The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-12-27

III tlC lCCtA ol o uoibHNCstSis shS chill of a driving snowstorm, millions waited hours until the 10 battleships of the homecoming armada appeared. This was New York's and the nations tribute to the ships, far more eloquent than the greatest din of whistles, bells and hu- man voices The vocal welcome came later when the rugged, weather beaten tars who manned the ships debarked and, with Secretary Daniels and Ad- Fifth avenue in the coantry's first great victory parade.
 WOUNDED SOLDIERS LEAD
 Leading civilians in the cheering were wounded soldiers returned from France With the memory of their own first anx- ious voyage still fresh in their minds they paid unstinted tribute to brothers in arms who had guarded them across the Atlantic. | Passing in review before the Secretary of the Navy, off the Statue of Liberty, the homecoming ships ioomed suddenly out of the mist and as rapidly disap- peared. They seemed almost like phan- tom craft, grim, gray, majestic in their silent might. But as they dropped an-
 
 revealed in holiday attire, ablaze from stem to stern with muIti-colored pen nants. To many of those who lined the shores this flash of sunshine synbolized the light of peace which awaited the fleet after the gloom of war from which it had emerged.
 ARIZONA FIRST TO PASS Moving at only 10 knots an hour the Arizona was the first dreadnaught to pass the presidential yacht Mayflower, on whose bridge stood Mir Daniels and Secretary of War Baker. With flags lnasteds sailors and marines manning the rails, the Arizona swept by, stripped for action. As she came abreast the May 1 flowss she thundered the salute of 10 guns for the Secretary of the Navy and l her band struck up The Star-Spangled Banner" A moment and she had faded again into the mist, leaving only an inn precision of great gray sides and mas sive gun tirrets crested with snow. l The Arizona's guns had not finished ] their salute when the Oklahoma began firing and from then on the cannonading was continuous. Tn swift succession fol i loweI the Nevada and the Utah, flagship 1 of Read Admiral Thomas s. Rodgers, and then the superdreadnaught Penn l sylvania, bearing Admiral Henry T. l Mayo, commander in chief of the Atlantic | fleet. At two-minute intervals came the
 New York, flying the flag of Rear Ad- | miral Hugh Rodman, and the Texas, Arkansas, Wyoming and Florida, with l two kite balloons. lowed by destroyers Completing the procession.
 NEW YORK FLIES PENNANT
 The New York was the first of the battleships to display from her main mast the "Homeward Bound" pennant
 a long, slender strand of red. white and
 blue a foot for every day out from her home base. All the ships which followed 1 her carried the pennants and it seemed
 as if each were longer than the others A~deep silence followed the last salute 1 and so accustomed had those on the l MayflowerS become to the roar of the guns, that 1t seemed hardly possible the
 review had lasted less than 20 minutes l When the last dreadnaught had steamed
 from sight, Secretaries Daniels and Baker descended from the bridge but only for 1 moment, while the Mayflower remained at anchor to give the incoming warships time to reach their berths in the Hud-
 son river before Secretary Daniels in- 1 spected the entire fleet at their anchor ages Meanwhile the British transport l Saxonia. loaded with sick and wounded American troops, hove alongside and the
 heads of the navy and war departments again sscended to the bridge and doffed
 their ha,s to the fighting men,
 REACHED FLORIDA FIRST 1 Tn begivning it's tour of the fleet. thu Mayflower first reached the Florida Hast to anchor As the yacht moved