Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1889-03-13
BOYS LIFE AT SEA.
PRENTICE MILFORD TELLS A BIT
OF YOUTHFUL EXPERIENCE.


ors' Iin of Farc-Learnins Good Man
ners-A Eally in Authority-An "ordi-
nary Seaman"
There were on board six "boys" besides
myself, and all from the same village as
our captain. That was the principal rea-
son for shipping on his vessel. 1t was
not good thing to do, as we soon found
out. To be known on board as friend
or protege of the captain is to draw at
once prejudice unfavorable to you from
crew and officers. They think you are
trying to creep in at the cabin windows.
The motto on shipboard is that true
sailor must come in through the hawse
holes. That may or may not hold true,
according to the kind of boy or material
that comes in either way. If man has
got the sailor in him it will come out
anywhere.
/ was in the second mate's.watch. He
was born brute. But he swore half of
my sickness out of me-, and the fresh air
and enforced exercise of pounding the
rust from the chain cable before it was
slowed away did the rest.
Our experience was rough. But it was
useful. We learned in short time many
things our parents had neglected to teach
us, such as the art of mending and wash
ing our own clothes. Up that time ]
haano ida, of the eternal necessity Of
repairs on clothing My first efforts
with the needle, one sunny morning as
sat on deck, called forth abusive express
sions regarding my lack of skill from
the third mate. He 'condescended to
teach me. Our earlier efforts at wash
ing called forth contemptuous explosives
from the old sailors, who said that such
badly washed clothes hung in the rigging
were disgrace to the ship. We resorted
at times to a sea wash, which CONSISTS IN
tying flannel shirt to line, hinging it
overheard and letting it tow after the;
ship. Sometimes we hauled in our lines
less the shirt from badly tied knots, and
sometimes, when the ship was surg1ng
along at the rate of ten knots an hour,
we hauled in a shirt less good deal Of
the warp, for a bit of cloth won't last
long when treated in this manner.
SAILORS BILL OF FARE.
Our sea fare was ''lobscouse" and a
fluid called coffee for breakfast; "salt
horse" and hard tack for dinner on Mon
day, pork and beans on Tuesday, salt
beef again On Wednesday, salt fish on
Friday, and beef again on Saturdays and
Sundays; fluid called tea, sweetened in
bulk with molasses for supper, and on
duff days. Thursday and Sunday a
limp of plain boiled -four, without
plums or other fruit to give it the true
fnwardness of pudding. This taught
us how we had been humored and PAM
pered at home. For the first time in our
lives we really appreciated the value OF
our home breakfasts, with milk in our
coffee. buckwheat cakes, and a score OF
other things, which we thought came as
easily as dew from the clouds and must
be everywhere. Some of us had be-
longed to the Dainty and dificul t-to-suit-
cub order Of boys-grurmbled at the
coffee for breakfast, turned up our noses
at this or that dish, and made mother
hustle to get us something fit to eat"
Three weeks at sea cured us OF that.
Even the smell of real coffee, as it was
carried by the black steward from the
galley to the cabin table, was a treat,
and an occasional cold breakfast roll or
discarded bit of any cabin dish that
found its way to us was luxury not to
be described in words. These were
| "benavlins." That is the sea phrase for
the crumbs that fall to the boys from the
captains table. ''Lobscouse" is made OF
hard bread, boiled short time with
| shredded salt beef. 1t is a relishable dish
anywhere. A midnight luxury for sea
| lunch is biscuit, an onion and a slice OF
raw pork. It sounds rough to the lands
mans ear, but have seen sailors, after
being a month ashore, longing eagerly
| for this coordination.
LEARNING GOOD MANNERS.
am almost ashamed to say that it
was necessary for us boys to go to sea in
order to learn some necessary manners.
For instance, when spoken to by an efii-
Ger or ordered by him individually to do
any duty it was required OF us to say
| "Aye, aye, SIR" in order to show that we
had heard what he had said and not go
off without saying word, as we had
often done in somewhat similar circum-
stances with our parents, leaving them in
doubt whether we had heard them or
not. Then we were required to show
certain Difference, even to the older
sailors. but we had not been in the habit
of doing to many of the grown up men
| Of our village. If boy on shipboard
! was too fresh, as the modern saying goes,
with the old salts of the forecastle and
too much inclined to move his tongue
| glibIy when in their company, either
with them or his own mates, he was very
quickly reminded that his chaf and
| verbal horse play must lie reserved for
his own special company and Tor time
Our ship was furnished with bully
second mate. He was knocking some
body down much Of the time. This was
during the flush of the era Of last Cali.
fornia clippers, high sailors wages ana