The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1903-11-29

's-e
To be familiar with maritime affairs
on the Pacific Coast means that you
have heard of the Hawaiian bark Alo-
ha- The Aloha has had many COM
manders, but 1t Is not worth while to
burden your memory with any of their
names except that of Captain Eric
Larsen. who, believe, sailed her until
annexation brought her under Ameri-
| can colors. Captain Larsen's name
| Will be handed down to local fame for
| many years to come. When a master
mariner has a reputation it means that
he is either a most extraordinary good
seaman and has a keen nose for fair
winds, or that he does things aboard
ship not pleasant for decent, shore
abiding people to contemplate.
Captain Larsen's reputation was an
exception; it was not especially due
to either of these causes His fame
was gained by his power to convert
the wicked of heart to the true course
of righteousness.
Previous to Captain Larsen's advent
on the Pacific Coast as mate of a large
British four-master the Aloha had
been commanded by a bold, hard
handed Irishman, who divided his time
at sea between drinking whiskey and
committing assault and battery on his
sailors. This latter pastime of his
made life miserable to the marine hos
pital officials in San Francisco and
Honolulu whenever the Aloha put into
those ports. That sort of thing went
a good ways those days, when mari
time laws were vague and seldom en-
forced, but finally the Aloha became
too notorious even for those parts, and
the owners were obliged by public
opinion to remove Kanaka Hogan from
his command. From one extreme they
went to another. To take his place
they engaged the meek and gentle
Larsen.
On the first trip he broke the Aloha's
previous records between Frisco and
Melbourne, and that placed him high
in favor with the owners. But by his
brother commanders Of other ships
Captain Larsen was regarded with SUI
preme contempt. A religious master
mariner is never respected, more es-
pecially If he belongs to the Salvation
Army, as did the good and pious
Larsen.
WITH THE SALVATION ARMY.
When the Aloha lay loading or dis
charging in Honolulu Captain Larsen
spent his evenings ashore at Salvation
Army headquarters, and he even join
ed the red-shirted soldiers of Christ in
their street corner demonstrations.
There the seafaring population of Ho-
nolulu would often behold the Aloha's
skipper, his bare head and broad
shoulders towering above his fellow
Salvationists.
To the popular disgust he would
sometimes step forward to deliver his
testimony, bashfully at first, later
warming up enthusiastically, exhort-
ing the scandalized seamen to mend
their ways and be saved. He invar
iabiy began thus:
Dearly belofed bredern and ship
mates: 1t is almost impossible to ex-
press de joy of true salvation. 1 hat
never been so happy as since I found
Jesus. yunce I vas a bad man, far
from de road of righteousness. Vunce
I drink visky and use bad langvidge,
and vas not good to my sailors, but
now, tank de Lord, 1 have found sal
walton, and I don't be so wicked any
more
Naturally. such sentiments could not
be we'll received by West Coast skip
pers That a sailorman should de-
clare whisky and swearing wicked
was, to their minds, nothing short of
treachery to the brotherhood of sea-
men.
In San Francisco Capt. Larsen's
piousness proved equally Objectionable.
He always insisted that the boarding
masters send him Christian, God-fear-
ing seamen who never swore, and
would not object to prayer meetings in
the dog watches. Such men were nat
urally scarce, but so long as the Alo-
has owners stood good for the large
shipping fees they tried to humor the
eccentric Norwegian skipper. Those
were the days of blood money.
But one day there came a change of
management in the office of the Aloha
owners, and, among other things in
volved, Capt. Larsen must henceforth
manage the financial part Of shipping
his crews himself. That was the cause
of the trouble. The religious scruples
of Capt. Larsen and blood money fees
wouldn't mix in the same pot.
FOR MUTUAL BENEFIT.
In those days the boarding masters
of Frisco stuck together as thick as
thieves, and the shipping commission
ers stood in with them. All this was
for mutual benefit. Any skipper that
refused to put UP their prices brought
upon himself their united displeasure,
and that was something no sane skip |
per ever cared to do. Then, it was
usually to shippers advantage in a
financial way to stand in with the |
boarding masters: it was another case |
of mutual benefit.
But Capt. Larsen conceived the idea |
that blood money did not chime in with |
the moral scheme Of things, so he gave
voice to that opinion just about as he |
voiced his testimonies on the street |
corners of Honolulu.
He met Seattle Mike and Al Black, |
president and shipping master for the !
Boarding Masters Association, in their |