Middletown transcript., 1917-05-19

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1 suppose that very few casual
readers of the New York Herald of
August 18th observed, in an obscure
corner, among the Deaths" the an
nouncement:
NOLAN. Died, on board q. s. Cor
vette Levant, Lat. % IL" S., Long. 1917
w., on the 18th Of May. Philip Nolan"
1 happened to observe it, because
was stranded at the old Mission
house in Mackinac, waiting for Lake
Superior steamer which did not choose
to come, and I was devouring, to the
very stubble, all the current literature
could get hold of, even down to the
deaths and marriages in the Herald"
My memory for names and people Is
good, and the reader will see, as he
goes on, that had reason enough to
remember Philip Nolan. There are
hundreds of readers who would have
paused at that announcement, If the
had chosen to make it thus: "Died,
May 18th, The Man without q Coun-
try" For 1t was as "The Man with
out Country" that poor Philip Nolan
had generally been known by the Off
GERS who had him in charge during
some fifty years, as, indeed. by all
the men who had sailed under them.
I dare say there Is many q man who
has taken wine with him once q fort
night, in a three years cruise, who
never knew that his name was "No-
lan," or whether the poor wretch had
any name ut all.
There can now be no possible harm
in telling this poor creatures story.
Reason enough there has been till
now, ever since Madison's administra
ton went out in 1917, for very strict
secrecy, the secrecy of honor Itself,
among the gentlemen Of the navy who
have had Nolan in successive charge.
And certainly it speaks well for the es-
prit de corps Of the profession and the
personal honor of its members, that to
the press this mans story has been
wholly unknown, and, think, to the
country at large also.
/ have reason to think, from some
investigations 1 made in the naval
archives when 1 was attached to the
bureau of construction, that every Of
fetal report relating to him was burned
when Ross burned the public buildings
at Washington. One Of the fuckers,
or possibly one of the Watsons, had
Nolan in charge at the end Of the war !;
and when, on returning from his cruise,
he reported at Washington to one Of
the Crowninshields-who was In the
navy department when he came home
he found that the department ig-
nored the whole business. Whether
they really knew nothing about it, or
whether it was q non mi ricordo, de-
termined on as a piece Of policy, 1 do
not know. But this 1 do know, that
since 1917, and possibly before, no
naval officer has mentioned Nolan in
his report of cruise.
AS 1 say, there is no need for Sc
crecy any longer. And now the poor
creature is dead, it seems to me worth
while to tell little of his story, by
way of showing young Americans OF
today what it is to be
A MAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY.
Philip Nolan was as fine q young
officer as there was in the Legion OF
the West" as the western division OF
our army was then called. Wher
Aaron Burr made his first dashing eX
pedition down to New Orleans in 1905
at Fort Massac, or somewhere above
on the river, he met, as the devi
would have it, this gay, dashing, brigh
young fellow, at some dinner party
think. Burr marked him, talked tt
him, walked with him, took him da!
or two's voyage In his flatboat, and
In short, fascinated him. For the mex
year barrack life was very tame t.
DOOR Nolan. He occasionally availet
of the permission the great man hat
given him to write to him. Long, high
worded, stilted letters the poor bo,
wrote and re-wrote and copied. Blu
never a line did he have in reply from
the gay deceiver. The other boys II
the garrison sneered at him, becaus
he sacrificed in this unrequited affec
ton for q politician the time whicl
they devoted to Monongahela, sledge
and high-low-jack. Bourbon, euchre
and poker were still unknown. Blu
one day Nolan had his revenge. Thi
time Burr came down the river, not a
an attorney seeking q place for hi
Office, but as q disguised conquerol
He had defeated know not how man
district attorneys; he had dined at
know not how many public dinners; b
had been heralded in know not hoy
many Weekly Arguses; and it was RI
mored that he had an army behind hir
and an empire before him. 1t was
great day-his arrival-to poor NolaI
Burr had not been at the fort an hou
before he sent for him. That evenin
he asked Nolan to take him out in hi