The broad ax., 1898-08-13
ON A BIG WARSHIP.
POINTS TO BE OBSERVED BY A
LANDSMAN.
Sacred Quarter Deek-Noas but omssrs
Allowed On It-Ceremony Attending
the Entrance or ExIt Of Distinguishes
Persons.

The many little points Of etiquette
observed on board an American man
of-war are distinctly worthy Of public
interest From the moment an on
Ger or man steps aboard until after
he has left he must observe conver-
tional ceremonies Of many kinds.
In the first place in going aboard or
leaving the ship the starboard gang
was Is reserved for the use of the COM
missioned officers and their visitors.
All others must use the port gangway.
Upon stepping aboard the first thing to
be done is to salute the deck" by
touching or lifting the hat or cap. This Is
meant as a mark of respect to .he coll
ors, and Is acknowledged by the officer
Of the deck. The quarter deck Is sa-
cred to the officers. and the side of It
occupied by the oficer Of the deck is
generally avoided even by them. No
enlisted men are permitted to go on
the quarter deck except on duty.
One Of the prettiest Of naval cere-
monies takes place when the colors
are hoisted at s a. m. and again when
they are lowered at sunset. These two
functions are accompanied by appro-
pirate military music, all hands, off,
GERS az well as men, who happen to
be on deck at the time, standing up
at attention" facing aft and uncoy-
cred, until the colors reach the flag
STAN head or are lowered into the arms
~ arr &C. -
them, as the case may be.
1t is customary for officers always
10 salute the captain when passing
aim, but not to salute each other on
board ship. when merely passing, ex-
eept when, on duty, an Official com
nunication Ii to be made. The jun
Tor always salutes first, the senior
returning the salute. The men al
ways salute an officer when address
ing or being addressed by him.
oficers below the grade Of comman-
der are always addressed as plain
Mr." with the exception that the sur
geons are called doctor" In the IA
miliar unofficial intercourse the chief
engineer is addressed as chief" and
the paymaster as pay. Usually the ma
rine officer is jocularly spoken to as
major" or colonel"
Commanders and captains are al
ways called captains" and commo-
dores and admirals are addressed by
their titles. But the commanding off,
Ger of a vessel, no matter what his
raHk fa aIuzova oddros,o5 b., 1ho-o -
der him as captain" Many small yes
sells and torpedo boats are commanded
By lieutenants, and even by ensigns,
yet they are called captains" as long
as they retain command.
Unlike civil life. the navy regards
1t as a compliment to drop me Mr."
In personal conversation between off,
GERS. The application Of that little
prefix implies wide disparity in rank,
and a Junior thus feels flattered by
the elevation to equality made b! a
senior in dropping it.
There are certain interesting for
malities in entering, leaving and sit
ting in the ships small boats. En-
trance goes according to rank, junior
drst, in conformity with the principle
that the captain is always last to aban- |
don the ship. In sitting in the boat,
the senior sits furthest aft, the others |
ranging themselves forward OF him &C
cording to graduation Of rank. In |
leaving the boat the senior goes first, |
which suggests the rule that In an at |
tack on shore, or a boarding party, |
the senior leads the way.
There are three principal ceremonies |
attending the official arrival on board,
or the departure from a ship, of per-
sons Of rank. One is the piping over
the SIDE" consisting of the attendance |
at the gangway Of from two to eight |
side boys, and the long, shrill piping
Of the boatswain as the person honored
comes or goes over the side. For a
commanding oflcer, admiral or other
high functionary, the marine guard Is
paraded on the quarterback, presenting
arms, with the field music giving the
number Of "rufies" as the.
functionary passes along the deck to
or from the gangway. This is the
second honor. The third Is the firing
Of gun salutes, the number of guns de-
pending upon the personal rank. The
president Of the United States and
members Of royal families receive q
guns, the national salute, which is the
highest number officially recognized.
Other officers receive varying numbers
below this, the following being exam
pies: Admiral. II guns; vice admiral,
Is; rear admiral, 10; commodore, IL.
Governors Of states. cabinet ministers,
diplomatic Representatives, generals Of
the army and consulate officers are all
entitled to gun salutes.
The salute is not fired until the OBJ
iect Of 1t Is In his boat and pulls ahead
Of the ship, when the first gun Is fred
and his flag Is unfurled from the mast
head to be pulled down with the last
gun While the salute f. In progress
the visitors boat stops, proceeding af-
ter the last gun.
It Is a marked breach Of courtesy to
1ra offhaP rranr. H. 49, A.. |