The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-07-03

are forbidden him. Where he walks Is
on the deck. He leans against a bulk
head and ascends and deScendS lad
der By the time he is month in the
service he finds that he is supposed to
honor with a salute, not only every
superior officer, but two inanimate OBJ
iects as well. One of these is the flag
and the other is a division OF the ship
called the quarterback. At in the
morning and at sunset in the evening,
together with his mates, he faces aft
and reverently bares his head as Old
Glory is raised or lowered. AS a pat
riotic citizen he likes the ceremony,
and means it when he does honor to
the flag of his country. He learns in
time that the reason he must touch his
cap when he steps on the quarterback
is because it is the seat of authority,
and that its snow white planks repre-
sent the fountain-head of all disci-
pline.
THE QUARTERBACK COURT.
1t is here that the captain holds
sway and the officer of the deck, who
is in charge of the entire ship during
his watch, issues his orders. Court is
held here near the mainmast. which is
the forward boundary of the quarter
deck, and the long list of punishments
for infractiOns of naval laws, are
melted out to the offenders.
In former years commanders of ma
val vessels had greater latitude in the
matter of puniShments than today.
When f1ogging and keelhauling were in
vogue a. captain could sentence one of
his crew TO almost anything, but now
the rules and regulations issued from
Washington cover the majority of
cases. 1t is only for minor offenseS that
the commander of a man-of-war can
distribute justice.
He generally holds court on the
quarterback several times a week.
There, assisted by the executive off,
Ger, he gives one man three months
restriction &c the ship for smoking out
of hours, another a weeks extra
bright-work cleaning for being late
with his hammock, and still another
months restriction for being over
leave
To the casual observer these would
seem snapshot judgments but in fact
they have been determined before
hand in an interview with the execu-
tive officer. When a case is grave
enough to warrant a more severe pun
ishment, the offender is placed under
arrest and held for summary or gen
eraI courtmartiaI. The captain of
warship also has power to order
man confined in the brig a small cell
tween decks, for periods of from one
TO five days on full diet, or bread and
water.
As in police courts ashore, punish
ments differ on different ships. Some
captains are known for the picturesque
ness Of their punishments and others
are famed, like the late Judge Duffy of
New York, for their Solomon like judg-
ments. Many an erring sailor has es-
capped the penalty of his misdeeds by
laughing discreetly at his commanding
officers bad puns.
The captain of the old Kearsarge,
during one of her early cruises, laid
great stress on ridicule as a penalty.
He spent a part of his time inventing
new and novel punishments for his
crew, some Of which proved useful
while others only brought ridicule to
his own door. One of his most success
full was the calling out of the Suzsh-
inert and the crime at every bell by
the culprit.
For instance, a sailor named Jack