The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-04-30
The SHIPS BELL
Various Uses to Which 1t Is Put
How ItTells the Time of Day.
iNam York Times


s'strike eight bells!" shouted the othcer OF
the deck on one Of the warships few days
ago. and then one of the women visitors re-
ever heard the chimes on navy ship?" The
man escort. one OF the full-of-nautieal-
knowledge kind responded: 20, yes; I've
been a frequent visitor to the ships, for
know so many Of the officers and the chimes
are rung beautifully. But they don't have
them on all of the ships. At that instant
the boy to whom the order had been given
made eight strokes on the ships bell, and
then all was silent, even the group OF visit
ors, who simply looked inquiringly into each
others faces. But the chimes were not.
referred to.
Eight bells" does not mean that ship
has this number of bells, but 1t is nautical
term for the hour. The nautical day begins
and ends at noon, when "eight bells is
struck, as it is also at 4 o'clock, o'clock
and at midnight The bell is struck half
hourly, one stroke being added for each half
hour until eight is reached, when the count
begins again. And if one is asked the time
on board of navy ship, the response would
be so many bells and not the hour. The bell
is OF ordinary size only, but it has a sharp
tone, and is hung just forward or abaft the
foremost The captains orderly usually
watches the clock and reports to the officer
of the deck what hour it is in the number Of
bells, who then orders the bell struck. But
at o'clock in the morning this rule is va
ried, the orderly reporting to the officer of
the deck, Eight bells sir!' when the officer
replies Report to the captain eight bells and
chrononeters wound The captain then re-
spends, Very we'll: make it So which the
orderly reports to the offcer 1.-THE deck, who
commands the messenger boy of the watch,
Strike eight bells. {" But II the captain
should chance to remain mum and not say,
Make it so,'' no one would hear the bell
strike eight, and the nautical day would be
thrown out of Joint.
At noon the Eight bells is not struck until
the navigator has corrected the clock, either
by his monday sight Of position of the ship
when at sea from his chronorneter. If
| with fleet or at a naval station, the bell
must not be struck until that Of the senior
| officer sounds, and the messenger stands by
I the bell, with clapper in hand and as soon
| as the flag officers bell begins to strike, the
bells on the other vessels are struck. When
there is large fleet lying close togther, the
effect Is interesting and agreeable, and one
might imagine that chimes were being rung
| Every navy in the world except England
follows the same custom, and England only
varies at the dog watch from to 8 0 clock
lin the evening In these hours the bell
strikes every half hour till o'clock, and
then at $50 one bell is struck; but eight
bells are sounded at o'clock. Tradition
gives this reason for this custom: Before the
British naval mutinies OF 1897 the bells Of the
4 ships were struck in other navies; but
in one Of those mutinies the signal agreed
upon by the mutineers was the stroke OF Ave
bells $3.50 p M, and at that hour the mutt
neers rose to slay their officers Then, when
order was restored through the navy, the dog.
watch system Of bells was adopted, to allaS
superstition.
i But the ships bell has other duties thar
that Of keeping the time. It tolls on Sunday
mornings for the services of the chaplain o,
Ibis substitute; also to call 'all hands tt
bury the dead and it is fire signal wher
lit is rung vigorously, and then the ships
I crew take the positions to which they have
been assigned on the first day each has beer
detailed to the ship. The bell is not used as
I fire signal in an engagement, however, FOL