The Coeur d'Alene press. (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho) 1892-1907, 1895-05-04
IS NOT A HAPPY SHIP
The Cruiser Olympia Dubbed
"The White Shaver"
THE MEN DEsERrISG IN SQUADS



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Bsss ssst ~ the Grow
San Diego. April 3e.-The actual
reason for the cruiser mot entering San
Diego bay 10 thought to have been
learned today. The captain IL said 70
fear that II he comes inside be win not
have men enough Left to navigate his
ship. The men are aid TO be DESERVING
in squads Whenever possible. and have
dubbed the new cruiser Tho White
Slaver." The following address to the
public was brought ashore and given to
the San Diego papers for publication
today:
I'VE, the crew Of the Olympus,
would like to give the citizens Of San
Diego and the United States in general
an idea Of how the Queen Of the Pa
cihc' IL managed BY her executive stan
Of onioerA The good people Of the
United States will wonder why 80 many
men desert from their protector, and it
is NO more than just to explain to them
and It the same time exonerate to some
degree the conduct Of the crew by Civ.
ing some very good reasonA
In the first place, we don't get half
enough to eat. Fancy lying ten OF If
teen days in an American port and iv-
ing ON hard-tack and dandy funk, OF
cracker hash. . mixture consisting Of
hard-tack maahed in water, with few
onions-f you are lucky enough to
have hem-stuck in the oven and serv.
ed while hot, Il de Olympia. In al.
most all men-of-war in the United
States navy men are allowed TO put in
q or IS Of their wages to buy . few
luxuries for their mess in the shape of
potatoes, the backbone of q workman's
diet; . little fresh meat while in port,
OF some canned goods to take to sea;
but with us-no. Our noble skipper
and our kindhearted executive lie back
on their luxurious divans and smoke
and eat and drink, while we common
sailors, that helped to put them where
they are, are no better than q dog in
the street in their estimation and must
eat salt horse and bareback without q
murmur.
I'VE would be unfit to be protectors
Of American rights il we did not stick
up for our own One would think in
talking to him that Lieutenant E. w.
Sturdy was the best man that ever
lived; but Justice the emblem of
America, is Is foreign to him As fresh
meat is scarce TO uA When some
Of our men went up and respectfully
asked permission to buy provisions in
this port, he positively refused, and
put one Of the men on the report for
being too importunate. claiming he was
diEespectful Another ILLUSTRATION to
show his nature is the following:
"One day the smallest boy in the
ship was his messenger. He happened
TO be absent for . few minutes, and
when he returned Mr.. Sturdy asked the
boy where he had been, and upon being
answered, said:
"'Well, damn it! don't want you
to leave here again You are to follow
me like little dog. You understand?
Like little dog And he repeated il
again. Is If it gave him infinite salts.
faction.
I'VE make no threats, but we need
nutriment to enable us to do our work.
So we look to the newspapers, the peo-
pies friends, to uphold us and call to
the attention Of the public some of the
grievances which we have that they
know 80 little about"
The petition continues in the same
vein and finally concludes as follows:
I'VE would be very glad to show any
visitors about our ship, but are forbid.
den to touch the guns unless an officer
is with Us, and the smallest apprentice
boy on the ship can explain the gun to
one Of the officers and tell him things
that he doesn't know. As for the cap.
tain, J. ]. Reed, he is but a useless or.
nament Altogether, the harmony so
essential to q seagoing ship is lacking,
and q visitor can almost notice it on
crossing the gangway. The ship has
already received the appellation Of the
White SLAYER
Late this evening it was learned that
the cruiser is short sixty men, and IL
she came inside il is said others would
60 over the sides like rats.