Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1917-01-19

end came at $3.50 p. m. yesterday
Death was due to a general break
down accompanied by arteriO-sclerosls
JUMPED TO FAME.
| Admiral George Dewey hero of
Manila Bay" fought and won the first
great American naval battle against
| foreign foe since the war of 1912.
His whole life ~as full Of honorable
achievement from the days of the civil
war down to the time when. as the
head of the general board. he began
the last chapter of his work by laying
plans for the defense OF his country in
, time of war His life was a striking
examplification of the possibilities Of
career based upon the exact and intel
! ligent performance of every routine
! duty which molds man on inflexible
, lines of duty and honor
| One of the curious freaks of for
tune in Deweys case was that for per
haps the first and only time in his
naval career he was disposed TO pro
test against the edict of the navy de-
partment wh'ch carried him into the
! far east. where he was destined ia per
! form the greatest feat of his life and
. W Win liptIlSHdDlS leIlDM II. lat was
/ back in 1898 when the war clouds were
gathering and Dewey felt that he was
1 being "shelved:" that the war with
! Spain was to be fought out in the Gulf
Of Mexico and in the Caribbean sea
and that he. distant by half the circum
ference of the globe would stand no
chance of winning glory. for at that
moment no thought whatever had been
given to the philippines. But he took
his orders and like true sailor obey
ed them. The result IS PAGE of his
tory, under date of May |. 1895
Contrary to Spanish expectations,
! Dewey sailed into Manila bay on the
night of April 30 and in the morning
] of the next day he nnihilated Admira.
( Montoio's squadron. DESTROYING eleven
warships and capturing all other YES.
sells and all the land batteries withou:
the loss of man on the American
side
Upon his triumphant return to the
United States he was feted by the ma
tion. His admirers presented hir7 with
a beautiful home in the national CAPT.
tai. Congress gave him an engraved
sword and raised him from the rank
of commodore TO rear admiral and then
| to the full rank OF the admiral Of the
! navy.
Admiral Dewey was the third Amer
lean TO reach the pinnacle of naval
rank Farragut was the first and Por-
ter the second. It was under Farra-
gut that Dewey received his first ban
tism in war.
Georse Dewey was born in the shad-
ow OF Vermont's state capitol at Mont
pelier on the day following Christmas
in 1897 AT the age OF seventeen, he
reached the cross roads Of his career;
one road led to West Point. the other
TO Annapolis Young Dewey favored
the former but
There was no vacancy for West
Point from Vermont eyplained the
admiral in reviewing his life. "Other.
wise I might have gone into Manila
bay on an army transport instead OF
on the Olympia. Hut il happened that
there was vacancy at Annapolis, SO
I entered the navy
Fought With Farragut.
At the outbreak OF the civil war,
Dewey was twentv-three years old. He
was commissioned lieutenant, and
guided the Mississippi as its executive
officer in Farragut's historic dash past
New Orleans and its forts He was
not so successful at Port Hudson. Far
RI gut won through but Dewey and the
Mississippi ran aground under the
guns of the forts The shin was set
afire and during the transfer Of the
crew under fire, the young officer
lived Ave years in an hour"
From the close of the Civil war until
the opening Of the Spanish American.
the life Of the American naval officer
was made up of routine duty at sea
and ashore During this period the
future admiral cruised taught class
at annapolis. surveyed lower Califor-
MIA and part of the west coast Of Mex
leo carried supplies to the survivors
Of the siege of Paris, performed duty
at Boston navy yard and the naval tor
pedo station at Newport. inspected
lighthouses and served as naval sec
rotary on the lighthouse board. spent
two wears travelling on sick leave in
search Of health. four years as chief
of the bureau Of equipment, and at the
age OF 50 was serving as president of
the board of inspection and survey
= with the rank Of commodore. II was
in this important naval Office that he
presided at the trials OF all the battle
ships. except the Oregon, which were
to demolish the Spanish squadron at
Santiago.
In 1900 Admiral Dewey was serious.
" talked of as a candidate for the re-
publican nomination as president, but
the admiral preferred 70 remain in the
naval ranks rather than TO seek such
a venture in craftsmanship. His ad-
mirers have since often spoken of him
as the man who could have been a
president if he had wished.
Spared Mckinley Worry.
Early in 1914 Admiral Dewey again
became conspicuous in the current
news by revival of the long standing
controversy with Admiral Won Dieder
ichs of the German navy regarding the
conduct of the German squadron dur.