Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1916-11-09
"UncIe SANS" Chinese Wall.

Perhaps the strangest call ever piped
on a man-of-war was sounded on board
the United States steamship Petrel when
If lay at Marking China, during the win
ter of the China Japanese War. The
Petrol lay in the Yangtzee River; owing
TO a very severe season, the river had
frozen over to depth OF nearly two feet,
and the Petrol was solidly caught in the
ice. One morning, just after inspection,
the order came, "All hands ashore TO
make snow fortr Immediately the en-
tire crew came trooping over the gang
plank: coal passers, engineers, black
smiths, seamen, petty officers. Once
ashore, they rushed about, turbling one
another in the snow. washing one an-
others faces, shouting and laughing until
you would think Uncle Sans ship was a
boys boarding school.
Meanwhile the first lieutenant directed
two men who carried armtuls OF iron
rods with piece OF red cloth tied 10
each TO drive the rods into the ice when
the rods were in place they formed a
square, with the Petrol in the centre.
Then the lieutenant signaied 10 the
boa atswain, who piped the Delay T.
The gun captains gathered their crews
together and ordered them 10 roll snow
balls. Starting with handful OF snow,
each man rolled until he could go no
farther; then he would call messmate,
and The two would roll the constantly in
creasing ball until il grew so large that
they might have 10 summon two or three
more men 10 roll il into place. The balls
were placed in double rows, and then
the coal passers, with their shovels, filled
in the space between the two rows with
loose snow; the rest OF the crew raced
up and down between the two rows,
trampiug dowr the snow as the coal
passers threw il in. Thus was built the
base OF a great snow wall.
Rolling more balls, the men laid tier
after tier, filling in and tramping down
the space between until they had all
round the Petrel wall sixteen feet high,
eight feet through al the base and live
feet through al the top 1t took three
DAYS to build the wall, and the men en-
ioyed the novel labor so much that they
were reluctant even TO knock off work
for their meals
On the third day the men, with their
shovels, shaped the wall, filled all the
crevices with snow and shaved OFT the
rough places until the sides were as
straight and smooth as wall OF marble.
Then they led out the fire hose and, turn
ing on gentle stre'm Of water. drenched
the fortification thoroughly.
The next morning what had been a
great wall OF soft, white snow was huge
monolith OF gIistening ice. The sailors
were out in hurry, scratching and jab-
biug at the ice, until every mothers son
had his name, with place and date OF
birth, all the boats he had served on, and
his entire seafaring history. inscribed on
the ice.
But the fort was not built merely TO
amuse the jack-tars. The Petrol was
stationed at Marking to protect The Amer
ican consul and tile other American citi-
zens who lived there. After the wall
had been completed, two six-pounders
and Gattling gun were rigged in each
OF the PetrePS fighting tops; by elevating
her heavy guns on the deck below she
had any attacking party at her mercy. A
man could not climb the icy wall even II
he got to it. In case OF trouble, the light
guns in the tops could keep the enemy at
a distance. while the heavy guns could
shell the city.