Evening star., 1898-05-07


declines TO be either coddled or buldozed
and who. above all, has a ccntrollable
tongue i'm his head, that invarnhly shows
strong in the stretch when the race Is
for the braided blopses and The gilt-orna-
mented caps.
No Place for Ntiksop..
The rapidity with which boobyishness is
yanked out OF very young boys who en;er
the navy is remarkable. From his very
first day on board either a training ship or
man -of-war proper. the unhedged young
ster Is expected to hop right out CT Eis
bCyhood and assumes to all fntents and
pt rposes. the full status OF a man. He
lives among men that have ranged the
world most Of their lives: he WORKS along
side OF them. and almost much .ork is
expected or him as from the old-timers: he
puts up with the same amount OF hard
ship. toes the same mark OF discipline. is
quite as responsible at tine mast for cere-
l!ctions. and just as liable to a tour in the
brig in double irons for misconduct. as his
older shipmates who regard the c.rcum-
NAVIGATION OF the globe as a bsgatelie.
The boy who ut the outset OF his naval
life sheds a lonesome tear or two in his
hammock. but who keeps up brave front
when in view of his shirmatcs. is the lad
who may be always marked for a winner.
IL would he out OF nature for youngster
or any sort of sensibilities Whatsoever to
plunge into man-of-war life. with al OF
It's apparent rigidity At first sight. without
ethS bit taken atat-N ana oppressed hA
the roughness of il all. But the plucky
boys buckle down and force themselves
to become used 10 il. and even during
their first lubberiy days at sea they never
approach to the verge OF deck whlmppring
The little Lord Fauntleroy sort Of lad had
better Keep out Of the navy. The navy is
composed, as a whole, fore and aft. of
genuine. masculine men, and of deeply
aHectlonate and unswerNingly loyal men
too. when their esteem and confidence hav.
heen won: but IN no environment is the
parade OF even the slightest suspicion Of
sentimentality more quickly frowned upon
IMAM ulon the forward deck of a man-of-
war III a small kedge anchor happens to
crush a bluejackets foot his sympathetic
smpmates, deeply feeling for the injured
man, assemble around his bunk in the
sick bay and call him a I'D lubber'
and HAY huckster'' for permitting him
SELF TO get hurt that way. That is their
way OF expressing sympathy, and the in
lured man knows IL and appreciates n
III his shipmate ties were to condole with him
and uInfuly tell nim how sorry they
were. and all that sort of thing h.. would
turn over on his bunk and tell them to eo
TO the devil In a floating community such
as man-of-war. therefore the boy Of
weak heart and of lily-livered vision can
fnd no habitation of peace much less of
eventual honor.
Makes Men Of 'Em.
From the purely physical point of view.
apprenticeship in the navy is a fine thing
for lad. Nine out of ten naval appran-
uces. when they attain their majorities,
are strapping rugged, brawny men. cana
BILE of enduring any amount OF hardship
anu possessing quality of health and
soundness that is bound to seq them
through many ups and downs ashore
should they elect 10 quit the sea when they
reach the age of twenty-one-which not
many OF them do. by the way. OF course
in order TO get into the navy at all th,. an
P.entlce must be sound of body. but many
n he lad 1lk-t int,
row margins, owing 10 their beiay under
sized or or no very rugged haracter of
physical! makeup. Once they get 10 work
on the decks of a nan-of-war. providing
there is nothing latent and constitutional
the matter with them. il is amazing n s,.c
now tie lads begin To spread an grow
Ibey are put through the most exacting
tAe'c-ses. quite aside from their daily hit of
heaVy Vork--eNerc.ses that are designed to
Drlng every muscle of the body into nlay.
ard the result is that they very soon begin
TO expand. and the steel ge-s into their
muscles. there to remain as long rs they
I'VE After year so in the biuaiscker
uniform. most naval apprentices I.rein to
lcok so entirely unlike. as to bodily for
nation. the way they sized up when ttey
first entered the naval service as TO puzzle,
tneir o%h people on visiting days. The
writer has often enjoyed the spect leI..
When the mothers of the naval apprentices.
nave visited them aboard ship after the
boys nave been TO sea on long cruises
There is something touching primitive
ana OF hrst principles in the mother love
that beams from the eyes of these women
when, right at the main gangway and ia
run sight or all hands-''and be id 4 all
o yeez. says the old bo'sun's mate look
ing on-they are enfolded I'm the arms of
their lowering. great-shouldered and iron
muscied sons, lifted clear of the deck. no
matter what their weight chucked and
cipped under the chin. and then bodily
hauled off to a remote ships corner for
long talk and cuggermuggering.
To- oil
woman's eyes.
Their Treatment Board.
When the apprentices emerge from their
apprenticeship and ship over as full-hedged
bluejdckets. at the seaman gunner rate.
they are given first call in the distribution
of the petty officer prizes, and are as
stated, eligible for promotion to the rank
or warrant officers. For these reasons. ap-
prentices are never called upon, during
the service as boys, TO perform any menial
tasks en- shipboard. Landsmen are si.io-
ped to wait upon the officers aft out no
apprentice lad is ever asked by an officer
To perform the slightest personal service
Tor him. The boys routine is the military
routine, and he is rot required to 60 any
thing that would run counter to his IDEAS
OF strict personal independence. lie may be-
come the striker" for his own mess yolun-
tarily always. however. but he is not per-
m:tted to perform any service for high
rated enlisted men or officers for a money
consideration even II he wants 10. On long
cruises in southern waters, when all hands
wear their white uniforms, the officers and
chief petty officers employ landsmen WILL
Ing to turn an extra half dollar or So to
wash their duck clothes. out they would
never think OF employing an apprentice for
this sort Of work. The whole idea of naval
apprenticeship in the American navy is to
inculcate uprightness. dignity and manli-s
ness into the lads-for upon the character
of these boys the future of the forward
ends OF American men-of-war is known to
depend.
Taught to Tie Nervy.
II "A boy in the navy exhibits at the out
Set of his sea life any natural tendency
toward ''yellowness over which he may
or may not have control. II is the aim OF
the finished tars, IL the lad is otherwise all
right. to knock the saffron tinge out of
him effectually and forever. The lad who
displays the faintest hesitation on the deck
or man-of-war, no matter what he is
asked TO do, or whatever the quality of
the tasks Danger. is marked. and the old
timers never let up on him until the boy
has become nervy even to the point of
foolhardiness. When the hesitant boy is de-
tailed to accompany party of the old