The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1917-06-14


If Nolan was 80 then, he must
have been near 80 when he died.
He looked 60 when he was 40.
But he never seemed to me to
change a hair afterward. AS
imagine his life, from what
have seen and heard of it, he must
have been in every sea, and yet
almost never on land. He must
have known, in a formal way
more Officers In our service than
any man living knows.
He told me once, with a grave
smile, that no man in the world
loved so methodical a life as he.
You know the boys say | am the
Iron Mask, and you know how
busy he was" He said it did not
do for any one to try to read all
the time; but that he read just
five hours a day.
Then he said, 81 keep up my
notebooks, writing in them at such
and such hours from what | have
been reading; and | include in
these my scrap books" These
were very curious, indeed. He has
six or eight different subjects,
There was one of history, one OF
natural science, one which he call
ed odds and Ends" But they
were not merely books of extracts
from the newspapers.
They had bits of plans, ribbons,
shells tied on and carved scraps
of bone and wood which he taught
the men to cut for him, and they
we're beautifully illustrated. He
drew admirably. He had some OF
the funniest drawing there, and
some Of the most pathetic, that
had ever seen in my life. | won
der who will have Nolan's scrap
books?
Well, he said his reading and
his notes were his profession, and
that they took five hours and two
hours, respectively, of each day.
Then" he said, every man
should have diversion as well
as a profession. My natural his
tory is my diversion" That took
two hours day more. The men
used to bring him birds and fish,
but on long cruise he had to sat
isfy himself with centipedes and
cockroaches and such small game.
He was the only naturalist l ever
met who knew anything about the
habits Of the house fly and the
mosquito.
Went Aloft Much.
All those people can tell you Is
whether they are Lepidoptera or
Steptopotera; but as for telling
y how they get away from you
when you strike them, why, Lin
naeus knew as little of that as
John Fox. the idiot, did. These
nine hours made Nolan's regular
daily Occupation" The rest of
the time he talked or walked. Till
he grew very old, he went aloft a
great deal. He always kept UP
this exercise, and I never heard
that he was ill. If any other man
was i'll, he was the kindest nurse
in the world; and he knew more
than half the surgeons do. Then
If anybody was sick or died, or il
the captain wanted him to, on any
other occasion, he was always
ready to read prayers. I have said
that he read beautifully.
My own acquaintance with Pril-
lip Nolan began six or eight years
after the war, on my first voyage
after / was appointed a midship-
man. It was in the first days after
our slave trade treaty, while the
treigning house of Virginia had
still a sort of sentimentalism
about the suppression of the hor-
rors of the Middle Passage, and
something was sometimes done
that way We were in the south
Atlantic on that business.
From the time joined believe
thought Nolan was sort of lay
chaplain-a chaplain with blue
|coat. I never asked about him
Everything in the ship was strange
Ito me. | knew it was green to ask
Questions, and | suppose I thought
There was a plain Buttons" or
every ship.
| We had him to dine in our mess
once a week, and the caution was
lgiven that on that night nothing
twas to be said about home. But
liz they had told us not to say any
thing about the planet Mars OF
1.-THE book of Deuteronomy, should
mot have asked why; there we're a
tgreat many things which seemed
Ito me to have as little reason.
| first came to understand any
thing about "the man without q
country" one day when we over
hauled dirty little schooner
(which had slaves on board. An
officer was sent to take charge oil
Iher, and, after few minutes, he
lsent back his boat to ask that some
one might be sent him who could
speak Portuguese.
But none of the officers did;
land Just as the captain was send
ling forward to ask IL any of the
people could, Nolan stepped out
and said he should be glad to in
terpret. IL the captain wished, az
he understood the language. The
captain thanked him, fitted out
lanother boat with him, and in this
boat IL was my luck to go.
When we got there, 1t was such
la scene as YOU seldom see, and