The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1897-09-15
MANOR WARS MEN.
THEIR QUEER CALCULATION AND NO
TONS ABOUT THE SERVICE.

TlONS ABOUT THE SERVICE.
The Absurd Distinction Made Between "a
Year and "a butt" odd Ideas the Blue
Jacket Has About Work and Play Aboard
Ship and on Land.
On tho day after his enlistment for
period Of three years the American man
Of wars man begins to figure on the
amount Of time that is to intervene be-
fore his discharge He has 1.-TWO years
and IA butt" to do, tho butt" being
the remaining / / months and 30 daysof
the first year. On the day following his
completion of the first year of his enlist
ment he has only year and IA butt to
get through No matter if tho butt il
only a single day under year in length
the hluejacket contemplates the term
with the blandost oomplaisance. 1t is,
ut amy rate, not Il whole year, even
though it be 36I 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 ont long
before his discharge within closer
range. When he has put III 3 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 war s men of
the American navy. Only about ono
half of the men who complete ono on
listment ship for another three year
cruise, but about nine tenths of the
men who put in two cruises settle down
to II lifelong continuance in the service.
Six years OF navy life seem thoroughly
To inooulato them with what the Ger
mans call wanderlust When blue
jacket passes few of his summers in
the latitude of tho North cape and
couple Of winters down among tho Der
mudas or III tho salubrious south Pa
citic. no IL likely to acquire dislike
for tho climate of the United States,
and this dislike has more weight than
anything else III forming his decision to
remain i'll the navy. Moreover, after u
few years III tho navy tho bluejacket
seems to become possessed of tho odd
idea that he il really doing nothing
aboard ship to earn his pay, that the
perpetual scurry III which no is kept
from all hands i'll tho morning until
pipe down at night is really not work,
and with this quaint notion he also nc
quiros an exceedingly exaggerated idea
of tho terrific amount Of grinding labor
II man has to perform i'll order to gain
livelihood ashore. Put to bluejaeket
who has put in II couple of naval cruises
tho direct question, Are you going to
take ON again when your time is outp"
In nine cases out of ten he will look
you i'll the eye with an expression of
stupefaotion and inquire, What the
devil do you think I'm going to do
work."
But for all of tho resignation with
which no i'll time comes to regard n
lifelong career in the navy tho blue
jacket gazes forward at first with
wistful eye to the arrival of tho day Of
his discharge. and when that day finally
approaches within clear viow-is only
about month in the perspective, for
instance--he presents n singular picture
of nervous an seipatiou and is not
worth water rotted rope yarn for
work, He moons about his ship like
man Ill n dream, consuming great guam
titles of tobacco that he finds tiavorless,
and during this period he is pretty like
ly to miss II few ships calls i'll his alb
straotion and get himself jumped upon
at the mast for the delnquencies 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
rs ho steps over the gangway. beach
bound, with his bag and hammock.
Overtime men being shipped back TO
this country ON n 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
tunate bluejackets attached AS MEM
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 shipmatos, the ships
company of the 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 flatfoot 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 foreoas-
tie.
One of the immemorial customs of the
navy jacks is to secrete in the dirty bag
Of the discharged shipmate who is about
to go ashore can of eorned beef, IA 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 |
opinion of his shipmates he will be un-