The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-11-27
sHARKEps NATAL CAREER.
Wasn't Very Much liked by His shipmates,
and Got the Name of n F" Rubbsrneck''-
His Prowess ns n Fighter Not Considered
HirhIy what Made Him Unpopular.

Sharkey, the prizenRhter. 10 often enormously
referred TO as the eI-marine." He was never
q sea soldier. but he did put in one cruise as a
bluejacket on an American mau-of-war. He
shipped AZ a landsman at the Marc Island
Navy Yard, on the receiving ship Independence.
ut a time when Vallejo and San Francisco were
so crowded with cheap puRllists that there was
nothing doing for any but the best among
them. A naval officer who had seen him in q
couple OF ~sparring contests, and had a leaning
toward fighters. told Sharkey, before the latter
held up his hand on board the Independence.
that he'd sec 70 IL that he Rota ratinE rs a petty
ofacer after he had served a little while
as a swab landsnAn at the monthly pay Of $f6.
80 6harkey donned the bluejacket clothes
on tho receiving ship. did such policing Jobs
around the navy yard with squads Of recruits
az shovelllne coal. whitewashing. and digging
gravel. and then. after n month or go. was as
signed 10 the cruiser Philadelphia along with a
bunch OF newly enlisted men. He had some-
thing OF a reputation among the sailors OF the
feet hanging up at Marc Island as a scrap
per. but he got mono the best OF 1t on
board the PHILADELPHIA. He plugged around
the decks OF the PHILADELPHIA for a few months
as q $16-a-month l%andsmnn. about two-thirds
OF the batch OF recruits that were sent to tho
ship along with him having meanwhile de-
serted. Then the naval officer who had told
Sharkey that he would fix him out with a rat
ing when the right time came around got in
his work. and sharkey received q Grow" that
Is. an eagle rating badge on his starboard arm.
he was created a master-at-arm second class.
Now. q chief mnster-at-arms on board an
American warship is some considerable pump
kins up forward among the enlisted men. He
is chief Of police OF all that part OF the ship
lying forard OF the mainmast. He Ia called the
Jimmy Legs. on account OF the reputation for
ubiQuitousness which chief masters-at-arms
achieve. and what the Jimmy Legs says about
anything whatsoever. In so far as the enlisted
men are concerned. comes pretty near to going.
Sharkey never got this chief master-at arms
rate. He stuck at the billet Of second-class
master-at-arms who 10 q bluejacket, and
does not wear q brass-buttoned blouse
and peaked cap. When the boss Legs Is
too tired to get up at all-hands In the
morning. the second-class master-at-arms
is the man TO go around the ship and prod over
time sleepers from beneath their hammooks.
He picks up articles Of uniform hastily left out
OF ditty-bags. unlocks the wrist and ankle irons
OF prisoners when II Is time for the prisoners
to eat, and has O sort OF secondary super
vision Of the ship's brig or place Of confne-
ment. He 10 called the ships corporal. and 1t
10 probably for the reason that Sharkey bore
this title OF ships corporal" that he has been
so often mixed UP with the marines. or sea-
soldering. end OF the man-of-war's company.
sharkey was not very much liked by his ship
mates on tho Philadelphia. He was one Of the
hrst men In the navy TO get the title Of rubber
neck. That word originated out on the Pacific
coast and Sharkey's actions on board the Phil
edelphia led TO its. application to him almost
from the go-on OF his career as a bluejacket
with q crow on his arm. He wasn't q bully; in
truth. there were several occasions during his
career as . second class master -arms on the
Phiiadssiphia on p which he CIV was considered ter to
bbSdSs I aSd The bsef re 81 ntsG.Iiei o %hish prese als dh SlS
S Eish 1 shh sslt 3, say ssyd that AZ i'tt A f shiDS. G e lSs ma he
before having said anything about them to
the men whom he made the victims Of bis
mates say. Il a bIuejacket happened to leave an
end OF an unused neckerchief sticking out OF
TIE ths, boz oIo pfSsssip a.. where sbfps the nor sailors w stoT SO some n e Of
about i, but would you'd tell if' the ohies a" q IL, he d !!
shStse q 6sIle,a siopeh. This s2rv q thing
Sisn ns aslP s snd tSe aI solId any %o IN ths sssss sRe% 6i
meyer had a great deal to do with him.
so TRsFS 81 Sn sh sq PSii az slsRsn SS s%s STOOD fh in % Fsar
Of sRh ;m ST. P Prov ;ss and hes hesit aHSfh to tall a,sm back
i[ittie YSS;ponnS Srss-cIass fireman named Nc;
kne avn belonged long n 70 the The eE Fovd that abt didn't .s stHnd
III my awe Vi ouuIkcy ukutluk dulllIy,
S:saHs .s y r. ~ Z ilsssala 1'S, a5 #ssS + s,'1 "Riss f
ssS Ss ssp ss trivial sT0 inf5aeti ealss Of disc! dGsefplin Ss
McK1ew didn't say anything. but q few weeks
and ar dun una eeenSIsSHii D0i McR hsS vail Waiie y shlaEEm
sFs e 's shfff Rls H Tieb RsS ,ssa 9 thep ha Vii, h f his ' isfs:.
shaErkey performed q NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. act
SWE nk he he was sfs grabbed sb sed,a by tSyssanders s. an the, then
skarfsy's nose. waiked on 7 The whari.
,sharkey, got up to the ship at Mare Island
over the side after his shore liberty Sharkey.
As the ships corporal. was the man to search
h msn fq ret Ehlsk sBc;afNS pT ths sGFy s 1sS m sftep shors
liberty without having q small bottle of liQuor
s SSoc si1ss 1EGI% BS " 3 Sb fSSS G6 their PiG 2 Ssns;r sRd
o perfunetory as can be In his searches. Mo.
Knew had his pint bottle inside his trousers,
the cali Of his left leg. sharkey found the bottle
there IN the course e. the especially careful
bottle out and held It up to the hsI view eV1'e Of the
UasS - IA {. fI sss, te! lawn s a9 sS Eeq2 2" said At, i NJ,
IN the face with both his Hight and his left. Nc.
Knew landed Immediately tn the brig, and he
ter-at:aTms 2 while later. but his good name II
the service stood him IN nh hand nd and he wasn't
s %oSs eRan R fs ala ne; hre enS .G Tor e h1 was sp piainiyy
ABOARD the ship. a lew months later another
fireman OF the Philadelphia got suddenly hot
over some imposition Sharkey had put on him.
and. with o knife about a foot long In his hand.
chased Sharkey all over the ship. This man.
too, got a general court-martial.
.Sharkey stood In with the apprentice boys Of
the Philadelphia, for the reason that he taught
them how 70 box, Every, night he would clear
o space down on the berth deck .amidships and
put on the gloves with the lads. He made
fighters out Of q mum Der Of them. but he also
put some Of them so much on their muscle
that they got into continual trouble. The ap-
prentice boys. under Sharkey's tuition. got to
slam banging each other all over the ship upon
the most trivial preteXts. and II was an I'M
common thing for the Philadelphia's lads to
appear at an inspection without five or six Of
them having black eyes or scraped noses.
When the Phlladelphia was lying in the har-
boz, Of Honolulu the blue,ackets, after a good
deal Of e~oaxlDg. finally got a big sea soldier
named Lennon to put on the gloves with
Sharkey one night. Lennon was q squat POO
FOUNDER. a man as solid as a rock.-he had been
IN the piano-moving business back East-but
he looked clumsy and unwieldy. He put on the
gloves with sharkey and gave the ships cor
poral the fight OF his career In the navy. He
least that way. On the CONTRARY. he was as
man Who Senld DO ~ put put y snSthips
short of q blow. from q pile, driver. 80 no
did a hear, OF polishing of on sharkey. At the