The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-02-13

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IL Der, 1892. was forlornly tramping
the streets of New York, penniless
and completely stranded. Resources /
! had none. I knew nothing of the sub
| tie and devious ways by which beach
,combers and professional tramps man
| age to live in clover. and if I did 1 am
quite sure 1 could not have made use
!, OF them. / had just served a three years
cruise in the Navy. l had been dis
charged and paid off with the privilege
of re-enlisting within three months time
with a bonus of three months pay, and
an increase of. one dollar a month, which
is the rule in the Naval Service. Now,
strange as it may seem, although 1 had
just served a three years cruise, l knew
absolutely nothing about seamanship or
| the duties of a seaman. 1 had shipped
as landsman, and was transferred al
most Immediately from the receiving
ship to a cruising ship bound for the
tyoung chap, and the paymasters yeoman
selected me for the billet of Jack-of-the-
dust, the duties of which are to assist
1.-THE yeoman in the handling and serving
out of the paymaster's stores. The pay
was larger than that of able seaman
and the duties less exacting and more
icOngenial, and this explains why at the
end of my three years cruise l knew
nothing of the duties of seaman-not
even to the boxing of the compass. l
had had a large pay day, and as my
mind was made up to re-enlist, / had
nf
the blood, and having what sailors call
la royal old time, which consists Of
pouring some kind of alcoholic poison
down your throat every few minutes,
and allowing yourself to be plundered.
Well, l had my month of this and 1
woke up one morning to find / had but
ten dollars left. My nerves were in a
pretty bad way after my long spell of
dissipation, and, knowing I would have
to be back to normal condition in order
to pass the doctor for re-enlistment, |
broke away from my haunts, and spent
my remaining ten dollars in SOLDERING up.
Before going aboard / spent my last
quarter for breakfast Unfortunately for
me there was an old crank of a surgeon
on board the receiving ship as examining
medical officer, whose hobby was heart
disease. He was notorious throughout
the service for rejecting men whose
trifugal pumps, and passing men who
really had heart trouble. He was tall,
thin man with pipestems of legs, and
really looked as if he had never had a
square meal in his life. I confess that
when I found out it was this man who
was to examine me that did have heart
trouble for a few moments. When I had
stripped and presented myself before
him he eyed me from where he sat in
his chair with cold, cynical smile that
Isent chill down my spinal column
my man. he said, you are what
most people would call a fine specimen
!, of muscular development. You muscular
men don't know that you attain your
development in that line at the expense
| of your heart action. Why, you are liza
BILE to go off any time like the snuffing
out of candle"
| He then subjected me to a most rigor-
Gus examination, and when he had fin
| lished he looked at me with his cold
smile and said, Apparently perfect in
every way Now. young man, 1 will
subject you to the final and infallible
Itest. Stand on your left footi Now ]
want you to hop around this room as
| fast as you can until I tell you to STOP
| I started hopping and he followed me
around the room crying, Faster! faster
Keep it up. Keep it up! I hoped and