Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-13

The annual cruises of the officers
and men of the United States Naval
Reserve Battalion of the District of
Columbia will be held in July and
August, aboard the reserve training
ship, the United States Destroyer Abel
P. Upshur. The specific dates were
fixed in a letter received by the COM
mandant of the Washington Navy Yard
from Admiral Charles r. Hughes, chief
of naval operations. The first cruise
will be made from July 6 to July 20;
the second from July 81 to August 10,
and the third from August II to
August 81.
This arrangement will make it pos
sihle for the UpShur to remain in port
one week between cruises, to make
necessary preparations for again going
to sea. While Lieut.. Comdr. Finney
Bascom Smith, commander of the bat
talon, has not announced the order in
which the divisions will cruise, 1t is
understood. that this year they will
cruise in their numerical order, under
the system of rotating, that Is the first
division will make the first cruise, the
second the next cruise, and the last by
the third division.
The cruising area and the liberty
ports have not yet been decided upon,
as the order directs the commanding
officer of the Upshur, Comdr. Mark L.
Hersey, to report to the commander OF
the destroyer %squadrons of the Atlantic
| Scouting feet, to which the ship will
be attached during each cruising
, period. The cruises probably will be
in the waters off the New England
Coast, with liberty possible at New
York, Boston or Newport.
The Baltimore Naval Reserve, as has
been the practice in the past, will send
a division here to board the Upshur
for each of the three cruises.
Preparations now are being made for
the annual inspections of the battalion,
and particularly the emergency drills
which will be held aboard the Upshur.
The feet division officers are making
out their watch, quarter and station
bills, which show where each mar must
be for every emergency, and in this
work the reserve officers are receiving
the cooperation of Lieut.. Hutchinson,
United States Navy, executive officer OF
the ship.
AS each division is organized as a
skeleton crew for a destroyer, the Of
flcers expressed the hope that the in
spection board from the Navy Depart
ment would permit each division to &c
through its drills separately. 1t was
pointed out that at the last annual in
spection, there were three separate
emergency drills being held or the Up
shur at the same time, which made IL
a sort of three ring circus and most
confusing. Aboard ships of the regular
Navy only n emergency drill is held
at a time. it was added.
With the completion of the station
bills. the men will be drilled regularly
at their stations so that they will
know their duties thoroughly. They
were hampered in this respect last
year, as the Upshur only arrived here
a week or two before the annual in
! spections, and many of the men hac
never been aboard her up to the Tins
of the inspection.
Lieut.. (Junior Grade) George w
Daisley. president. of the United States
Naval Reserve Officers Association OF
the District of Columbia, has called
a meeting of the organization to be
held ct the Navy Yard Armory, follow
ing the regular drill next Monday
night. AS this will be the annual
meeting, new offlcerS Will be electeu
and a delegate selected to represent the
local body at the annual convention
of the National Association to be held
here the latter part of February.
1t was indicated that the local Re
serve officers will have some important
recommendations OF Reserve matters to
bring to the attention of the conven-
ton, but as yet have not formulated
their program.
The following have been ordered
transferred from the I'D Fleet Division
to the Volunteer Reserve, for failure
to maintain efficiency by attendance
at drills regularly: william j. Corlis
seaman, second class, 2007 Tenth
street northeast; George ID. Everett
fireman, third class, 5409 Thirty-nintf
street: Samuel j. Hatcher, seaman
second class, Clarendon, Va, anc
! Richard NJ. Nichols, the Flagler.
George A. Payne, l24 Twelfth street