The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-09-19
sAmING-sHIP STEWARDS.
characteristics of the Rnce-Their
Occupations and Amusemcnts.
From the New York P,

position is unique and important, and his
| self-esteem and carriage must be meas
ured accordingly, though often his stature
but little exceeds five feet. Technically,
he may have few superiors aboard. but
his innermost consciousness recognizes
none save the captain. For him his ven
Grafton is absolute. He lords it over the
sailors, and as for the cook-give him your
pity, for the steward will show him little,
especially if he is black and his superior
lord of the galley but half so.
The stewards day on a big merchant
man begins about 4 o'clock in the morn
ing. Cook already is stirring and serving
coffee TO the changing watches. What
gloomy picture it forms A bleak morn
ing somewhere down in the southern ocean
after hard night of gales; the ugly,
iron-colored heaving sea outside blurred
against uglier iron-colored clouds-the for
lornest waste that human eye can look
upon-and the lonely dripping figures about
the wet decks showing drawn faces, white
in the dirty gray light. The coming dawn
| is only beginning to struggle out of the
| awful night, and the day promises so little
worth the effort. No wonder that the glis-
/
coffee before oilskns are cast off and
boots turned out to dry around the galley
fire. Then the steward goes to the cap
tain's room with coffee. And the work of
preparing breakfast for both cabin and
| forecastle begins in the galley.
Soon after the steward waits on
the cabin table. He brings the food from
the galley in large basket, which is de-
posted on the pantry floor; and oh! the
| narrow escapes that he has in crossing
the main deck and lodging seas on bad
mornings; and the disasters that have
overtaken that basket on the days when
the sea recognized no ceremony in enter
ing even the sacred regions of the pan
try What a fascinating little cubby it
| is when he is good steward and every
| thing in his domain shinesl Everything
| is so compact and secured in such orderly
! arrangement. There are lockers beneath
the Shelves cupboards and sheltered
stowing-places above, and cups in rows
| swinging from the ceiling. What hiding
places that astute man contrives therein
you discover if you make night raids for
| food after his busy day is over.
! After breakfast, the steward washes the
dishes, polishes the pantry again. sweeps
the cabin, put that and the captains room
| in order, and cleans and fills the lamps
| This is no Insignificant function on sail
| ing vessel. Also he is experimenting din
ner preparations and various other mys-
| FERROUS Vocations forward. When eight
bells strikes he comes into the cabin and
mounts stool to wind the clock and put
| the hands so many minutes forward or
| back, according TO instructions. Directly
| afterwards he is sighted crossing from the
| galley to the after house bearing a soup
tureen, with often a dog or two, or per-
haps cats, a pig, or a monkey forming
capering shifting, appreciative escort.
! Quick and alert he serves the dinner
courses; always with the badge of his
| Office, a towel, hanging over one arm.
Take that away, and do not know where
| he would be. Whether 1t is dirty or not
is unimportant, but he must feel its pres
ence.
Dinner out of the way, this man of
many calls is darting forward and aft UNI
| til 2, when he appears deck, or wher-
| ever the voyagers are sitting, with tea.
! Then he disappears for a time, and let
us hope, gets a nap. But hearty hot
| supper is on table at s. and then follow
more clearing and hustling. At sunset the
! inside lamps are lighted, and he climbs
the companionway with a pinnacle light
under each arm. BY this time it Is the
dog watch, and he has time for little
Cumming" with the second mate, or if
his dignity permits, to join, or at least to
| watch, the singing, dancing and frolic
| going on among the men forward, though
bread for morning is yet to be mixed. At
s his labors end, and he retires early, al
| ways prepared, however, for al instan-
| taneous turning out at any alarm
| Nevertheless, l have often thought that
the stewards is the most enviable posi-
ton on the ship. There are no long lone
| ly hours for him. His days must fly by,
! and meanwhile a goodly sum is piling up
| to his account. He enjoys the sort of inn
| portance that appeals to natures like his;
much power in lesser directions, and little
| responsibility, while the comfort of even
| his superiors depends largely on his good
| will. Moreover, his position admits of the
| various comprehensive on shipboard. l
believe that his is the only one that
| touches at some point every other life on
| the ship If he is intelligent, he may act
! in a certain sense as clerk as well as
! serVing-man, TO the captain, and may
! manage that interesting Saturday feature
! of ship life known as "slops," the sail
| ors' shopping time. If there are ladies
! aboard, he is the only man besides the
mates who holds converse with them, and
! sometimes he is very bright and compan-
| ionable. He knows all the events and gos-
| sip forward, which is the only place where
| any form of society exists on a merchant
| ship, and, if he will he can retail many
bit of local color when other interests
| are scarce.
| There are stewards TO whom one be-
| comes very much attached during the isoIa-
ton of long voyages, on account of their
gentle, faithful manners and close identi-
| fcation of themselves with the interests
Of their superiors. In port their dark
eyes glow with pleasure at the sight of
| gay dresses on the ladies whom they have
| been accustomed TO see only in the care
less garb of sea life. And silent as they
are, their quick ears are wonderfully
eager for the after comment. They lose
| little of what is said at table, and / used
| to like to fancy what all the bits so gath
cred meant to them. To their unread I'M
| derstandings the life of more fortunate
| class can be pictured only in the colors
that represent the lives of fairies and
princesses to a child. They regard 1t so
entirely as a world removed from their
own; and the pathetic part of 1t is
their generating acceptance of 1t as the
proper thing, and their pleasure in
glmpses of it through the humble means
of their service IN it.
The favorite steward on a first-class
American trader is an Oriental If good
Chinaman can be secured he is the best.
But 1t is difficult to get good man of any
| in these sad days of decadent shipping.
japanese are scrupulously neat, but tire
sonlely lacking in any notion of variety
,sori,, ,ff In L.