Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-12-10

AbSeUce-ie Must ASe silent ana SUD
missive AIways-A Man to Whom the
Ship Is Every thing-His Habits.
L.andsmen imagine a sailors life very
pleasant one particularly aboard of a man
of.war. where there are, rs they express it,
so many to do the little work required TO
be done Because they go aboard war
ship while in port and see the sailors
lounging around the decks, or engaged in
various pursuits for their own benefit or
amusement, they get the idea into their
heads that all in the world a sailor has to
do is to kill time in the manner most
amusing or beneficial to himself. How
mistaken these worthy people are in their
estimate of what comprises the duties OF a
''blue jacket" while on shipboard,
On the whole a sailors life is not very
enviable one, when we take into conSidera-
ton the fact of his being a slave in the
mild sense of the word. Tie is not allowed
to express his opinions on anything deemed
a subject that comes within the limit of
naval authority He must often suffer an
complainingly an injustice to himself rs
even n murmur might complicate matters
and tend to make things disagreeable for
him. If he wishes 10 20 ashore he must
dance attendance" on the executive Of
him. Should parent, brother. sister or
wife, il he has one, be in need of money he
has the greatest of difficulties in procuring
it, although it is his own.
For man whose mind is in keeping with
its surroundings-who thoughts never
wander beyond a cables len9th-whose
ideas of a life OF freedom are rather OBJ
scured, the navy is the place. But for
man who i ambitious to become some
thing more than the servant of servants.
and whose energy impels onward and up
ward with an irresistible force, it is not
-sssz-5 ROUTINE OF DRILL
The routine of drill, which requires some
time to perform, may be interesting TO
some, and for the benefit of those who may
not know it / shall enumerate its various
branches: The manual of arms which Is
drill with rifles, how to handle. load and
fire with precision and celebrity being in
cluded; revolver drill, single sticks, the
parties, thrusts, guards used in broad
sword fencing being taught, and great gun
drill, which nobody cares to participate in;
also sail drill, which consists of bending
and unbending sails, chewing up, reefng
and furling. Light spar drill, sending
up and down topgallant and royal
yards and topgallant yards Heavy
spar drill, sending up or down top
sail and lowering yards and topmasts.
Boat drill, manning and arming boats;
drill under sail, under oars. Abandoning
ship, as in case OF her sinking or being con-
sumed by fire. Clearing ship for action,
which consists of stripping ship to lower
masts, hosting out and lowering all boats
preparatory to towing them astern. Max
ing barricade of hammocks as protec-
ton for sharpshooters; casting loose all
guns, the crew providing themselves with
everything necessary-battle axes, cut
lasses, revolvers, etc. Life boat drill; gen
eral quarters; fire quarters.
GOOD RATIoNS ALWAYS.
Considering these things as trivial a sailor
may be considered as being treated fairly
well on board man-of-war. His health is
looked after with great concern by the
officers, he is not required to work in rain,
severe heat or cold if it may be avoided.
Great care is taken that he shall have
plenty of good warm clothing, which must
always be Kept clean and well aired. The
food is of the second best quality obtain
able, and when prepared is such As few
would deem unpalatable, its only fault
being scarcity rather than asurfeit, which
is to be regretted, as sailors are blessed
with good appetite.
There are some men who would be will
ing to yield up the ghost were they de
prived of the privilege of treading the
decks of a man-ofwar She is their home,
wife, children, kindred-everything in the
world to them. Nor is it to be wondered
at, since they have never worked a day on
land in the whole course of their lives, and
have never known home beyond their
ship.
There is a man IN the United States
navy today who has been "blue jacket"
for upward of sixty years. Admiral Porter
and he were boys together in the service.
Though the winters of nearly three
quarters of century have come and gone
since his BIRTH he is as hale and as active
today as many man whose sum total of
years does not exceed thirty. He-being
the oldest man in the service, and having
performed more than one heroic deed dur
ing the Mexican, Seminole and civil wars,
for he participated in all three-is allowed
great privileges, and may come and go
whenever he pleases.
He has not a relative living in the world
that he knows of. He has always been, as
he expresses it, "a bird alone" He was
not more than IL years old when he
entered the navy, and man-of-war has
been his home ever since. He is now Il
shipped boatswain's mate, and his pay
W OtbWtcu ~oO pei
He has been most severely wounded in two
or three engagements, as the scars still
visible are testimony, and they are of no
delicate description either, but quite the
reverse.
After supper and until pipe down"
% o'clock) is the time for jollification of all
sorts aboard "a man-of-war. In fact this is
the only time the tars may call their own,
and they use il to advantage in entertain
ing and amusing themselves. There can
be seen three or four groups singing us
many different songs at one time, each tar
exerting his vocal powers to the best of his
ability. Others may be seen thronging
around some old, weatherbeaten son OF
Neptune. listening to his recital of things
that have never occurred.
To amerchantman war ship is certainly
preferable, but to imagine life aboard one
is all sunshine is a mistake indeed. There
are duties as well as pleasures, and unfor
tunately the duties are in the majority