Read Ebook: Sea life in Nelson's time by Masefield John

Font size: 10 px 15 px 20 px 25 px 30 px 35 px

Background color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Text color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Apply/Save settings

Ebook has 226 lines and 62084 words, and 5 pages

This ring or thimble was sometimes cast on the piece above the pomelion.

As the natural roll of the ship was more marked on the lee side, the lee guns were always fitted with strong train tackles, which were strained taut by one of the crew of each gun.

The tompion was secured to the gun muzzle by a lanyard. It was generally painted red, with a gilt cross.

When the gun fired red-hot shot, as in many general actions, the wad driven down upon the powder was a disc of green wood, wrapped about with yarns.

The French invariably fired as the ship rose from a roll. Some English Admirals preferred to fire as the ship began to roll, so that the shot might strike the hull of the enemy either above or below the water-line.

More frequently they were held in the hand.

Misfires were not infrequent. The priming powder sometimes fizzled and smoked, without setting fire to the charge. On these occasions the gun's crew stood aloof till all appearance of smoke had faded from the touch-hole, when the captain crept up cautiously, cleaned out the vent, and reprimed the gun.

Guns were often painted red to match the carriages and ship's sides.

The quarter-deck officers--The captain--The lieutenants--The master, second master, and master's mates--The midshipmen--The midshipman's berth

The captain of a man-of-war, on receiving his appointment to a ship, at once repaired on board her, wherever she then lay, first obtaining from the master-attendant of the dockyard a new narrow pendant, a swallow-tailed piece of red-and-white bunting to hoist at her masthead. Having repaired on board, and hoisted his pendant, the captain read his commission, or "read himself in," before the caretakers and old seamen aboard the ship. He then set about fitting her for the sea with all possible dispatch; and an Admiralty Order forbade his sleeping ashore, without express permission from his superiors, until his ship was paid off. He had to examine all guns, gun-carriages, muskets, cutlasses, and small-arms when they were hoisted on board, and to reject any faulty weapon. He had to keep inventories of all stores sent aboard, and counterparts of the inventories of his warrant officers--such as those of the boatswain and gunner. He kept an account of the ship's provisions, showing the daily expenditure of junk and spirits. He had "to use his best endeavours to get the ship manned," by the dispersal of alluring placards all over the town near which he lay, promising "quick promotion, heaps of prize-money, free rations," etc. etc. to all who would enter. He was also expected to open a rendezvous at a sailor's tavern, where the master-at-arms and coxswain could blarney sailors into joining. Sometimes he was able to offer a bounty or money-reward to every seaman who entered. If neither sugary announcements nor the offer of a piece of gold could lure men to the living death of a gun-deck he had to have recourse to the press. He would send his boats ashore after dark, in command of lieutenants or master's mates, to search the dockside brothels and sailors' taverns. Any sailors or seafaring folk discovered in these haunts were dragged from the arms of their trulls and taken aboard. Often the press-gangs had to fight to bring off their men, for the women and bullies sometimes rallied to the rescue. Many a bold lieutenant had his cheeks scratched or his hair pulled out, and many a bold tarrybreeks got his head broken in these encounters. The gangs never took firearms on these excursions, but contented themselves with stretchers and cudgels . They generally carried cutlasses, but "more for their majesty to astonish the enemy," than for actual use.

Press-gangs made great havoc among watermen and dockside labourers. They were expected primarily to capture sailors and seafaring people, but "a man-of-war, like a gallows, refused nothing," and any landsmen served their turn. They were, at least, "mortal men," and did as well as any others to stop a bullet or to feed powder. Marryat mentions a ship which was manned by the men of nineteen nations, professing among them, some fifty-seven different trades. Tailors, little tradesmen, street loafers, all were fair game. They were taken to the boats and sent aboard, and cracked across the heads with a cudgel if they protested. When once on board they were shoved down below-decks, under a marine sentry who had orders to shoot them if they attempted to escape. When convenient the captain examined these wretches, as to their fitness for the sea-service. He had them examined by the surgeon, to make sure that they were not infested nor infected. Any man who appeared to be too sickly for the work was discharged. A dirty man was cleaned, and his clothes fumigated. Apprentices who could produce their indentures, or merchant-sailors who could claim exemption, were dismissed. All the others were carefully retained. Many pressed men made the best of a very hard bargain by offering to ship within a fortnight of their impressment. Those who acted thus were allowed the King's bounty, and won for themselves the good opinion of the officers.

This way of impressing folk was but one of the ways by which a captain could get his fleet manned. Men condemned at the sessions were sometimes offered the hard alternative of the gallows or service afloat. Often they chose the greater of the two evils. Absconding debtors, and those pursued by the redbreasts, or Bow Street Runners, were frequently eager to ship to avoid capture. A number of men shipped because they had had their heads turned by sea-songs or similar cant, describing the beauty of life afloat, etc. Large numbers were sent from London by the Lord Mayor. These were generally young bloods or bucks, who had been found drunk in the streets or bawdy houses, and feared to see their names in the police-magistrates' lists, and police-court reports. They were known as "my Lord Mayor's men," and very bad bargains they generally were. It was reckoned that one-third of each ship's company was composed of landsmen, and that one-eighth of the entire number of men serving in His Majesty's ships were foreigners.

Having got a crew together by these gentle means, the captain had to see to it that each man's name was entered in the ship's books, particularly the muster book, in which a sort of prison record was kept to enable the officers to identify deserters. The colours of a man's hair and eyes were noted. His chest measurement was taken. His tattoo marks were described. If the man deserted, these particulars were sent to the Admiralty, with an account of the escape. The muster books were kept with great care, and submitted every month or two months to the Admiralty. They contained among other matter the records of any deductions to be made from the pay of the members of the crew.

At sea the captain was responsible for the ship, and for all on board her. He had to see that the lieutenant made out his quarter bills allotting the hands to their stations. He kept the keys of the magazines, and saw to it that sentries guarded those places, to prevent the entry of unauthorised persons. He had to be vigilant to prevent all possibility of fire, by forbidding candles in the cable tiers or at the breaking out of spirits from the spirit-room. He was to order all lights out at 8 P.M. each night. He was to forbid smoking "in any other place than the galley." He was to see the men exercised at the great guns, and with their small-arms. He had to see that the colours were "not kept abroad in windy weather." He had to keep a journal in duplicate, for the benefit of the Admiralty; and at the end of a cruise he had to send an account "of the qualities of his ship" to the commissioners. He had charge of the sea-stores known as slops, such as bedding and clothing, which he sold to those of the crew who needed them. He had to keep his ship clean, dry, and well ventilated, by having the decks swept and scrubbed, the ports opened, the wells and bilges pumped, and windsails fitted to expel the foul air from the hold. He was to punish transgressors, discourage vice and immorality, defend his country's honour, keep secret the private signals, and "burn, sink, and destroy" as much of the enemy as he could. These are but a few of the forty-eight duties required of him.

The captain's share of prize-money was "three-eighth parts" of the value of the prize. His pay varied from about 6s. to 25s. a day, in accordance with the importance of his command. The captain of a 74 received 13s. 6d. a day. Until 1794, he was allowed to have four servants for every 100 men aboard his ship, a regulation which afforded him an opportunity to provide for his friends and poor relations. A captain in the old time frequently put to sea with a little band of parasites about him. They stuck to him as jackals stick to the provident lion, following him from ship to ship, living on his bounty, and thriving on his recommendations. When one reads of a distinguished naval officer having been "a captain's servant," it does not mean that he blacked the captain's boots, mixed his grog, and emptied his slops, but that he entered the service under a captain's protection. Nelson was a "captain's servant" to Captain Maurice Suckling on the guard ship at Chatham, but he was very far from being Captain Suckling's flunkey. The system was bad, and much abused, but it lingered until 1794, when it was abolished, and a money compensation paid to the captains. It had been attended with a curious privilege. A captain removing from one ship to another was allowed to carry with him not only his servants, but his boat's crew, his coxswain, some of his warrant officers, his clerk and purser, and a number of able seamen. From a first-rate ship he could take, in all, 80 men; from a second-rate, 65; from a third-rate, 50; from a fourth-rate, 40; from a fifth-rate, 20; and from a sixth-rate, 10.

The captain stood no watch, and did not interfere with the ordinary working of the ship until something went wrong. He lived alone in his cabin, eating in solitude, save when he desired his lieutenants and midshipmen to dine with him. On these occasions he graciously unbent. Smollett has painted for us a brutal captain, and Marryat and Mitford have shown us a type which was, we trust, more common in the service. Some captains were, perhaps, the most cruel and tyrannical fiends ever permitted on the earth. There were never very many of this kind, but there were enough to make a number of our ships mere floating hells. They could single out and break the heart of any man whom they disliked. They could make life a misery to every man under them. They could goad a crew to mutiny, and then see them hanged at the yard-arm. It was a little thing to captains of this stamp to cut the flesh off a man's back with the cat-o'-nine-tails, swearing placidly, as the poor fellow writhed at the gratings, that, "by God, he would show them who was captain, that he would see the man's backbone, by God." We know that other captains were respected and loved, and we read of ship's companies putting their shillings together to purchase silver plates, as keepsakes for such commanders, at the conclusion of a cruise. It must, however, be borne in mind that the sailors really preferred a man who was, in their terms, "a bit of a Tartar." They liked to sail with a smart and strict seaman who knew his duty, and made his men do theirs. They disliked slack captains as much as they disliked what they called "rogues," or tyrants. When a mild and forgiving captain came aboard a ship, either on a visit or to command her, there was little interest displayed. But when a "rogue" or a "taut hand" came alongside there was a general rush to the ports to see the man.

The captain's uniform varied a good deal during the forty-seven years of Nelson's life. At first it was a blue coat, with lace at the neck, blue lapels, white cuffs, and small flat gold buttons. A white-sleeved waistcoat, white knee-breeches, and white silk stockings completed the dress. The hat was a three-cornered black hat edged with gold lace, and bearing a cockade. At the time of Trafalgar, the lapels were white, the cuffs were striped with gold, the collar was stiff instead of drooping, and the waistcoat was no longer sleeved. A black cravat was worn about the throat. A straight dress-sword was worn, but its form was not prescribed by the regulations. The hat was the ordinary cocked hat worn athwartships. The hair was worn long, in a queue, tied with black silk ribbon. Powder or flour was used to dress this queue. It must be borne in mind that many captains wore pretty much what uniforms they pleased. Epaulettes came into use towards the end of the eighteenth century. They were of heavy gold stuff, hanging down in tassels from a central gold pad. Captains of over three years' rank wore them on both shoulders.

The lieutenant, "the officer next in power and rank to the captain," commanded in the captain's absence. A ship of the line carried from three to eight lieutenants, who took precedence according to the dates of their commissions. The first lieutenant was a sort of captain's proxy, who did all the work, in order that the captain might have the glory. He was responsible to the captain for the working of the ship, for the preservation of discipline, and for the navigation of the vessel from point to point, according to the captain's orders. He stood no watch at night when the ship was at sea, but he was expected to pass his days about the decks, and to come up in times of danger during the night watches. A lieutenant of the watch had to see that the helmsmen kept the ship to her course, that the log was duly hove every hour, and that the rate of sailing was marked on the board. He had to see that the men were alert and smart, at their proper stations, and ready for any sudden order. He had to keep the midshipmen and master's mates to their duty. He had to muster the watch, to keep the ship in her station, and to report strange sails and shifts of wind. He was to see that the look-out men at the mast-heads and elsewhere were awake, and were not kept too long at their stations. If at night, in war time, a strange sail was sighted, he had orders to send a midshipman to the captain with the news. While the captain dressed he got the ship ready for action, keeping her out of gunshot of the stranger till all was ready. In the night he had to take particular care that the master-at-arms and corporals made their regular half-hourly rounds of all parts of the ship "to see that there is no disturbance among the men; that no candles nor lamps are burning, except those which are expressly allowed; and that no man is smoking tobacco in any other place than the galley." Twice in each watch a lieutenant had to send one of the carpenter's mates to sound the ship's well, and to see that the lower gun-deck ports were securely closed and barred. At the same time he had to send the gunner's mates to examine the lashings of each gun and to reeve double tackles or breechings if the guns were straining. In the morning he had to receive reports, from the boatswain as to the state of the rigging, and from the carpenter as to the state of the masts and yards. Any defects had to be reported to the captain. In addition to all these duties he had to keep an eye on the admiral's signals, to answer them directly his signalman reported them, and to record them carefully in the ship's log. At night he had to see that lanterns were lit, and unshotted guns loaded, in case night signals had to be made. He had also to see that the cabin windows and other ports were closed so that the ship's lights might not be seen from a distance. In foggy weather he had to order the fog-signals, such as the firing of guns, beating on the drum, or striking of the ship's bell. He had to keep a log-book in the prescribed form, which volume he had to sign, and submit to the Navy Board, when he wished to receive his pay.

A lieutenant was often despatched on a press-gang to rout out the watermen and the sailors in the merchant vessels. "When the Ship has been sufficiently depopulated by ill-Usage," says Edward Ward, "my Spark is detached ashore, with some choice Hounds, to go hunt out a fresh Stock ... he and his Bandogs together make a woeful Noise in all the Sea Port Towns round the Kingdom; he beats up all Quarters, and rummages all the Wapping Ale-houses, as narrowly as he would a Prize for the Indies. In fine, he's a perfect Hurricane in a little Town, and drives the laggard Dog along the Streets with as much Noise and Bustle, as Butchers do Swine at Smithfield."

The uniform of a lieutenant at the time of Trafalgar was as follows:--A coat of a rather bright blue, with white cuffs, white lapels, gold anchor-buttons, and long tails, was worn over a white cloth waistcoat, white knee-breeches, and white stockings. The sword was slung in a belt worn over the shoulder. The hat was a three-cornered black hat, with a cockade. It was generally worn athwartships.

Next in rank to the lieutenant, and in early days his superior, was the master. His chief duty was to "conduct the ship from port to port" under the direction of the captain. He controlled the sailing of the ship, the trimming and setting of her sails, and the guidance of her movements during a battle. He had, moreover, the charge of the stowage of the hold. He had to repair aboard his ship before she shipped her "iron and shingle" ballast, for it was one of his duties to see that the ballast put aboard was sweet and clean, and properly stowed. He had to superintend the shipping of the coals and firewood, and to note that a sufficient quantity was shipped to last the vessel for the period for which she was victualled. When provisions came on board he had to examine them to prove their soundness. He had to stow old provisions on the top, so that they might be eaten first. He had the care of the cable-tiers and spirit-room, and had strict orders not to allow a naked light to be carried into the latter place, lest the fumes of the rum and brandy should take fire. On no account whatsoever was he to quit the after hold while it was open. He had charge of the water-casks, but he was not allowed to pump out fresh water, for the use of the crew, without the captain's express commands. Every evening he had to examine all beer and water-casks, in order to report to the captain the quantity of water and beer remaining. He had to examine the cables to see that they were dry and clean, and clear for running. He had to keep the anchor clear when the ship rode to single anchor. He had to see that the standing rigging was well set up, and in good condition. He had to check the boatswain's and carpenter's accounts. He had to overhaul the sails in the sail-rooms to see that they were dry, in good order, not damaged by rats, etc.

Every day he had to find the ship's position, both by dead reckoning and by the altitude of celestial objects. When in foreign waters, near a coast, it was his duty to survey the inlets, from one of the ship's boats, keeping a most careful record of all soundings and bearings taken. He was to compare his own observations with those marked on the printed charts supplied to him. At noon, when he took the height of the sun, he had to call up his mates, with a proportion of midshipmen, with their quadrants, both to assist him and to teach them their business. He had to superintend the writing of the log book by his mates, who entered up all details of the weather, ship's position, expenditure of stores, and daily happenings, etc. etc., from the reports and records of the ship's officers. When the ship was in need of rope it was his duty to attend at the rope-walk to see the rope made, in order that the rope-maker should not waste his rope-yarns. Many masters sought to improve their pay by qualifying as pilots for some of the home and foreign ports.

First, second, and third rate ships carried what were known as second masters; while ships of all rates carried "master's mates" to assist the master in the dirtier parts of his business. These master's mates had to write up the log book, keep the fore yards trimmed, heave the log each hour, or half-hour, and keep the rates of the chronometers. They had also to attend in the hold when casks were being shifted. They were responsible for the discharge of various minor duties during their night-watches. In port they sent the midshipmen on periodical tours round the ship, "to attend to the hause," and to keep the men from lounging along the gun-decks. At night, at sea, they generally called the relieving lieutenant at the end of a watch. During the daytime a master's mate took charge of the lower-deck, and forbade "wrangling in the galley," or disorderly bawling about the waist, and the washing of clothes on days not set apart for that duty. He had to see that the cables and cable gear were in good order; that the wash-deck buckets were in their places; and that sand-boxes or tin spittoons were always placed in the galley for the convenience of smokers. Another master's mate kept watch upon the main-deck to keep the deck as clear as possible, and to superintend all duty done in the waist. He had to keep the top-sail sheets clear for running, to attend the serving out of the beef, and the mixing of the wine and spirits.

A master's mate kept a record of the messes, for the assistance of the first lieutenant. He had to see to the numbering of the hammocks, the fixing of the hammock battens, the lashing and slinging of the hammocks, and the carrying of the scrubbed hammocks to the clothes lines on deck. He had to attend the "early dinner" at half-past eleven in the forenoon, when the helmsmen, sentries, and look-out men, who came on duty at twelve, had their food served out to them half-an-hour before the rest of the crew. Lastly, he was in command of the port-lids, and had to see them properly sloped, closed, or opened, according to the state of the weather; with the port-sills clear of sailor's property, such as hats or handkerchiefs.

A master's uniform was practically the same as the captain's, save that the lapels and cuffs were blue, instead of white. A master's mate wore a plain blue frock, with gold anchor buttons. The white knee-breeches, and white kerseymere waistcoats, were supposed to be worn by both ranks. Master's mates were often too poor to obey the strict letter of the regulation. They wore what clothes they had, and were not ashamed to purchase seamen's gear from the slop-chest.

Midshipmen, who were a step lower in the ship than master's mates, were generally taken aboard ships of war by the captains commanding. They owed their appointments to interest. The captains took them to oblige their relations, or in return for the cancelling of a tradesman's bill, or to curry favour with an influential family. As a rule, a midshipman was entered directly aboard the ship, as a "first-class volunteer," in which case he had to serve two years before he became full midshipman. But by passing two years at the Naval Academy at Gosport, the young man was enabled to ship as a midshipman on his first going to sea. In Nelson's time midshipmen sometimes began their sea-service at the age of eleven, or even younger. After 1812, no boy was borne on a ship's books until he was thirteen. An exception was admitted in favour of the sons of officers, who were allowed to be entered at the age of eleven. A first-rate ship carried 24 midshipmen; a second-rate, 18; a third-rate, 12; and fourth and fifth rates a proportionate number. The midshipmen of sixth-rates, and unrated vessels, were despised, and looked down upon, as a low lot, not to be recognised by those in crack ships.

Until the age of fifteen, the first-class volunteers, or midshipmen, were called "youngsters." They slung their hammocks in the gun-room, and messed, as a rule, by themselves, under the supervision of the gunner, who kept their clothes in order, and catered for them. In frigates it would seem as though they went at once to the steerage, to mess with their seniors. Those of them who were not perfect in their navigation, nautical astronomy, and trigonometry, were taught, every forenoon from nine till twelve, by a duly certificated schoolmaster, who drilled them very carefully in the sea-arts and sciences. The schoolmaster was expected to reprove and repress the slightest immoral tendency his pupils displayed. He had also strict orders to report the idle and vicious to the captain. The schoolmaster was nearly always the ship's chaplain, who received ?5 from every midshipman he instructed. In those ships which carried neither schoolmaster nor chaplain the captain himself taught the youngsters, and made them bring up their quadrants to take the sun at each noon; and refused to let them sup until they had worked out "the ship's position" by dead reckoning or the altitude of the sun. When the school hours were over, and the ship's position found, the youngsters were sent on deck, in their respective watches, to learn their duty. They were looked upon as the slaves of the first lieutenant, who generally used them as messengers. They were usually employed on boat service, and sent to and fro in the ship's boats when the ship was in port. When at sea they had to mix much with the men in order to learn their duty. They were expected to keep order when the men were at the braces or aloft, or at general quarters, and to report those who were idle, noisy, or absent. They had to stand their watch at night like the lieutenant, but as the officers were divided into three watches, which had eight hours below to every four hours on deck, this was not a very terrible hardship. They had to see the hammocks stowed in the morning, and to report those sailors whose hammocks were badly lashed. They had strict orders not to lounge against the guns or ship's sides. They were not allowed to walk the deck with their hands in their pockets. Some captains made the midshipmen responsible for the working of the mizzen-mast, and sent them aloft to furl the mizen-royal and mizzen-topgallant-sail whenever sail was shortened. The midshipmen were expected to go aloft with the men to learn how to furl or reef a sail, how to bend and unbend canvas, how to set up rigging, and all the other arts of seamanship. Midshipmen were always stationed in each top when sails were being furled, in order to cheer up the men to a lively performance of their duty. Other duties given to them were the supervision of the hoisting in of stores; the command of watering parties; mustering the men at night; watching the stowing or cleaning of the hammocks--and generally fetching and carrying for their commander and tyrant the first lieutenant. In the night-watches they had to keep awake upon the quarter-deck, "to heave the log and mark the board," and to be ready to run any errand for the officer of the watch.

When they had reached the age of fifteen, and had been duly rated as midshipmen, they became "oldsters," with increased pay, freedom from the schoolmaster, and an allowance of grog. At this stage they shifted from the gun-room into the midshipmen's berth on the orlop deck, in the after cockpit, where they messed with the past midshipmen and with the master's mates. After another two years they were qualified to take the examination for master's mates, provided they had perfected themselves in navigation and in seamanship. At the age of nineteen, if they could prove that they had had six years of sea service, they were allowed to go before the Navy Office examiners to be examined as to their fitness for the post of lieutenant. It was not essential that they should first have passed the examination for master's mate, but many midshipmen took this preliminary step, as it qualified them to navigate prizes into port.

The pay of a midshipman varied in the different rates. Aboard a first-rate, he received ?2, 15s. 6d. a month; aboard a third-rate, ?2, 8s.; and aboard a sixth-rate, a bare ?2. A first-class volunteer received ?9 a year, from which ?5 were deducted for the schoolmaster. It was essential that a first-class volunteer or midshipman should have private means. For a volunteer some ?30 or ?40 per annum was considered sufficient. For a midshipman the necessary annual sum ranged from ?70 to ?100 according to the station on which his ship served. Foreign stations, owing to the ruinous exchange, were more expensive than the Channel or the Mediterranean. The sum, whatever it was, was paid in advance to the captain's agent, particularly in the case of the youngsters, so that the captain was able to check extravagance among the boys, and to keep them from "vice and idleness" when the ship was in port.

A midshipman wore a dirk or hanger, when in uniform. His working coat was cut short, like the round blue jacket of a man-of-war's man. His uniform was a blue tail-coat lined with white silk. It was of good blue cloth, ornamented with small gold anchor-buttons, and with a white patch on the collar, known as a turn back, or a "weekly account." His breeches and waistcoats were of thin jean or white nankeen. His hat was three-cornered, high and smart, with a gold loop and a cockade. For foul weather he had a glazed hat. Round his neck he wore a black silk handkerchief. His shoes were black. His shirts were of frilled white linen. In heavy weather he wore a frieze overall, known as a watch-coat, and waistcoats of scarlet kerseymere. This was the ideal, or prospectus, midshipman, of the sort the poor child imagined before he came up a ship's side. There were other kinds.

After a long absence from port, when the lad's clothes were worn out or stolen, or "borrowed," he had to purchase clothes from the slop-chest or go in rags. The boys seem to have been treated with the utmost laxity. In many ships they were allowed to be slovenly. We read of a midshipman coming on to the quarter-deck with only one stocking, with a dirty shirt, torn coat, and wisps of straw in his shoes. For the rough sea service this attire was quite fine enough, and a down-at-heel appearance was not reckoned disgraceful. When asked to dine with his captain, the mid. took greater pains with his appearance, and borrowed from all who would lend, in order to appear neat. In battle, and when at sea, he wore his oldest and dirtiest rags. For boat service he was required to dress with greater nicety, in order that the honour of the ship might be maintained among the shore-goers.

A midshipman's mess was not a pleasant place. It was generally below the water, in the after cockpit, in a dingy den, lit partly by a lantern, and partly by a thick glass scuttle, crusted with filth, let into the ship's side. From deck to beam it measured, perhaps, 5 feet 6 inches, so that its inhabitants had to uncover as they entered it to avoid crushing their hats against the ceiling. Twelve feet square was reckoned fairly large for a berth. Any berth big enough for a fight when the chests had been cleared away was looked upon as roomy. The atmosphere so far below water and the upper air was foul and noisome. The bilges reeked beneath the orlop in a continual pestilential stench, unlike any other smell in the world. Near the berth, as a sort of pendant to the bilges, was the purser's store-room where the rancid butter and putrid cheese were served out once or twice a week to the ship's company. Farther forward were the cable-tiers, with the tarry, musty smell of old rope always lingering over them. In many ships a windsail or ventilator led from the deck to the berth to relieve the midshipmen with a little fresh air.

There was not much furniture in the midshipmen's mess. Nearly all had a table, not from any generosity of the Government, but because the table was wanted for the surgeons in their operations after battle. This table, at meal-times, was covered with a cloth or old hammock, which had to last a week. The cloth was used at meal-times as a dish-cloth and knife-and-fork cleaner. At meals the table was lit by tallow dips or purser's glims, stuck in beer or blacking bottles. After meals, and for state occasions, "the green cloth," a strip of dirty baize, was substituted. For seats the "young gentlemen" used their chests. There was no decoration on the walls or bulkheads of a berth. Nails hung with clothing, quadrants, boxing gloves, single-sticks, hangers, etc. etc., were the only decorations ever known there. Some berths may have had lockers to contain their gear, bread-barge, table utensils, and sea-stores. Some may have had a tank to hold the allowance of fresh water. The berth was kept clean by a mess-boy, a dirty, greasy lad, unfit for anything else. This worthy washed the weekly table-cloth, and saw to the cooking. All midshipmen were blessed with other servants, known as "hammock men." These were either old sailors or marines, who compounded to lash and stow, and carry down and unlash, the "young gentleman's" hammock for the sum of a glass of grog, payable each Saturday night. For further considerations of grog or tobacco the hammock man sometimes washed the young gentleman's shirts while the ship was at sea. In port, the linen went ashore to some reputable, or disreputable, washerwoman, who was lucky indeed if she saw the colour of her money.

The berth was the home of the elder midshipmen, the master's mates, the captain's clerk, and, at times, the assistant surgeons. As some of the midshipmen, in nearly all ships, were nearer forty than twenty, and as many of the master's mates were grey-headed men, the berth was not the place for little boys, especially when the rum was flowing towards 8 P.M. The elders seem to have understood as much, for they had a custom of sticking a fork in the table, or in the beams above it, directly the first watch was set. As soon as the fork was in its place every youngster and youth at once retired to his hammock, so that the old grizzled veterans had the board to themselves. Probably they were good-hearted fellows in the main, if a little rough from the life, and a little soured by their long and unrewarded service. But, if one or two writers may be trusted, their conversation was not well calculated to improve the mind. Indeed, in one or two ships, the veterans had a rule that no one should join their nightly rum-drinkings till he had passed an examination in vice. Youngsters who disregarded the signal of the fork were given a few minutes' grace, after which the signal was repeated. If "the geese" remained "in the berth" after the second signal, they were colted and flicked with twisted handkerchiefs till they scattered out to their hammocks.

The food served out to the young gentlemen was the same as that issued to the men. The King's provisions were generally supplemented by little niceties, purchased in port by the caterer of the mess. This worthy was usually a master's mate of some authority in the berth. Each member of the mess paid him from ?3 to ?5 on joining the ship, and about ?1 a month while the ship was in commission. The caterer expended this money as he thought fit. Before leaving England he used to lay in a great supply of potatoes and onions, which he stowed in the lockers, or under the table, or in strings dangling from the beams. Dutch cheeses, for the manufacture of a midshipman's luxury called "crab," were also purchased, together with tea and coffee and small stores, such as pepper and sugar. In port the caterer purchased "soft Tommy" and boxes of red-herrings. The ship's allowance of spirits was so very liberal that it was not necessary to add to it. A pint of navy rum a day was sufficient, or should have been sufficient, for any man.

Captain Chamier, Captain Marryat, Jack Mitford, Captain Sinclair, Captain Glascock, Augustus Broadhead, and the author of "The Navy at Home," have all painted vivid pictures of the life in the midshipmen's berth. It was rough and ready, and sufficiently brutal. There was a good deal of noisy horseplay, a good deal of vice and cruelty, and a little fun and sea philosophy, to allay its many miseries. A midshipman lived on "monkey's allowance--more kicks than halfpence," and had to put up with bullying and injustice unless he was strong enough to hold his own. A weakling was robbed of his fair allowance of food, and imposed upon in other ways, as by tardy relief at night, after keeping his watch on deck, etc. A thin-skinned or sensitive boy was out of his element in such a place. There was no privacy aboard a man-of-war. A student or scholar had little opportunity for reading. Down in the berth, during the daytime, there was a continual Dover Court so that study there was out of the question. A midshipman was continually fighting, quarrelling, or playing the fool. The berth was a sort of bear-garden, a kind of "sea-Alsatia," which not even the captain would control or keep in order. From the central darkness of the steerage many cutting-out expeditions were organised against the captain's steward or the purser, or anyone with anything eatable or drinkable. The berth was always the noisiest and most lawless place aboard. With fiddling, singing, shouting, and fighting the mid. passed his leisure. He was careless of all things save his dinner and his sleep. As for his duty one has but to consult the authorities to see how he regarded that.

According to Lord Cochrane's lieutenant there was no "such a thing as a faultless midshipman." According to others the breed thought of nothing but gormandising, and were so greedy that "though God might turn their hearts, the very devil could not turn their stomachs." The young gentlemen were seldom out of hot water. The usual punishment inflicted on them was mast-heading, by which a lad was sent to the top-mast, or topgallant cross-trees, for several hours at a time. This punishment was often the cause of the loss of a meal, for no member of the berth thought of the absent one at the division of the meat or soup at dinner. In some cases a mid was mast-headed for a full twenty-four hours, during which time he had to depend on the topmen for his meat and drink, if he failed to steal down privily to lay in a stock. The punishment of mast-heading in sunny latitudes was not very severe. Most midshipmen used to look upon it as a pleasant relaxation. They could lash themselves to the cross-trees and fall asleep there during daylight in fine weather, while at night they could creep down unobserved to the top, to take a nap on the studding-sails, after telling the topmen to answer for them if hailed from the deck. Some lieutenants took a shorter way with midshipmen. They would lash or "spread-eagle" the offender in the weather rigging, some half-a-dozen ratlines above the hammock nettings. In this position, with his face to windward, and his arms and legs widely stretched, the midshipman cooled in the wind for an hour at a time, with the spray sprinkling him at brief intervals. This was severe punishment, usually given for sleeping while on watch. Another punishment for the same offence was dowsing, or drenching the offender with a bucketful of water poured from a height. This was known as "grampussing," or "making him a soused gurnet." Some captains even went so far as to order the boatswain's mate to rig a grating in the cabin, and to lay the offending midshipman either on that grating or on a convenient gun, and to give him a dozen with a colt, or knotted rope's end. Jack Mitford mentions a case of this sort, and a case occurred on the Australian station in the early forties. In the latter case the offending captain was court-martialled, and severely reprimanded, "which was nuts to every midshipman in the service."

The midshipmen's berth was governed partly by the strong arm and partly by certain laws designed to give an air of justice to the cruelty they recommended. Any member of the mess caught eating, or drinking rum, in the berth, on the day on which he dined in the cabin or ward-room, was sentenced to be firked or cobbed with a stockingful of sand, a knotted rope, or a cask's bung stave. In extreme cases "faulty relief," by which a lad was kept on deck after his watch was out, was punished in the same way. Anyone caught taking an unfair share of the rum was firked or cobbed, provided that he was not too big a man to tackle.

As for amusements, one did not come to sea for pleasure. It is significant that the chief amusement or game in use in the midshipmen's berth, was "able whackets," a pastime in which cards, blasphemy, and hard knocks were agreeably mingled. Other amusements they had none, save that old one, mentioned by Cervantes, of laughing at sea-sick persons. A green hand, or Johnny Newcome, was fair sport for his first few days aboard, but tying knots in a lad's sheets, or putting a slippery hitch upon his hammock lanyard, or stowing round shot and swabs under his blankets, soon failed to amuse the jokers. Cutting a man down as he slept; hiding his trousers in the oven in the galley; sending him to the top to gather gooseberries or to hear the dog-fish bark, or to get the key of the keelson, or to find Cheeks the marine--all of these little tricks were jests of the sea humourist, designed to sharpen the wits of the greenhorn. Borrowing a new chum's clothes was a more questionable piece of humour, for the lender seldom saw his gear again, unless he had sufficient strength to back his claim. Making a newcomer drunk on navy rum and sending him on deck, with a message to the officer of the watch, was yet another jest. There were one or two others, which we will forbear to mention.

A midshipman was expected to "turn out" of his hammock at half-past seven every morning. If he hesitated, and lingered on the order, and turned, like the sluggard, instead of showing a leg, he was very promptly cut down and hauled from his blankets by main force. When he had turned out he washed himself in a little tin basin, balanced on the lid of his chest. He was allowed to wash every day, unless the supply of fresh water was running short. He then dressed, and blacked his boots, and cleared up his sleeping quarters, so that the breakfast table should not be littered with blacking brushes, soap, or wet towels. At eight he took his breakfast of tea and biscuit, or cocoa and porridge. At nine he went to the schoolmaster.

FOOTNOTES:

It is hardly necessary to say that a captain was junior to a commodore, or senior captain, and to an admiral, or flag officer. The admiral commanded squadrons of ships; the commodore, detachments from those squadrons. The present work is of too narrow a scope to allow of any consideration of their respective duties. We must confine ourselves to an account of the usual officers aboard a ship of war. Those curious to learn about commodore and admiral will find plenty of information in Burney's "Falconer," and the various Naval Histories.

The lieutenant had perhaps improved in manners since Edward Thompson's time, when "a chaw of Tobacco, a ratan, and a rope of Oaths," were counted sufficient qualifications for a lieutenancy. Still, as many lieutenants were mates pressed out of merchant ships, there were many in H.M. ships who encouraged the chief faults mentioned in this article.

The civilian and warrant or standing officers--The surgeon--The surgeon's assistants--The chaplain--The boatswain--The purser--The gunner--The carpenter--Mates and yeomen--The sailmaker--The ship's police--The ship's cook

The surgeon, who messed with the ward-room officer, and slept in a cabin near the ward-room, had to pass an examination at the Transport Board, in addition to that imposed by Surgeons' Hall, before he could receive his warrant. He was "generally the most independent officer in the ship," as his duties were essentially different to those of the executive. He had charge of the sick and hurt seamen, of the medicines and medical comforts, and of the ship's hygiene generally. On coming aboard a ship commissioning he had to examine the doctor's stores, and to see them duly stowed away in the medicine-chests or sea-dispensary below-decks. When the newly raised or pressed men were brought aboard he had to sound them and examine them, not only for their fitness for the service, but for any trace of infectious or contagious disease. When the "quota men," or my Lord Mayor's men, came before him he caused hot water to be prepared, so that the men could have their heads shaved, and their bodies scrubbed "from clue to earring," and their clothes very jealously boiled before they mixed with the crew. At sea he had charge of the sick-berth, or sick-bay, a small sea-hospital shut away from the rest of the ship by wooden screens covered with canvas. As a rule this sick-bay was in the forecastle, on the starboard side, but sometimes circumstances made it necessary to pitch it on the orlop-deck, out of the way of the enemy's shot. Any sailor who felt sick reported himself to the surgeon, or his assistants, in the forenoon. If he was found to be ill he was removed from duty, and sent into the sick-bay, where a certain number of the "waisters," or least necessary of the crew, acted as nurses to him. These sick-bay attendants kept the place scrupulously clean, well fumigated, and sprinkled with vinegar.

A surgeon was expected to have a number of dressings always prepared, in case the ship should "be suddenly brought to action." He was also expected to instruct the crew in the use of the tourniquet, so that men with shattered stumps might have some chance of living until the surgeon could take up their arteries. He was to visit sick and wounded men twice daily, to see that the sick-bay stove, of "clear-burning cinders," was kept alight, and to make a careful record not only of the sick men treated, but of the means taken to prevent infection. A wooden ship, built of wood improperly seasoned, was always damp and foul, "tending to produce disease and generate infection." The ballast was often dirty; the water in the bilges was always putrid; the hold and orlop were badly ventilated; and the gun-deck was packed like a sardine tin with several hundreds of men, not all of whom were even tolerably cleanly in their habits. It was a surgeon's duty to ask the captain to fix a general washing-day once in each week, whenever there was plenty of rain water, so that the men's clothes might be washed and then dried in the sun. At intervals he was to ask that all the hammocks should be aired on the forecastle, the lashings taken off, the blankets shaken, and the mattresses hung in the sun. Now and then he had to fumigate the ship. The most common means of doing this was by burning a preparation of gunpowder, soaked in vinegar, in iron pans about the decks. The powder sputtered for a long time, sending out a quantity of acrid smoke, which was reckoned a powerful disinfectant. Burning flowers of sulphur gave good results, and many found fires of fir wood satisfactory. In dock, when a ship was very badly infected, they seem to have used tobacco, burning it in great pans about the gun-decks, with the ports and hatches closed, and the men standing at their quarters "as long as they can bear it." Sometimes the seamen's kit bags were hung up over "pots of burning brimstone." Sometimes pots of burning brimstone were placed between the guns and sprinkled with vinegar. A very wholesome practice was the immersion of red-hot irons, called loggerheads, into buckets of tar. This last method was generally used to disinfect the sick-berth, when there were many sick. A surgeon was expected to ask the captain from time to time to cause iron fire buckets, containing burning charcoal, to be lowered into the hold. The red embers were sprinkled with vinegar and brimstone as soon as the buckets were in position. The well, the bilges, and the recesses of the hold, were thus both dried and disinfected at the same time. Another way of fumigation was by pouring sulphuric acid and the powder of nitre upon heated sand. After Nelson's death this was the plan generally adopted.

In spite of all the fumigations the ships were never free from unpleasant smells: the dank fusty smell of dry-rot, the acrid and awful smell of bilge water, and the smells of decaying stores and long defunct rats. Windsails and canvas ventilators were always fitted, in fine weather, to drive pure air into the recesses; but fine weather is the exception, not the rule, to the north of the fortieth parallel. The ships were sometimes battened down for days together, till every inch of timber dripped with salt water and the condensation of the breaths of many men. One who knew these old ships has testified that "there was always more or less stench" aboard the best regulated ship, but that the stench was less penetrating, and the danger of infection always slighter, in those ships which were frequently dried by portable fires. A diligent surgeon, if he had the fortune to sail with a sensible captain, could do much to better the condition of the entire ship's company.

The sick and wounded men were treated with comparative humanity. They were given nightcaps, hair mattresses, free vaccination, and sheets of real linen. The cook was sometimes bidden to boil up some "sowens," or "flummery," from the ship's oatmeal for them. The very sick were given soft bread and "portable soup." When fish were "caught for the ship's company," they got the first helping. When the officers had any fowls or similar delicacies in the ward-room, they often sent portions forward for the sick-bay, with any wine they had. But there were, nevertheless, certain cruel regulations in force which made the lot of some of the sick men sufficiently terrible. Lint was reckoned too expensive to be used for the washing of wounds. Sponges were used instead, but the supply of sponges was limited, and, in action, one sponge was often used to dress the wounds of a dozen men. This practice naturally favoured the spreading of various common forms of blood-poisoning. A man with a slight cut or abrasion ran a very good chance of losing a limb by the poison of an infected sponge. Another most barbarous restriction limited the supply of mercury, as "being requisite only for complaints that might be avoided." A man attacked by one of those complaints was not allowed to leave his duty, he was mulcted more than two weeks' pay for the medicines he drew, and no care was taken to separate him from his uninfected shipmates.

At the beating of the drum to quarters, the surgeon and his assistants were expected to repair to the after cockpit, to fit it for the reception of the wounded. Some of the non-combatants, such as the purser, the stewards, the chaplain, and the captain's clerk, accompanied them, to help the wounded men according to their power. The midshipmen's chests were drawn together, into a kind of platform. A sail was strewn over the top of them in several folds, as a sort of couch for the maimed men. In those ships in which the midshipmen were without a table the chests were used for the operation-table, though they were too low for comfortable surgery. When the operating table had been cleared, some large candles were placed upon it, in tin sconces, to give light to the surgeons. Other candles, in heavy ship's lanterns, were arranged about the bulkheads. A portable stove was lighted, for the heating of oils, etc., during the operations. A kid of water was generally heated there, in which the surgeons could warm their saws and knives before commencing amputations. They did this, not as a modern surgeon would do it, to sterilise the steel, but in order to prevent the torture caused by the coldness of the metal against the raw flesh and bone. At the sides of the table were ranged several kids or half-tubs, some of them empty, to receive amputated limbs, some of them full of water for the washing of the surgeon's arms, or for the cleansing of wounds. Close to the operating table were some opened bottles of spirits for the refreshment of those very weak from pain and loss of blood. There were also full supplies of styptics, bandages, sponges, tourniquets, saws, knives, etc. etc., all ready to hand, under a good light.

Before the firing began, the surgeon and his assistants stripped to their shirts, rolled up their sleeves to the shoulders, and braced themselves for a very ghastly experience. A few minutes after the fighting commenced, the wounded came down, supported or carried by their shipmates, who laid them on the operating table, and on the platform prepared for them. A few minutes firing at close range would generally send a dozen or twenty wounded men to the surgeons. It was the strict, inviolable rule, that a wounded man should take his turn. The first brought down was the first dressed. No favour was shown to any man, were he officer or swabber. The rule was equitable, but not without its disadvantages. Many men were so torn with shot or splinter that they bled to death upon the sail long before the surgeon worked his way round to them. The sailors were indeed taught the use of the tourniquet, but it is one thing to adjust a tourniquet on a mate's arm, at the word of command in a quiet drill hour, and quite another to fix it upon a stump of raw flesh that is pumping blood, in all the fury and confusion of a sea-fight. Not many of the men brought down to the surgeons were properly bandaged.

A ship's cockpit during a battle must have presented a lively picture of hell. There was the long narrow space shut in and cramped by the overhead beams and lit by the evilly smelling tallow candles. Up and down the deck in rows were the wounded, on their bloodstained sail. Every now and then some heavy feet padded down the hatchway, announcing the advent of another sufferer. Up above was the thundering of the leaping and banging cannon, which roared irregularly, shaking the ship in every timber. Nearer at hand were the poor wounded men, some of them stunned, and chewing placidly; others whimpering and moaning, some screaming and damning. Up and down the rows went the chaplain and civilians, with weak wine-and-water, lime juice, etc., for those in need of drink. In the centre of the piece, bent over the table, were the operators, hard at work. There was no time for lengthy diagnosis. The wound was always self-evident, red, and horrible. Its extent and seriousness had to be guessed from a glance. The surgeon's first act was to rip off the bloody clothes with his scissors, to bare the wound. A single hurried look had to suffice. From that look he had to determine whether to amputate or to save the limb, whether the wound were mortal or worth dressing, etc. etc. If he decided to amputate, he passed his ligatures as a man would take turns with a hammock-lashing. The assistant gave the patient a gulp of rum, and thrust a leather gag into his mouth, for him to bite upon in the agony of the operation. After that, it took but a moment to make the two cuts, and to apply the saw, while one assistant held the patient's body, and another the limb or fragment of limb which was coming off. There was really no time for delay. Men were perhaps bleeding to death at every second and it behoved the surgeons to hurry with each case.

Share on: WhatsApp @Hash Facebook Tweet