UNITED STATES ARMY AND NAVY IN
MANEUVERS TO DEMONSTRATE EFFICIENCY
Tho scene of the army and navy
exorcises this year was Chesapoake
bay, and, In a measure, tho movement
was to detcrmlno tho value of tho
fortifications In preventing a foreign
too from making an attack upon
Washington from tho sea.
Officers In Command.
Hear Admiral F. W. Dlcklns was
In command of tho Invading fleet,
and tho defensive works were com
manded by Major General James P.
Wado, commanding tho department
of tho Atlantic, who had as his chief
of staff Brigadier General Frederick
D. Grant.
All tho elements of actual warfare
wero not present; for, among other
things lacking was a dofonslvo fleet,
which, In tho evortt of war, especially
if It wero believed Washington was
to bo directly monnced, would bo float
ing In tho inters of Hampton Hoads.
In actual war this fleet would bo con
sidered advisable to protect tho largo
government navy yard at Norfolk, If
for no other reason.
Rear Admiral Dlcklns had In his
command n torpedo boat flotilla, under
Commandor M. Johnston; slzo third
class battleships, two cruisers and
threo converted yachts.
Nearly 10,000 Man Forts.
Tho fortifications In tho throe artll
lory districts, which comprlso tho de
fenses of Washington and Daltlmoro,
wero manned by nearly 10,000 men,
or moro than half those In tho fleet
opposed to them. Soven forts were
engaged In tho war game; Fort Mon
roe, In tho Chesapeake district, com
manded by Llout.-Col. Itamsuy D.
"Potts; Fort Washington and Fort
Hunt, In tho Potomac district, com
manded by Col. Benjamin K. Roberts,
and Forts Howard, Smallwood, Carroll
and Armlstead In tho Baltimore dis-
FORTRESS MONROE, OFF WHICH PART OF THE WAR GAME MANEUVERS WERE CONDUCTED.
(1) View of harbor. (2)
trlct, under tho command of Col.
Frank Throp. Artillerymen were col
lected from the ports all along tho At
lantic coast, and augmented by few, If
any, state militia.
Preparations for Resistance.
In tho fortifications tho greatest
preparations for the event wero made,
but for tho most part the Improve
ments made and tho equipment Install
ed aro intended to bo permanent.
Within the last few months ?1 25.000
has been expended in tho purchase
and Installation of tho most complete
telephone equipment which could be
obtained. In tlmo similar equipment
will be in placo In every artillery dis
trict on the coast to carry out tho ap
proved system of flro control. This is
a most elaborate scheme of attack on
an approaching enemy which cannot
bo seen by the gunners anywhere.
It is possible by this arrangement
to direct tlio firo with effect, not only
as to tho time of discharging a gun,
but In respect to range and direction
of tho shell. This mysterious factor
Is mado possible by means of numer
ous instruments, miles of land wiro
and cable, and a comprehensive secret
code.
Signal Service Complete.
The new portablo searchlight for
fortifications was another Important
feature which was tested under prac
tical conditions of service. It waj
discovered in tho maneuvers of two
years ago that tho gunfire of ships
was directed with what would havo
been tolling effect If tho shots wero
real, on account of the stability of tho
searchlights.
In tho war game theso lights did
not remain In ono place. They wero
mounted on wheels, and In that way
their location was changed, In addi
tion to which their removal prevented
their destruction by a shot from tho
fleet. At Capo Hatteras, 11.5 miles
south from the entranco to the Chesa-
Edible Swordfish.
Tho Block Islanders aro Justly
jjroud of their swordfish, for they
almost have a corner on that varloty
of the flnny tribe, tho flesh of which,
It is claimed by many, surpass any
thing caught in tho deep. Tho de
mand for the swordfish Is invariably
greater than tho supply, for although
a number of boats from tho Islands
make dally trips, they have practi
cally no competition, as tho fish even
In tho best fields aro not numorous,
and it Is hard and dangerous work.
peake, Is a government wireless tolo
graph station, which also had Its
quiet part In tho exercises. This
agency, which was In communication
with tho forts, naturally endeavored
to keep tho army Informed of tho ap
proach of the attacking fleet, and also
atteroited to "overhear" any wireless
messages pessing between tho flagship
and the other vessels In tho fleet.
Llkewlso tho fleet tried to "tnp" tho
tS&w fpif via
Gen. James F. Wade,
wireless messages passing between
the commanders of tho artillery dis
tricts. Fort Monroe Chief Point.
Fort Monroe, at the mouth of tho
James river, which commands the en
trance to tho Chesapeake, was the
most critical point In the war game.
Although Major Gcnoral Wade's head
ouarters were movable, it was at Fort
Monroe whero tho headquarters flag
first flew. The fortress Is a very dif
ferent defense from what It was oven
so Jato s the Spanish war. Very con
siderable Improvements have been
made to It, and its battery of great
Water battery In Fortress Monroe. (3)
disappearing guns Is believed to bo
invincible,
Tho fleet did not attempt to run past
Fort Monroe In tho day time, although
tho deepest part of the channel Is
almost fourteen mllos distant. On tho
part of tho artillery officer's It Is
claimed that even at night there was
llttlo hope for tho fleet to pass suc
cessfully by tho fortification. There
arc froquent heavy fogs in this neigh
borhood, however, and had the fleet
been frtvored with such an ally, tho
naval men believed that they could
pass In without the fort being awaro
of it. Tho extensive mine fields of tho
military at this point, however, would
Admiral Francis W. Dlcklns.
bo expected to destroy a fleet hazard
ing tho attempt.
For tho fleet to reach Washington,
or even Baltimore, was hardly prac
ticable, owing to the shallowness of
tho channols of tho Potomac and the
Patapsco. Consequently tho main
fleet, under Rean Admiral Dlcklns
Coal-Black Rat.
A coal-black rat was caught In a
trap at tho pollco station the other
morning. Tho rat was unusually largo
In slzo and its skin was very soft, llko
velvet. Tho animal was drowned
along with several other rats which
wero caught In tho same trap. Many
people saw tho animal and thoy all
said that never bofore had thoy seen
a black rat. It attracted a great deal
of attention oven among tho prisoners
in whoso apartmonts In was caught.
Portland Oregonlan.
could not in any even risk grounding
In order to pass the upper forts.
Defense of the Cities. '
Washington Is about 175 miles from
Fort Monroe, nnd Baltimore is about
1G0 miles from tho entrance to tho
Chesapeake. Dofondlng Washington
aro Forts Washington and Hunt, on
cither sido of the Potomac, about
twelve mllos below tho national capi
tal. Daltlmoro is defended by FortJ
Carroll, which Is on a small Island
lying In tho Patapsco river, about
soven miles below tho city, and on tho
wost bank of tho rlvor, nearly oppo
site, lies Fort Smallwood. About four
miles below thorn aro Fort Howard, on
North Point, and Fort Armlstead, near
ly opposite, both guarding tho en
trance to the rlvor from tho bay.
The Game of War.
Only tho destroyers and smnllci
boats attempted to pass theso fottlfl
cations, and chooso tho night for the
work. It has been tho usual bellol
among those who have mndo tho wag
lng of war tholr specialty that ships
can rarely bo pitted against fortifica
tions with success. And It hns boon
found in practice In recent wars that
tho damago dono on either sido dur
ing such an engagement Is very small
indeed, although n chance shot from
a fort would work moro damage to a
ship It happened to hit squarely than
any broadside is likely to effect upon
a modern fortress.
Tho night attacks wero to ascertain
tho efficiency of the searchlights of the
fortifications and also to give tho navy
oxerclso In constructively making
theso lights dark. Actual experience
has demonstrated that it Is most dif
ficult to hit a searchlight, and Inci
dentally, most difficult to navigate a
ship on which a searchlight has been
turned, the effect of tho light being to
View of fort and moat.
blind tho navigators as well as tho
gunners.
To render this exorcise tho more ef
fective, tho ships of tho squadron wero
painted four colors: The Toxas, Now
ark, Atlanta, Terror, Puritan, Hornet,
Siren and Silvia, white; tho Florida,
Arkansas, Nevada, war color; tno
Hartford, black, and tho torpedo boat
destroyeis, dark green.
Tho object of each of several formB
of attack by the navy was to demon
strate the strength or weakness of
somo particular phase of the defense.
Tho results -were known only at iho
conclusion of tho exorcises, and then
known only to tho proper authorities
This precaution was emphasized as
Important, that tho character and
strength of tho various dofonses might
not becomo known to possible enemies
of tho country.
Oldest Judge In Active Service.
Judgo Charles Field of Athol, Mass.,
is ninety years old. Ho is in actlvo
service, holding court In the first dis
trict court of northern Worcester, at
both Athol and Gardner, several days
each week. While, naturally, his
health Is not qulto as robust as ton
years ago, he Is still vigorous enough
to ndralnlster Justice In tho two courts.
Judgo Field is said to be tho oldest
Judgo in tho country In active Judicial
Bervlco.
Keeps Important State Records.
Gov. Warfleld of Maryland has,had
made a largo scrapbook of nowBpaper
clippings on the death of Lloyd
Lowndes of his stato, to bo filed In
tho stato archives at Annapolis. He
says: "I believe It is tho first tlmo
that any history of tho death of a
governor of Maryland has over been
compiled and I proposo to tako care
of predecessors and trust that my ex
ample may bo followed by my succes
sors." .
Peculiar Case of 'Smuggling.
A smuggling case which is probablj
unique, even In tho strango annuals of
contraband, has Just been bofore tho
customs court of Marseilles. On board
tho French steamer Touralno there
was found a largo quantity of opium
smuggled, not by any Individual In
particular, but by tho wholo ship's com
pany, and tho strango spectacle was
witnoasod of tho hoavy flno of 2,000
being levied on nil, every man in the
vessel being mulcted in his proportion,
assessed according to w&ges.
CAPRICES OF R.CH WOMEN.
Many of New York's Matrons Havo
Strange Fads and Hobbles.
Philosophers who havo found It In
teresting to study out tho etiology of
feminine fancies glvo up In dospalr
when they attompt to find n roason for
tho strango caprice of tho wealthy
English woman nt tho Wnldorf who
Insists on having her dog's hldo dyod
to match tho color of hor gown, or to
flguro out why Mrs. Mackay will in
sist on buying three-cent postage
stamps becauso they aro of tho helio
trope shado which matches her sta
tionery, or why Mrs. Howard Gould,
with her wealthy husband, Insists on
breeding squabs and broilers for mar
ket, nnd Is ns closo In bargaining as
Mr. Gould is in his business transac
tions, for ovorybody knows that ho
will pursuo n nlckol until tho milling
melts, snys tho gossipy society writer
of tho Now York Pross. Mrs. Gould's
chlckon nnd pigeon establishment nt
Port Washington Is a modol of Its
kind. Sho does not conduct it on
sentimental lines, but purely as a busi
ness, and many n mnn about town
who hns eaton a. broiled squab topped
off with a cold bottlo at tho Waldorf
Astoria has had no idea thnt tho bird
came from Mrs. Gould's farm and wa3
bought from hor by "Mr. Oscar," as
the hotol folks speak in rovoront tonc3
of tho chief of tho food supply depart
ment. Mrs. Gould's masterful ways,
however, aro not confined to chicks
and young pigeons. Sho carries a
master's cortiflcato as tho commandor
of a yacht, and when sho stops on
board ovcry man Jack knowB who is
captain.
POTALA! THE SACRED) PALACE.
Beautiful Spot Photographed for tho
First Time.
Potala, or tho sacred palaco of tho
dalnl himn, tho high priest of tho Tib
etans, was photographed for the first
tlmo when tho members of tho Brit
ish Tibetan expedition reached Lhasn,
tho sacred forbidden city In tho cen
ter of Tibet, says tho Metropolitan
Magazine. Col. Younghusband, who
was In chnrgo of tho expedition,
would permit no attempt by tho cor
respondents to violato tho sanctity ol
tho various sacred buildings, but
splendid views of tho exterior wore
obtained, and tho world, is richer by
authentic descriptions of this wonder
ful palace, which Is described in the
dispatch of tho London TImos corro
spondent. Over a city sot as a Jowol
amid green gnrdons, through which
crystal streams flowed, towered the
giant Potala, rising almost from the
ground In gigantic stretches of white
masonry, pierced with Interminable
rows of windows, and scaled by great
red-edged, zig-zag stairways twentj
foot wide. Abovo thoso n whlto mass
ascended nt either end In Uio shape
of a heavily torracod palace, inclosing
a maroon mass, tho main building
Abovo this again wero golden roofs
of a Chlncso pattern, tho wholo struc
ture 430 foot high nnd between 800
and 900 foot long, completely dominate
lng tho City of Lhasa, which was sep
arated from tho palaco by wide
strotches of turf and a beautiful plan
tation full of forest trees.
Erudition.
A. J. Droxel BIddle, of Philadelphia,
was on tho Riviera In tho spring. At
tho Nlco races ho described America
to n group of Russians.
"Your Boston," ono of tho Russians
said, "sho is called Hub sometimes,
da?"
Mr. Droxel Biddlo laughed good hu
morcdly. "Yes, that Is right," ho said. "Tho
Huh of tho Universe. That is what wo
sometimes call Boston."
"Da," said tho Russian. "You call
her Hub for that Intelligence, great
learning, thero shall prevail. Yes?
Da?"
"Yes, da," said Mr. Drexol Biddlo.
"Every Inhabitant of Boston Is most
liberally educated."
"Exemplify," said tho Russian eager
ly. "Tho proofs. Show, If you can,
proofs."
Tho American thought a moment
"Well, hero Is ono proof," ho said.
"A young man In a Bostpn restaurant
ordered a sandwich. Tho sandwich
was brought promptly to him, but it
contained no meat Ho called the
waiter over.
" 'Looli hero, waiter,' ho said. 'Thcro
is no meLt in tho sandwich.'
"Tho waiter, elevating his brows,
said:
" 'Then why call It a sandwich, slr7
With a minimum of erudition ono
should bo ablo to avoid a rhetorical
solecism so cacophonously glaring.' "
San Antonio Express.
Popular American Diplomat.
John Rlgloy Carter, who succeeds
Henry Whlto as first secretary of the
American embassy in London, is pop
ular in tho British metropolis. T. P.
O'Connor says that Mr. Carter's per
sonality "Is strong enough to have ro
talnod his delightful Virginian accent.
He Is a strikingly handsomo man; tall,
with black hair, dark oyes 'and bril
liant whlto teeth. Ho Is a good con
versationalist witty himself and
highly npflreclatlvo of tho wit of other
people."
Poor.
O'er all these grand and spacious halls.
From domo abovo to marble sill,
The somborness of silence falls.
And all Is still.
No baby fingers beat tattoo
Upon the polished window panes
To greet tho wamrer below
Hero sllenco reigns.
No madenp group comes rushing through
The doorway with a shout of Joy,
No loving maiden fond and true.
No roguish boy,
Alono they sit at close of day,
A pair ah! gold Is theirs galore,
They know notouch of iovcrty
Hut they are poor.
Horace Seymour Keller.
MLT
v
Iwxsfrrf&gs.
Markings on the Saw.
An Invention pertaining to com
pound tools of tho saw typo has for Its
object a design ns slmplo nnd efficient
ns tho ordinary saw nnd almost, it
not qulto, as cheap, and provides tho
amount of rlso per foot of run of horl
vldcs means by which tho various
angular cuts resorted to In carpentry
may bo expeditiously and easily found
nnd marked. Tho blado Is similar In
typo to tho ordinary hand Raw, except
that It must havo n straight back and
carries a number of inscribed lines to
mark different angles, such as 15 do-
grces, 22 degrees, 30 degrees, 45 de
grees, CO dogrces, etc. Other corre
lated information, such as tho amount
of rlso per foot of run of horizontal
measurement for any of tho angles
within tho scopo of tho snw Is added.
Thoso markB considerably Incrcaso tho
Bphoro of tho tool and rendor It unnec
essary to employ the usual miter when
an angular cut Is to bo found and
marked, without In any wny rondorlng
tho tool cumbersomo or Interfering
with Its ordlnnry uso. Moreover tho
Improvement does not ndd appreciably
to its cost.
Painted Paper for Steel.
As a result of ton yoars' experiment
ing on tho durability of paints nn east
ern Ynllroad hns now Intioduccd a sys
tem of protecting smooth Bteol sur
faces In Its stntlons with palntod pa
per. Of all tho paints tried uono was
found which could be rolled upon to
protect a clonn stool surfneo moro
than eight months under tho oxtromo
ly sovoro conditions of tho tost. Un
der tho now system tho motal Is
clenned In tho ordinary way and thon
coated with a slnglo cdnt of a sticky
substance. Pnrafllnod paper Is next
pasted over this and finally palntod
nny color desired. Holes aro cut In
tho paper for tho rivet heads to pass
through, tho heads being then covered
with enps of paraffined pnpor. Tho
cost Is but llttlo moro than that for
applying two coats of litharge In boil
ed linseed oil directly to tho motal,
since tho work Is all dono at ono sot
ting of tho scaffolding, and tho rosult
appears to bo permanent, while tho
painted bars scale off under tho condi
tions of tho test In a fow months.
Rocking Chair Cradle.
Every mother gives tho baby prefer
ence over everything elso, and sho
will lnvnrlably mako every sacrlflco
sho can to add to its comfort and caso.
A baby takes a great deal of caro
and watching, and this always falls
on tho mothor In addition to tho reg
ular household duties. If sho puts it
to sleep upstairs in tho cradle, it
means a run up and down steps to at
tend to it and her work also. A Now
York man has dovlscd a convertible
Used as a Cradle,
rocking chair and cradle, an Illustra
tion of which Is shown here, and it is
so constructed that it can bo placed
In tho dining room, whero it could bo
Otsed for either purpose If It is do
sired to put tho baby to sleop at any
time, It can bo converted into a cradlo
and placed right under tho watchful
eyo of its mothor in tho dining room,
but when not so used It can bo
changed again to a rocking chair and
Its appearance will not look out of
place as a cradlo would. It Is pro
vided with tho necessary cushions for
both purposes, tho rockers of the
chair serving as tho rockers of tho
cradlo.
Barnet Smith of Now York City is
tho patentee.
Aluminium Detects Mercury.
Tho power of aluminium has for ab
sorbing mercury vapor has been
proved by H. Tarugl to constltuto a
dollcato method of analyzing tho pros
enco of mercury in tho atmosphere
and furnishes a means of prevention
against poisoning by Its vapors. Ho
has demonstrated that this property
is manifest even whon the vapor is
largely diluted with air and at tho
tomporaturo of the surrounding at
mosphere. A rciplrator has boon con
structed in which tho air boforo en
tering tho lungs has to pass through
finely pulverized aluminium, and In
this way nil traces of morcury are ab
sorbed so completely breathing can be
carried on without difficulty In tho
denso vapors produced by tho burning
1 of chloride of mercury.
HOUSE TO COST $1,800.
Plans for Erection of Small but Com
fortablo Abode.
I encloso you n rough plan of a
house upon which I would nsk you to
improve I would llko to build for not
moro than $1,800.
Tho accompanying plans should ful
fill nil your requirements. Tho collar
and foundation walls should bo built of
Btono work, 18 inches thick. Theso
wnllp would tako olovon cords of
stone, olovon ynrds of sand and fifty
flvo bushels of lime. Tho cellar floor,
19x20 foot, should bo of concroto two
Inches thick. This would rcqulro threo
barrels of Portland ccmont nnd 2
ynrds of gravol, Tho cost of tho houso
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FLOOH PLAN.
uppnrt
TLOOU PLAN.
will depend on tho prlco of material
nnd lnbor whero tho houso is to bo
built.
Two Forms of Strong Truss.
Pleaso publish a plan of n truss
to span 40 feet and to carry heavy
loads.
Figs. 1 and 2 represent two forms of
truss, elthor of which would bo satis
factory. To build a truss according
to Fig. 1, cut n Blot about ono inch
W
!fc
J'jf. 1 A 8x8 In. timber, 18 ft. long; B
Holts; C Hods. 1U in.; D Timber. 8x
10 In., 40 ft. long.
deop In each oulsldo strlngor,and uso
for tho truss tlmbor 8x8 inch material
as por tho plan. Uso 1-Inch rods In
tho contor. If desired a king post
rig. s A Timber, -10 ft. long; C Nut
nnd washer In center of tlmbor; D
struts, l ft. 6 In.; lJ-Unsomont walls;
Unlettered arrow Iron rod, 1J4 Inch.
may bo put In at tho contor rod, but
this Is not usually dono.
Fig. 2 Is another form of truss
which will ho understood by tho cut
with lines beneath.
A Flat Roof.
What rooflug would you suggest for
a flat topped building?
Very flat roofs can bo mrfdo of
gravol, coal tar and felt paper. Tho
sheathing for tho roof should bo
mntchod lumbor, then tar paper Bhould
bo put on and laid tho samo as shin
gles, tho lower edgo of tho tar paper
should bo laid In coal tar for about
ton Inches up and nailed down to tho
roof. Tho paper should lap over each
layer, so that whon tho roof Is covered
It will bo threo-ply. After tho paper
Is laid cover tho roof with hot coal tar
and sift on gravel whllo tho tar is
soft, so that it becomes Imbedded la
It Tho tar must bo put on hot, with
a broom or largo brush. Tho tar can
bo procured at any hardware store.
Paint for House; Finishing a Ridge.
1. Pleaso publish directions for mix
ing houso paints In order to got Inter
mediate colors. 2. Pleaso dcscrlbo
how to finish tho hip of a cottago root
with shingles instead of boards. .
In order to got desired shades In
paint a great deal of experience in
mixing Is needed. Unless nn experi
enced painter is employed it would bo
well to uso ready mixed paints, which
may bo procured in any desired shado
or color.
2. Hips or ridges finished with shin
gles soon warp and look badly. Cover
with rldgo boards flvo inches wldo
and finish with a two-Inch ridge roll
set on tho Joint.
Stone Stable; Ventilation.
For a stable let into a bank is It
better to havo only threo sides ot
stono wall or all four? How may
dampness bo prevented?
Would adviso having a stone wall
on all four sides, and ventilating tho
stable An easy and Inexpensive way
to vcntilato a stable Is to havo fresh
air Intako pipes through tho walls la
tho alleys near tho floor, and wooden
ventilating flues running up through
the mows to tho roof at tho gablo
onds or perllno posts. Theso flues
pass through tho floor of tho barn to
tho bottom of tho Joist In tho ceiling
of stable. Tho Intako pipes can bo
closed or oponed to regulato tho ven
tilation according to tho temperature
of tho weather.
Cement for Hollow Blocks.
Would nntural rock cement answer
for building hollow content blocks, or
Is Portland cement necessary?
Portland cements aro used almost
exclusively for molding building blocks
on account of tholr rapid sotting quali
ties and superior strongth.
Goodness Knows.
Mrs. Nayborlelgh Judge, I want
you to try some of my angel cake.
Judgo Sokem (absently) What Is
It charged with?
.. T;
""TS