Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 152, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 June 1920 — "Go to Sea On the Tennessee" [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

"Go to Sea On the Tennessee"

H ENNESSEE, popularly known as "The Volunteer tJ state,’ ” says the encyclopedla. Just how, when or <^ 7 from whom Tennessee got the nickname nobody seems ZLy to know. Anyway, The man I; who bestowed it was a prophet. For Tennessee has Just Justified her nickname by doing something unique in the volunteering line. Tennessee has Just, set a new standard in the record of volunteer naval enlistment In time of peace. And the slogan that did it is: “Go to sea on the Tennessee.” When the superdreadnaught Tennessee steams away majestically from the New York navy yard some time in June she will be the first of Uncle Sam’s first-class fighting ships to embody a certain new naval idea —the Idea that it means pep, patriotism and corps spirit to man a battleship with men from the state whose name the battleship bears. There are 600 Tennesseeans on board —and more to come. These 600 new naval recruits are the product of a whirlwind recruiting campaign through the state of Tennessee, says the Sun and New York Herald, which was led by Capt. R. H. Leigh, U. S. N., who is to command the new vessel, and who, as chief of staff to Admiral Sims during the war. was in direct command of all the American submarines and sub-chasers operating in the war zone. In his recruiting tour Captain Leigh has the zealous co-operation of Gov. A. H. Roberts of Tennessee, who Is extremely popular with his constituency, and of Miss Helen Roberts, the governor’s daughter, who christened the ship at the launching and whose charming photograph portraying her in the act of doing so was featured in the posters that helped to lure the Tennesseeans from their mountain fastnesses.

' Captain Leigh says he is going to' try to make the Tennessee "the happy ship” of the navy as well as a model of discipline. He believes that the spirit of camaraderie and state pride incident to manning the vessel so largely with native Tennessee talent will promote both contentment -and efficiency. Commenting on his novel experiment Captain Leigh said: “By February 3 we had enrolled our full quota of lower rating men and a great many additional applicants had to be turned away. Hundreds of them are now enrolled upon a waiting list, anxious to be summoned for duty upon the ship of their choice. It would have been possible In this recruiting campaign to have fully manned two great dreadnaughts like the Tennessee with Tennesseeans exclusively if wc had been able to accept all applicants. “But It must be understood, of course, that a large percentage of the complement of a ship like this, including the chief petty officers, must necessarily be men who have had previous experience and special training. That is why, when we go Into commission, the Tennesseeans at first probably will not muster more than 600 of the complete ship’s complement, which numbers. In all, 56 officers, 75 In the marine guard and 1,350 enlisted men. As rapidly as the Tennessee recruits develop proficiency it will be our policy to advance them and thus create opportunities for some of those now on the waiting list. From time to time we may also receive Tennessee seamen by transfer from other ships. I am convinced that within two years' the Tennessee will be a ship practically manned completely by a Tenner see crew.” The campaign began last November The state of Tennessee was divided ir<o sections, with about 18 counties to each. Chief petty officers were de tailed with posters, moving pictures and other publicity devices to cover every city and town in their sections. Nashville was tjie officers’ headquar ters or base station. The co-opera-tion of postmasters was obtained and

publicity literature was sent to them for posting and distribution, not only in public buildings, railroad stations, cities and towns, but also along the rural mall routes. So thoroughly waS this preliminary campaign work done that within a few days the whole state of Tennessee was talking about “their own ship.” Well, they came to the recruiting officers in shoals, these husky young miners and backwoodsmen, many of whom had never seen salt water nor stood aboard a ship. For four successive weeks Nashville, which had been standing low in the list before the drive, led all the cities of the country in the number of naval recruits furnished. •

Recruiting parties carried with them 50 uniforms of assorted sizes. When a man was signed up he was immediately fitted out and shaved, he was assigned to recruiting duty in his own home town. Naturally he became at once a sort of paladin. Furthermore, he was no stranger. Soon he became a more potent personage than either the parson or the sheriff. In many instances, Captain Leigh says, such lads, wearing their sple and span uniforms, brought into the sub-stations from 10 to 12 recruits apiece. More than onehalf of all those who enlisted during the state drive were brought in thus by newly enlisted men In uniform. Not long after the campaign began Captain Leigh made a trip through the state accompanied by Governor Roberts, speaking in most of the cities and larger towns. He emphasized not only the navy’s opportunities for education, adventure and sightseeing, but he stressed al ways, the local idea —"Tennessee wants to man this newest dreadnaught of America’s victory fleet with men from her own towns.and countryside.” Later, in January, Governor Roberts, accompanied by his staff, made another trip through the state, lasting two weeks. He made frequent exhortations from his special train and from town • and city platforms. Captain Leigh and his colleagues of the navy bestow upon the governor a generous share of the credit for the success. Following the governor’s tour recruiting officers with brass bands gave concerts in the schools" and colleges in different sections of the state. At the opening of the drive Commander Staton addressed the Rotary club In Nashville. Similar organizations in other cities were addressed by the recruiting officers, who received valuable aid from the Rotarians. The 600 Tennesseeans thus enlisted are an uncommonly fine lot of men. Many of them have been experts with the rifle since they cut their. second teeth, so it is not surprising to learn that at the ranges a large percentage already have qualified as expert riflemen, which is the highest rating for

rrarksmanshlp known in the service. Not a few, moreover, saw service in the army during the world war in grades ranging from private to sergeant. Of course the state is very proud of its warship. Usually a commonwealth bestows upon the vessel bearing its name a handsome silver service In token of Its pride and affection. But 4n this respect the Tennessee is going to establish another precedent. She is to inherit the old service that belonged to the armored cruiser Tennessee, which is now a wreck. And then, too, as one of the officers of the new fighter remarked, there is not quite the same Utility for punch bowls and the like aboard ship that there once was. But the state was determined to do something memorable for her pet craft besides supplying a major part of the crew. “We did not care to have a silver statue of Andrew Jackson,” said Captain Leigh, "and the American Library association already had given to the ship a splendid library of about 3,000 volumes, carefully selected by our chaplain, Lieut C. A. Neyman.” So It was decided in conference with the ship’s officers that the state should raise an endowment fund of about $30,000, the annual interest from which should be used to supply entertainment, relaxation and edification to officers and crew by giving them advantages in addition to those provided by the government. Among other things, there is to be a motion picture outfit which will be used for taking photographs of the Tennessee boys cavorting in foreign ports. The films will be exhibited extensively throughout the Volunteer state, thus maintaining interest in recruiting and in Tennessee’s own particular,unit of the fleet. There will be also athletic and educational equipment of the most approved patterns, all directed toward making the Tennessee the “happy ship,” which Is one of the ambitions of her captain. All the other superdreadnaughts in the navy are envious already because the name Tennessee has no fewer than four E’s In It. In the navy the E Is the most desirable letter of the alphabet Blazoned upon barbette or gun turret it signifies extraordinary proficiency in target firing on the part of that particular battery or gun crew. Painted upon the towering funnel. It means engineering proficiency, while the special red pennant flown aloft at the end of the winter practice cruises Is the most coveted trophy of all, for It stands for pre-eminence in all-round battle practice. “Now, what’s the use?” ask some of the pessimists aboard the other ships. “The Tennessee has E’s enough to spatter them all over the works, and they never would be missed.”