New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-08-13
1.-THE OLD NAVY


Seventy-fve years ago last year the oh''ea
States launched its first two modern meh-ol-
war-the Missouri and the Mississippi. lhey
wers not our first steam war vessels, lot
Fulton, in 1914, had constructed the Demo-
logos, a floating battery, propelled by
naddIe wheel in the centre of the ship and
working in a we'll on a line with the keel
This wonderful craft, which Is depicted IN
some detail in Stuarts book on Naval ana
Mail Steamers of the United States, actua!ly
did steam outside of Sandy Hook. making
from four to five knots an hour. But she was
far ahead of her time, and she was laid up az
the New York Navy Yard, where she was uit'-
mately completely destroyed by FIRE.
When say the Demologos was far ahead OF
her time | am reminded Of what Kenmore
Cooper says in his introduction to the HIS
tory of the United States Navy" written IN
May, 1889. He there draws very dismal
picture Of the application of steam power for
the propulsion of warships. He says, toward
the end of his remarks on the subject: I'm
word. while the introduction of steam into
naval warfare will greatly modify maritime
operations, it is by no means likely to erect
the revolution that is supposed" Cooper had
previously asserted that Like most novel and
bold propositions, this new doctrine has OBJ
tanned advocates, who have yielded their con-
yictions to the influence of their imaginations,
rather than to the influence of reflection
Even in estimating the power of steam YES
sells in Gains. as opposed to single ships of no
great force, there is much exaggeration, as
historical facts will amply prove"
A False Prophet
Cooper had been a naval officer himself; he
was a man of considerable ability; but above
all, he was imaginative, as his sea novels and
his Indian tales most clearly show He must
have seen great many large river and
Sound steamboats, in the harbor of New York,
for by 1889 steamers to Albany and Proyi-
dence were very numerous. Coastwise steam
ships were far from being a novelty, and
ocean steamers were already in existence.
even il not as yet very successful or prac-
teal The United States Navy had one steam
warship, the Fulton II, which was not at all a
failure, and which, after being cut down
Traced, as the old term goes, was afoat
until 1901. mus, at HrSt DIuSn, IL seems
strange that Cooper should have taken the
view he did, when no longer actually under
the influence of the sailing navy and its
traditions. But let it be remembered that
from the days of the Argonauts and of the
Phenicans, who first sailed around the Cape
Of Good Hope. until only generation before
Cooper wrote, vessels had never been driven
at sea for any great distance except by sail
power, and the development of the steam
engine on shore was in its infancy Even so
wonderful man as Napoleon, who had no as
sociations whatever with the sea, failed to
grasp the advantage of steam power on ships;
but let us leave it to those who write novels
to describe what might have happened to the
history of the world had Napoleon let Fulton
build him feet Of steam vessels
1t was not easy for sailor to cast aside
all his traditions of thousands of years for
new notion, and it will be seen later on that
fifty years after Cooper wrote what | have
quoted the old traditions were chung to by all
navies as far as sails are concerned For
when even we built our new navy we gave
vessels like the Chicago and Newark, al
though twin-screw ships, fairly full rig,
either ship or bark There might be an ex-
cuse for sails on a single-screw vessel, but on
q twin-screw ship an excuse would be hard to
find.