The Washington herald., 1914-07-15
QUIT BERMUDA;
STAND TO GUNS!
District Naval Battalion OFF
for Tangiier Sound and
Target Practice.
ISLES BARE OF CORAL
Keys Of Hamilton Turned Over to
Sailor Boys and Souvenir Cranks
ISLES BARE OF CORAL
ny IRWIN BARBOUR,
stan Correspondent with the District Naval
Battalion.

stan Corepondeut with the District naval
Battalion.
Hamilton, Bermuda. July 1o-Havinl
bearded the British lion in his den ant
braved the onion, on its native heath. the
District Naval Battalion feels equal tS
most anything. even the return voyag,
TO Hampton Roads and that is saying
a good deal after watching some Of them
on the way out.
All the way down the grand. old At
lantic broke over the bow Of the Rhode
Island in CLASSY mountains. It was what
naval officers wer pleased to call chop
py.' but the District boys designated 1t
as plain rough" and let II go at that.
After the first day or SO. however, few
were sick. except that officer we were
stations when the various ships drills
were signalled-
Gun Drills Ordered.
Even in the heaviest sea after the first
l day or so the men were In the turrets
when the gun drills were ordered, and
with sQueegee and holystone they kept
the deck as clean as an F street beauty's
manicured hand. which, IL we do say Il
And SO the voyage down passed by in
an incredibly short space. Coming into
Bermuda waters SO clear that we could
see our own propellers churning US for
ward, and so blue that IL reminded US OF
| nothing so much as the blueing tub on
washdays, We caught our first sight
Of the wonderful isles.
Naval etiquette Is a great and glorious
| thing. Never have We realized this so
4 R@A A.
! First piloted in through twisting chan
mel. by a individual who looked like a
! bewhiskered replica of Drake. OF the
| old>golden days. We passed an ancient,
! musty fortress that rose from out the
I blue sea on a coral strand Of chalky
white. AS the Rhode Island crept by,
| from way up ford her guns spoke
| noisy salute to the British flag. which
| few at her masthead, In honor Of the
nation to which her sailormen were to
pay a visit. Twenty-one times the guns
| spoke, and twenty-one times echo an
swered from the verdant hills. Then
(! there was what seemed to be an inter-
minable wait 1t looked like another
Tampico incident. or something like that.
Then the British guns spoke. From half
up a sloping hill a pun Of white smoke
/ floated In the morning air, the rever-
beration doomed dull over the waters.
Twenty-one times the six-pounders, and
then after a long time a British officer
came out to meet US in a steam launch.
He was attired just as perfectly as II he
had Just been having tea In the Hurting
ham Club. where the polo cup is except
for his hat He wore what is commonly
known along Pennsylvania avenue as an
'old cove hat. which, on closer investi-
CATION. We found is quite the proper
thing in Bermuda
Exchange Of Visits.
After the regulation salute had passed
and the band had played. God Save the
King" and the British officer, who turn
ed out TO be a lleutenant-beg pardon
left-tenant, with the accent on the south
paw, had paid his respects. and had had
EN- paid to him in return, Capt. Williams
went sailing of somewhere in a steam
cutter. and greeted the commander IN
charge of the naval station, and the
captain Of the cruiser Lancaser which
happened TO be In the harbor. and maybe
the governor general, too, for all we
know, and then most Of them came back
and paid their respects to him. those
aboard were granted shore leave.
Half an hour or SO later We dropped
up by the postoffice and there we found
souvenir postcards going out by the
hundreds to sweethearts in every port.
Inside an hour after landing the sailors
regulars and militia-owned the town.
The island was bare Of coral except
for its coral foundations within an hour
after the men landed. Coral belt buckles
for sister, coral pins for Mabel. coral in
all shapes and lots OF other things be-
sides coral were purchased for souvenirs.
The police Just turned the town over to
the Sailors and they didn't abuse the
privilege. Not one woke up in the Gala
bOose or. excuse us, gaol, as it is known
down here.
Now its ahoy for Tangier Sound and
target practice. and then back to Wash
ington and "reminiscences.
just One Drill After Another.
Life on board ship on the voyage down !
was just one drill after another. There |
were gun drills. physical drills. fire
drills, collision drills, and night torpedo
attack defense drills at the searchlights |
For the District battalion in the search !
light drills. Commander Dempf was on
the signal bridge: Paymaster Johns. and |
Ensign F. l. Nudge. in charge Of search |
lights: Lieut.. A. w. Burns, Lieut. B. c. |
Getsinger. and Lieut.. F. G. Sigourney, |
in charge Of guns, and Lieut.. D. C. God !
win, in charge Of stations. Ensign P. V. |
Thompson and Ensign w. J. wheatlSy |
were stationed In the turrets.
The first day or so was fairly easy for |
the battalion, that is. except for some of |
those in the engineers division who were |
kept busy passing coal. but the day be- |
fore we reached Bermuda the boys were
routed out early. 1t was field day"
aboard ship and everything from the |
coal hole to the fighting top was made !
TO shine like a new quartef. The militia |
men from the District. North Carolina, |
Pennsylvania and New Jersey were kept |
busy cleaning ship and when they were
through We could have lain down on !
deck without serious results to our new |
linens. |
The District gun crews will man from |
three-inch guns at the target practice |
in Tangier Sound. They have had daily |
practice in the turrets and are conf |
dent, the engineers especially, of bring |
ing home the trophy. Loading and dot |
ter" drills were the regular thing all the |
way down.