The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-08-04

girls eyes for her. Then he has tt draw on the paymaster for another rating badge. The chief petty officers
 who wear brass buttoned uniforms, Of
 ten go buttonless for day or so aftel
 the girls have been aboard. They loI
 the buttons off their blouses for the girls, and then have to stand by fol more buttons at the paymaster's office 1 The bluejackets will give the girls any
 thing they happen to possess, or don'1 happen to possess, for that matter.
 There as an equipment yeoman or board ship that visited the San Die | go flower fiesta few years ago, whc | fitted out the girls he escorted around his ship with peculiar souvenirs. In | his Storeroom he had a couple of hun dred old-fashioned wrist irons that had done lot of duty in squelching the fractiouSness of brigged sailors. A board of survey had been held on these irons, which were out of date, and they 1 had been condemned. It was the yoo- mans business to turn them in at a navy yard storeroom at the first oppor- tunity, so that they could be officially thrown on the dump. He made better use of them by giving them to highly appreciative young women, who hon. ored him with their company on visits about the ship. The girls tied little ribbon bows to the wrist irons, and valued them highly as implements that had been used for the fortune of poor sailormen. The skipper had the yeo- man at the mast for his nervy disposi- ton of government property, but the man was not punished for his offence relieved as it was by such amiable gal lantry.
 Officers aft hang oil to the anchors and other silver and gold devices at tached to the collars of their blouses as long as possible, but most of them sooner or later rip them off and hand them over to young women who like the workmanship of the devices. The cleverness of American girls in thus hypnotizing sailors of all nations is re- markable A splendid Russian battle ship steamed into New York harbor a feW years ago, and when her gang ways were spread for visitors the New York girls went aboard the Russian man-of-war in droves. Part of the un- form equipment of every Russian na- val officer is a dagger. The daggers are beautifully devised affairs, the hilts of them heavily wrought in gold. There wasn't a dagger on that great Russian ship of war two days after the New York girls began to visit the czar's vessel, but there were many scores of Russian naval daggers hanging by lt- tie chains in the boudoirs of the New York girls.
 
 On ship visiting day in an Ameri- can port barrel of round hardtack, standing open in a man-o war alley way Is sight the young woman can't very we'll resist. The navy hardtack is circular in shape and about four inches in diameter. The girls all get a hand full each of the biscuit and carry them ashore to paint ships and seascapes on their rough surfaces. Another article of uniform that the bluejaclets of our navy cannot hang on to when the girls get aboard their ships is the neckker- chief. The United States bluejackets' neckerchief is a handsomely woven af- fair of the finest black silk It costs the bluejacket close to $1.50 Nevertheless, there Is general unloosening or neck erchiefs when the young women are
 
 Spects his neckerchief1ess crew at quarters on the following morning be- fore the men have had time to draw neckerchiefs from the paymaster, doesn't punish the men for being out of uniform, but mutters somethin about the power of beauty. There is saying in the navy nowadays that If you want a jacknife ask coalheaver for the loan of his." There's a lot of truth in the saying. The deckhands among the bluejackets resign their huge knives to young women visitors time after time in course of cruise. The coal beavers, being stationed down be- low. are immune from plundering by the girls. A deck bluejacket just about finishes fine knife lanyard for him. self that he has been plating and weaving for several months to wear with his mastering uniform for shore when girl from ashore comes along and Hooks it away" from him. That is the way the sailors express it. Hooks 1t away from me-" the idea be- ing that when a girl gets her eye on any article in the makeup of the man. o'-war's man she converts it to her own use by that process. When blue 1 jacket hasn't much left in the way of small gear to dishout to the young wo- men visitors he races aft and gets a pound plug of tobacco from the pay ! yeoman for her. The girls like to get | these big bricks of tobacco. which they beribbon and preserve, for the navy to- bacco, of rock-like hardness, is an en- | turing souvenir r-Wasllington Eevning Star.