Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-07-30

termed snlpplnE masters VIII coHle W q
Captain and say: i will give you ) 10 for
the privilege Of shipping your crew. To
provide crew for an Australian port
they have given Captains as much as
$50 for the privilege. The runner
goes 10 the sailors and says: II
you wish to ship to an Australian
port / can get you Derth
for so much money Sometimes each
sailor paws as high as $50. Thls
comes ont Of the advance. and the ship
ping-master makes the difference between
the amount paid the Captain tor the Priv
fIege and the amount Of $50 multiplied pg
the number Of which the crew IS COM
posed. Hence the shipping OF crew Ior
a big ship is worth attending 70. BESIDES
the amount paid by the sailor LOT the
berth Is the additional sum for board on
shore. All of this comes out Of the adj
vance paid TO sailors. / believe it IS the
same in Boston.
PAYING THE RUNNERS.
SIN Baltimore and Savannah the runner
is paid by the Captain for his trouble IN
getting him a crew, the amount being not
over 81 for each man. Under the Ding
lev bill the Captain is expected to act as
his own runner, ana the idea is impractl-
cable"
"Whyg'
because il would take nearly all the
time Of the Captain while in port to hunt
I'D a crew, and when he had them engaged,
his vessel loaded and ready for sea ne
would 90 for his men and find that they
had either shipped on some other vessel
or had taken a walk out into the country
or to some other seaport town. The sailor
is a hard-wOrking, restless and shlitless
piece of humanity, and requires some one
TO look after him at sea and to look out
for him on shore. The runner is the
man who fulfills that mission when
the seaman is in port, but be often
gets badly fooled, for Jack every now
and then 'slips his cable leaving
the sailor boarding house keeper In the
lurch for board, and the runners hopes
of getting 81 for turning him over TO the
Captain blasted.
SLIPPING HIS CABLE.
slack tramps it to Charleston, or takes
a sailboat for DOboy, and is out to sea on
some other vessel. Do you suppose
| Captain has time TO follow such fellows
| boxing the compass so to speak-When
his vessel is loaded and ready for sea!
/ This provision of the bill, as applied to
New York, would have a good effect, but
| it is not needed at Baltimore or Savannah,
or any of the Georgia ports.
WHAT THE RUNNERS SAY.
The reporter met James Mcbride,
James Lane, and one or two other parties
/ WHO lIUlu LiAlG 10 llAAiC nave UGH eooO-
ciated directly and indirectly with the
| management of sailor boarding houses,
| and who are cOnyersant with the duties
/ Of runners. They united in expressing
| the opinion that the Dingley
| bill was passed in the in
/ terest of ship owners and Captains,
| and that the clause fOrbidding the adj
vance to seamen tends to reduce the
/ sailor to a worse cOndlt on Of slavery
than heretofore. Under the old law when
/ he was ashore he was, to certain eX-
tent, independent of the ship owner and
| Captain, for he could refuse to take low
wages for cruise, and stand OIL until the
master came to terms. Some OF the
/ Captains are perfect brutes at sea, or
| when one is found with some considera-
ton for his men he generally has first
or second mate to act the brute tor him.
MEASURING THEIR MAN.
| A sailor soon learns to measure such
people and could afford to wait for better
| company. There are also many Captains
who carry supply of slop clothing and
other fourth or fifth rate supplies,
| which they charge the sailor as much for
/ as the keeper of a frst-class store on land.
/ These stores are not ship stores, but
the an icles which the Captain carries to
rob his crew Of their earnings while the
vessel is at sea. The master, in this way,
makes handsome profit on his invest
ment. Under the law permitting
sailor to receive an advance
instead of making a purchase from the
ship before completing the voyage, he
| could buy a good article of clothing in
| regular store through a keeper of sailor
| boarding house. Hence, if the sailor can
not have an advance he would be cheated
/ by the Captain at sea at any rate, and
that is where the Captains will make more
money under the DingleY shipping bill.
| CHARGES AGAINST BOARDING HOUSES.
ave sailor boarding-hOu men," said
/ one of the speakers, 'are charged fire.
| quently in print with robbing the sailor,
| but we have not seen the man to come
forward and prosecute for it. All sailors
are free with their haTd-earned money,
| but they wish the best terms going for
/ their work. The sailor clearinghouse
| men keep him ashore until he gets
/ his figures, and therefore the
| Captains and ship owners wish to have
the allowance of an advance forbid. Of
| course, as long as at present. they cannot
| obtain the men without giving the ad-
vance they will express a great of SYM
patty for the sailor. The man who
| framed the Dingley bill blundered on that
| point, but we suppose they will have 1t
| amended to suit them. One thing the
| Captains coming to this port may depend
upon, they won't get any crews unless
| they pay the advance"