Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-09-06


of what the life of a sailor consists"
late from the service and who is in
the city. Then he added, as he
struck match to light his pipe: "a
great deal has been written upon the
subject Of me life that man before
the mast leads on the ocean wave. In
most cases the stories Of sea life are
compiled by men who have never been
outside of Sandy Hook or they may
have taken a voyage and their stories
are the outcome of jottings taken
down in note book while they have
been slowed cozily away under a
steamer rug aboard some passenger
steamer with the dock chair placed
under the lea of dock house.
"The consequence is that a lot of
things are written about Jack which
are put up in such shape that things
concerning his life and work are mis-
construed and some things are credit
ed to him as doing and saying which
are as foreign to him as they would
be to the greenest llndsman up coun-
try on farm.
Things Have Changed. I'D
With all the modern appliances
and the stringent shipping rules that
are in vogue today, Jacks life at sea
and his work have undergone great
many changes in the past few years.
The sailor Of today is as different from
the sailor of fifty years ago as the
tiller Of the soil of fifty years ago who
used to fail for threshing and OF the
new one Of today, who now uses the
powerful threshing engine.
"Of course you will find exceptions
to the rule, now and then you will see
some old fellow who is type of the
days when the ships were Of WOO
and the men were of iron.
"The life Of the olden time seafar-
ing man was undoubtedly hard. Fer,
in those days. the facilities for car
rying fresh provisions were not what
they are today. Everything had to
spelling. The work of the ship had to
be done by the muscles Of the men.
such as hosting the anchors and
handling the yards or pulling and
hauling on ropes. Drinking water
had to be carried in casks and slowed
away in the hold and each person on
board was on allowance while at sea.
Modern Equipment.
To-day a great deal Of the hard
work has been done away with.
Steam winches have taken the place
of men. AS for the food, most all
ships carry ice machines and refriger-
ator systems, which allows the carry
ing Of fresh provisions to any part Of
the world. Drinking water, the finest
one can get, is manufactured from
the salt water by huge condensing
systems.
with all the late machinery one
finds aboard modern vessel and with
the modern protection the law nova
days affords sailors from brutal cap-
tame and mates, a better and more
educated class Of men are following
the sea for living. They have to be
in order to fill the positions of trust
which are found aboard every ship
that sails.
Work on Board.
"The work in all ships is carried on
in four hour shifts. One shift, or
watch, as it is called, works four
hours and then is relieved. The work
in big ship today consists chiefly in
scrubing paintwork, chipping iron rust
and painting. Aside from this man
is required to know how to steer at
the wheel and stand as lookout. This
is the work he has at sea, and while
in port his work is mainly keeping
the ship clean. In sailing ships he is
required to be thorough seaman
with a knowledge of everything per.
tanning to blocks, ropes, tackles, rig
ging and sails. He is not admitted tt
the rating of able bodied seaman I'M
til he has served four years, the same
time required at any trade ashore.
Good Quarters.
"Today the majority OF The ship;
have good healthful sleeping quarters
for the men, who are required tc
keep them clean. So you take it al
in all, the life of Jack at sea is not
half as bad as one will often read
about in stories OF life on the restless
bosom of the ocean OF course yor
have your troubles, but l would likt
to see the place you could sail tt
where one didn't have them"