New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1897-09-15
M !. AN a @ f. AIRS MEN.
THEIR QUEER CALI uLATiOrs AND NO.
TlONs ABOUT THE SERVICE.

& TloNs ABOUT THE SERVICE.
The Absurd Distinction Made Between
Year and 8 .Butt' Odd Ideas the Blue
Jacket Has About Work and Play Aboard
IS Ship and ON Land. 5s5> S.
On the day after his enlistment for a
period of three years the American man
of-war's man begins to figure on the
amount Of time that is to intervene be-.
fore his discharge He has two years
and a butt" to do, the I. butt being
the remaining II months and 80 daysof
the first year. On the day following his
completion Of the first year Of his enlist
ment he has only a year and butt to
get through. No matter if the butt is
only a single day under a year in length
the bluejacket contemplates the term
with the blandest complaisanee. It is,
at any rate, not whole year, even
though it be 364 days, and this fashion
of throttling each year Of his service
makes him happy; it seems to bring
his discharge and the more or less tenn
pestuous joys he carefully maps out long
before his discharge within closer
range When he has put in 10 months
Of an enlistment, he breaks out the
homeward bound pennant; he is going
down the hill, and when he has finally
achieved two years and has only the
butt to accomplish joy fills his cup. &.
Once sailor always sailor" is
not strictly true of man-of wars men of
the American navy. Only about one
half of the men who complete one en-
listment ship for. another three year
cruise, but .ab0ut nine tenths Of the
men who put in two cruises settle down
to lifelong continuance in the service.
Six years Of navy life Seem thoroughly
to inoculate them with what the Ger
mans call wanderlust. When a blue
jacket passes few Of his summers in
the latitude of the North cape and a
couple Of winters down among the Ber-
mudas or in the >salubrious south Pa
cifio, he is likely to acquire a dislike
for the climate of the United States,
and this dislike has more weight than
anything else in forming his decision to
remain in the navy. Moreover, after a
few years in the navy the bluejacket
seems to become possessed of the odd
idea that he is really doing nothing
aboard ship to earn his pay, that the
perpetual scurry in which he is kept
from all hands in the morning until
pipe down at night is really not work,
and with this quaint notion he also &C.
quires an exceedingly exaggerated idea
of the terrific amount of grinding labor
man has to perform in order to gain
a livelihood ashore. Put to bluejacket
who has put in couple of naval cruises
the direct question, 'Are you going to
take on again when your time is out?"
In nine cases out of ten he will look
you in the eye with an expression of
stupefaction and inquire, "What the
devil do you think I'm going to do
work?" ..-..
But for all Of the resignation with
which he in time comes to regard a
lifelong career in the navy the blue
jacket gazes forward at first with a
Wistful eye to tho arrival Of the day Of
his discharge. and when that day finally
approaches within clear VIEWS only
about a month in the perspective. for
instance-he presents singular picture
Of nervous anticipation and is not
worth a water rotted rope yarn for
work. He moons about his ship like q
man in q dream, consuming great guam
titles of tobacco that he finds favor]ess,
and during this period he is pretty like
l. 70 CHI soSo Is Sv, h.
straction and get himself jumped upon
at the mast for the delinquencies His
shipmates with comparatively long
periods still to serve on their enlist
ments regard him with the jaundiced
eye Of envy, which they show by pictur.
ing to the short time man the most
gloomy things that await him as soon
as he steps over the gangway. beach
bound, with his bag and hammock.
Overtime men being shipped back to
this country on man-Of-war are not
compelled to do any of the ships work.
They simply stand the military calls,
eat their meals and smoke their pipes,
watching the while with lazy happiness
the daily round of labor of the less for
VuAoVO OAuOJG1OAoSS 0VV0SAAOu eao AAAOAAA-
.bers of the crew of the ship on which
they themselves are practically passen-
gers. The overtime men occasionally
emit arrogantly humorous directions to
these temporary shipmates, the ships
company of che boat that is hauling
them home. "Gwan, now, and shine up
that bright work, you long time dub!":
they will shout to deckhand when the
officer Of the deck is aft and out Of hear.
ing, and Get down to your bunker, you
grimy hatfoot and rake out your coal"
is the kind Of thing the man Of the
black gang below hears from the pas
sengers whenever he tries to smoke a
peaceful pipe on the topgallant forecas-
tie.
One Of the immemorial customs Of the
navy jacks is to secrete in the dtty bag
Of the discharged shipmate who is about
to go ashore can Of corned beet, 9 few
potatoes and perhaps one or two other
articles of sea food. This is done in or
der to remind the discharged man when
he opens his bag ashore that in the