The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1889-12-28

! the water surcnarkeu air OF tne sea, your
breakfast will be hours late through ina
bility to kindle a fire, wi scat the cook
catches it from that potehtate of the sea,
"the old man." and all the mates raise
their voices and cry with empty stom-
achs, "Let him be accursed.'
One great trial with me lay IN the diff
fculty of distinguishing fresh water
from salt mean by the eye, We sea
cooks use salt water TO boil beef and po-
tatoes I'M or rather to boil beef and pork
and steam the potatoes. So | usually
had pail of salt water and one of fresh
standing by the galley door. Sometimes
these got mixed up. always found
this out after making salt water coffee,
but then it was too late. They were
particular, especially in the cabin, and
did not like salt water coffee. On any
strictly disciplined vessel the cook, for
such an otfense, would have been COM
PEELED to drink a quart or so of his own
coffee, but some merciful cherub aloft
always interfered and got me out of bad
scrapes. Another annoyance was the loss
Of spoons and forks thrown accidentally
overheard as | flung away my soup and
grease clouded dishwater. 1t was in
deed bitter when as occupied in these
daily washings, allowed my mind to
drift to other and brighter scenes, TO see
the glitter of a spoon or fork in the air
or sinking in the deep blue sea, and then to
reflect that already there were not enough
spoons to go around, or forks either.
Our storeroom was the cabin. Among
other articles there was keg Of molasses.
One evening after draining quantity l
| neglected to close the faucet tightly.
Molasses, therefore, ooZed over the cabin
floor all night. The cabin was freshet
of molasses. Very early in the morning
the captain, getting out of his bunk,
Jumped both stockinged feet into the
saccharine deluge. Some men will
swear as vigorously in foot of mo-
lasses as they would in one Of coal-tar.
He did 1t was very black day for me,
and life generally seemed joyless and I'M
inviting; but cooked on.
The Henry was full of mice. These
little creatures would obtrude themselves
in my dough wet up for fresh bread over
night, become bemired and die therein.
| Once n mouse thus dead was uncon-
sciously rolled up in biscuit, baked with
| it, and served smoking hot for the morn
| ing's meal aft 1t was, as it were, an in
voluntary meat pie. OF course the cabin
grumbled; but they would grumble at
anything. They were as particular about
their food as an habitue of Delmonico's.
| | wish now at times had saved that bis
cult to add to my collection of odds and
endibles. Still even the biscuit proved
but an episode in my career. l cooked
on, and those l served stood aghast, not
knowing what would come next
After five months of self training |
| graduated on pies. l studied and
wrought out the making of pies unas-
S.sted and untaught. Mine were sea
aimee pies; material, salt beef soaked to
freshness and boiled tender, dried apples
and molasses. The cabin pronounced
them good. This was one of the few
feathers in my culinary cap. Of course,
their goodness was relative. On shore
such pie would be scorned. But on
long sea voyage almost any combinatid
of flour, dried fruit and sugar will pass.
Indeed, the appetite, rendered more Wig
orous and perhaps appreciative by long
deprivation from luxuries, will take not
kindly to dried apples alone. The
changes in the weekly bill of fare at sea
run something thus: Sundays and
Thursdays are duff days." Tuesday,
bean day; Friday, Goldfish and potato
day; some vessels have one or two spe-
cial days for pork; salt beef, bareback,
tea and coffee are fluids and solids to fall
back on every day. / dreaded the max
| ing of duffs, or flour buildings, to the
end of the voyage. Rarely did l attain
success with them.
A duff is a quantity of flour and yeast,
or yeast powder, mixed, tied up in bag
and boiled until it is light. Plum duff
argues the insertion of quantity of rails
ms Plain duff is duff without raisins.
But the proper cooking of duff is
rather delicate matter. If it boils too
long the -four settles into hard, putty
like mass, whereunto there is neither
sponginess, lightness, nor that porous
ness which delights the heart of cook
when he takes his duff from the seething
caldron. If the duff does not boil long
enough, the interior is still paste. If
a duff stops boiling for ever so few min
utes, great damage results. And some
times duff won't do properly, anyway.
Mine were generally of the hardened
species, and the plums evinced ten
dency to hold mass meetings at the bot
tom. Twice the hands forward rebelled
at my duffs, and their committee on
culinary grievances bore them aft to the
door of the cabin and deposited them
there unbroken and uneaten for the "Old
Mans" inspection. Which public dem
onstration l witnessed from my galley
door, and when the duff deputation had
retired, emerged, and swiftly and silent
" bore that duff away before the Old
Man had finished his dinner below. Its
q hard ordeal thus to feel ones self the
subject of such an outbreak of popular
indignation. But my sympathies now
are all with the sailors. A spoiled duff
| q, o oraot misfortune in the fOrpcastle of