Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-03-28

MAKING GOOD SAILORS.
ship Captains' stories-Naval Academy
| Graduates.
| From the Philadelphia Times.
Capt. Ormiston, of the British steamer EfFec-
tive, now at Philadelphia, was Sunday after
noon entertaining party of friends. warm
discussion sprang up concerning English and
| American seamen.
| ''Well, captain" exclaimed an ex-voluuteer
officer Of the United States navy, ''our naval
academy turns out some of the worst lubbers in
the name Of sailors that ever laid my eyes on
| had thirteen years service In the navy, and
during that time saw some of their best and
worst. The majority Of the graduates from An
napolis develop in that institution a
taste for kid gloves, waxed moustaches
and canes, and would never become
sailors If they were picked in brine. Some of
| them are ordered to duty as watch officers when
they had much better be under the charge of a
nurse or whipping tops on the corner of a street.
| The proper way to make sailors is to take BOYS
and break them right in to work. They should
be sent right aloft when there is reef1ng or fur
ling to be done. Make them roll up their
sleeves and dip their hands in the tar-bucket
their share Of all the work. That is the way
| sailors are made"
THAT is the way lads are made sailors on
English ships, both in the navy and merchant
marine" said Capt. Ormiston. of the Effective
There is no crawling in at the cabin windows
Every officer who walks the deck of an English
ship has served his time before the mast ana
passed rigid examination as to his Qualifca-
lions before he became entrusted with the re-
sponsibilties of watch officer, for in the care
soul in the ship. Two sons of the Prince Of
Wales are in the navy, and l once saw the
Youngsters, with their trousers tucked up. wash
Ing down decks like any yeoman's sons"
During the last wal" said another Of the
party, II was attached to doube-ender lying
In Brooklyn navy yard The executive Officer
| then lieutenant, now q commandments at
| tempting to cross yard. The stick in question
could easily have been carried along the deck by
two men. First he had yard.rope rove that
! was big enough to have lifted nine-inch gun
All hands were called and tailed on to the yard
| rope The bOatswain's whistle blew vigorously
| and that yard went alOft looking about as large
| as knitting-needle. When high enough the
foot-ropes, braces and lifts were slipped over,
and all waited for the order from the lieutenant
to sway across, but he was missing from the
bridge. He had slipped down to his room and
| refreshed his memory from the pages of The
Hedge Anchor He soon reappeared, gave the
necessary ORDER and the men were piped down,
or suppose we would have been standing there
yet"
Il got badly left in forming hasty opinion Of
the lah-de-dah captain OF an English irOn-clad,"
said Captain Ormiston. During the recent war
In Egypt took out supplies to Alexandria, and
after discharging, received orders to go to Ber-
wickport for charter. I knew nothing Of the
place, and had no chart of the north coast aboard
| the steamer. None Of the merchant captains
could supply me- and finally concluded to ep-
ply yyo,h to the he captain Of the ron-clad In
way, and was met by one of the OFF,
GERS, who said l would have to wait a few
moments, as the crew were going to quarters.
As he spoke the boatswains whistle was heard.
| clear and sharp, above the hoarse calls of his
mates. Immediately. as if by magic, yards be-
gan to come down and go aloft, the blue Jackets
rushing to and fro on deck, and of sudden,
bang of went one of the eghty-ton guns fit to
take your head off. After the men were 'piped'
down made my way up to the bridge, where
found little light haired man trotting up and
down. His hat was cooked roguishly on the
side of his head; he wore long side whiskers and
| an eyeglass dangled from gold chain about his
neck; AS l approached he halted suddenly,
whirled about on one foot screwed his eyeglass
into his eye, and, in sweet little piping voice,
said:
MY deah fellah. what can aw do faw your
He cut such figure that l was tempted to
laugh in his face; but, controlling myself I
stated my Grand Immediately the little man
had all the quartermasters running to find his
sub-0fflcers, and In a fifty they returned, and
touching their caps, they began to report that
Mr.: A. was ashore on liberty, Mr. B. had gone
cutter-and so on. He then turned to me. and
rubbing his hands, said: MY deah fellah, Ber-
wtckport is very fine place. aw assure you;you
Will find no trouble in getting in; aw was there
once mesef.'' Thinks ], What an ass this man
is; and, touching my hat, was about to go,
when a big, bluff saflor-looking ofricer appeared
and informed the captain that there was no
chart OF the british north coast aboard the ship.
Thanking the captain for his trouble, went
over the side and pulled aboard my own ship.
| mo doubt you would have agreed with me
that the captain was no sailor and fool beside
but you would have been mistaken as / was
The next night the 1nvincible went out to sea-
with a man IN the chains heaving the lead. OF
the man overheard. The same little captain
was on the bridge. Instantly the foppish airs
| were gone and the true sailor appeared. Pull
! ing the bells he stopped the vessel, and Just as
| he stood, Oilskins and all on, went overheard to
| rescue his man. One Of his lieutenants and a
| quartermaster jumped overheard to assist their
| commander. Instantly all was in an uproar
| All hands were on deck. All the boats were
| lowered, and the four men in few minutes were
safe on board the Invincble. The leadsman was
entangled in the line and would certainly have
| drowned but for the prompt assistance of the
captain. In addition, this was the fourth man
| that same officer had rescued from drowning.
His crew swore by him. He was peer of the
realm, and better officer does not walk the
deck of an English ship to-day. No, gentlemen,
you can't always tell the man by the cut of his
jib."
American Society.
From the Atlantic Monthly for April.
American society, as now carried on, is main-
talned solely for the benefit Of young girls, and
is generally little better than marriage mart.
The parents launch their offspring as well as
possible and display their wares to the greatest
advantage but the business Of the market is
carried on chiefly by the young girls themselves,
instead Of by their mothers, as in England and
Europe. There is no special objection to this
method of transacting the business but 1t is pre-
posterous that young girls and their affairs
should overshadow and shut out everything and
everybody else. The result Of this absorption
in one class and one pursuit Is that American