CHAPTER XXVI.
John Ancrum Winslow--His Early Life and Training--The Famous Battle Between the _Kearsarge_ and _Alabama_.
A few weeks ago I had as guests at my house two young men who were graduates of the West Point Military Academy in 1889.

One was my son, at present an instructor in the Academy, and the other was E.Eveleth Winslow, of the corps of engineers, who had the honor of being graduated at the head of his class.

During the course of the conversation I asked Captain Winslow whether he was a relative of the late Commodore John Ancrum Winslow, commander of the _Kearsarge_ in her famous fight with the _Alabama_.
"He was my grandfather," replied my friend, with a glow of pride.
It was a pleasant bit of information, but it made me realize how the years are passing.

It seems but a short time ago that the country was electrified by the news of the great battle, off Cherbourg, France, which sent to the bottom of the ocean the most destructive cruiser the Southern Confederacy ever launched.

And here was the grandson of the hero of that fight, already thirty years of age, with the hair on his crown growing scant.