The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1908-02-12
L. INC ON 4 WARSHIP
The Fare That Uncle Sam Serves
to His BIuejackets.
COSTS THIRTY CENTS A DAY.

The Food Is Good. Plenty and Varied
anc Better Than Many Civilians Get.
TIE Officers Meals and the Different
Mcsses-The Payn1aster's Work.
How many housewives would like
to have to cater for L family for 80
cents 4 head :, day? That's exactly
the sum it costs Uncle Sam. and he
has something like $4,000 bluejackets
TO feed at his man-of-war table.
Even on ordinary days sailor sits
down to q fare no civilian need sniff
at, says the Home Magazine. Eggs,
boile>t potatoes, bread and butter and
coffee form his breakfast one morn
ing. Perhaps the next he has sau-
sageS and corn bread.
Roast veal with gravy, boiled pota-
toes. succotash, bread and butter, gin
gerbl cad and coffee is an ordinary din
ner menu. While fried pork chops,
bread and butter, apple sauce and tea
is the bill of fare submitted by the
steward to the paymaster for the sane
days evening meal.
That the fare agrees with him is at
testc., by his hospital record. Seldom
more than FIVE to ten men are sick at
time from the ships crew Of $50.
Nol all the Seamen are brought up
gear the sea. Many Of them are IN
land boys who run away from home
for tie life on the brine. TIE books
Of IL, Virginia, for instance. bear this
ont it'll a record that Of the $50 sail
ors % have enlisted from states as
far land as Idaho and Wisconsin.
Ey; " minute Of the day aboard ship
is Il ed according to rule. At o:3O
o'clotc in the morning the sailor IS
arou> ID by the call Of three bells.
Thirt@ minutes is allowed him for
lashi, g his hammock, etc. After that
he is allowed to take it down only by
speci permission. There is no sneak
ing off for seductive little maps in
the ".
His breakfast is served at $50
O'clock. FIVE bells. Twelve seamen
mess at one table, one Of their own
nur,i.ar receiving an extra stipend OF
S5 n..1nthly from Uncle Sam for wait
ing G.. his comrades.
THIS assignment is now generally
made in rotation. Jack tars have been
known to come to blows in their zeal
to secure it. Then, again, when sta
tione; in warmer climes it was not
easy 10 find men willing to oHciate.
I. :e Sam sets seven tables, in &C
core. ace with his rules Of class dis
tinct on. which are as fixed and un-
swer ing as the laws Of the Nedes
and :'ersians. There is, first, admira1s
mess at which the head officer is
served in solitary state; second, cap
tain'S mess, at which the presiding
Office enjoys the same lonely distinc-
ton: third, wardroom officers or jol-
lifca ION mess, so called for the good
times enjoyed by the tableful Of COM
miss: med officers below rank Of cap
tain: fourth, junior officers mess, con-
sistirg of midshipmen, the young
grad ates Of Annapolis, who, having
been educated at Uncle Sans expense,
are row getting their first maritime
expe: :ence; fifth, the chief petty
Office $ mess, for those IN rank below
the aidshipmen; sixth, the warrant
Offices mess, who, by pull, special
abilil, or act Of prowess, have raised
Themselves from the enlisted ranks;
seventh and last, but not least, the
general or mess table where the lusty
appetites Of the rank and file are as
SuaGed.
Uncle Sans officers want the fat
of the land and supply it from their
own purses. By special clubbing ar
rangenents among themselves an Off
GERS mess is provided at cost to
each officer of $50 a month. Even a
colored chef is retained.
His souf1eS and his salads are true
works Of art The key of the wine
chest he guards With jealous care. But
all tbs is a matter Of reckoning be
tween him and the officers. Uncle Sam
enters not at all.
Unc.e Sans head housekeeper, the
paymaster, indeed, has quite enough on
his mind trying to keep nearly thou
sand lusty men satisfied with their
grub and at the same time keep his
bills Gown to the satisfaction Of the
navy department auditor at Washing
ton. It is no light undertaking.
No II, fr-l,fh OoI1CT no
man # rare parts and is rightly es-
teemeG one of the ablest and most hon
ored officers in the service. Take the
qualities needed to make a successful
hotel man, add to them those to- make
the popular leader, throw in intense
pride and loyalty to the service, sea-
soned with untiring zeal for the inter
ests { his men, and you get the kind
Of m; ture Uncle Sam has to find be-
fore II appoints his paymaster.
-N'he1 he is loading up for an eight
weeks cruise no wonder his brow IS
knottel. Making out the next meals
order while in port is one thinS-sim-
ply a confab with his steward as to
whether it shall be 500 pounds Of fish
or 25G pounds Of pork and barrel and
half Of beans.
By the ships regulations every man
is allowed q daily stipend OF one and
three quarter pounds Of fresh meat
For tie long voyage, however, it's a
different matter The stipend must be
reduced and more salt meat consumed.
The ships cold storage capacity IS
10000 pounds.
Herr is where the paymaster's real
oppor unity Of generalship enters.
Ever. thing his men will need for the
next sixty days must be planned to
meet that capacity. And meantime
there s ice to De manufactured With
L