The Washington herald., 1914-07-08
FEELING
QUEER AMIDsHIPs
Ocean Isn't the Only Thing
!. Likely to Rise. Naval
Militia Thinks.
D. c. MEN SOME ST0KERS
It's Ho for the Atlantic Now. with En-
gineers Division Trying to Shovel
Coal in Battleship's Hole.
By IRWIN RARDoUR,

shh Correspondent with the District Naval Militia.
On Board Battieship Rhode Island. July
1.-The weIl-known ocean il rising up
on all sides. and the ocean isn't the
only thing that is likely to rise, IL what
some of the rockies were telling us
awhile ago is true. And the rockies
ought to know their own feelings better
than anybody else. On the whole. though.
the men of the District and North Caro-
lima naval militia, especially the vet
erans of previous cruises, are beginning
to fit in with the ships company, and
the rockies are breaking in" well. The
bluejackets and militiamen are frater-
mixing as much as regulars and volun-
teers ever fraternize. And the grand old
dove of peace hovers over all
Commander Joseph A. Dempf of the
District battalion is right In his element
Ever since the militiamen left Seventh
street wharf Commander Dempf has
been uttering strange, notwithstanding
phrases which seem to mean something
TO the boys under his command, but
which are a foreign language TO those
of US who know the sea principally by
hearsay and Atlantic City.
District Men First on BOARD.
The District battalion was the first of
] the naval militia reserves 10 board the
4 hnOQe lElAnQ. dl Oio VIM
early yesterday morning. the men i'm
mediately put off in cutters and by noon
all had been distributed about the ship
| according to their respective ratings.
Shortly after noon along came the North
Carolina reserves, $50 strong. and by 3
O'Clock in the afternoon the Rhode Island
had up-anchored and was off, leaving
the renowned and justly popular capes-
Charles and Henry. in the distance. To-
I Dal Aa CNTlN FaV,ia
and New Jersey reserves came aboard.
and then it's no. or words to that eff
feet, for Bermuda, and a long sail on
the smooth breast of the Atlantic-at
least we hope it's a smooth breast
Down in the bowels OF the ship some
! where there is a steady rumbling as Of
q giant in his death agony, and which
We are reliably informed are the engines,
and up here on deck there is a duiver-
ing. and over the side the ocean Is roll
ing like a giant pond of oil. enough to
make John d. turn green with envy to
look at it. All of which things have a
strange and alien effect upon the human
anatomy.
We were strolling along the deck, all
logged out in our new checkered cap a
minute or so ago, when who should We
meet but one of the recruits with whom
we had chummed a bit on the way down
from Washington.
well, old top" we remarked casually,
| ''how's every little thing?''
Cheese, cheese" came the hoarse re-
ply. ''Off that stun. Whaddye want me
to do? Shoot Il here?"
Swallows His BoastfuIness.
And that very same young man was
telling us only a few short hours ago
that a life on the ocean wave was the
| life for him, and he was rolling, rolling
over the bounding Potomac at a con-
versational rate OF about a mile a min
= ute.
The engineers division Of the District
| battalion, forty-siX strong. was in
| troduced to the engines of the
Rhode Island yesterday afternoon, and
now, clad in greasy dungarees. the
men, most of whom help TO build the
very same kind of engines at the Navy
Yard, are oiling and tinkering and throw
| ing around coal at a great rate. Two
| gunners' crews also made the acquaint-
| ance of several guns of large proportions
under the Jurisdiction of the regulats in
| charge Of the guns. and now they are
plotting to put that trophy which is
! being offered by the Navy Department
for the best target work done by naval
militia organizations this year on the
mantel down in a red brick building at
the foot of Seventh street