Wall, as I say, it wuz headed jest right, so it did look shaped for all the world like that old flat-iron that fell on to me from Mother Allen.

Of course it wuz bigger, fur bigger, and had a hull string of flags hitched from each end on’t to the middle.  Wall, it wuz a high, good-lookin’ banner a-risin’ out and perched on top of a curius-lookin’ smoke-stack.

And for all the world, if that line of flags didn’t look some like a line of calico clothes a-hangin’ out to dry, hitched up in the middle to the top of the cherry-tree, and then dwindlin’ down each end to the corner of the house, and the horse barn.

But I wouldn’t have that Battle-Ship git wind on’t that I compared it to clothes-lines, and flat-irons, not for a dollar bill; for battle-ships are naterally ferocious, and git mad easy.

There wuz sights of good-lookin’ flags histed up at one end on’t, besides the clothes-line full, and lots of men a-standin’ round on’t.

They didn’t seem to act a mite afraid, and I don’t spoze I ort to be.

But lo and behold! come to pry into things, and look about and find out, as the poet sez, that wuzn’t a real ship a-sailin’ round, as it looked like, but it wuz built up on what they call pilin’—­jest as if Josiah should stick sticks up on the edge of the creek, and build a hen-house on ’em, or anything.

[Illustration:  Come to pry into things, and look about and find out, that wuzn’t a real ship a-sailin’ round.]

It is a exact full-sized model, three hundred and forty-eight feet long, of one of the new coast-line battle-ships now a-bein’ built for the safety and protection of our country, at a cost of about three million dollars each.

The imitation ship is built on the lake front at the northeastern point of Jackson Park.  It is all surrounded with water, and has all the appearance of bein’ moored to the wharf.

It has all the fittin’s that belong to the actual ship, and all the appliances for workin’ it.

Officers, seamen, marines, mechanics, are sent there by the navy department, and the discipline and way of life on a naval vessel is fully shown.

I wuz glad to see that it had a woman for a figger-head.

I guess that the nation thought, after seein’ how Miss Palmer went ahead and overcome the difficulties in her path, and kep her beautiful face serene, and above the swashin’ waves of opposition all the time—­they thought that they wuzn’t afraid to let a woman be riz up on their ship, a-lookin’ fur out over the waters, and a-takin’ the lead.

It looked quite well.  There wuz lots of lace-work and ornaments about her, but she carried herself first rate.

Wall, the ship as a hull is dretful interestin’ to warriors and such, and mariners.

As for me, I thought more of statutes, and pictures, and posies, and Josiah didn’t take to it so much as he did to steers, and horse-rakes, and so forth.