Los Angeles herald., 1907-04-07

TN years gone by-and not so many,
either-when a lad wanted to go to
sea and reach the quarterback via the
hawse-hole, as Is the method Of shipping
as an apprentice known, as a rule the lad
had a hard time of 1t for a number of
years, depending entirely upon his own
ability, either as a bullying fighter or his
knowledge
AS 1t was easier to climb aft by prowess
than knowledge, there developed the ia
nous bucko mate, a man who won his
spurs with the fist If he could. and the
Delaying pin when he met his match In
pugilism.
While to a great extent 1t was the lad
who ran away from home who had the
toughest experience, as a whole there
have been always young men whose par
ents believed that a few years at sea
would do them good and fit them for a
place In the great business world.
In such cases 1t became the fashion to
indenture lad for a four-year appren.
ticeship to some worthy master. who was
supposed to teach the youngster some
thing of navigation and make a skipper
out of him.
Theoretically the plan was a good one.
The boy, under the close eye of great
skipper, would surely develop those
traits and the ability for which his su-
perlor officer was noted and become an
able and efficient seaman.
Practically the plan was a rank failure
in most instances, and those lads who
reached the quarterback did so with but
very little assistance from the master or
the mates, who once at sea. began to
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ness, and the erstwhile skipper learned
that for at least two years the closest to
learning navigation he would get would
be the guiding of a holystone around the
vessels decks or doing the kind OF work
that was especially set aside for the
ships boy-and dirty work at that.
There is but one great universal law at
sea and that is THE survival of the
fttest," and nowhere else is that law so
vigorously enforced as on the mighty
waters. 1t applies with equal force TO
all things, animate or inanimate, whether
II be fish or hesh wood or iron and SO
the man who went on board vessel as
common seaman became captain only
when he had proven his worth and his
knowledge was CLEANED by self-sacrItce
and perseverance
The apprentice found that II he. at the
end Of his two years before the mast, did
not care to take up the study necessary
to tit him for the rank of officer there
was no one TO urge him and If he did
study there was a reluctance on the part
of his officers to give him a lift. The
natural result was that many a bright
lad who went to sea under those condl-
tlons was discouraged and the fighting
of life's battle anoat became a question
of individual and independent concern. II
he succeeded he merely followed the law
OF nature and arose because of his Unborn
abi;:,y and would have succeeded in any
other line OF business. II he failed that
was the end OF 1t and there are today In
the forecastles OF deep-water ships old
men who have never held the papers OF
even a third officer, and many OF them
never will
But to speak Of today, the past is gone
and II must be but memory-ror the
past score OF years has seen radical
change In the business Of the sea. Sail
ing ships are becoming fewer and fewer
and steamships more and more numerous.
The nations of the world whose shores
kiss the sea are increasing not only their
merchant marine but their nayies and the
great steam monsters must be otieered
and manned
There has been. and always Will be, q
romantic feeling about the navy that will
ever tempt a lad to cast his fortunes
aaoat but with the enormous growth or
the lighting ships and with H~erV nation
armed TO the teeth. war ma ther
away than ever aud the in Ao bat
ties Of the future Will be l COM
merce and the merchant i,r ,l. in
time, become OF far more ao e to
the United States than the Alsy hich
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