We had three libraries sent on board before we left New York, which did
excellent service. It was interesting to see the men after religious
services on the Sabbath morning, finding shady places about the ship
with their books and tracts from these libraries. This is in contrast
to the old system of things among sailors. A familiar picture of a
sailor used to be a man with a monkey led by a string in one hand, a
parrot cage in the other, a tarpaulin with a quarter of a yard of
black ribbon flying, no suspenders, his trowsers revealing a zone of
blue shirt above his waistbands. The appearance of our crew from New
York was far in advance of such a portraiture. It is still seen, though
the contrast is very frequent.