New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-10-22

For the proposed new battle cruisers OF our
navy there have been selected such excellent
names as the Constitution, the Constellation
the Saratoga, the Lexington and the Ranger
names each Of which Is associated with snip
that won fame for itself and honor for our
flag. The first two in particular, wholly apart
from their glorious records and considered
merely as vessels, were as fine ships as any
that sailed on blue water. The French mad
, wonderful knack Of building fast sailing
ships, and many a fine English war vessel IN
the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries
was originally designed and built in French
government shipyard and still bore her
French name when fighting under English
colors. We were quite as skilful as the
French, and some of our Down East ship
builders were even more adept at turning out
frigates and sloops-of-war which were fast
on the wind, tho most valuable OF all points
Of sailing, as any boy knows who has sailed
a race in a catboat or a jib and mansail
craft, no matter how small.
During the War OF the Revolution, the war
with France for in 1898 and 1899 We carried
on a war with France, although it YVES not
officially recognized as suqh, one of those
de facto but not de jure conditions about
which lawyers delight in splitting hairs), the
war with the Barbsry pirates in the first
years Of the nineteenth century and in the
war with England in 1912 we sent many
cruiser to sea. The Ranger, small cruiser,
was Paul Jones's first ship, and believe she
was the first American warsnip that carried
the Stars and Stripes into British waters on
a hostile errand.
Frigates and Sioops-of.War
After the Revolution and in the last years
of01he eighteenth century We launched sew
eral frigates, among them the United States.
the Constitution and the Constellation, and
VIC built some sloops -of-war frigate was
warship with guns on two decks, that IL, on
the gun or main deck and the spar or upper
deck. Most frigates had a raised forecastle
and poop a method of constructing ship
which originated before the days Of Colum-
bus, when the forecastle was so named be-
cause IL was built, among other things, to
enable the crew to fight against an enemy
which had got upon the ships deck or waist
A sloop-of-war was only such in name and
not In rig She had her guns on the spar
deck and was what is known as Aush-decked;
from bow to stern, without poop or fore
castle. Again ! am writing for laymen:
sailormen who read this do not need such
explanations Those who have done me the
honor of reading my previous articles IN
The Tribune will remember that these desig-
nations Of warships lasted down to the days
OF the Civil War. The Colorado was
frirate; the Hartford and the Kearsarge were
sloops-of-war.
Now, cruisers In the early days were sail
ing warships often sent out singly on rowing
commission, and most frequently they were
frigates because OF their excellent sailing
qualities, and especially their speed and good
batteries, qualities which to-day, 1t will APP
pear later, apply to a modern cruiser. they
were sent to prey on an enemy's commerce
and to capture smaller vessels. They also
were sent to scout for the enemy's fleets and
TO report to their own superior officers on
the movement Of such fleets, trusting TO their
own speed and hardness not TO be captured
or destroyed. IL IN describing engagements
between fleets in those days we must refer
TO the English and French navies, since we
Possessed no feet of line-of-battle ships, when
il comes to the exploits OF cruisers, we, too,
have a long and splendid record from the
Ranger down to the Essex. | do not intend
to write a history of these glorious ships, but
do intend to refer briefly to several events
of which we have good reason TO be proud.
The victory of the Bon Homme Richard, the
ship Paul Jones got from the French after
he crossed the ocean in the Ranger land a
very poor ship the new one was), over the
Scraps is the greatest event at sea of the
American Revolutionary Navy. The Bon
Homme Richard was also cruiser.
In the war with the French Republic it