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Show Coming Home THIS FLEET is coming. It passed the Pillars of Hercules, the bands playing "Home, Sweet Home," and turned into the home stretch exultingly. The ships are to be in their home port on the 22d, possibly a little before that, for they may want to dress a little for their reception. They rounded our continent; they went down under the Southern Cross almost to the Antarctic Antarc-tic ocean; they fought out a typhoon off the coast of China; they rounded Asia and made the long lap across the Indian ocean; another up the Red sea; still another, the long stretch of the Mediterranean, Mediter-ranean, and are now stretched out for the hom run a winter's voyage across the stormy Atlau tic. If they all reach home in good form it will be something for the whole country to exult over; a triumphal close of a naval feat that no other nation na-tion ever dreamed of attempting. Let us hope that no misfortune may overtake any of the ships, and that when they roar their greeting at Hampton Hamp-ton Roads, they may be as perfect as when they fired their parting salutes, as they sailed away. The world does not know from any merchant sh'ps which we possess that our nation exists, but wherever this fleet has touched the people know that on the sea the United States has a place, and in their cruise they have picked up much prestige for their country. They will be most cordially welcomed home, and still the prayer will be that the time may bo hastened when the nations will learn war no more. Still considering the fleet and its voyage, we must not forget that the navy is, and always has been, the most perfect institution of our country. It represents the highest patriotism, the most profound pro-found consecration to duty; the most perfect discipline dis-cipline known in our country and always has. It has some immortal mottos as guides: Paul Jones' words when summoned to surrender: "I have not begun to fight yet," is one; the words of Law- rence, "Don't give up the ship," is another; Perry's "We have met the enemy and they are ours," is another; the words of Farragut, repeated by Dewey, "D n the torpedoes!" is another. When one day, President McKinley was much depressed, because the news had come that Cervera's fleet was on the way across the Atlantic, and at the same time tho Oregon was on its way home and there was danger that Cervera's fleet would intercept inter-cept him, a friend said to the President "Suppose "Sup-pose the Spanish fleet meets the Oregon and overcomes over-comes the American ship in battle, what think you Captain Clark will do? "Captain Clark and the Oregon will not surrender," was the reply; -"tho Oregon will never be a Spanish prize." Meaning Mean-ing that Captain Clark and his ship might be sunk, but never made to surrender. When Admiral Ad-miral Smith was told that the Congress commanded com-manded by his son, had surrendered, he simply re-pliedi re-pliedi "Then Joe is dead," and so it proved. And when the discipline of the navy extends to the American people, they will be the greatest people on earth; the greatest that ever were upon the earth. , |
