The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-05-30
Vast Change in Conditions Since
Speedy Yankee Clippers Touched
Every Port in the World

WYNN ofS III NV
That is, he will be obliged to superin-
tend the discharging and loading OF
freight. This is not so easy a task
as one might imagine.
one Of the mail lines to South Amer
lea and the West Indies gets its steve
dores in the Dutch island If Curacao
and carries them over to Venezuela to
work cargo there because they work
better and cheaper than the Vene-
zuelanos. These men speak a bar
barous dialect called Papimento, which
is a mixture Of French, Dutch. Span
ish, Portuguese and English. When
they get to talking and shouting they
give one the impression that he has
arrived just in time to tness a free
for all fight, but on investigation II
turns out that they have been discuss
ing some topic like the weather or the
mornings breakfast.
Into a hold full of these men the
fresh baked mate goes. 1t is quite
likely he will have an uncomfortable
feeling at first, for these men are all
great big fellows n they look even
larger. because they work stripped to
the waist. and in the sash each man
carries a wicked looking knife. or "Cu-
chillo." Besides. they are always ar
guing or talking in n loud voice. with
their arms going like a windmill. SO
II looks like a fight every few minutes.
With a crew Of this kind the mate
is supposed to empty his hatch.
Down between decks in the semi
darkness are perhaps fifteen men
working for dear life. The day is hot
on deck and down in the hold it is
sitting n the odors are such as
cling long IN the memory, but quite
beggar description. In fact the less
said about them the better.
on deck the winches are rumbling
their complaint at having to work and
the air is filled with the hundred jan
Cling sounds of a ship discharging
cargo. In the hold the men are chant
ing Their peculiar native working
songs. Some Of them are pulling
down the boxes and bales from the
after part of the hold. Others are
doing W into the slings the stuff al
ready pulled down. Those standing
near the hatch opening shine like
figures of rome when "A stray shaft
Of sunlight falls on them. throwing
into high relief their splendidly mus
cled bodies. Looking down on them
from the main deck they look in
the half light like a company of de-
mons going about some tremendously
methodical task.
The mate must look after his hold
from daylight to dark. with a brief
relief for meals. He much resembles
a longshoreman after a day in the
hold n feels like one as well. This
Of course is on al American ship.
Should you go aboard a French ship
in the Indies or one of the Dutch
vessels in the process of unloading
o would not find the officers doing
the work Of a stevedore foreman. De-
cidedly not. In all probability they
would be at the hatch on deck, with
a hold foreman doing the work below.
Another thing that must at once
strike the visitor to a foreign ship is
that the companies Expect their Off
GERS to look like officers. Moreover.
they do not put the mates in the
second cabin to eat. but all the Off
GERS eat in the saloon.
This matter of being RELOCATED to
the second class for meals is a sore
point with officers; they are scarcely
TO be blamed considering the COM
N''N''" VI a. S'NoIlu NAdSS III III
West India trade. Whore the mates
mess in the petty officers mess there
is a general opinion among them that
discipline suffers.
The english companies have tho
continental idea that an officer should
he treated as such. And while the for
Gig scale of ages is not as high
there is this TO be considered: living
is not as high in Europe and SO the
officers are receiving the equivalent
of what ours are getting, And, by the
way. they are not getting very much
at that.
Chief officers draw from SIPS to 500
per month, according to the size of the
vessel. Seconds get $50 and thirds $50.
These men are responsible for lives
and property n are punished with
revocation of their licenses for care
lessness and if loss Of life follows any
error in judgment it is quite likely
that they will go to Jail. No company
ashore would think Of ay.ng the
manager uf a plant worth from $780,
600 to 81, 900, 900 the sums that steam
ship companies pay their officers who
shoulder quite as great responsibilities
as any factory superintendent.