Show SHIPS GLORIOUS CAREER ENDS Famous Constitution Declared Worn Out Beyond Repair The Constitution is worn out beyond be-yond repair Not the written or unwritten un-written constitution but Old Ironsides Iron-sides the frigate which bore Hull and Bainbridge to victory Seventy vo years ago tho spirited lines of Dr Holmes saved It from the wreckers but now the end has come The Constitution was launched in 1797 a sister ship of the United States and the President The latter under Admiral Decatur was captured by the English In 1815 after a treaty of peace had been concluded but there were no cables In those days If there had been Jackson would not have fought and defeated Pakenham at New Orleans Or-leans It Is now an English training ship and carries Sir Charles Beres fords flag The Constitution was I equipped with thirtytwo long twenty four pounders and twenty thirtytwo pound carronades Under Capt Preble it took part In the bombardment bombard-ment of Tripoli in 1804 Its sailors winning the admiration of the world by taking It and making sail under fire as coolly as If on exhibition In the war of 1812 under Capt Isaac Hull It sank the Guerrlero In thirty minutes under Capt Bainbridge It riddled the Java In sixtyfive minutes under Capt Charles Stewart It captured cap-tured the Cyane and the Levant It was In 1830 that It was first proposed pro-posed to dismantle tho Constitution Now in 1905 It Is reported that the frigate Is sinking where It lies and if put In dry dock would fall apart of Its own weight Is It due to lack of care or to initial differences In construction con-struction that It cannot reach the age of Nelsons battleship tho Victory The Victory was already forty years old In October 1805 when It aided in destroying the Spanish and French fleets off Trafalgar It had taken part in the victory of Cape St Vincent which gave Jervis his title as carl when nearly the age at which the Constitution Con-stitution was first condemned It carried car-ried 100 guns eighteen twenty Tour and thirtytwo pounrters Its tonnage was 2162 2294 Us oak sides above the water line were two feet thick and are still stanch The steel battleship bat-tleship of today Is oldfashioned In five years obsolete in fifteen but this veteran vet-eran after forty years service won I Its greatest battle the greatest sea fight of tho I Napoleonic wars Against a modern fighting machine a whole fleet like the Constitution and the Victory In their best days would be useless One of the now twelve Inch guns will lire two shots a minute min-ute capable of penetrating fiftyone Inches of wrought Iron The twenty I I four pound balls of the Constitution I would rattle harmlessly against the steel armor of the Colorado But I progress A Is u only relative Offensive and defensive armaments have devel aped equally According to Sir Philip Watts director of naval construction In England the present relation be tween gum and armor Is about what I It was In the days of the cast lion i I smooth bore and tho oak sides In I 1905 as In 805 or 1812 It Is the man I behind the gun that makes the differ ence No nation can afford to fall behind the others In Mi equipment but I precision courage loyalty must nl ways be the deciding factor where I other I things are equal I |