Joplin High School - Joplimo Yearbook (Joplin, MO)

Page 15 text:

THE UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY A hundred years ago boys who wished to become naval officers obtained, if possible, appointments as midshipmen, and were sent aboard war vessels to carry messages for the officers. No one looked after the boys unless they got into mischief, and then, of course, they were severely punished. Under such conditions only the most determined were able to become officers. Later, schoolmasters were appointed, but they had no co-operation, so the lessons were interrupted by orders from the captain and other officers. Matthew F. Maury, one of those who favored a naval school, wrote so much on the subject that he has been called the father of the naval academy. Finally the famous historian, George Bancroft, for whom the enormous dormi- tory at Annapolis is named, became Secretary of the Navy, and determined to found a school for training officers. Although Congress did not appropriate any funds for the purpose, the War Department gave the abandoned Fort Severn, at Annapolis, Maryland. and nine acres of land to the Navy Department, and here, in October, 1845, a naval school with three instructors and fifty midshipmen was established. The present name was adopted in 1850, and the old Constitution was given as a training ship. During the Civil War, for greater safety, the academy was moved to Newport, Rhode Island, and although it was returned in 1865, students were not encouraged to enter until the Spanish-American War brought about the building of new ships and the need for more officers. The school has grown: much new equipment and many time buildings have been added. Severe exam- inations and strict, impartial training make it necessary for our naval officers to be the finest of America's youth. SECURING ENTRANCE TO THE ACADEMY Since the sea has such a lure for men and'boys of all ages, it is necessary to have some means, aside from the examinations, to keep the number of entrants down to a manageable group. This is done by means of appoint- ments. Each senator and representative is allowed to make three appointments, and as an appointee resigns, is dropped, or is graduated, another is appointed for the vacancy. The President may appoint fifteen men each year, and twenty- five may be appointed from the Navy or the Marine Corps. The newly-appointed midshipmen take examinations at many places throughout the country. If they pass these tests, they report to Annapolis in June for a physical examination. If they are admitted there, they become 'lplebes , and the summer is spent in drill, gymnastics, management of boats, and gunnery. Discipline is very strict, but impartial, and the men have a good time. The course at Annapolis requires much mathematics and physics. There are also classes in English, history, and Spanish or French. Every summer Eleven

Page 14 text:

SHIPS-AND SHIPS Some ships sail straight, and calm, and true- And steer a well-defined and even course Along the shining ocean's azure hue, With just a cool and quiet wind for force. The white sails move but slightly in the breeze That ills them, urging on their way The little ships, to clear and peaceful seas. They follow known and quiet paths each day. Their bows are pointed to the afterglow That lingers in the sky from setting sun, Serenely to their destination straight they go. And when the uneventful journey then is done, When they have reached the harbor in the West, They quietly fold in their sails and lie at rest. And some ships ride a rough and stormy sea- They fight the grim uncertainty of darkened ways And wonder where their courses now might be Since they were lost in sad and gale-struck days. They wander seas no ship has sailed before, Ana' charter them for other ships to know. Far off they find strange places and queer ports, As on their dark and futile paths they go. The sails soon split from Herce and howling wind The murky water's fiendish swirlings tear At storm-scarred hulks. which once had been So firm, not cracked and gray, and darkly bare- They grind against the black and hidden rocks-and waves Lash cruelly over ships which sink to nameless graves -Genevieve Duran 3 4

Page 16 text:

all classes go for a three months' practice cruise on battleships, and then they receive a month's leave to visit home. THE CGMING OF STEAM The invention of the steamboat was perhaps the most important factor in all history which brought about the complete revolution of navigation. In spite of the fact that popular history has accredited Robert Fulton with the building of the first steamboat, his claim is somewhat questioned. Two years before Fulton's Clermont appeared, John Stevens of Hoboken built steamboat propelled by a screw: and even before that John Fitch of Pennsyl- vania had made a crude one and attempted to force it upon public favor. Fitch was unread and uneducated, and his invention was of the purest originality. Although struggling against poverty, he labored during his entire life in the effort to perfect his invention: but his work was in vain. He died leaving behind the bitter words that at some future date a more powerful man would be given credit for his work. In the attempt to make amends for the injustice to Fitch, some modern historians have even gone so far as to overestimate his work and give him more credit than he actually deserved. Without doubt Fitch applied steam to the propulsion of a boat long before Fulton, but it is doubtful whether Fitch himself was the first inventor. Records have been found which claim the invention of such a device as early as 1543. This is uncertain, however, and perhaps it would be better to say, as Willis J. Abbot has stated, that Fitch first scented commercial possibilities of steam navigation, while Fulton actually developed them. The first years of Robert Fulton's struggles met with the same misfortune that Fitch's had. He was faced with ridicule and scorn. Scientists on every side, including the Institute of France, opposed the work. Fulton was not doomed to failure, however, and while in France he met and formed a partner- ship with Robert Livingston, who Iinanced his invention. In 1806 Fulton came back to America to construct the Clermont. The state of New York granted him and Livingston a monopoly of steam naviga- tion on the rivers in that state, and gave them until 1807 to prove its feasibility. Since Livingston had had an engine built for it in England, it did not take so long to complete the building of the ship as might have been expected, and it was on August 7, 1807, that the Clermont made its famous voyage from New York to Albany, a distance of one hundred Hfty miles, in thirty-two hours. In less than a year steamboats were sailing up and down the river, and since Fulton and Livingston strove to protect their monopoly, a new impetus for the extension of steam navigation was aroused. Without doubt the steam- boat has proved invaluable and has made the world smaller. IRON AND STEEL FOR SHIPS The famous battle between the Monitor and the Merrimac is not im- portant merely because it was a battle of the Civil War. Indeed, it has the dis- Twclur-