The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1907-03-19

n hiatus IA that entertainment or In
tho plans for that entertainment which
made plenty " an,sil talk mud no small
amount Of large talk, for tbe matter oil
that Tho captain sent for the purser
| who already knew more about the sit
uation than the master did, explained
the situation and then proceeded To ths
bridge, tacit suggestion TINT he wal
paid 10 run the ship and not to settle
fool contretemps between fool women
In other words. II was tho purser's
move IN this game Of emotional chess
Tho purper moved. lilo went to tho
burlesque fayorite aud dictated letter
which she between sobs OF rage wrote
Then tho purscr borrowed from the
conservatory q bouquet of tho most
beautiful flowers he could pick and
sent them. together with the note, Ia
the room OF the operate queen. The
puraer has this note now. Az nearly
as tho writer remembers II reads some.
thing ~ follows;
Ny Adorable and Gifted Mra, Mt Il
not for mo 10 assume tho placc Of honor
on tho programme tomorrow night when
upon this vessel abideM the queen Of MI
song. Accept these howersl Accept my
iovt' Accept my request 70 appear wher-
ever on tho programme may please your
fancy peccayii Gesundhsitl prosit for
something OF the sortl. A. thy feet be-
iisvs mo. ELSIE BONBoN. y
OF course the celebrated protagonlst
Of heavy opera accepted tho lowers,
sent her love- her thanks, her O..
teen. and asked-nay. beggcd--that she
be allowed 10 rellnquish tho honor
cast at.her feet The burlesquc queen,
need II bc said, appeared IN tho place
to which the programme assigned her,
This man. nv VIII appear. ID no slouch
OF purser.
Pursers are born. not made. They are
selected by steamship companies with
special eye 10 the duties they are called
upon 10 perform. A large limo. such as
The North German Lloyd line, for In.
stance. or the Hamburg line. selects a
man for tho position and puts him 10
work In the purser's department with
tho title junior assistant purses. Above
him there In the assistant purscr. who
In In line m soon as vacancy shall oc-
cur for the Office OF purser on ono Of
the humber ships OF the line. No man
Ia ever promoted from the assistant
pnrscrahlp OF large vessel 10 be head
Of department on the same vessel. He
goes 70 amy Of the smaller craft from
which purser hns been elevated to oil
the vacancy on the larger vessel.
A pnraer on one of the great German
boats Is man to reckon with and q
constant delight TO the soul. He
knows the name OF every wealthy
ocean voyager of whatever nationality,
and when In the mood he can stand In
his Office aud retail delightful bits OF
anecdote and flashing Characterization
OF those who figure prominently on the
passenger list.
Jones! Who iss Jonesy' he viii ex.
claim reproachfully to an inqulsltive
newsgatherer. well. he iss der white.
wash king OF South Dakota. &c."
Pursers have full charge Of the ship
accounts They pay the salaries Of
some TOO men. aud nt the same time
Il Is the purscr who must wise the per
sonal and baggage declarations OF pas,
sengers. clearing up cloudy points to
the end that when the customs officers
come aboard the passengers will go
through without trouble or annoy.
ance, he Is also responsible for the
cargo. He Il 10 that checks the mani.
tests and signs them, which signature
Is taken to mean that the vessel has
In her hold Just what the company
contracted for aud nothing more. He
Is held responsible for tho proper con.
ditlon In fact. OF every paper pertain
Ing to the ship, which is task worth
the full time Of any ordinary man. An
officer OF a great line In speaking Of
the purser aud his duties said that he
would advise no young man to encour.
age purser ambition unless he loved
work. constant and arduous.
On the. other hand. pursers have more
fun on shipboard than any other officer
Their duties bring them In close con
tact with passengers, and many firm
friendships are thus formed. One OF
the most popular was an Englishman
who. strange to say, was attached to
the French line. He could speak
French, of course, as well as he could
English and carried or affairs with
Galllc tact and facility, lie Is now en-
joylng the fruits Of successful life
saving invention. Another purser In
the White Star line was so popular
that bis friends urged him to come
ashore and start a fashionable restau-
rant In this city. He yielded to the
but the result was not all
that could have been hoped for.
So far as running a ship is concerned,
q purser is absolutely lost. But he
Knows the management OF small boats.
and in time Of accident he has charge
,f one. e.--New York Post.
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