Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-05-02
HER MAJEsTY'S JACK TARS.
How the Crew on q British Man-of-War
spend Their Time.

ENTERrSG THE SERVICE AZ BoTs-THEIR PAY
AND NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. IN THE sERv-
Icx-pIscTPLrSE ABOARD sHIP-THE POWER
OF THE OAPrAIS-PESsIoys FOB SERVICE, &C.
STAG Correspondence Of The Evening Star
On BOARD II. u. s. BLAKE,
GRAvEsESD BAY. NEw YORK, April &c, 1893.
OF all the picturesque characters that con-
tribute to the worlds welfare and civilization
mono are more attractive than the Jolly Jack
Tar. There are $50 of them on board the
Blake, and as the bluejadket is such a generally
popular individual it may be worth while writ
ing few lines about the British specimens
which have contributed SO materially to the
success of the rendezvous and the great Co
lumbar naval parade. OF all the many inter-
esting things on board the Blake none have in
terested me nearly so much as the common
sailor. And when I say common Go not
mean Just what i say. The common sailor
is he who in the aggregate composed
the great bulwark from behind which
England has successfully defed all ri
walls. He and his thousands of Darefooted
messmates the hearts of oak, of song and
story and history. One of the first things that
struck me on looking at the crew Of this great
ship the evident fact that every man was
British In our navy q dozen nationalities are
represented on every vessel but il the English
service IL is . very rare thing. indeed, to find
a foreigner. Occasionally you NAV discover
one serving her majesty as a marine. but never
among those who are rated as English seamen.
A little conversation with the bluejackets
develops the further fact that = majority of
them were born in the rural districts, and that
OF those who were city bred most Of them had
their homes in London. That English ships are
well manned is not at all surprising. for every
seaman on board commenced TO work in the
service az q boy at the age of fifteen. The
rule is inexorable After passing suffi-
Gent physical and mental examination the boys
sent to one OF the training ships. which are
stationed at Portsmouth Plymouth, Falmouth
aud Portland. The course Of training in these
ships will occupy the boys mind and sole at
tention for thirteen or fourteen months, and
when he Is considered to be in satisfactory
shape he is placed board a seagoing train
ing ship. and there for three months gives his
entire attention to the details of his work. He
is then ready for active service. but will remain
on the ship until called for, and when he has
been drafted continues his studies in seaman
ship. knotting, splicing. in learning the ships
routine and in generally improving his educa-
ton until he reaches the age of eighteen. when
he Is rated an ordinary seaman and is paid
the sum of 80 cents day. For six months,
sometimes a little more. sometimes a little less,
he serves in this class and then is examined in
the various branches of seamanship and as to his
knowledge Of gunnery, which for some time pre-
viously he is supposed TO have studied to q con-
siderable extent. Providing that he passes
this examination satisfactorily he is rated an
able seaman and receives the sum of 50 cents
per day with perhaps cents per day additional
because he has qualified trained man
Providing he is possessed of very good
character he is then eligible for the gunnery
training schools, of which there several, and
in which IL admitted he must spend about
eleven months. should he graduate from one
of these in the first class he will receive cents
per day extra and in the second class cents
per day. The torpedo school Is then open to
him There he will have to remain only four
months and should he receive first-class
certificate he will be entitled to 4 cents extra
per day, but supposing he co mes out in
the second class he Is simply a torpedo man
without any extra pay. III he should come out
of one of these examinations with rating
frst-class seamen-gunner he may then,
and probably will, pay particular attention to
craftsmanship, for the best marksmen in
variably secure the captaincy of gun, and
gun captains get an increase OF four cents per
day in paw There is, after he has become gun
captain, the possibility OF his reaching the po-
sition Of gunnery instructor. That has the ad-
vantage Of a daily attachment of sixteen cents
extra and places him where he can start out to
be a gunner. Before that elevation is reached,
however. there is another examinatiou-gun-
merry and navigation and seamanship. The
probabilities are that he cannot achieve this
FOR three years after being appointed to
the next grade below, but when he does get
there he becomes a warrant officer and will re-
ceive steady pay Of 81. SO per day. with extras
that run it up 70 from az to S2.25. Similar pay
IL given the boatswain (whose speciality is sea-
msnship) and the signal boatswain (who has to
be expert IN signals and navigation).
Plumbers. carpenters and stokers may
eighteen years and upward, but
the others named. with the armorer,
who joins the armorer's crew. becomes an
armorer's mate and finally graduates as an
arnorer, have to enlist boys and must go
through the regular course of training The
term of enlistment is twelve years from the age
OF eighteen and only those can enlist who have
gone through the preparatory course of three
years previously outlined. After serving six years,
or one-half of the first enlistment. a man can
purchase his discharge at a cost of about $780,
but il ne serves until he is thirty years of age
he can then compete for pension" (for pen
sions are given when men have been In the
service twenty years., and when the eight years
or the second term of enlistment commences
he gets 4 cents a day extra and receives a
gratuity Of sl7.50.
ONE DAYS STORY.
The daily routine of the ship is rather inter-
esting. In such an enormous concern as this
l. with $50 pairs of hands to be kept busy it is
really a matter of prime Importance that Satan
should not find an opportunity to provide en- |
ployment for the hands to do Everybody is |
called at 5:l5 in summer time and in winter |
The first thing to be done on the summer MORN |
ing is the scrubbing of the upper deck. and !
then, at $50, follows breakfast This consists |
of chocolate and bread, and half an hour is |
allowed for the consumption OF food. Then |
the forenoon watch on deck. dressed in the '.rig
of the day"-it may be either blue or white |
engages itself in cleaning the brass work while /
the watch below tides everything on the /
next deck Both watches cease cleaning 1
ut O'Clock, and then, when the watch /
below has douned the rig of the day, |
everybody cleans guns for half an hour. |
Following this they stand easy for fifteen /
minutes, and during this time absorb such cof-
fee and other food IS may be supplied BY the /
various messes- The material is purchased /
from the dry canteen-so called because there
are liquors sold there-and the account ia /
rendered to the caterer OF each mess at the end |
of every month He pays the bill and gener-
ally has a sufficiency of money on hand to sat
isfy the appetites for at least portion of the
following month. The cash he so disburses
has been saved on rations. for none of the men
ever eat all the beef and biscuit issued them.
They do get away with the bread, though when
they are near enough shore to have bread issued
them. When a mess does not draw all the beef
or bread TO which il is entitled it receives in
place OF the issue cents per pound for beef
and 30 cents for biscuit.
At O'Clock the entire crew goes to divisions !
on the upper deck. and there officers-there is