The Breckenridge news., 1905-12-06
SHIPRIGGERS'PERILS
A BUSINESS THAT DEMANDS GREAT
SKILL AND COURAGE.
Twenty Per Cent of the Men Regu-
IarIy Following This Calling Are
Manned Every Year How They
Learn the Dangerous Trade.

Learn the dangerous lfbues
A skillful ship rigger never strikes.
Come good times or bad, the supply of
volunteers for this most desperate of
occupations never falls below the de-
mand The ship riggers are to be seen
along the water fronts of all great
ports perched high in air. like great
spiders busted with their strange archi-
lecture They work in all sorts Of
weather. both by day and night. No
other calling demands such COmbina-
tion of skill and courage and the abil-
ity to work quickly in the face often
of appalling danger.
There is no eXaggeration in the state
ment that the rigging of ships, espe-
cially those requiring repairs after
long service. Is the most dangerous of
occupations.
According to reliable statistics, fully
20 per cent of all regularly employed
ship riggers are manned. often very
seriously, every year The proportion
of riggers seriously injured in life
time is about 80 per cent. The greater
falls from aloft or by being struck by
falling objects, such as blocks or spars
or pieces of heavy rigging, falling
from great heights. Serious knife
wounds come next in order. The rec
ords of such accidents, 10 evidenced
by the books Of any hospital in great
seaport. are long and grewsOme.
A rigger must be "A steeple climber.
a sailor. a tight rope walker, something
of a trapeze artist and an experienced
shipbuilder rolled into one. He must
be literally a jack of all trades and
master at least Of several of them.
The ironworker who balances himself
on steel grders on a great bridge or
skyscraper, the trapeze artist in the
circus or the "steeplejack" actually
works in far less danger of his life
The danger to the latter class of
workers is more familiar and has been
the more widely advertised. But ship
rlgger must keep a perfectly cool head
in the face of dangers which might
stagger a Nelson or a Dewey. Your
"steepleiack" may be perfectly self
possessed at high attitudes. but then
he works with the assurance that his
support at least is stable. The struc-
tural iron worker feels that he can de-
pend upon the solidity of the steel
beams beneath him, while the most
daring trapeze performer never ven
lures on ropes which have not been
thoroughly tested and rarely without a
net beneath him.
But the rigger knows no such safety
in his support. The fact that his serv-
ices are required aloft means. of course,
that the complicated rigging is faulty.
The masts or spars may be rotten to
the breaking point. the ropes may part
at any instant. 1t IS just this uncer-
tainty which renders the rigger's life
extra hazardous. He must mount with
the agility Of cat and work quickly
in network of rigging which may
part AT any instant. 1t would be diff
ferent if he could even choose his own
time and weather, but the rush insep-
arabic from such work allows him no
choice. Rain or snow or ice greatly
spars or ropes treachcrouS to the hand
and foot Then. again. when the work
goes forward by night the binding
rays of the searchlight TO man deli
cately balanced on icy ropes make it
extremely difficult to judge distances
and positions.
The most experienced sailor, no mat
ter how much at home he may feel in
the rigging in any weather, will often
balk at the work Of the rigger. The
sailor is at least reasonably sure of the
strength Of his rigging if his ship be
seaworthy. Then, again. if sailor
slips or falls the rolling Of his ship is
likely to throw him overheard into the
water whore his fail is partly broken.
1t is different with the rigger, who If
he falls must come down on the bare
boards. The ship rigger must, besides,
often work with the masts and spars
practically denuded Of their rigging
without the safety which full rugged
ship lends to an experienced sailor.
The wages Of the skilled ship rigger
may seem high in comparison with
those of the ordinary sailor or even
ships officer. Considering the acci-
dents which every rigger meets in his
daily life. the work is of course one
for which no amount of money can
really compensate A first class rigger
commonly receives 81 for days work.
For all extra time the rate is double.
Much Of the work is Of course done
under the usual pressure of time.
When an accident occurs to mer-
chant ship, for example, which is due
perhaps with a perishable cargo at
some distant port, every hour ecOno-
mized in making repairs counts against
serious loss. A great part of the work
of rigging is therefore done at night,
the gangs of riggers relieving one an
other continuously until the ship is
again ready for sea.
The ship rigger whose experience or
skill AAo- NOT anaINIa hin, 70 do