The Progress., 1892-12-03
boss of the longshoremen said to me:

II
81 wish you happy voyage, but
wouldn't go out with you if the captain
would take Inc as passenger and pa,
me live pounds O week besides. Yor
have got more rats than could be fount
ON three line of battle ships, and they
are the most ferocious vermin I eyel
met with. l have been bitten dozer
times in the last two days"
On the last night before hauling ou,
OF the slip the captain came aboard.
had not turned In above an hour when !
was bitten on the foot by rat, and !
struck light to find they had already
ruined a new pair of boots and were
gnawing my clothes. Within another
hour l was driven out Of my stateroom.
and when / entered the main cabin I
found the captain and first mate there
before me. The "old man" had been
bitten on the ear and the foot, and Mr..
Shields had scored three bites. We
could hear the rats squealing and fight
ing and running about in every direc-
ton, and we were forced to acknowledge
to ourselves that we had never seen any
thing to equal 1t. As rule ship rat
Is pretty shy until after the voyage has
well begun, and 1t is rare that sleep
ing man is bitten even down among the
cargo. Here we were not yet ont of the
slip, and the vermin seemed to have pos
session of the whole ship. While we
were talking we heard yell from the
cook, who berthed in the fo'castle and
had it all to himself that night Next
minute he came running aft in his night
clothes and bounced down the cnmpan-
ionway into the cabin, and he was
sight to see. He shook rat off his
as he stood before us, and he
was bleeding from half O dozen bites.
The captain ordered him back to the |
TO- castle, but instead Of going there he
slipped ashore and was not seen again. |
Next morning we picked up cook who |
had just come in of voyage and had
not even heard the gossip floating around.
AT midnight the captain. Mr.. Shields
Ind myself went ashore and took beds
1t hotel, and next morning the former
lad an interview with Mr.. Copmbers.
As a result about fifty rattraps wers
eut down TO us Just as we were ready
o haul out OF the slip. II is well
InOwn fact that rats are seasick on the
endof OF voyage the same as lands
nen. Indeed horses, cattle, sheep,
wine. fowls. birds, dogs, monkeys and
ven serpents are more or less influenced.
FOR the first four or five days out Of port
We had hsavy weather, and nothing was
lesrd from the rats. Il was on the fifth
light, believe. when Mr.. Shields came
up during his watch below
With blood streaming from his right ear
rom the end of finger and from his
hin. He had been savagely attacked
y rats in Hb sleep. He said there must
ave been full score Of the animals In
is stateroom, and that they retired
rudgingly even after he had struck a |
ght and killed two or three with his
eavy boot He was still talking when
70 heard the 'old man" cursing and
,rashing about, and Mr.. Shields went
ack to see what the trouble was. The
sptain had been bitten twice in the
zee, and the way he was ''taking on
'ould have made your hair stand ND.
or some reason the men In the fo'castie
ere not disturbed that night, but the
It's concentrated aft and virtually cap- 1
lred the cabin. |
Most men, whether sailors or lands
EN-, have an instructive fear Of rats. A I
g ship rat, with his stiff hair, his ugly
res and his long yellow fangs, is an ugly Z
ing to look at, while his bite is a. [
ainful as dogs and a great deal more ,
'isonous. What happened that night I
ay seem ridiculous to you, but was /,
rious enough with us. Not an officer 4
uid occupy his stateroom. even with a c
yht burning. Two of the crew were ,
Mt down into the cabin with Delaying j
ms for weapons, and they killed over '
. rats before daylight. In the short r
ne we had been out of Bristol the cres- q
res had gnawed their way through e
cry bulkhead and partition in the I
ip. The sailors took the affair in the t
irit of frolic, and were not at all h
armed. They believed that the can t
in had brought aboard something Ia v
cabin stores which had,called ali the d
Is aft. Next morning the traps were a
erhauled, and it was then discovered o