New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-04-01

hsPs to be strictly judged BY the laws xhich govern
life uYon the Land. But at the same time We must
be permitted to sugsest, that if commsneers arc 70
have the benefit Of these considerstions the seaman
himself should not be altogether deprived Of it.
be BE- reckless, indolent and prodigL, we must IN
Justice remember that bis life at hest is but hard
CGe thai be is i'll paid III ted, i'll clothed and over
worked; that, beng united BY his profession for
other svocatops he il bound to it for life; and that
be is consider ed at seq the neanest of menss aud
on shore as fair game BY land sharks, grog venders
slipping masters, prostitutes and common cheats
Ia it any wonder that be is sometimes little res
tise' Is it strsnge that his ps,ience sometimes
proves inadequate and that in bis despair he breaks
into open rebslioni
But, in answer to the objection already stated,
We say that it does not by any means follow that
q rigid discipline must necessarily be cruel
Ore. TIE parent exacts implicit and unques-
tioniDg obedience, but he does not there
fore, think it hi. duty to torture his child
There is a moral power, a natural sptness for CON-
nard which some men possess, which shows itself
lot by torrent of oaths, nor BY the infection OF
crueties upon the defenseess, but in the unmoved
countenance, the sten and ubfinching eye, and the
whole resoute demeauor. A ship master possessing
this talent may, and often does, manage the most
unruly crew without recourse to cat, or pistol, or
bardspike.
There are two classes to which We would ee-
pecialy appeal. 1t is certainly very discredsable
to the owners that they should permit such cruel
tee on board their vessels. We know that there
are plenty of excuses, but we do not consider them
to be Of much Importance; for we do say with the
utmost plainness, that If our ships cannot sail with
out the mslfgeatment of their crews, they had bet
ter be sunk at once. If man cannot get rich
without keeping scores of his fellOwcreatures in
degraded and oppressed and altogether miserable
condition, why, he ought to remain poor, and should
take particular pride in remaining poor. For our
own part, however refined might be our tastes,
however deep Or: enjoyment of ease and luxury we
do not believe that either would bring to US the
smallest satisfaction If for them we were indebted
10 the suferngs Of an oppressed and injured class
and, although We might be registe. at the Gus
tom Hou,e as the owner of hundred argoses, We
could not forget the narrow and noisome fOrecaste,
the insufficient and unpalatable and unwhOlesome
food the fantastic tricks of authority on the quar-
ter.deck, the insolent and con,empuous address,
the studied insult and the protracted cruelty. The
shp.owner should, and in time he will, be forced
to consider these things or else to share in the dis
credit which they bring upon the service. Unless
there sball be reform in our merchant service, it
will soon be as noisome in the nOstris of ID and
men % the slave-trade. The owner can enforce
reform if be please, by instantly dischargtng from
bis service any officer who is known to be cruel and
tyranpical. When masters understand that undue
severity will not be tolerated by owners, many
abuses will disappear from the service.
Again, we would appeal to the masters and
other officers themselves. They certainly cannot
desire to bring odium upon profession which they
have adopted, which has heretofore been deemed
respectable and in which it is possible to accom-
plish 80 much for humanity and justice and human
happiness. They surely cannot wish to be ranked
with the negro-drvers of the South. For the credit
Of their craft at least if for nobler reason, they
should abstain rom oppression, from unnecessary
severity, and from mean and vulgar cruelty.
of course, there will be plenty of people
who will declare that seamen are delicately and
tenderly tres.ed-that they lead pleasant and lux
uIious lives, and that these complaints are all phi
Ian, hropic CANNON. Such persons are already be-
ginning to write to the newspapers. We commend
to them the following release which every sailor is
obliged to sign before he can get bis wages:
"We, Tire undersigned, late mariners on board the
on her late voyage described on the other side
OF this instrument and now performed to this place of
payment, do hereby, each for ourselves, acknowledge
to have received Of -, agent or owner OF said =,
the full sum hereunder set against names-beiDgin
full amount of wages for services, and all demands
for assault ana battery imprisosment OF whatever
name or nature against said -, her officers OF own
FRS to the day or date hereunder set against our
pames."
The Union. some days since By way of shutting