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Naval History and Heritage Command

Naval History and Heritage Command

Commodore George Dewey, Commander, Asiatic Station, to George Goodwin Dewey

Olympia.”

Hong Kong

15h March /98

My dear Son:

     Yours of Feby. 5h reached me yesterday and as a steamer sails for Vancouver tomorrow, I will have this ready to send. I am sorry you do not get out of the office at present, but you must remember you have not been in the house1 very long. I think Mr. Langdon2 will help you all he can when the time comes. Well, we have been on a “war footing” out here ever since the loss of the “Maine-” Wars and rumors of wars every day.

I have all my squadron here except the “Monocacy” which is at Shanghai coaled promised ready to move at a moments notice should war be declared with Spain. Our objective point would be Manila in the Phillipine Islands which belong to Spain and from which she derives large resources.

     The news from home yesterday was decidedly warlike, but countries go slow now-a-days before declaring war and I trust nothing will come of it. I don’t see what we have to gain in a war with Spain. I see Billy Winder3 and Dr. Carpenter4 very often - Billy was on board to see me on Sunday. He is looking splendidly, better than I have seen him look for a long time. I  hear this ship is to be relieved by the Baltimore-“ The B. is not so fine a ship, but I should be more comfortable on board of her than I am at present. A few days ago I dined with Rear Admiral Prince Henry of Prussia on board his flagship the Deutschland, an antiquated iron clad, called by one of the newspapers here, a steam roller. There are two German, two Russian, several English and five American men-of-war in port, and more arriving- So you can see my time is fully occupied, as each arriving ship means an exchange of visits.

                             With love

                        Your Affectionate father

                             George Dewey

Source Note: ALS, DN-HC, PGGD, Box 1. Included with this document are a transcript and photocopy of the original envelope.

Footnote 1: George Goodwin Dewey worked for a New York Mercantile Firm.

Footnote 2: Probably Woodbury Langdon, partner in the Joy, Langdon & Co. mercantile firm of New York. Langdon served as a Chairman on the New York City George Dewey Celebration in 1899.  Charles A. Hazlett, History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire and Representative Citizens (Chicago: Richmond-Arnold Publishing Co., 1915), 772. and “Full text of ‘Official Dewey souvenir programme : commemorating the reception by the City of New York to Admiral Dewey, September 29th and 30th, 1899,’” last modified 10 March 2001, https://archive.org/details/officialdeweysou00alde.

Footnote 3: Lt. William Winder of the protected cruiser Raleigh.

Footnote 4: Assistant Surgeon Dudley N. Carpenter of the protected cruiser Raleigh.

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