The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1882-02-17
Whether to Go to Sea.

Whether TO Go to Sea.
This is far more serious question.
dear boys, than many of you imagine.
For perhaps you have looked at it only
through the rose-colore1 spectacles of
Mr.. Cooper or Mr.. Marryatt, and it may
be that some have even used the more
glazing ones furnished gratis by the SEN
sational story writer of to-day. And thus,
faacying that sailor must be sort of
combined Jack Easy and Ralph Rack
straw, know from experience how eager
becomes the desire for ga life on the
ocean wave" But both Cooper and
Marryatt wrote of sea life as it was con-
nected with the naval service of their
day, giving only the very brightest side
of the picture at that And the naval
service of then and now is as unlike the
merchant service as can possibly be i'm
agined.
The time has been when boy with a
natural aptitude for sea life could ship
on board of our American vessels, and
the discipline begood for him, whether he
ultimately followed the sea or not. This
was when crews were made up of some
from own sea-board towns, whose pur-
pose in going to sea was to fit themselves
for the quarterback, as rapidly as good
habits, energy and application would do
it. They were, as rule, intelligent,
clean-lived young men, respecting them
selves and respected by their officers,
who were too wise and too upright to
use toward them the language and abuse
SO common at the present day. From
such as these sprang many of our best
American Captains but where those of
the next generation are coming from I
cannot imagine, unless more of our large
cities follow the example of New York
In lnstituting nautical Scholarships like
"St. Mary's," where boys can be thor
oughly trained for the merchant service.
For, alas our ships forecastles are
filled with constantly increasing
throng of vicious and grossly ignorant
foreigners, Of many nationalities, while
purely American crew is very seldom
seen at the present day.
The truth is, boys, that sea-going is
terribly misrepresented by most nautical
writers. For one book like Danas
"Two Years Before the Mast" or Jew
ellis Among Our Sailors" there are a
thousand of the "Brave Bill, the Boy
Buccaneer Order-bOoks which repre-
sent ea-going as an adventurous, ro-
mantle, jolly sort Of life, Astounding in
marvellous incidents by sea and land.
Nothing is said of the wearyinS round
of unpleasant tasks, of hardships most
terrible, sufferings almost incredible,
| dangers without number, shipwreck-
death. do not wonder that boys who
read these books get false views of sea
life, as well as false views of life in gen.
eral.
"Ah," ] hear you say, eve know
that there are hardships and dangers to
be met with in a sailors life; we expect
them"
But bless you, boys, while I don't
mean to be impolite, must fatty con-
tradict you, and say that you don't know
anything about it, excepting in the
vaguest sort of way-excepting as you
imagine yourself, ON your return, saying
to some of your admiring schoolmates:
81 tell you, fellows, it was lively times
the night we lost our to'gallant-masts,
and L had four fingers FROST bitten reef
ing topsails off Cape Horn, last Deem
ber," or, I say, my lads, how would
you like to have been in my shoes year
ago to-day, when the old Susan went
ashore IN a living gale, and only three
OF us were saved out of the whole ships
company" You may fancy such Incl
dents interesting to recount, but their
actual suffering and terror you cannot
begin to realize in advance.
However, my object in writing this
paper is not to throw cold water on any
pr objected sea, going, if it is honestly,
knowingly and properly entered into.
But it is always a good plan to look
squarely at both sides Of SO important
question as to whether to go to sea or
not.
If boy has not some natural aptitude
for sea life he would better by far stay
at home He may be strong, active and
courageous, and yet be entirely unfit for
sailor. And one trouble is that boys
who are afflicted with "ship fever" often
mistake for aptitude what is merely in
clination. Out of 148 boys admitted to
the st. Mary's nautical school severity
eight were discharged before the end of
the year-cured. Yet in the code of
regulations for admittance to member
ship it is specially stated that boys who
make application "must eyince some
aptitude or inclination for a sea life."
And cannot help thinking that if such
boys could not accustom themselves to
the gentle discipline and admirable rou-
tine of that most excellent nautical
school, what would they have done on
board the average merchant vessel,
where they certainly could not leave at
the first nor the twentieth touch OF hard
ship?
But beyond all this, the would-be
sailor must be strong and resolute, for
the system Of "four hours off that
you're never sure of, and four hours on,
that you're always sure of Ito use
Jack Tar's expression) is most ex-
hausting one in itself. Through day
and night, storm or calm, heat or cold,
at the end Of the alternate four hours
sleep which the sailor may be lucky
enough to get in the foul atmosphere of
dirty forecastle, a vigorou1 pounding
on the door summons him from his slum-
bers. And on shipboard one cannot say in
answer, 81 don't feel very Welt guess
won't get up yet awhile. No, indeed.
Then follow two hours at the wheel, or
on the lookout, where he must attend
strictly to business, though drenched, it
may be, to the skin, or shivering in the
most piercing of midwinter blasts. And,
leaving this task, he may be sent i'm
mediately aloft, where for an hour or
two longer he balances himself on a slip
perry foot-rope. and. clinging by his
elbows to a swaying yard, battles with
the stiffened, Stating canvas, his. fingers
benumbed, and his ears and nose almost
freezing.
Through it all, or while about his Or
binary duties on deck. he must accustom
himself to hear his name coupled with
harsh words or reproaches, according to