The Northern Pacific farmer. [volume] (Wadena, Minn.) 1878-1885, 1880-04-08
AN OLD SAILORS YARNS.
Greasing the Cooks Fidd!e-.A Very
Serious Result of Practical Joke.
Sunday World.


''Boys, sir" said the Old Sailor, wip-
ing the froth eff his mustache and peer
ing at me curious;y through cloud of
smoke, "when I used to 60 to sea was
bruDg up properly on board of mer-
chant ships, whatever they was in the
navy. AS to how it was can't say. but
persume some Of the salutary lessons
of obedience Is still teached. I've heern
tell and don't see no reason for to doubt
it, that it have been the ruiuation of
the navy the way boys are treated into
it. Why, sir, you'll hardly believe me,
but it are fact, as can be vouched for
by any officer Of the navy, that boys are
coddled and cared for list as if they
was dogs or horses. Every mornin'
they are brought out and stood along in
a line on deck. and then the master-at-
arms goes along the line with a sheet of
white paper and catcher and tries
every boys head, and next folders the
doctor and takes a look at each 6nek
tongue, and the last of all the first lieu.
tenant inspects their clothes, any de-
feet, of course brought out by either in
spection bein' to be Immediately
remedied, and the offendin' boy punish
ed arter fashion; but they don't never
get properly punished on board of a
man-of-war cause it aint allowed by the
rules Of the departments: consequently
the boy grows up to be sort OF pusil-
Luminous set, kind Of cross 'twixt a
loblolly-boy and an old woman, and the
navy has deteriated.
"Now in the merchant sa1vice there
weren't none of that fddle-faddle non
sense at all, but boy were jist put
through proper course of discipline to
once. It were rightly said as they got
more kicks than coppers,' but it were
all their benefit and hardened 'em up
to a proper condition so as they was
good for somethin' arter they got to be
seamen. One old man as I know'd
used to be very regular with his boys;
he licked 'em regular every Monday
mornin' and then as often through the
week as they disarved it, which accor-
din to him, were about every dav.
Boys never know what's good Tor 'em,
and he didn't ginerally have the same
boy two wages, but they never forgot
him and always looked back on their
treatment under him as bein' the begin
IN OF the maxim OF 'em
ut were in the forecast, hows'ever,
that the boy got the best part of his dis
cipline, and very few there was but
what arter wage to Liverpool in one
of the packets could dodge sea-boot
If flung at 'em, to all admiration. All
this put life into 'em and made 'em
playful and spry, as well as respectful
to their elders. A boy ginerally were
allowed twenty.four hours for to enjoy
his sea-sickness, and arter that he had to
turn to. Ehis were a marciful provision,
cause If let alone he'd be sick for three
or four days, and as there amt nothin'
worse than sea-sickoess, of course the
sooner he were cured of it the better
for the boy. There were various ways
of curin'. One mate I were with used
to make 'em drink pint pannikin of
salt water till cured. The boy were
ginerally well arter one dose. Another
mate used to ship capstan bal and let
the boy heave the empty capstan round
till he felt quite we'll. If there was
mole than one boy he allowed one to ride
on top ofthe capstan while t'other hove
round, and permitted 'em to spell one
another every ten minutes. The giner-
al way: hows'ever, were to set 'em q
sweepin' of the decks, touchin' of 'em
up In the hunt with q rope's-end once
in while to larn 'em for to sweep
clean. z,%&.
"What blessed cures I've seen, sir, un-
der these systems. I've know'd boy
as limp as wet dish cloth in the morn.
in brace up by night so as he could
sign his name to the mess kid equal to
an old sailor. The first thing he learns