CHAPTER XIV.
The winter passed away without any untoward event to our friends atWoodburn, Ion, Fairview, and the vicinity; March and April succeeded,then early in May came the news that Admiral Watson was ordered toproceed to Manila and relieve Admiral Dewey. He sailed from SanFrancisco on the 16th. It was not until late in June that he reachedhis destination, but Admiral Dewey had left there for Hong-Kong on the23d of May, and placed the _Olympia_ in dry-dock for the ten days hethought best to stay at that point in order to recruit his own healthand that of his men. He left Hong-Kong on June 6, and reached SingaporeJune 11. On the 23d he was at Colombo, on the island of Ceylon. Hetouched at various points on his homeward route--Port Said, Trieste,Naples, Leghorn--at every place being received with highest honors. OnAugust 28 he was in the neighborhood of Nice and Villefranche, enjoyingthe delightful climate and beautiful scenery of that part of the world.On the 4th of September he reached Gibraltar. His vessel gave the usualsalute, heartily acknowledged by the garrison, and the admiral waswarmly welcomed by its commander-in-chief, General Biddulph. He seemsto have stayed there six days, as it was on the 10th he sailed forNew York by way of the Azores. On Tuesday morning, September 26, heanchored inside Sandy Hook--three days earlier than he was expected.
A reception committee in New York City had been busily making ready togive him a grand "Welcome Home," which they intended should eclipse ingorgeous pageantry everything that had preceded it in the way of publicdemonstration. They had written to Admiral Dewey to know when he wouldarrive in order that they might fix a date for the grand display, andhe had written them from Leghorn, more than a month before: "I shall,without fail, reach the Lower Bay on Friday, September 29."
The glad news of his arrival quickly spread by telegraph, and cannonwere fired and bells rung in many cities throughout the country.The New York Reception Committee hastened to welcome him as soon asthey knew of the arrival of the _Olympia_. Rear-Admirals Philip andSampson came also; but first of all came Sir Thomas Lipton, the Britishchallenger for the cup which has been so long in our possession, hisvessel lying near where the _Olympia_ anchored.
But presently another yacht came steaming rapidly down the river,and Max recognized it with an exclamation of delight, for it was the_Dolphin_, and in a few minutes more Captain Raymond was on the deckof the _Olympia_, grasping his son's hand, while his eyes shone withfatherly pride and affection.
"My boy, my dear boy!" he said, in tones tremulous with emotion; "thankGod that we are permitted to meet again."
"Father, my dear, dear father, how I have longed for this meeting withyou!" was Max's answering exclamation. "Oh, tell me, are all our dearones alive and well?"
"Yes, my son, and waiting yonder in the yacht for you. Surely theadmiral will allow you to go aboard her with me for a little visit."
The admiral and the captain were not strangers to each other. A cordialgreeting passed between them, they chatted as old friends for a fewminutes, then Captain Raymond carried his son off to the _Dolphin_,where he was received most joyfully, and exchanged loving embraces withhis affianced, his sisters, "Mamma Vi," "Grandma Elsie," and littlebrother.
They told him they had spent the greater part of the summer at CragCottage--which they still considered their temporary home--but for thepresent were on board the yacht, as the best place from which to viewthe naval welcome to Admiral Dewey.
Time flew fast in the glad mutual intercourse they had lacked for somany months. Max had many questions to ask in regard to friends andrelatives and all that had been going on in the neighborhood of hishome and theirs. But his short leave had soon expired, and his fatherconveyed him back to the _Olympia_ and left him there with the warmlyexpressed hope that they would soon be able to be together constantlyfor a time.
At the naval anchorage at Tompkinsville a fleet was gathered to welcomeDewey's return, and his vessel steamed thither on Wednesday--the dayafter her arrival at Sandy Hook. As she swept up the bay the salute dueto an Admiral of the United States Navy rang out over the harbor fromthe forts and the assembled fleet for the first time in many years.There were also the music of marine bands, the pealing of naval bugles,the shrill whistles of numerous small craft, the cheering of excursionparties, and the rapid dash of the steam launches, all combining tomake the scene a very lively one.
During that day and the next the admiral and his officers had littlerest, for their time was devoted to receiving the hurried visits ofState and city officials, of naval and military officers, and ofthousands of private citizens. One of the calls was that of a committeefrom Washington, to tell Dewey of the arrangements for his receptionand the sword presentation there, and of an invitation to dine withPresident McKinley on October 3d.
On Thursday, Captain Lamberton of the _Olympia_ had a pleasanttask--that of pinning upon the breast of each man of Dewey's fleet whohad taken part in the fight at Manila the bronze medal of honor votedhim by Congress. That was followed by the presentation to Admiral Deweyof the first American admiral's flag ever flung to the breeze, the flagfirst hoisted to the mast-head of Farragut's flagship, the _Hartford_,before New Orleans.
Another thing very pleasing to the admiral was the receipt of an orderfrom Washington granting special permission to the thirty-four Chinamenon board of the _Olympia_ who had taken part in the battle at Manilato land and have a share in the great parade. The city was a blaze offlags and bunting by day, and of electric lights by night. On theBrooklyn Bridge over eight thousand electric bulbs were arranged toform the words "Welcome Dewey"; powerful searchlights flashed fromthe towers over city and bay, and red fire burned along shores on thevessels at night.
The naval parade on Friday was the most magnificent display of thekind ever seen in this country. The _Olympia_ led the way, followed bybattleships, cruisers, revenue cutters, torpedo boats, and innumerablecraft of all descriptions. Over three million people lined the riverbanks to see the magnificent pageant. At Riverside--where Grant isburied--a salute was fired in his honor. Two beautiful allegoricalfloats were anchored there, representing "Victory" and "Peace."Here the _Olympia_ and her consorts dropped anchor, while the longfleet passed in review. In the evening there was a fine electric andpyrotechnic display throughout the city and along the river.
The next day, Saturday, September 30, came the land parade, which wasas interesting as had been the naval one. At five o'clock the admiralwas up, and personally inspected his men. A committee of gentlemenescorted him to the City Hall, where he was met by Admiral Schley,Captain Walker, Captain Coghlan, Captain Dyer, Governor Roosevelt, andothers who had won distinction in the war. It was observed that hegreeted Schley with marked cordiality. From there the party went to astand in front of the Hall, and Dewey was presented by Mayor Van Wyck,on behalf of the City of New York, with a handsome and costly lovingcup of fine gold.
The admiral and his party then hastened to the pier to take the boatto Grant's tomb, where the procession formed. It was a great one,and every step of the way was an ovation. First came Sousa's immenseband of musicians, then the sailor boys of Manila, the bluejackets ofSantiago, and the boys from fifteen States, who had taken part in theSpanish-American war. The immense crowds along the sidewalks cheeredthem lustily; none more so than the "Fighting Tenth" of Pennsylvania.
But the part of the procession which attracted the most attention wasthe carriage drawn by four beautiful bay horses in which rode AdmiralDewey and Mayor Van Wyck. Dewey rode with uncovered head bowing rightand left until he reached the reviewing stand. The triumphal arch withits marble-like colonnade made a beautiful picture. On its top was aheroic figure of Farragut--who gave Dewey his first lesson in sailingover hidden mines and destructive torpedoes--seeming to look downupon his brave and successful pupil with admiration and approval. Thecelebration was a great success, showing how heartily the Americanpeople appreciated their gallant hero. The next day, being the Sabbath,was spent in rest and comparative quiet. On Monday, October 2, Deweywent by rail from New York to Washington, his journey thit
her provinga continual ovation. It was in the early evening he reached that city,and as the train neared the station a battery boomed out the admiral'ssalute, announcing his arrival to the waiting multitudes. The ThirdCavalry was there to receive him, and he was driven to the White Houseto pay his respects to the Chief of the Nation. He was warmly welcomedby the President and his Cabinet and many naval officers.
After that the entire party went to review the civic parade which hadbeen planned in honor of the admiral.
The next day Admiral Dewey was presented with the sword voted him byCongress. A vast concourse of people assembled to witness the imposingand impressive ceremony, which took place in front of the Capitol,in the presence of the President and his Cabinet and the principalofficers of the several departments of the government. General Mileswas grand marshal of the escort, attended by a large staff of officersof the army and navy, all in full dress uniform and superbly mounted.
Just as the meridian gun sounded high noon, Admiral Dewey, leaning uponthe President's arm, walked upon the platform. Following them werejudges of the Supreme Court, governors of States, senators, and membersof Congress, and the general officers of the army and navy.
Congress had directed that the sword should be presented by theSecretary of the Navy, and he did so in most appropriate and eloquentlanguage.
"No captain," he said, "ever faced a more crucial test than when, thatmorning, bearing the fate and the honor of your country in your hand,thousands of miles from home, with every foreign port in the world shutto you, nothing between you and annihilation but the thin sheathingof your ships, your cannon, and your devoted officers and men, youmoved upon the enemy's batteries on shore and on sea with unflinchingfaith and nerve, and before the sun was halfway up in the heavens hadsilenced the guns of the foe, sunk the hostile fleet, demonstrated thesupremacy of the American sea power, and transferred to the UnitedStates an entire of the islands of the Pacific."
In closing his speech the Secretary handed the sword to the Presidentas Commander-in Chief of the Army and Navy, and the President,speaking a few appropriate words as he did so, handed it to theadmiral, who took it, saving:
"I thank you, Mr. President, for this great honor you have conferredupon me. I thank the Congress for what it has done. I thank theSecretary of the Navy for his gracious words. I thank my country forthis beautiful gift, which shall be an heirloom in my family forever,as an evidence that republics are not ungrateful. And I thank you, Mr.Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, for the gracious, kindly, andcordial welcome which you have given me to my home."