The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1898-01-11
FOR The SAILORS
Capt. Cutters Bold Plan
for Reaching Class.
Advocates Radical Local Changes
Would Like New York.

Captain Cutler of the bark Klikitat
in the lumber trade between this por
and the Sound, has been making voy
ages to Honolulu for more than q
years. He was in the American nav!
for two years during the civil war
Then for two more years he was il
the Federal army. He was a lusty
young bluejacket when Captain Bar
ker, U. S. N, so well known here, was
mildly" Captain Cutler is a great
big, warm hearted, outspoken chap
who, regarded as a companion, cannot
be resisted. He is ashore visiting a
good deal of the time when in this
port, but on his present voyage has
had to keep to the vessel more than
usual on account of being shorthand
ed. Captain Cutler is a man of the
age and experience and temperament
to have opinions of his own on about
everything current and a few things
past and future. The skipper" is
not given to EARNING at all, but under
appropriate circumstances may be
drawn out on almost any subject. A
few days ago he was asked by re-
porter to give some views on the life
of sailor in Honolulu. He said:
Good Christian women in Honolulu
have asked me that at least hundred
times and l always tell them the same
thing. They ought to know by this
time they are on the wrong tack, but
they won't change. Tracts are all
right, but sailors don't want them.
The Y. NJ. c. A. means well and the
devotional and sailors committees
have good intentions, but they don't
work right. l told a lady the other
day just how l thought the sailors
could be reached if it was really de-
sired to do somthing for them. Get
a big hal most any place. Have
front or the saloons. Put some cheap
pictures and few flags and some
green things in for decorations. Have
sand or sawdust ON the floor and have
lots of tables and chairs. Let the men
smoke. Let them play cards. Give
them reading matter they can under
stand and will like. They don't want
books and pictures like the nice young
fellows ashore like They don't under
stand them at all. When you want to
entertain the sailors give them some
music with a fiddle and an organ or a
cornet and some simple singing or
recitations. If the organs or fiddles
are not exactly in tune, it's all the
same. If you want to sing to them,
give them old songs. They like the
old ones. They're always humming
them and talking about them. 1t
takes years for popular song to get
to be go among the sailors and they
care for only the commonest kind of
music. | think they like the senti-
mental songs the best, with good al
lowance of the jolly ones. The ladies
who want to do good for the sailors
must go into the room where they are
smoking and playing cards or domi
noes and sit down at the table and
tax to them about their home and
their mothers and relatives. Every
sailor had a father and mother any
how and lots of them have sisters and
brothers and sweethearts. Talk to
them about their ships and their cap
tain and their travels. But whatever
you do, don't talk religion to them.
The don't want you to do it and it
won't do nearly as much good as just
impressing them in the way l have
told with the idea that they ought to
be decent and self-respecting. If they
get that far long they'll took on to
religion all right if it was intended
that they should. The trouble now is
that the men are kept at arms length
by the people who want to do them
good, but who don't understand them.
They must be treated like just what
they are if they are to be reached at
all. They are sailors, not clerks or
mechanics or young fellows raised in
town and used to fine city manners
I'm New York once there was an
old missionary that handled the sail
ors on the plan l tell you about and
they shed tears clear around the world
when he died. Thousands of them be-
came respectable men and better men
and downright Christians because.
that old preacher knew how to reach
them. Some of the church workers
are afraid of the sailors. They needn't
have fears of the men There's moth
inf real bad about them in any way.
They are naturally rough in their
ways, but they don't mean any harm
and they're meek and gentle and can
be handled easy enough when you
once know them"