Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1911-08-04

carry thousands ana thousands
Of Americans into the great
ports of the old world. Most
of them pay a good round
price for the service, although there
are some people who go in the steer
age rather than miss the trip. But
there are many American college
students and perhaps some others
who go to Europe and who do not
worry ahead of time about cabin
quarters OF staterOOms. They are the
fellows who work for their passage on
cattle ships.
Without a doubt the experiences of
one who crosses the Atlantic as a cat
tleman are unique. Twenty or thirty
years ago a man was paid from $50
to $50 together with all of his ex-
penses to cross the ocean as a cattle
man, but now there are two men in
Boston who are getting rich charg-
ing college students So to get them
positions (for want of a more approp-
riate world on cattle ships. The boys
get no more for their services than
their passage and board.
Having been assured that we would
have to rough IT" and have lots Of
work to do, a college friend and l
went over to the Cunard docks in East
Boston on a beautiful morning. There
we signed up to work for our passage
as cattlemen and to get accommoda-
lions same as the m We didn't
know what we were doing. but we
knew ten days later. There we met
the rest of Il party"
Cattlemen Third Class.
There were 400 cattle on board. The
ship carried 10 first-class or cabin pas
sengers and, according to our friend,
the ~Scotchman, the cattle were second
class and we were third class. l be-
lieve he was right. At any rate, the
petty officers of the ship wasted lots
of good time telling us that we were
cattlemen. and can not and must not
do this and that.
We sat in a f~ine-looking group on
the for'ard erd of the main deck as
the ship left the Boston harbor that
morning. There was little wind. No
one was seasick, and each was deter
mined not to be.
Up to this point we knew nothing of
what we were to do and just what
sort Of Accommodations" we were to
nave. A petty OLICC1, Will 0ulAluS
face and shoes. and the characteristic
thin mustache, which is quite the
thing among the young Englishmen,
informed us that our dinner. stores
and dishes" could be had at the gal
ley. He gave us, in a large black pan,
a big chunk Of greasy meat, together
with some potatoes which had been
boiled dry and then boiled again. In
another large pan was the hash-fa-
nous hash-with nameless ingredients
and a terrific odor.
Our first meal and pan washing on
the main deck attracted too much of
the attention of the cabin passengers
on the deck above, and the captain
sent down orders for us to repair to
the cattlemen's quarters in the fo'cas-
tie. The seamen pronounce that word
in two syllables. The name applies to
the quarters Of the seamen and the
cattlemen, with a partition between
them running back from the bow of
the boat to the first hatch. We were
on the port, or left, side. Our quar-
tiers had beer used as a storeroom for
everything that had a bad smell, such
as rotten rope, heavily tarred; pulleys,
chains and paint. We slept there the
first night, but the odor was too much
Tor us; we all awoke more or less sick.
The c~attIeman's Work.
Now, something of the work that
falls t. the lot of the cattlemen. We
were called by the night watchmen
(when they were not asleep at 4
O'Clock in the morning, and we literal
IL rolled out of the hay. Our crowd