Evening star., 1914-04-05


of the National Guard of the District
of Columbia, will arrive here about
May l. Her departure from New York
has been dependent upon the movement
of the gunboat Isla de Luzon from st.
Louis. In turn, the movement of the
latter vessel has been dependent upon
the flood waters in the Mississippi
river.
For the last few days the waters in
the Mississippi river have been rising
rapidly Taking cognizance of the rise
the Navy Department ordered Com
mander Frank II. Schof1eld. u. s. N.
from Las Animas Col, to ST. Louis. to
prepare the gunboat for the trip to
New York and to keep the department
advised as to when the water Is high
enough for her to travel safely over
the fourteen sand bars between St
Louis and Cairo, where the deep water
begins When the water is nearing
the point where it will be safe to start
on the voyage, Il crew of regular jack
les will be sent from the Philadelphia
navy ward to the Isla de Luzon to man
her on her voyage to New York. 1t
will take about twenty-four hours for
them to reach st. Louis, and the ship
will be III condition for them to begin
the trip lust as soon as they get aboard.
1t is safe to say that the Luzon will
leave st. Louis about April Is, as AdJt:
Gen. Hamilton of the New York National
Guard. it is declared, has made arrange
ments to board the Isla de Luzon on that
date to make the voyage to New Orleans
with her 1t is pointed out that Gen.
Hamilton, whose boyhood days were
spent in the Mississippi valley, knows
pretty well when to expect rise in the
river.
AS soon as the LuZon casts off her
mooring lines at ST. Louis a board OF Of
acers of the local naval militia Will be
dispatched to New York to make an In
ventory Of the property aboard the Wasp.
SO that there may be no delay in that
direction. 1t is said at the Navy Depart
ment that arrangements can De made Tor
the New York naval militia to release
the Wasp just as soon as the Luzon
uokes her bow out of the Mississippi river
and starts across the gulf for the trip
up the coast for her new station at New
York. If everything goes as planned, 1t
is probable that Commander Joseph A
Dempf, commanding the Naval Battalion.
will pick "a crew of local naval militia
men to leave for New York between April
2l and "a. They will be required to take
charge of the vessel on it's trip down the
coast and up the Potomac to its new sta
ton at Washington. The Wasp is too
large to come through the Delaware ship
canal. as did the Sylvia on her voyage
from Philadelphia, thus making it neces-
= - --~~0
apeake capes.
Members Of the local Naval Battalion
are already beginning to talk about the
trip. and all are anxious to go. 1t is
nroba BILE that one deck division and the
lone division of steam engineers Will
be picked to go to New York to bring
the Wasp to Washington.
The Wasp is larger and better in
every way than the Sylvia, and will
enable the local naval militiamen to get
In large amount of valuable training
on her during the summer months. She
was one of the converted yachts pur-
chased during the Spanish-American
war for dispatch purposes. She was
purchased from private owners while
still In the shipyards. having been built
and commissioned in 1898.
OF steel hull. she Is American built.
having been constructed by William
Cramp & Sons at Philadelphia. On the
water line she measures 180 feet. has
a beam of 23 feet and a mean draft
of u feet. Her engines are good. of
the triple-expansion type. She is
capable Of developing a total maximum
horsepower of 1900, and of making a
speed of sixteen and a half knots. while
| the present vessel, the Sylvia, develops
onlv 165 horsepower, with a speed of
nine knots Her electric lighting plant
| is capable Of producing 1875 volts, while
| the Sylvia's plant produces only eighty.
| Her displacement is given as $50 tons,
and her bunkers hold seventy-nine tons
of coal She carries a battery of two
three-pounder rapid-fire guns.
Officers of the local naval militia be-
licve they are getting a fine vessel in the