minotor Puritan.
81. The monitor Terror.
2s The monitor Monterey
% The protected cruiser St Louis
30 The protected cruiser Charleston.
81. The protected cruiser Milwaukee.
3o The protected cruiser Newark.
33. The protected cruiser Chicago.
"a The protected cruiser Cincinnati
30. The protected cruiser Raleigh Coghlani
ship at Manila
36. Twenty-eght torpedo boats.
Twenty years ago this fleet of sixty-three shipA
would have been a match for any naval organfza-
Great Britain. To-day all the vessels in it could
not last half an hour in battle with the five
dreadnaughts that constitute the great first divi-
sion Of the United States Atlantic fleet.
And this mighty fleet of naval has beens" cost
the United States government more than $129.-
600 900 and the oldest among them, not including
the old monitors, is not yet twenty-five years old.
The battleships in it to build and equip cost the
government $64 1925 and the cruisers, mon
itors and torpedo craft raise the total to the
sl2e 100000.
What will become of these ships? Some are
now in reserve and there they will stay until
their end is decided upon. Will that end be the
target range or the auction block and the junk
pile or will they be permitted to rust away In
navy yards nominally units in reserve fleets
but in reality useless reminders Of navy
that in its day was great but which, owing to
marvellous progress in naval construction, has
reached quickly but surely that state of obsolete
ness from which there can be no comeback"
The Oregon and the Olympia will probably be
retained for generations to come as glorious re-
minders to Americans OF future years Of tho
navy that won immortality In the brief conflict
that wiped Spain OF the map OF the western
world and which added to American territory an
island empire in the far east and won\ for this
country for the first time full, free recognition
by all the nations OF the world Of the right to be
numbered among those powers whose mission
and influence is world wide"
In the lineup of the has BEEN fleet 1t will be
noted that there is included the entire fourth
division Of the great feet that circumnavigated
the globe In 1907 and 1905 This division was
made up Of the Alabama, the flagship Of Sperry
when he began the voyage division COM
mander; the Kentucky, the Kearsarge and the
illinois, In that feet three Of the vessels OF the
third division now also listed among the
obsolete fighters, the ships in question being the
Ohio the Missouri and the Maine, all sister ships
and in their day held up to the world en-
bodyine all that best In the construction and
equipment Of modern menofwar Of the battle
ship class.
The Atlantic feet when it sailed out of Hamp-
ton Roads in December. 1907, made up Of
sixteen frst-class battleships. and look at tho
makeup Of the organization shows that in q Pc
riod of less than six years seven. lacking one
of exactly half Of those famous ships have been
relezated into the reserve. the first stepping.
stone that leads to junk pile and oblivion.
LESS FOLIAGE.
This il a great age"