The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-09-20

is IeTIlDle a SOANlSIg EOA
very story of Macedonian outrage by
Bashi Bazouk one about the funny
Mics of his seafaring brother in
Islam can be told. Little wonder that
,ba Turkish sailor is held in utter
contempt by the world afloat.
story that has become a classic
on,ong Mediterranean sailors aptly
illustrates the Turks inability as a
navigator.
Turkish steamer with a native
oantain put out of the Dardanelles,
hound for Trieste, Austria. AS soon
as he lost sight of land the Turkish
skipper likewise lost his head. Just
then another steamer came up from
astern. and the Turk made signals
that he wished to speak with the
stranger. The latter, on approaching,
nroved to be a French tramp. For
tunately one Of the Turkish officers
spoke French.
Where are you bound for?" asked
the Turk.
"Brest," returned the Frenchman.
The Turk asked no more questions
and allowed the F'renchman to go
ahead. Next morning the French
raptain noticed that the Turk was still
astern, and was following most con-
scientiously in his wake. When next
morning he still found the Turk in his
wake his surprise grew. On the third
dav it was the same, and so on the
forrth-the French captain always
made out that Turkish steamer COM
inc up astern. On the fifth day his
astonshment was so great that he de-
termined to let the Turk overhaul MN
and ask for an explanation. By this
time they were well down the Meul-
terranean toward the French coast.
why do you keep so close astern
of me?" roared the French captain
through a megaphone.
Il am following you to Trieste
answered the Turk.
Whereupon the kindly French cap
tain sent a boat aboard the steamer
fying the Crescent to explain to her
commander that he was ABOUT uNe
hundred miles off his course and 10 IN
struct him how to regain II.
The Queer SchOOners of the black
Sea.
the stories told of the small Turkish
srhooners that navigate the Black sea,
The Bosphorus and the Sea of Mar
mora. In the first place, 1t is SAID tn;tt
ro watches are kept. and that all HANDS
including the man at the wheel Iot
infreuuently sleep at once. Ihere is
no discipline. The sailors never cleah
shin or wash down decks. This is easy
to believe. If you ever san close 70
windward of Turkish craft one Whit
from it's decks will convince you that
rIeaning is not the Turks strongest
point in seamanship. 1t is further
averred that these schooners never
carry compasses, and dare not lose
SIGHT of land. They have captains, but
the rest of the crew are all equals; they
eat. sleep and quarrel together, and are
at liberty to call themselves the mates
or the sailors, as they choose.
once went aboard one of these craft.
shall never do it again. All hands
were on deck, dressed most picturesque
II in feZes and loose. colored jackets
ard trousers. Every mothers son OF
them was hideously dirty. We asked
for the captain, and he turned from
ceiling up rope to answer our call.
Ii is all right for a captain to be dem
ccratic enough to coil up a rope, but
not when big loafer of a sailor is
stretched full length on the main hatch
watching the horizon over his big toe.
But this Turkish skipper seemed too
benevolent to mind that.
AS we were talking a sheep came up
from the cabin and was followed by
big cat, which rubbed against the
sheep in a most friendly and purring
manner. No doubt it was indicative
OF general good will and feeling among
all aboard. but it was not the kind of
discipline with which to sail a ship
Chickens were Derched about on any
place that offered a roost. A goat,
which had rubbed his whiskers into the
universal dirt until they We're fringed
black and white at the roots, anbled
about the decks. On one of his horns
was stuck q piece of paper as though
1t had been filed away for future refer
ence.
Perhaps this was only a first impress
sion. At any rate, I did not stay long
enough TO get a more thorough one.
The stencil forbade.
Visit to u Turkish Man-O-War.
visit to a Turkish man-o-war was
scarcely more profitable. 1 believe that
at the time she just about constituted
the entire Moslem navy. She was a
biz, wooden box shaped craft, with a
nigh, old-fashioned poop that probably
would have seemed modern to Sir
francis Drake, but in the nineteenth
century was hoDelessly out of date.
enc was anchored in the Dardanelles
uolng temporary custom house duty,
80 we had to board her on business.
The deck seemed to have had trouble
with cyclone, but that may have
been due to the fact that the sailors
We're evidently trying to build what
seemed to be big coop for chickens.
An elderly gentleman with white
"hiskers, a red fez and gold-rimmed
Spectacles, was experimenting the
work in his shirt sleeves. He looked
more like a Swede than a Turk.
remember principally his broad, benev-
oIent smile: it took us strangers in as
wen as the crew; but beyond an in
uehse desire to be pleasant the old
gentleman did not seem to know much
gpout the work he was experimenting.
several sailors stood about in pensive
dllltudes, contemplating what was to
oe done, but not doing it. The be-
neVolent gentleman in shirt sleeves
as the bos'n, we were told
ne captain, trimmed uD in much
suld lace smoked a hookah on the
poop, and seemed to find the mess
alHldships ample food for contempla-
uoh' His lieutenant, who was fishing
over the rail, pulled uo a fish about
tHIee inches long with merry Rhoop,
JUST as we stepped up on the cabin
NecK' After he had baited his hook
mess.
what DicipIine Does for the Turk.
When they are well oficered, Turks
are not bad sailors
hut a Turk cannot command a Turk
me water. As a result. almost, all
lhe Few steamers that form the
d IA