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PERRYS FLAGSHIP TO SAIL
AGAIN ON LAKE FRIEIA®
<
JB* HE famous ship Niagara, the vessel
which turned defeat into victory for
nH Oliver Hazard Perry in the battle of
Lake Erie on September 13, 1813, will
sail again this summer the waters
where she conquered a British fleet
The raising of the Niagara is the most
\ striking feature of the impending cele
' [/ Yr bration of Perry’s victory which stayed
* the fortunes of the United States a
hundred years ago.
This engineering feat seems to have no exact
parallel, and In sentimental and patriotic Interest it
Is the most notable phase of the coming centennial
celebration. To attempt to lift the hulk from the
mud of Erie harbor was a daring Idea from the start.
To make the project fact required courage and per
eeverance of a high order. Many were the scoffers.
It was said, to the very last, that the contractor
had hold of an old canal boat, and not till the gun
ports of the Niagara appeared above the surface of
the lake did the great crowds ashore concede that
Perry’s ship was
actually being
raised.
When the gun
ports came :n
Bight a throng of
half frozen curio
seekers was held
back with diffi
culty. Once it be
came evident that
the battered hulk
•was actually that
of the Niagara the
scoffers were ea
ger to rush upon
the wreck and tear
her to pieces for
souvenirs. Blind-
jng snow and cracking Ice seemed no deterrent
to their frenzy.
Within a few days the battered craft had been
raised higher above the water and propelled to
shore on pontoons. She is soon to be hauled to
a shipbuilding yard near by, where she will be
partly rebuilt and put into shape for her last
splendid cruise on Lake Erle this summer.
On this cruise the Niagara will visit all the
principal ports of the great lakes, decked with
flags and vari-colored bunting, and wallowing
splendidly as befits a ship of her size, entour and
noble achievement. She is 110 feet long, has a
80-foot beam and Is about 10 feet deep. There
Is nothing of the clipper ship about her, but there
Is a stanchness that kept her steady while she
emptied broadsides at a whole English fleet. In
her prime, at the time of the decisive battle of
Lake Erie, she was a brig of the old-fashioned
sort, with an enormous spread of sail for those
' days. She had single topgallantsails and, what
was more characteristic of the time, single top
sails. Thus the number of her sails was not ap
; parently great, but her actual spread of canvas
was very large for her day. Her rigging was all
of the old-style sort. Her main, fore and mizzen
tops were really fenced in for lookouts and she
had a spanker to aid her in maneuvering better
than her natural square rig would.
Capt. W. L. Morrison of the United States
training ship Wolverine, who is an official of the
Perry centennial celebration and an authority on
historical facts relating to the Niagara, has made
the prediction that in the vessel’s hold will be
discovered many old buckles and revolvers; and
tn a short time the world will know if he is
right.
Raising the Niagara was the hardest kind of
fwork. It is a big feather in the cap of the local
contractor, who succeeded in lifting the hulk
from the mud of the lake bottom, where she had
lain for a hundred years. The task had to be
done in winter in order to use spring to get the
vessel in shape. Winter on the great lakes is
nuch as to make a naturally delicate job of this
sort well nigh Impossible.
The. interstate board of the centennial celebra
tion had official charge of the work. To raise
the hulk took just three months. The original
contract called for the task to be done in thirty
days, but bad weather knocked this schedule sky
high.
It was planned at first to sink pontoons along
side the Niagara and pump them out, bringing
the ship to the surface with them. Had the
■weather permitted this the salvage of the hulk
■would have been accomplished in contract time.
Storms, however, threatened the undertaking al
most every day and the contractor dared not
eink his pontoons lest he lose them. Therefore
four pontoons were anchored on either side of
where the ship would lie when raised vertically
to the lake’s surface. Other pontoons were sta
tioned over her bow and stern. Chains were
made fast to the wreck by divers and she was
simply pulled up to the water's edge.
Ice plied up six feet high about the pontoons,
workmen were in constant danger of losing their
lives in the black and Icy water. Several fell
into airholes in thawing ice but were rescued.
The Niagara had to be raised through twenty
feet of water.
And now for something about the Niagara's
historic day.
The Niagara and Commodore Perry’s flagship,
the Lawrence, were the only two vessels in the
American fleet of six ships that, even In 1813,
could have been called men-of-war. They were
600 tons burden each, and each carried twenty
be built from the forests near by. A fleet of nin
vessels was built by him and his men. A reg
ment of Pennsylvania militia covered the ship
builders while they were at work.
The battle against a superior British squadron
lasted all day, and the Lawrence was dismantled,
so that Perry had to row through a hail of shot
to<he Niagara, where he hoisted his flag again.
At 3 o’clock he was able to send his famous dis
patch: “We have met the enemy and they are
ours.”
Commodore Perry was then twenty-seven years
old.
Perry was a Rhode Islander by birth. The son
of a naval officer and the daughter of an Irish
woman of unusual attainments, he had the most
careful early training, so that after Lake Erie
some who knew the family spoke of it as ‘Mrs.
Perry’s victory." Young Oliver Hazard Perry
was fond of Plutarch’s Lives, Shakespeare and
Addison. He was a pupil of Count Rochambeau.
At fourteen he was commissioned a midshipman.
When the war with England began there was
probably no better ordnance officer in the Amer
ican navy, and in the training of his crews he was
unwearying in personal attention to details. By
assembling his gunboats occasionally he gained
actual knowledge of the evolutions of a fleet.
He also practiced sham battles, which taught him
much.
Within twenty-four hours after receipt of Com
modore Chauncey's order to go to Lake Erie he
had sent off a detachment of fifty men, and five
days later he set out himself with his younger
brother, Alexander. Traveling chiefly in sleighs
he reached Erie on March 27. There he found
Noah Brown, shipwright, and Sailing Master Dob
bins awaiting fifty carpenters from Philadelphia.
The carpenters were more than five weeks mak
ing the wintry journey.
The keels of two twenty gun brigs and three
gunboats had already been laid. Incredible toil
in the wilderness enabled Perry to collect nine
vessels of 1.671 tons with 54 guns capable of
throwing a broadside of 936 pounds of metal, of
which 288 pounds could be fired at long range.
Puny figures these seem in this day of dread
naughts, but in 1813 they were respectable if not
exactly impressive.
The Lawrence and the Niagara, which were
the two twenty gun ships, carried two long
twelve pounders and eighteen thirty-two pounder
carronades. The long range guns were the chief
dependents of the Americans. To make his car
ronade fire effective Perry relied on grape and
canister shot and favorite American ammunition,
langrage, which was made out of scraps of iron
sewed up In leather bags.
Perry’s force of men consisted of about 500
landsmen and sailors, many of whom had never
seen salt water. On the British side Captain
Barclay had six vessels of 1,460 tons, manned by
nearly 500 men, but he had sixty-three cannon.
Barclay was one of Nelson’s veterans.
As the fleets approached each other at about
11 o’clock the bugle sounded from the flagship.
The men of the whole British line gave three
cheers and the long guns of the Detroit opened
on the Lawrence at a distance of a mile and a
half. By noon the battle began in earnest in
the form of a duel, the heaviest vessel in each
fleet confronting the other. Barclay had at first
a manifest advantage. The gunners of the Law
rence, depending too much on their carronades.
fired too fast, and overshotting their stumpy guns
were able only to pit and dent the sides of the
Detroit. So the Lawrence was reduced to a hulk
by a steady British fire. After two hours only
one gun was left mounted, the cockpit was
crowded with wounded and only eighteen un-
guns. It was almost as
much of a feat for Oli
ver Hazard Perry to
build the vessels as to
win the battle of Lake
Erie. The commodore
had been in the Amer
ican navy for some
time, and in 1811 as a
lieutenant in command
of the schooner Re
venge he ran the ves
sel ashore at Watch
Hill, R. 1., and wrecked
It in a storm. He was
tried by court martial
for this, but acquitted.
Tie failed to get a
command when the
War of 1812 started.
Then he applied to
Commodore Chauncey
and was ordered to re
port at Lake Erie.
On March 27, 1812,
he arrived at Lake
Erie and found a force
of fifty shipwrights.
The squadron had to
harmed men, Including commander and surgeon,
were left on board.
The Niagara for some reason had remained in
the rear. The smaller American vessels seemed
unable to do anything to prevent a. British vic
tory.
With the audacity of genius Perry called four
sailors to man the boats, and with his brother
Alexander, the flag of the Lawrence wrapped
round his arm, he left the ship. At first he was
shielded by the battle smoke. Then he was
rowed through the enemy’s fire for fifteen min
utes, at last reaching the Niagara unharmed. The
breeze now freshened, speeding the Niagara and
the American schooners into action. The Queen
Charlotte of the British fleet was disabled while
getting into position for a broadside. She fell
foul of the Detroit. The American schooners
took raking positions. The full battery of the
Niagara, joining in the steady and rapid fire,
swept the British decks. Kentucky riflemen in
the tops acting as marines picked off every
enemy visible. At 3 o’clock the British flag was
hauled down. It was the first time in Britain’s
history that she had lost a whole squadron. Then
It was that on the deck of the Niagara Perry dis
patched to the secretary of the navy the brief
account of his victory and shortly afterward sent
to Gen. William H. Harrison the line: “We have
met the enemy and they are ours."
Congress voted Perry thanks, a medal and
the rank of captain. The city of Boston pre
sented him with a set of sliver, and other cities
voted him thanks. He assisted in the defense
of Baltimore, and in the squadron that was sent
to the Mediterranean In 1815 he commanded the
frigate Java. In June, 1819, while In command
of the John Adams and other United States ves
sels in the West Indies, he contracted yellow
fever in the Orinoco and died.
The United States has appropriated $250,000
for a Perry memorial to be erected at Put-in-Bay
on Bass Island. The great shaft will stand In
the midst of a park. Individual states have
brought the total up to $700,000. New York gave
$50,000: Ohio, $83,000; Pennsylvania. $75,000:
Wisconsin. $50,000. Other states that interested
themselves were Michigan. Illinois. Rhode Island,
Kentucky and Minnesota.
About a year ago the national commissioners
of fine arts accepted a design for the memorial
submitted by J. H. Freedlander and A. D. Sey
mour, Jr. The design provides for a plaza
1,000 feet long and about 200 feet deep. On the
plaza will be a Doris column 320 feet high. The
island on which the column will rise is one of a
group at the western end of Lake Erie.
The fourteen acres have been acquired to pro
vide a reservation around the memorial. The
Doric column will serve as a lighthouse. Other
features are a museum, a statue typifying peace
flanked by a colonnade. In the museum will be
panels arranged for mural paintings descriptive
of historical events connected with the battle of
Lake Erie.
The plan calls for a crypt under the shaft In
which will be placed the bodies of American and
British sailors who perished in the battle, which
were buried on the Island. The sum of SIOO,OOO
has been set aside for harmonizing the landscape
with the general scene.
The members of the commission having charge
of the Perry centennial celebration will try to
secure a brief suspension of that convention be
tween the United States and Canada by which
warships may not enter the Great Lakes. The
idea is to have British and American battleships
at the ceremony of dedicating the column to
Perry’s victory and possibly a warship or two
of Canada's new navy.
The national commission of fine arts which se
lected the design for the Perry memorial con
sists of Daniel H. Burnham, chairman; Daniel C.
French. Thomas Hastings, Frederick Law Olm
sted, Charles Moore, Cass Gilbert and Francis D.
Millet. They were unanimous in their choice of
a design. Commander George H. Worthington,
Gen. Nelson A. Miles and Col. Henry Watterson
are on the interstate board in charge of the
celebration.
LITTLE SURPRISES
“I don’t want any afternoons out, mum;
I’m satisfied if I can go to church Sunday
evenin’s.”
“Harry, you’ve been an awful long time mak
ing up your mind to ask me to marry you!”
“Your bill, doctor, is only about half what I
expected It would be.”
“Bobby, I’ve kept you in after school to tell
you you’re a dear, good little boy. Won't you
give your old teacher a kiss?’
“No, sir, I haven’t anything in stock -that’s
quite as good as what you are asking for; try
that druggist across the street”
ZVGntmOOD
I Womanhood
OB The women who have used
llffnrrinmannn Pierce*s Favorite
IYIUIiUJUIUUD Prescription will tell you
that it freed them from pain—
helped them over painful periods in
Assist Nature their life—and saved them many a day
now and then, of anguish and misery. This tonic, in
with a gentle liquid form, was devised over 40 years
cathartic Dr. ago for the womanly system, by R.V.
Pierce’s Pleas- Pierce, M. D., and has been sold ever
and Pellets tone since by dealers in medicine to the
up and invigor- benefit of many thousand women:
ate liver and Now—if you prefer—you can obtain Dr.
bowels. Be sure Pierce’s Favorite Prescription tablets at
you get what your druggist at $1 per box, also in 50c
"... na k fnr size or send 50 one cent stamps to Dr.
you asK jor. R V.Pierce, Buffalo, N. Y. tor trial box.
Dally Thought
Whether you be man or woman you
will never do anything in the world
without courage. It is the greatest
quality of the mind next to honor. —
James Lane Allen.
BREAKING OUT WOULD
ITCH AND BURN
Bellton, Ga.—“ Some time ago my
feet and ears were frost bitten, which
troubled me very much every winter.
My ears would turn red and swell,
with terrible itching and my heel
would crack. I had a severe scalp
trouble and also a breaking out on my.
wrists and hands which would itch
and burn until I could not sleep of
nights. There was an eruption on
my scalp with dandruff. I had to keep
my hair clipped close to keep down
the irritation and itching. I tried sev
eral remedies and cream and two
treatments of remedies which did
me no good. Then I used Cuticura
Soap and Ointment and I am now
cured of all my troubles." (Signed)
J. S. Echols, Mar. 12, 1912.
Cuticura SOap find Ointment sold
throughout the world. Sample of each
free, with 32-p. Skin Book. Address
post-card “Cuticura, Dept L, Boston.”
Adv.
Answer to Query.
The act of uplifting the hand during
the taking of an oath is so ancient
that it would be futile to even attempt
to say when it started. Homer at
tempts to say when it started. Homer
mentions it as common among the
Greeks of his time, and it is also found
in the earliest Biblical time. For in
stance, Abraham, the father of the
Jewish people, says: “I have lifted
up my hand to Jehovah,” showing that
even at that remote period the prac
tice was existent. It was from the
Jews, of course, that the practice
found its way into Christendom, where
it has ever since held its place in ju
dicial trials.
Sound Reasoning.
“Sambo,” said the owner of a coun
try place to his gardener, “concerning
that tree I wanted you to cut down,
my wife thinks it had better be al
lowed to stand.”
“Well, Ah think it ought ter come
down, Massa Brown,” was the reply.
“What are you reasons for thinking
so. Sambo?”
"We —11, sah, de first reason am dat
de tree done keep de light off de green
house; de secon’ reason am dat it’s
gettin’ old, and de third reason am dat
I cut it down las’ night.”
Wise Man.
Mrs. Excite —Oh, doctor, husband is
in an awful way. Just as he goes to
sign my checks he faints away.
Doctor —What am I to do?
Mrs. Excite —Get him so that he
won’t faint till after he signs them.
HER "BEST FRIEND”
A Woman Thus Speaks of Postum.
We usually consider our best friends
those w-ho treat us best.
Some persons think coffee a real
friend, but watch it carefully awhile
and observe that it is one of the
meanest of all enemies, for it stabs
one while professing friendship.
Coffee contains a poisonous drug —
caffeine —which injures the delicate
nervous system and frequently sets
up disease in one or more organs of
the body, if its use is persisted in.
“I had heart palpitation and nerv
ousness for four years and the doctor
told me the trouble was caused by
coffee. He advised me to leave it off,
but I thought I could not,” writes a
Wis. lady.
“On the advice of a friend I tried
Postum and it so satisfied me I did not
care for coffee after a few days’ trial
of Postum.
“As weeks went by and I continued
to use Postum my weight increased
from 98 to 118 pounds, and the heart
trouble left me. I have used it a year
now- and am stronger than I ever was.
I can hustle up stairs without any
heart palpitation, and I am free from
nervousness.
“My children are very fond of Post
um and it agrees with them. My sister
liked it when she drank it at my house;
now she has Postum at home and has
become very fond of it. You may use
my name if you wish, as I am not
ashamed of praising my best friend —
Postum.” Name given by Pustum Co.,
Battle Creek, Mich.
Postum now comes in new concen
trated form called Instant Postum. It
is regular Postum, so processed at the
factory that only the soluble portions
are retained.
A spoonful of Instant Postum with
hot water, and sugar and cream to
taste, produce Instantly a delicious
beverage.
Write for the little book, “The Road
to Wellville.”
“There’s a Reason” for Postum.—
The Difference.
“In the old times of torture, they
used to mangle prisoners.”
“Yes. Now we merely iron them.”
NO. SIX-SIXTY-SIX
This is a prescription prepared es
pecially for Malaria or Chills and
Fever. Five or six doses will break
any case, and if taken then as a tonio
the fever will not return. 25c. — Adv.
But you can’t judge a man’s true
worth by the amount of insurance ha
carries.
Hotel Cumberland
New York
Broadway at 54th Street
Near 50th St. Subway and 53rd St. Elevated
H. P. STI MSON
Formerly with Hotel Imperial
; More! •
fl Make your horses and 4
* mules give you more work, f
your cows more milk, your *
chickens more eggs, your ]
• hogs more meat and fat, •
4 by mixing a small dose of 4
Bee Dee
STOCK & POULTRY MEDICIHE
4 with their regular feed. 4
* This tonic medicine im
proves the appetite, diges- *
tion, and general health, of ]
4 farm animals and fowls, J
4 and its regular use will 4
4 multiply your profits. 4
Price 25c, 50c and SI.OO per can. f|
• “We gave Bee Dee Stock Medicine to *
two cows and their How of milk was
* doubled.”—J. L Cole, Goin. Tenn^ f|
——————
THE UTEST FASHIOH HOTE
Says: “It is a wise precaution against getting
holes in delicate hosiery to powder the shoe*
before putting them on.’’ Many people sprinkle
the famous antiseptic powder, Allen’s Foot-Ease,
into the shoes, and find that it saves its cost ten
times over in keeping holes from hosiery as well
as lessening friction and consequent smarting
and aching of the feet.
DAISY FLY KILLER S
HAROLD SOMERS, 150 DeKalb Avs.. Brooklyn, N. T.
W. N. ATLANTA, NO. 21-1913.
Atlanta Directory^
FILMS AND SUPPLIES
Kodaks
given prompt attention. Send lor catalog
Glenn Photo Stock Co. Atlanta, Ga.
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