Show OUR FIRST WARSHIPS THEY FURNISH AN INTERESTING INTEREST-ING AND GLORIOUS CHAPTER Beside the Powerful Ships of Today they Cut a Poor Figure but in their Day they Were Champions Washington June 24Our first warships war-ships furnish an Interesting and glorious the oldest offi ous chapter said one of cials of the Navy department while speaking of the vessels now ready to take part In the China trouble So much has been printed about our new war vessels that the frail craft built by the United colonies In 1775 have been entirely overlooked The very first provision pro-vision for a truly national naval force when Con was made In October 1773 gross authorized the purchase and fitting fit-ting out of four vessels for tho defense of the Delaware It is true however that at the commencement of the war of the Revolution each colony acting Independently fitted out a number of small armed vessels toprey upon British Brit-ish commerce and history says that they did good service throughout the war as privateers but wore never apart a-part of the national forces were never commanded by naval officers nor did they lly the national Vnslgn After the first provision wds made by 1 Congress for a national naval force it did not take long to hat the four rebels ready nor was It long before the voxels were shown entirely inadequate and Congress Con-gress passed a law authorizing the construction con-struction of thirteen vessels carrying from twentyfour to thirtyone guns Such was the authority for the first ballleshlps of the country They were to be named the Washington Raleigh Ral-eigh Hancock Randolph Warren War-ren Virginia Trumbull Effing ham Congress Providence Boston Bos-ton Delaware and Montgomery Congress further stipulated that they were to bo laid down in the colonies of New England New York Pennsylvania and Maryland Building a ship was by no means the task that It is today and in three months after tho passage of the act In the Kprlng of 177G the Randolph the first of the thirteen wan launched from Hit banks of the Delaware somewhere near the present silo of Kensington Reports Re-ports have not been handed to us of grand ceremonies on that occasion thousands of thioats did not yell themselves them-selves hoarse to greet her as she kissed tho waves the newspapers did not fill columns in naming the notables present pres-ent and yet It was a clay of Infinitely more cause of rejolclg than the launchIngs launch-Ings of the present day for with absolutely I abso-lutely no navy at all wo were In tho midst of a sliuggle for Independence from the foremost maritime country of the world Delays In the armament and equipment equip-ment of the Randolph caused a holdup hold-up until early In the year of 1777 when she finally sailed the capesof the Delaware Dela-ware under the command of Capt Nicholas Nich-olas Diddle of Philadelphia who had previously l bten In the service of the colony pavy of Pennsylvania where he had rendered such efficient sirvlce hit i I lu1 had been amonpr the original I five captains named by Congress for the I regular navy by act of November 1775 i Capt Blddlc headed tIll Randolph southward In search of the enemys vct J scls TIo made several prlxos carrying I hem safely into Charleston S C and so fired the people of that colony with I his audacity courage and success that they promptly filled out a squadron of small vessels to act against the enemy In that vicinity and placed them at Capt Blddles disposal With the Randolph I dolph aa flagship lie ihade several cruises along the coast and to the Ba hama banks sending In prize after pihsf I of transports merchant vessels and I small crulsera of the enemy On time 1 night of the 7th of March 1778 his lit tie squadron b2hir then twonlyolght days out from Charleston and Komn 2CO miles from the coast fell In with the enemy 22gun frIgate Yam mouth The Randolph received the full forco of the enemys fire and after a 1 hard engagCMiiont ot more than half an hour she caught firo and blew up Blddle refused to surrender and though severely wounded early In the action fought to HIP last and went down with his ship Such was the end of the first war vessel and such was the fate of her brave commander lie was only 28 years old at the time of his death but ho had made In his brief span of time a name for enterprise courage audacity auda-city and perseverance that has been handed down In the annals of our naval history as one of the bravest of the 1 brave and It will last through all time Tho Randolph though one of the largest of the vessels authorized by the act of 177o was rated cw only a 22gun frigate She was probably of about 600 ton burden 10 to 120 feet long 25 to 35 feet beam and drew about 12 feet of water Her armament was of nine and sixpounders mounted on a single uncovered un-covered deck and with topgallant forecastle fore-castle and her crew ISO men She was of tho type of battleship of th day but small and insignificant when compared com-pared with the 6171 and 00gun llneof battle ships which ahe was liable to meet No record can be found of the other officers of the Randolph Only six of tho thirteen vessels got to the sea at all and all were soonor or later destroyed At the close of the war In 171 an sift cf Coigreats abolished the navy but thero were none of tho thirteen thir-teen vessels to be disposed of ofC CAH I |