The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1896-07-21
SHIPS OLD AND NEW
A GRgAT CHANGE HAS BEEN BROUGHT
ABOUT IN A FEW YEARS.

ABOUT IN A FEW YEARS.
In tho Old Way Of Handling Ship Sail
ors Rushed Pellmell About the Deck Ex-
ocutins Ordsrs-How Q Man-ofwar Ii
Handled at Present.
| Between the old seamanship and the
new the difference Is almost as great as
that OF the London bowyer who made tho
"twanging yew" that won the field of
Agincourt and the modern mechanic who
turns out remington with range Of
1000 yards No one but on old sailor can
see the change as 1t exists, and the altera-
ton in the character of the men who go to
sea Is quite as great.
The old service was a grand school to
! make mon Intelligent, courageous, self re-
liant and resourceful. AT present any man
with brains enough to learn navigation can
command steamer, and a sailor Is made
as soon as no can keep his legs in u sea-
| way, but the conditions Of modern com
mercc have made the change imperative.
Quick dispatch and great carrying capacity
have RELOCATED the old service to extinction.
10 passengers on the old Philadelphia
packets voyage across the Atlantic was a
very picturesque journey. Say group col
lects on the quarter deck of tho 1onawanda
in first watch from s p. IN. to midnight).
The men are cat mapping under the weather
bulwar!is. Suddenly the mate, Dan An
drcws, sings out with voice that makes
the sails SILVER: "Alkhands to wear ship!
Down helm! Let fly head sheets! Raise
tacks and sheets Let go main and mizzen
braces! Clar bowline, mai-n-sel haul"
The deck is alive with men, but there is no
confusion. The ship turns like skirt
dancer and the sails fill with boom like
cannon. Such sight inspires one as does
u cherus of battle trumpets. How different
on the steamer! The officer of the deck, to
the man ut the wheel, Down helm; hard
down. calls to tho engine room through
the pipe, HALF speed, Mr. Pistonr and a
moment after, Full speed sirr' and tho
vancouver is done No one notices the
change any more than in rounding curve
on the railway.
Our old man of-war service was harsher
and more brutal than any other in the
world, at least foreign sailors say SO, and
the reason given was that American Off.
GERS are more irritable and quick tempered
than those of other nations There is q
man living in this city who was q quarter
master on the Brandywine in 1913 OFF
the coast Of Japan the cholera came aboard
and fairly ravagcd the crew When at sea,
the brig was cleared, and there was only
one prisoner brought up for punishment,
his oifenSe being drunkenness. He was in
poor health, but got Is lashcs. That night
no died in such agony that he tore the
flesh from his breast with his nails, while
cholera claimed ten victims around him.
In all the essentials of health and COM
Tort sailor on one of our ironclads has lit |
Ito to complain Of. lie Is as well fed and |
housed as II prosperous mechanic ashore,
and, except drill, has literally nothing to |
do, but there is no taste of the breezy, |
hcalthful old sea life, when his ship was |
living thing moving at his voiton. He has
no rigging to set up, no sail to furl, no
masts no chatting gear to weave; he is only
an artillcryman, and worse sojcr," -
dolly, "a marine" the Object of his old
time detcstation, and his old formula falls
dead-'A mcssmate before a shipmate,"
a shlpmatc before stranger, "a stran.
ger before a dog" but "a dog before a so.
jer"
On board Of cur sailing warships officers
wero generally either above or below tho
but marked individualism
was tho rulo. There were men so valuable
as executive officers that they werO kept at
sea nearly all the time, and in many cases
because shore life dCmoralized them, drink
being their demon.
Ono the writer knew well. There was
no better ailprin the service, but he never
went ashore without being brought aboard
with delirium tremens. All his men loved
and respected him. Some were malignant
bullics, Others mischievors tattlcrs, con.
stantly reporting mon for small offcnscs;
others all around nuisanccs solely through
some imrcrfectiOn Of temper
Such one was Lieutenant Rancor. Saw
he would come on deck for middle watch
midnight until a. m) The middics half
awake, were promcnading the Ice side Of
jhe quarter deck. To them Runcor said;
: MIR. Jones, are you awake, sir2 Mr..
Brown, don't sleep in your watch sir"
Brown is II dubious headed youth who
should DO ashore mnding baby or TAX
ng his sister to church. lie somnamhu.
ICES and falls over the gun slides Then
;hc man at the wheel catches it: "How arc
'ou stcering2 Mind your helm. How does
he head;"
Brown Is sent into the waist to awaken
md worry the men. suddenly the lioutcn.
Int makes up his mind to tack ship and
'awls out, stand by for stays" Every
nan Is at his place in moncnt "Rcady
ibout! Helm alec, you internal luhbpr,
10 you hear Mr.. Brown where the devil
re you, sir? Fokesel, whccr's ,kr, Brown?
taisc tacks and sheets. Mr., Jones, are you
kulkingS Mr. Ropes, what are your men
oing?"
All hands get confused In sheer dos.
'eration the hellnsman lets the wheel slip.
minute the vessel is up in the wind
misses stays, and Ia 'in irons " Heavens,
What Il rowl
Rnncor fOams at the mouth and dances
n the deck, while the old tub makes stern
'oards for mile, Quickly and without
riders the lniddcs and boatSwain mate,
make things right, while Rancor yclls like
mailman. He turns The captain is stand
ng by the wheel, but says never word,
nd Rancor's heart goes down into his
'oots
Next morning at breakfast a marine
ives Mr.. Rnncor the captain S respects and
wishes to ste him. Every enc embraces
very ono else Rancor is going to get
ratified down., and comes back limp and
uhducd from the process Now on board
steamer such a man could do no harm.
10 can t rattle the men in the engine room
r harass the crow.
However much we may regret our pic.
urcsquc old navy and the glory Of our
merchant marine 30 years since, even tho
Iost hdcbuund old tar must admit tho
bnt = 4,
he Atlantic instead Of So. -philalclphia
lines ,
Indications.
CalleT-1s Mr., Swigham at home, mad.
,