The Raymer enterprise., 1913-09-25

ls The battleship Ohio still in the Atlantic
feet but slated to leave in the near future never
to return.
II The commerce destroyer Columbia so long
missing in the news OF the navy that genera
ton has grown up that knows her not. and she
was OF the flying squadron OF 1898.
IS The commerce destroyer Minneapolis
speed record breaking cruiser OF the late ninetes.
a sister OF the Columbia and like her, OF the
flying squadron of 1895.
10 The monitor Amphitrte.
90 The monitor Miantonomah.
81 The monitor Monadnock
%. The monitor Cheyenne, formerly the Wyo-
ming,
90. The monitor Ozark, formerly the Arkan.
sas.
vada
25 The monitor Tallahassee, formerly ths
Florida.
20. The minotor Puritan.
-. The monitor Terror.
IS The monitor Monterey.
20 The protected cruiser st. Louis.
30 The protected cruiser Charleston
II The protected cruiser Milwaukee.
80 The protected cruiser Newark.
49, The protected cruiser Chicago.
a. The protected cruiser Cincinnati.
25 The protected cruiser Raleigh, Coghlan'i
ship at Manila
&c. Twenty.eight torpedo boats.
Twenty years ago this feet OF sixty.three ships
would have been match for any naval organiza-
ton then anoat with the exception Of the fleet OF
Great Britain Today all the vessels In 1t could
not last half an hour in battle with the five
dreadnaughts that constitute the great first diyi'
sion OF the United States Atlantic feet
And this mighty fleet Of naval has.beens' cost
the United States government more than $l29,-
100000 and the oldest among them. not including
the old monitors Is not yet twenty-five years old.
The battleshps in 1t to build and equip cost the
government 64.i35,225, and the cruisers mon
ltors and torpedo craft raise the total TO the
Sl2g0OO,OOO
What will become OF these ships? Some are
now In reserve and there they will stay until
their end Is decided upon. VIII that end be the
target range the auction block and the junk
pile. or will they be permitted to rust away In
navy yards nominally as units In reserve fleets
but in reality as useless reminders OF navy
that In Its day was great but which. owing to
marvellous progress in naval construction, has
reached quickly Jut surely that state OF obsolete.
ness from which there can be no ome.back.'
The Oregon and the Olympia will probably be
retained for generations TO come as glorious re.
minders to Americans OF future years Of the
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 feet 1t will be
noted that there Is included the entire fourth
division OF the great feet that circumnavlgated
the globe In 1907 and 1905 This division was
made up OF the Alabama, the flagship OF Sperry
when he began the voyage as n division com.
mander: the Kentucky, the Kearsarge and the
Illinois In that fleet three OF the vessels OF the
third division are 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 as EN-
bodying all that was best In the construction and
equipment OF modern menof.war Of the battle
ship class
The Atlantic feet when It sailed out OF Hamp
ton Roads In December, 1907, was made up Of
sixteen frstclass battleships, and n look at the
makeup OF the organization shows that In pc
Rod OF less than six years seven, or lacking one
OF exactly half Of those famous ships, have been
relegated into the reserve the first stepping
stone that leads to Junk pile and oblivion.
LESS FOLIAGE.
This is great age"