Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1911-04-07

the fear of the foreign dungeon and the certain
return to his ship in irons holds him to his con-
tract. And with the fear of certain re-en
slavement staring him In the face, the sailor I'M
der the stars and stripes is far too often a de-
serter. It is idle to argue that it is in the nature
OF the sailor to wander, to desert master for
another and that therefore laws are necessary to
prevent the disorganZation of the merchant ma
rine. Every occupation has its devotees to whom
it calls in insstent voice, and there are thou
sands of men who follow the sea from choice The
answer to the question, why is the sailor legally
slave, must be found in inquiry into the condi-
tons from which he seeks to run away If he
likes to follow the there is no reason why no
should forever try to leave it or to leave his
master and his flag except thai the conditions
under which he is forced to work intolerable.
And here lies the answer
The earliest known facts about the condition
Of the labOrer at sea take Us back to the ancient
laws of the NOrseman and to the code that gov
erned the sailors of the ancient cities on the
shores of the Mediterranean. In the north the
labOrer land and at sea was a free man. The
sailor had the same status aboard his vessel that
his brother had in the Morse towns He had the
same freedom of contract and the same voice In
the laws regulating the conduct of his companions
and himself. The laborer of the south a chat
tel slave land and He usually
prisoner of war and his body and soul belonged to
his master. He was chained to his seat in the gal
ley and dashed to his task. Manual labor of all
kinds was considered to be debasing and per-
formed only by slaves.
The Island of Rhodes gave to the Mediter-
ranean its maritime law. and the Roman code
patterned after that of Rhodes When Rome con-
Quered the countries of the north she gave them
her laws for the regulation Of labor the sea
well on land. The all-pervading idea OF Roman
civilization that labor is debasing, and the
labOrer land a serf and on the sea he
a slave. The maritime power of medieval Europe.
which was expressed through the laws of BARGE
Iona and later through the allpowerful Hanseatic
League of cities, maintained through Roman
maritime law. 1t gradually overpowered and OBJ
liberated the law of the north, and the free sailor
ceased to exist. Since that day the sailor has
been a chattel slave.
When sailing vessels replaced the galley, 1t be-
came necessary that the sailors status a slave
be maintained by rigid laws against desertion
Freedom of action necessary for the operation
of q sailing vessel. but it was still necessary to
keep the sailor bound to the ship because injury
might come to the vessel through his desertion
And his status slave maintained by
law the principle of common hazard" All the
laws of the Hanseatic League Stpu late that II any
harm come to vessel while any sailor is absent
from shpboard, the absent sailor shall pay the
damage The safety Of the vessel and her cargo
was in the hands of every man on board while
the vessel was at sea in foreign ports.
The progress of civilization has relieved the
shp-owner and the master Of the hazard of the
Maritime insurance has been devised to pay
for losses through acts of God II ship sinks at