The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1898-08-30
JACK AND HIS GR0G.
SAILORS DEVICES FOR SMUGGLING
LIQUOR ABOARD SHIP.


ly to BE squelohed what II Means
when Jackie Combs His NustRchs with
Marlins Spike.
There is perhaps less drunkenness
among the enlisted men Of the United
States navy than among the men for
ward Of any Of the worlds big sea NJ
outs, said a naval officer of experience
20 the writer. Drunkenness passed
with the old navy. In the days of the
old Tuscarora OF the Tennessee, as the
sailors put 1t, IL was a common enough
thing TO see about three-quarters of .
ships company returning from shore
liberty in such a state that they had TO
be hoisted over the side In bosun's
chairs to save the trouble Of carrying
them up the gangway. But that sort Of
thing is no longer endured. Men who
20 ashore after having remained aboard
ship for a considerable period are ex.
pected by the officer Of the deck to re-
! turn just trifie exhilarated, but they
never return quite incapable.
"Men who exhibit the slightest indi
/ cations of being addicted TO drink are
turned down fatty by the examining
surgeons when they present themselves
| for enlistment nowadays. The surgeons
tell me that they can tell from a man s
syes whether he has ever suffered severe
J ly FROM excessive drinking, no matter
how long the man may have abstained
from drink before seeking enlistment.
IF men addicted to drink do happen
TO get by the examining surgeon and re-
veal their weakness by going on tears
every time they go ashore, the navy
gets rid Of them by simply beaching'
them-that is, by putting them on the
beach with their bags and hammocks
wherever their ship may happen 60 be
in a home port. A man cannot be
'beached' for any cause in = foreign
country.
There are, Of course, any number ID
men in the navy, and rattling fine sail
ornen, too, who have natural predi-
lection for drink, aud these men the
officers keep an eye on for their own
good Sailors are bound 20 try TO SNUG.
gle liquor aboard ship. If they drink
considerably on their shore liberties,
they know that when they return
aboard they are in for big heads wher
they awaken in their hammocks this
next morning, and in trying TO safely
bring a bit Of liquor OIL to the ship they
have in mind the taking Of q hair %
the dog 90 sort of ease them up wheI
they turn TO at all hands the mex
morning.
Sometimes they get the liquor safe
iy aboard, but generally they do not
Every enlisted man ON United State
man of war, except the chief master a
arms and the top sergeant of marines, !
searched at the gangway upon his re
turn from shore liberty by the gangwa,
corporal of the marine guard, under th
inspection OF the officer of the deck, 70
the purpoSe of ascertaining If he la
any liquor concealed about his clothes
The men have picked up some ingeniou
schemes for smuggling liquor in such
way that the corporal of the guard /
fooled For example, the men on TN
China station buy long eelskins fror
the coolies, ill the skins with abou
q quart Of liquor and wind them aroun
their necks beneath the collars Of thei
, shirts.
1T took the officers on the China sta
tion a long while TO get ON to thi
scheme. Then the men who felt ths
they surely needed "a drink the neI
morning after returning from libert
discovered the plan Of filling rubbe
bag with liquor while ashore and {
slowing the bag next 20 their wais
bands. The liquor smugglers, who OF
served that the searching corporal onl
passed his hands up and down on th
outside Of their clothes. then resorte
TO the plan of tying bottles Of liquC
with string ON the inner side of the
legs, beneath their trousers, but an
, searching corporal knows all about tn
one nowadays