The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1895-05-23
WHAT THE LIGHTS TELL.
Tho Signals Displayed by Ships at Night,
and What They Mean.

and What They Mean.
A railroad train cannot turn to the
right or left at will, for it is bound by
the iron tracks to go the way they
lead, and the trains coming toward it
are guided in another set of tracks to
pass safely by. Therefore the engineer
may rush his train along over the
guiding tracks, through the brightness
of day or the darkness of night, with
no fear save for the most unforeseen
and infrequent accidents. On the sea.
however, a ship can go whichever way
she is turned, and other ships may
meet her coming from any direction
The broad ocean, then, may be looked
upon as covered with an enormous net
work of tracks crossing one another il
all directions, where a ship may be
switched from one track to another a
will. In the daytime ships can be seer
from each other, and be turned aside
to pass in safety; for not only can they
be seen, but the direction in whict
they are going is known. Still, even il
the daytime certain rules must be fol
lowed to insure perfect safety. How
then, do ships, pursuing SO many inter
secting tracks, pass the others safely
in spite of the darkness Of the night?
Imagine yourself on the bridge of 9
big ship. 1t is really a bridge, you
know, high above the deck, extending
from side to side near the bow, and
projecting little beyond the sides so
that from each end man can sec
straight ahead without rigging or
mas<S to interfere. 1t is night, and
very dark. Even the ship is only
long, dark shadow under your feet.
Over the sky may be pail of cloud,
and You peer away into the darkness
but cannot even toll where sea and sky
come together. All is inky blackness
above and below. Spreading outward
from the bow of the ship is foaming,
phosphorescent wave, which tells how
rapidly she is rushing onward over the
unseen wuters and into the dangers of
the inpenetrable gloom. In the MID
die of the bridge stands man holding
a wheel and gazing at compass lit up
by little lamp. With that wheel he
turns the rudder to keep the ship
steadily pointed in the same direction
by the compass. That direction is her
track. Other ships may be on that
track; other ships may be crossing that
track in the darkness. How are they
to be avoided?
On each side of the bridge stands a
man peering continually into the gloom
ahead, while back and forth. almost
necessarily, PAGES u fourth man, an
officer bn 1{lra =
ually gazing ahead or glancing at the
compass. He is the officer OF the deck.
On him rests the responsibility of
avoiding all other vessels which may
cross his vessels track, or be approach
lag her upon it. Upon his quickness
and Judgment depends the safety of
the ship. In the daytime he has seen
one, two, or perhaps a dozen ships
around him during a single hour, and
he we'll knows that just as many may
be around him during any hour of the
night. How, then, is he to know
what it is and how to keep out of their
way?
Their lights will tell.
When you face towards the ships
bow the side at your right hand is
called the starboard side, and the side
at your left hand is called the port
side. On her starboard side ship car
ries at night green light, and it is so
shut in by two sides of a box that it
cannot be seen from the starboard side
or from behind. If the ship is a steam
ship she carries a big white light at
her foremast-head. but if she is a sail
ing vessel she does not. This white
masthead light can be seen all around
except from behind.
So long, then, RS the officer of the
deck sees no lights, he feels sure that
there are no vessels near him, and
PAGES his watch in security.-Ensig
John NJ. Ellicott. in st. Nicholas.