New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1924-01-03
VETERAN SKIPPER
RETIRES FROM SEA
Capt. Feeder Of Manchuria on
Ocean 90 Years

New York, Jan. 3.--When the Pam
sma-Pacific liner Manchuria from
San Francisco via the Panama Canal
was safely made fast at Pier So North
River yesterday. Captain Adrian Zee
der, the master, signed the manifest
and ships articles for the crew to be
paid off and went to the custom house
TO enter the ship, the closing act of
half century spent at sea in all parts
of the world.
He was born sixty years ago near
Cape Town, South Africa, of an old
family of Dutch navigators. and start
ed his career at the age of ten by
running away from school and ship
ping as boy on 75-ton fishing
schooner trading to Mozambique and
Madagascar. At IA young Feeder,
who was husky for his age, was APP
prenticed to the famous BLACK Ball"
line of clipper ships, trading from
London to Calcutta. and after pass
ing his examinations he rose to the
command of a sailing ship in the
China trade in the good old days
when the bo-sun called all hands by
with an iron Delaying pin and singing |
out Tumble out lively, you -! !
God help the last man."
In speaking of the days when he |
was mate of packet ship from San |
Francisco to Shanghai, Captain Zee
der said:
1T was a hard life. and a mate had |
to be tough to get along. l found 4
that the best way was to wait four or |
five days after we got away to see who
was the cock of the foc'sle and then
lick him. After that I had TO lick
the "old man. the skipper, and then /
We might enjoy little peace in the
ship and get the work done"
Captain Feeder, who stands six feet
IN his seaboots and still Is very mus
cular, said that he was only human
and had always tried to get along
with his shipmates as well as he
could.
strong For Discipline
'rhere must be discipline In a ship,
or else everything goes to pieces" he
said, Grows like captain who
holds n taut rein over them and
knows his lob" He has many stor-
les of beating to the westward round
Cape stiff" as sailors term Cape
Horn. in small ships and of being dis
masted and catching 25-foot blue
sharks off the Cape of Good Hope,
He was twenty years In the Pacific
Mail steamship company. trading be-
tween San Francisco and Hongkong,
and was called king Zeeder In the
Far East because he took his ship
into Uongkong harbor during the
typboon in August. 1909, while nearly
n hundred steamships Of all sizes
waited outside for tho weather TO
moderate and many vessels were
sunk.
Has Pet Birds. |,
r,aptain Zceder is unmarried. and
his only pets arc four canaries winch
fv about his cabin and answer 10
their Spanish names like children ,
Don Enrique. Don MARITIME, Don Paw
10 and Don Carlos. when they sing i
loo loudly tho captain calls out TO the !
offenders: "Don Carlos and Don :
paylo, you are bad lads -Four =
hours solitary confinement Tor q
yours" &
Then he takes the two birds and Z
locks them M In separate ittle [
y OGDEN cages. The feathered delin- Is
oucnts appear TO understand their J
master and chirrup TO him pleadingly ,
as they cling to the bars. The cap 4
tain is firm and they have to do the
tour hours.
The captains Filipino steward has {
been with him for years and retires \
also. lie may go with his master TO
South Africa, where Captain Feeder
has farm. near Groote Schuur,
v here the late Cecil Rhodes built the
great house which he willed TO the |
south African people. Captain Zccd-
sr has been a citizen of the United
states for IS years and has both
American and British certificates.