The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-09-18

of pair of blue-incased legs will send
proprietors and clerks to shop doors
with more quickness than would a riot
or q circus procession. 1t is as it Should
he. The American tar is q hero and
BE deserves all the attention and liOniZ-
ing it is possible for US to give him.
The story told of the Honorable
''Dick" Thompson. Of Indiana who, on
being appointed secretary of the navy,
paid his first visit to a vessel of any
kind. and exclaimed as he glanced
down the hatchway, Great Hoop
Poles! the darned thing is hollowi"
would serve TO express the general
ignorance of naval matters found not
only in the west, but the east as well.
That ignorance, however. bids fair to
become enlightened. The public Ge-
mand is being complied with. Honest
citizens who have boys with Dewey Or
Sampson or Schley are not satisfied
with knowing that their sons spend the
great majority of their time on board
ship whether III port or at sea, but they
would also like to learn that VIII, or
Jack, or Fred does between the hour
of his rising and of his going to bed.
It is not 4 very fascinating or widely
hilarious life, that Of the man forward
on board a modern warship. There is
a monotony and sameness of things,
that eat into the heart at times and it
is only through the diversion caused by
G wreck OF q storm or q series of bat
ties like that recently experienced that
lends a welcome air Of diversion TO the
naval day. The laudsman with his
q hours well punctuated with work
and sleep and pleasures has been
known to complain Of the dull routine
of his existence but if he was COM
PEELED to put in a three years cruise
on one of our deep-water naval vessels
he would return to his former scenes
with relief.
Take an average day in the service.
To rise at $50 to the harsh notes of a
bugle and drum is the order, except
during a few winter months, when 4
half hours grace is permitted. The
"musics," as the marine drummers and
buglers are called, are summoned ten
minutes before time by the corporal of
the guard. The two lads, rubbing the
sleep from their eyes, take their stand
near the forward hatch, and at the
word from the officer of the deck,
break into the stiffness of the early
morning with an internal hubbub tech
nically known as ''reVeile'' The hid
eous uproar speedily brings a chorus
of grunts and yawns, not unmixed
with something stronger, from the oc-
cupants of the hammock-crowded
berth-deck, and presently the ladder
leading above is thronged with half
clad figures mounting upward in a
ries upon his shoulder his Individual
hammock, carefully dashed and fet-
tered. This he deposits in the recep- |
taeles prepared for the purpose, and I
then hies himself to his mess, where he /
finds steaming coffee sans milk and !
barely sweetened, but extremely well /
come as an eye-opener.
The spotlessly clean decks of naval |
vessels are proverbial. When the Prin- |
cess of Wales was a girl, she paid a |
visit to an English man-of-war an
cllored at the More. AS she stepped on
the quarter deck she stopped over and /
slyly rubbed the wood with her gloved
hand, then with smile she said in
genuoUsiy. Nurse was right after all.
She told me our sailors keep the decks
as clean as dining table, and they
do"
This cleanliness, which seemed novel
even to royal eyes, is the result of
hours of hard, constant work every
morning on board every ship in the
service. 1t is to the executive officer
that all praise or blame in reference to
the condition Of a ship belongs, and di-
rectly after the crew has had it's early
coffee he IS on deck personally super
intending the holy-stoning and Scrub
bling, and perhaps painting. He relieves