New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-06-14
THE PlSNTNG or / SUPERSTITION.
SAILORS ARE BECOMING REcoNCILEp TO TN
PRESENCE OF A DEAD BODY ABOARD SHIP
THAT IS. THE "PAINT-sCRUB-


One Of the popular supers;iticns o. saiIorna
used to be agains; having dead body aboard ship
but II NJ longer holds gooi-on passenger ships At
leas,-for most o. them are now frovi3ed with tic
means Of preserving the body o. person who dies
on the voyage un'n port Is reached This Is gener.
ally done by lncasing the body IN an a.r.igh, ne
tall, coffin one being carried by every Arss
class passenger vessel. and there is seldom .
murinur from Jack" Steam and other modern I'M.
provements have worked as many charges In sail.
orrren az they have In the vessels they man. and
in consequence the old,lme sal, with his supers,l.
tlons his folbcs AMI his notions, is fast disappear
ins before the advance Of his less romantic and no
more efiicen; brother.
Going 10 sea amt what Il used 10 be- SAID %
old sea captain with sigh. to the writer. 10 vhan
he had been bemoanrG The decadence OF sailing VS.
sells. which he ascrbcl 10 the rapidly growing
habit; OF building enormous steam freisht carriers.
THE nne old ships barSs ami other sailing esa
are going. ana In place Ok real saiormen you see
lot Of 'pairt-scrubbers' and iron pouaiers' that
hardly knows how 10 splice rope and hasn't as
much superstition ~ a goat They don't care muea
whether the cargo is deal bodies or plgron'
In tho old days the presence ot a corpse ao'ara
was considered bound 20 bring storms ana ether
bad luck and even now on sailing vessels an I'M
mediate burial over the side IS the proper ,n'ns
when a dea n occurs - the skipper cares 10 AeeV
the forecas,le N g1oi hum0r. on the Dig s'eam'
ships CARRYING hundreds % passengers each t7p .
death is no uncommon thing, ana II there :"
friends Of the dead person aboard they are HAsv
TO have tho body brought % port. Il has oec0mss
common custom too. to ship the bodies Oh pe.'-.
who have died abroad home 10y steamship anu "
several occasions small mortuary chapeis nave w
constructed aboard. otherwise the eoMns az
carried as II they were an ordinary pa''
ships cargo. :, d.
The skipper already quoted told OF ohs ~
many examples of the sailors superstition %
subject that had come under his ooser'a".-
friend OF his Was few years ago coM'ia"-s
big clipper ship engaged IN the SCUM AI =.
trad. n. MAS A kindly man. and SAILORS WI M
WAYS glad to ship with him. not on! ocNAu "s,ss NJ
nor beInr A hard tasAIndster, but also ~ re
shin was known a. "a good tec'iel, w.. ~, stp
neT ~ vessel ON his last voyage the eapanso 4
bonnd from ,'allao for Antwerp win en nssssIrS
Ss~fIzsr lie fen sick and clrl soon s s,xaai and
Tho Horn His body was prepares anl s w.
,is,ni below IN the depths % the cars" ,mmani.
F.rbo rrsi rrate. who succeeded 10 lpe 18th Inc
ma. M, The best Of sailors or popta., ID
80, JIca1 winds and gales were en-, ,ss men
amid accession. and the grum3iins y" !, was tho
- hrcke out into Amos, open matnys ain that
presence Of that BODY IN t"e rg !, n,st be GOT 10
TO- zen went AFT and - iniorned 4, t. =, thtr
ga ,hnn wthout ceremony hcavei tne - ~ vss,her
80 49, con,,in over the side. Whetner .ne put he
irnnroyei then the skipper cou.us' vas thar sea.
was certain Of one thlnS a,u ,, s always 50 70.
nanship and superstition WIZ s. ,,st when ,hs
,n,herP ould be things o. me ~ have crows
5naI,t .~r,hbcrs" md "iron-pounue's
FL he real eallormen on the seas