Character Interview: Rachel Semmes

Sometimes you just have to take one for the team. It's a tough job but someone has to do it. We are interviewing Rachel Semmes today, and as things go we were forced to conduct our interview on the Island of Oahu, in the Kingdom of Hawaii. I know, the trials we must endure.

One of the trials is that we had to do the interview at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, instead of, say, Diamond Head. It has also taken us six years to get the interview, the result of red tape at the public affairs office. That has been a blessing in disguise. I was all set to interview Lieutenant-Commander Rachel Semmes, Captain of The R.N.S. Prince Maksutov and architect of the Pacific Alliance. However, my interview today is in the office of the Commanding Officer of PACCOM, Rear Admiral Rachel Semmes. And while a bunch of you will be shocked that there is a woman in this high position here in the year 1881, I'll have to revive some of you when I tell you that she is not yet thirty. And while a rear admiral is the equivalent of a one or two star general, and I have already interviewed a three star in General John Lee Anderson, it always sounds much cooler to be Admiral.

• CG: Admiral Semmes, thank you for the interview. Would you mind introducing yourself to my readers.
• RS: I would be glad to. My name is Rachel Semmes, I'm twenty-eight years old and have been in the Republican Navy for the past six years. Mobile born and bred. And I am the favorite niece of my Uncle Rafe.
• CG: There is so much to follow up here. First of all, Uncle Rafe?
• RS: That would be Admiral Raphael Semmes, commander of the C.S.S. Alabama during the last war.
• CG: I guess Naval greatness is in the blood.
• RS: Our initials are both RS, so that's something as well. Honestly, until I was given command of the Prince Maksutov I never commanded any more than a rowboat.
• CG: That would seem to lead to the next question. From civilian to Admiral in six years. Was everyone in the Republican Navy afraid of your uncle.
• RS: I wish. Most of them never heard of him. There aren't many naval historians in the West. I owe most of my success to the Pacific Alliance. 
• CG: So no great Naval Battles to speak of?
• RS: I didn't say that. The Reciprocity Treaty of 1875 got The United States in the door with the Hawaiian Government, and then war broke out. And now we wanted to establish a base there, and have refueling rights. We knew that Grant wanted to establish a base there, and we needed to get there first. The Prince Maksutov held her ground against a better armed American Ship, and when they broke off to regroup we pulled out our ace. We had a handful of torpedoes. 
• CG: A torpedo. How did that work.
• RS: It wasn't easy. You have to put them in the water and launch them manually, so we had to set out the lifeboats. The federals thought we were abandoning ship and so never reacted until it was too late.
• CG: The press probably had a great time reporting that.
• RS: Yes, we were a bunch of pirates who launched a cowardly attack on an innocent party. Massacre and all that. But the end result is, Hawaii is ours.
• CG: And the Pacific Alliance?
• RS: There are four members at present. Us, Hawaii, Russia and New Zealand. We have entertained a Russian Vessel but that is the extent of their aid. I think we are still on our own. I will not be holding my breath for a Russian Fleet.
• CG: Have you gotten any advice from your uncle.
• RS: After I got my command I asked his advice. He said do not seek a fight. The federals will find me soon enough. But if I am forced to fight do not spare any cannon. It is better to go down to the sea in defeat than to surrender.
• CG: With the war and all the activity with the alliance, have you had any chance at having a personal life.
• RS: Prime Minister Davis eldest son, James, has recently begun courting me in earnest. He is a nice man, but I am still not sure if it is proper.
• CG: Is he your subordinate?
• RS: Everyone is your subordinate when you're the admiral. He is not directly, though. He is a clerk, not in active operations. He is the same age as I, so that helps somewhat.
• CG: You said you were mobile born and bred. Was your home like Sauf Asir.
• RS: I wish. I wasn't born into such riches.
• CG: One last thing. Since you are Minister of The Navy, are there anything new in the war effort going on?
• RS: I will give your readers a scoop. The engineers over at Fort Bering are working on perfecting the idea of an armed submersible craft. Now that we have working torpedoes the time seems right. There will be no repeat of a Hunley Disaster.
• CG: Minister Semmes, I thank you for your time.

Character Interview: Susan Anderson, Part Two

Welcome Back to our interview with Susan Anderson, the matriarch of the Republic of Ansdale. If you missed part one, click on the link. When we left off our interview, Susan was beginning to tell about her daughter Katherine joining the war effort as a soldier.

CG: You bring up Lieutenant Commander Semmes. Can I infer that you think women should be warriors like your husband?

SA: Women don't belong in the Army. Or the Navy. I know John and James have decided to let women serve because we've got a bigger population deficit than the south did, but I still don't like it. Women should rule the home. That's why one of the first things I did after the last war was to send Katherine off to Mobile Bay School For Girls. To learn to be a lady.

CG: It didn't work?

SA: I should have known better. I did know. I knew it when she first picked up a pistol when she was five. She wanted to be just like her brothers, even though the blast knocked her down. She didn't cry. She wanted to try again, and again, until she mastered it. So while I was disappointed when she told my husband that she wanted to be a soldier, I wasn't surprised. John got her stationed to Fort Shoshone in Wyoming as part of the Territorial Police, which is sort of like a police officer. Then the war erupted and the Territorial Police became Cavalry and she also became a sniper. She was also one of the founding members of the Emerald Guard, which is also tasked with protecting our government officials, including Prime Minister Davis.
CG: Your brother.

SA: Yes. Katherine seems to seek out the most dangerous assignments. A mother wants to protect all her children, so I saw to it that she got her first command with the founding of Fort Republic in Southwest Alaska. One of the reasons J.D. is going to Fort Bannock is because "he doesn't want to be bossed around by his sister."

CG: But you did get half of what you wanted. She did recently get married.

SA: Yes, to Major Morgan of Fort Shoshone. So she is an army wife as well. Though the couple is hardly together. Major Morgan is soon to replace my husband at Reno as Minister of War. It was a grand wedding which would be the envy of every Southern Belle. The distance is not conducive to grandchildren. That may change. Katherine is asking to go back to the Emerald Guard. Perhaps I can get her assigned to Reno.
CG: A related question. What is the status of Sauf Asir?

SA: Sauf Asir is an active plantation. All workers are hired. At twice the freedman's bureau rate, I should add. I inherited the plantation. James wanted nothing to do with it. I think Katherine wants to inherit it from me. That gives me joy. Uncle Ezra manages the estate, and has defended it proudly against United States troops since war broke out. He actually almost shot Katherine during one of her missions east. Another reason I wish she wasn't a soldier. Perhaps Major Morgan will settle her down.

CG: Perhaps. I hear there may be another wedding in the Anderson family. I hear rumors that your son Robert and Captain Quantrill are courting.

SA: They are. Young lovers never realize how obvious their actions are to others. I want Robert to be happy, but he could have done much better.

CG: I take it you don't approve?

SA: Her father was a cold blooded murderer and her mother a saloon girl. They weren't even married at the time of her birth.

CG: There was nothing she could do about any of that

SA: She is a gambler, frequents saloons, and dresses like one of General Hooker's camp followers. Like most gamblers she is probably a cheat.

CG: I have interviewed Captain Quantrill previously. She appears to be a good Christian girl who reads the Bible every day.

SA: Even Satan masquerades as an angel of light. She taught Robert to play poker. Even if she is an honest girl, it is tradition that the bride's family pays for the wedding.

CG: And since Captain Quantrill is an orphan, there's no family.

SA: Captain Quantrill will gain much more from the marriage than Robert.

CG: Pardon me for saying this, Mrs. Anderson, but while your family may have been Southern Royalty, there doesn't seem to be any High Society here in the West.

SA: He could have done much better.

CG: Mrs. Anderson, thank you for this interview. I will not ask you another question, but I hope you will permit me a final comment. You have raised four children who have risen to the highest ranks of prominence in a new nation. That takes character. I believe despite surface appearances Captain Quantrill is a woman of excellent character because of the fact that Robert is in love with her. He learned to judge character from you.

And that concludes my interview with Susan Anderson. Not much left to cover here. Thank you, Mrs. Anderson, for being a talker. Not sure who will be next, but stay tuned.