Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-26

Bound for the fresh-water basin at
the Philadelphia Navy Yard, to be
placed out Of commission, but with the
possibility that she may. be transferred
| to another branch of the service, the
| U. S. destroyer Abel P. UpShur, train
ing ship of the 1st Battalion, United
States Naval Reserves of the District
Of Columbia, left her berth at the
Washington Navy Yard here early
Wednesday morning.
The ship was ordered away from
Washington in connection with the
policy of the Navy in cutting down ex-
penses, included in which program was
the decommissioning of number OF
ships. There was said to be a posi-
| bility that the vessel might be trans
ferred to the United State Coast Guard
to form a part of its patrol, as that
branch of the service Is taking over
several more destroyers for this work
Ofhcers of the Coast Guard, it was said
| inspected the UpShur before 1t departed
| found her in such fine condition that
they were DESTROYS of having her on the
| list Of ships to be transferred.
Since the vessel has been in Wash
fngton her crew of reserve shipkeepers
1t was said, have kept her in good con-
dition, and she has always passed a
high mark during the annual inspec-
lions. The vessel was only used for
cruising during the Summer months,
at which time both the Washington
and Baltimore contingents took their
annual voyages as required by law. IN
der the new system created by the Navy
Department a special training squadron
has been established in the Atlantic,
~ fNrfn hot
eral destroyers, and aboard these all of
the Reserves Of the Eastern seaboard
will take their annual training next
Summer.
Whereas heretofore each division of
the local Reserve has made a separate
cruise aboard the Upshur. there is a
probability that the entire battalion
will be taken at one time during the
subsequent years. 1t was pointed out
that this is of no particular ad-
vantage to the battalion as a whole,
as each of the three divisions is or
ganized as a nucleus of destroyer OPP
Grating force, which, 1t was said, is the
kind of duty the members would be
called upon to perform in the event
Of a national emergency.
Except for the annual cruises, COM
paratively little use was made of the
vessel during the remainder of the
year. During the Fall and early Spring
months. when the weather permitted,
the various divisions used it for emer-
gency drills and for target training.
One advantage favored the gun crews,
for they always fired during the cruises
the guns which they had been trained
at during the year.
During the annual inspections by a
board of officers from the Navy De-
partment the officers and men were
required to perform certain duties on
the vessel. but in the absence of such
training ship 1t follows that they will
have to perform this feature of the
inspection this wear. The order for
the transfer Of the ship to the decom-
missioned list of destrovers came. how
ever. at time when elaborate ar
rangementS were being made by the
Reserve for keeping open house aboard
her on Navy day the latter part of the
month. A number of the enlisted per-
sonnet had volunteered for service
aboard her on that day. when the
Navy Yard also will be thrown wide
open to visitors.
1t was estimated that It will take
about month to put the vessel out of