The Iron Vanguard of the Pacific

The arrival of the United States steamer Nipsic, to be stationed permanently in Puget Sound waters, is an event not without significance. It is true that the Nipsic has seen her best days, that she is a war vessel of an antique type, that her possibilities are exceedingly limited; but this is a beginning, a promise that the time is not distant when the Puget Sound naval station will be a naval station in fact as well as in name. There has been some complaint, based on ignorance and altogether ill-founded, of the progress made at Port Orchard in the steps preliminary to the construction of the dry dock. The commission to select a site for the dock was authorized by the act of June 1890. On the other hand, the work preliminary to the erection of the Puget Sound dry dock is accomplished, and advertisements for proposals from contractors are likely to appear very soon. This work has been hastened by the activity and persistence of the Washington delegation in Congress, no less than by the capabilities and enthusiasm of Lieutenant A. B. Wyckoff, commandant of the Puget Sound Naval Station. Lieutenant Wyckoff arrived in Seattle April 2, 1891, his mission being to select a site on Port Orchard for the dock. In less than three weeks thereafter he forwarded to Washington City abstracts of title and bonds on the lands he had selected. It is not surprising that some time elapsed before the Puget Sound dry dock received attention, as the bureau of yards and docks is allowed by Congress only one draughtsman to prepare all the plans for new buildings and docks. However, the plans and specifications are now in the hands of the printer, and advertisements for proposals will soon be made. The people of Puget Sound have reason to feel grateful to Lieutenant Wyckoff. He has labored for years to secure the establishment of a navy yard on Puget Sound, and his efforts have been earnest, intelligent and unselfish.