NAVAL RATINGS AND SEA PAY.
MUSTERING CLOTHES.
The dinner-hour on Sunday is noon, the same as on other days; but
there is this distinction, which ought to mark the afternoon in every
well-regulated ship, the people are never disturbed between twelve
o'clock and four, unless some particular service occurs which cannot
without impropriety be deferred. It is customary during the rest of
the week to turn the watch up at one o'clock, but on Sunday, if
possible, the people should be left alone: to be idle if they choose
it, or to read, or otherwise to employ themselves according to their
own fancy. This, after all, is but a trifling indulgence, which hardly
ever puts the captain or officers to any inconvenience. Even if it
did, what would it matter? The interests of the country will not be
worse attended to in the long-run for an occasional relaxation of
strict etiquettes and formal observances. Even if the ship be making a
passage, and that, in strictness, all sail ought to be carried, no
eventual loss will ever attend such very trivial abatement of speed;
for the men will probably be far more active in making and shortening
sail at other times, when their minor comforts are thus regarded, than
when treated as if they had no feelings to be considered.
The circumstance which most distinctly marks the afternoon of Sunday
on board a man-of-war, even more than on land, is the absence of all
the usual stir caused by the multifarious occupations of the
artificers and crew. Indeed, the lower deck of a man-of-war on Sunday
afternoon, between dinner time and the hour of tea, or evening grog, a
cast of idleness is the most characteristic feature. Groups of men may
be seen sitting on the deck chatting over very old stories, a few are
reading, and many are stretched out flat on their backs fast asleep,
or dosing with their heads laid on their arms on the mess-table. But
the habit of locomotion amongst sailors is so strong, that there are
always numerous parties walking on the main deck in pairs, or in
threes and fours, along a short space, backwards and forwards,
although there seems no reason why their walk should not be twice or
thrice as long. Both sides of the forecastle, too, and the
lee-gangway, are generally filled with these walking philosophers, as
they may in truth be called; for they enjoy the hour that passes, and
are ready to take whatever comes in good part. The weather-gangway is
usually left for the occasional transits of that most restless of
mortals, the officer of the watch, who, as in duty bound, is eternally
fidgeting about the trim of the sails, and must often step forward to
the chestree, from whence, while resting his foot on the tack-block of
the mainsail, he may cast his eye aloft to detect something to alter
in the position of the head-yards. Or if he hears any noise in the
galley, or even on the lower deck, he can walk forward till he is able
to peer down the fore-hatchway, by stooping under the bows of the boat
on the booms. Most of this fidget probably arises, not so much from
any wish to find fault with what is wrong, as to maintain what is
right. The true preventive service of an officer is to interpose his
superintending vigilance between the temptation, on the part of the
men, to err, and their first motion towards offence. Were this
principle fully acted up to in all ships, how rapidly might not our
punishments subside!
At four, or half-past four in the afternoon, the merry pipe to supper
awakes the sleepers, arrests the peripatetics, and once more clusters
young and old round the mess-table. At sunset the drum beats to
quarters, when the men's names are carefully called over, and the
sobriety of each ascertained. Other duties may be intermitted on the
day of rest, but not that of the guns, which are minutely examined,
and all their appendages got ready every evening with as much earnest
care as if the ship were that instant sailing into action. A moment's
reflection, indeed, will show that there can, of course, be no
difference in this respect between Sunday and any other evening. Then
come in succession the following routine orders, and their
correspondent evolutions:--"Reef topsails!" "Stand by the hammocks!"
"Pipe down!" "Roll up the cloths!" "Call the watch!" "Pipe the
sweepers!" And thus, at last, the first day of the week at sea, in a
man-of-war, is at an end.
In old times, I recollect, the fashion was for the men to press aft
in a disorganised crowd; but of late years the following more
appropriate and orderly arrangement has been universally adopted. The
men are distributed in a close double row round the quarter-deck
gangways and forecastle, each standing in his place according to the
order of his name on the Open List. A small table is then brought up,
on which are spread the muster-books; and the captain's clerk, who is
the only person seated, begins calling over the names. Each man, as
his turn comes, pulls off his hat, smooths down his hair, and passes
over from the lee side of the deck to the weather side, stepping
across the gratings just before the binnacle. The captain stands to
windward, so that the men advance directly up towards him, and then
pass forward in review. By this means, not only the captain, but the
officers, who, of course, are all present, become better acquainted
with the men, learn their names, and ascertain their respective
ratings and merits. The first lieutenant plants himself at the
captain's elbow to furnish such general information as may be
required, or to appeal for more minute details to the other
lieutenants, warrant-officers, mates, or midshipmen, as the case may
be.
The captain avails himself of this public opportunity of telling any
of the men that they have been advanced a step on the books since the
last muster; and if these intimations be given without parade, and in
good taste, they afford great satisfaction to the people, though it
may often happen that the changes of rating are almost nominal. It is
a great point gained in all discipline, if the persons we wish to
influence can be made duly sensible that their merits and exertions
are not neglected. It is obvious, too, that if giving a man a higher
rating be a source of encouragement, to disrate him may readily be
used as a means of punishment. I remember, in the Lyra, on my way home
from China, in 1817, that the captain of the foretop, a fine active
lad from North Shields, got into some scrape, not quite bad enough to
bring him within the reach of the terrible gangway, but close to it,
and I was rather perplexed how to chastise the offender. The first
Sunday in the month was close at hand, so I waited till this man's
name was called, and then, after a suitable lecture, desired the
clerk, in the hearing of the whole ship's company, to change his
rating to that of able seaman from captain of the top. The poor fellow
looked bewildered, and, instead of passing on when another name was
called, stood stock-still half-way across the deck.
"Don't you hear?" I said; "you are no longer captain of the foretop,
you are disrated on the ship's books."
I then turned to the clerk to see the entry properly made; but on
looking again at the disrated seaman, I observed, to my astonishment,
that he was in tears!
I certainly had not reckoned upon such a scene; but it at once flashed
upon me that here was an opportunity of gaining two important points.
The first and most obvious of which was to secure this particular
man's future good services by enlisting all that was hearty in his
nature at the instant of its strongest expression; and the next, to
avail myself of the circumstance to stamp a still higher degree of
importance in the eyes of the men than before upon the value of these
ratings. I therefore instantly called out to the clerk to stop his
pen; and then addressing the man, in a voice loud enough to be heard
by all the crew, said, I was quite sure any one who felt so sensibly
the degradation implied in the loss of rank which he had just incurred
was never likely to expose himself again to such a risk. I should
therefore not only give him back his former rating, and replace him in
his station as captain of the top, but assure him that all trace both
of his offence and its punishment should from that moment be entirely
forgotten.
It is hardly within the range of popular explanation to show in what
particulars the different shades of technical merit consist, by which
many of these ratings are awarded. The letters A.B., which mean Able
Seaman, are placed against the names of those only who are
thorough-bred sailors, or who, in sea phrase, can not only "hand,
reef, and steer," but are likewise capable of heaving the lead in the
darkest night, as well as in the day-time; who can use the palm and
needle of a sail-maker; and who are versed in every part of a ship's
rigging, in the stowage of the hold, and in the exercise of the great
guns. Of course, an A.B. must be able to pull an oar, as well as use
it in sculling, understand the management of a boat under sail, and
know how to cross a surf. He must also learn the art of placing an
anchor in a boat, in order to its being laid out; and how to get it in
again when weighed. In these, and twenty other things which might be
pointed out, he ought to be examined by the boatswain and other
officers before his rating of A.B. is fully established on the books.
The higher ratings of quarter-master, gunner's mate, captain of the
forecastle and of the tops, and so on, are given chiefly to men who
may not, in fact, know more than every Able Seaman is supposed to be
acquainted with, but who have recommended themselves by their superior
activity and vigilance, and have not only shown themselves fit to
command others by their decision of character, but evinced a sincere
anxiety to see the work of their department well performed. It is of
great consequence to assist in every way the authority of these
leading hands over the other men stationed in the same part of the
ship; and judicious officers will generally be able to avail
themselves to great purpose, in moments of trial, of the energetic
co-operation of these persons. Much of the internal, or what may be
called domestic, discipline of the crew, depends upon the conduct of
these men; for each mess has one of them at its head, who is held more
or less responsible for the behaviour of the people in that knot or
party. I have, however, known some officers exact a great deal too
much from these captains of the messes, and expect them to become
spies and informers against their companions; or, which is just as
unreasonable, hold them fully answerable for all delinquencies
committed in their part of the ship. This is cruel; because, although
they undoubtedly may contribute materially towards the maintenance of
good order, they cannot, by possibility, do more than act as
assistants to the first lieutenant, and chiefly by explaining to the
rest of the people what is required of them. Most men in the long-run,
and perhaps in all ranks of society, but certainly on board a
manof-war, find it so much more agreeable in every respect to do what
is right than what is wrong, that when they come distinctly to know
what is wanted, they almost invariably set about executing it
cheerfully. The first grand point, therefore, in the ship's
discipline, after a system has been adopted which shall be consistent
in all its parts, is, to let the details of this system be thoroughly
understood by every one on board. When a good plan has been once fixed
upon, and the officers are vigilant, patient, and exact in their own
personal conduct, and the leading men have been made fully acquainted
with what is required, the rest of the crew will be but too happy to
do their duty manfully and well, without the instrumentality of the
lash, except in extreme cases.
In former times, the distinctions amongst ratings of the seamen on the
ship's books were so few that it was impossible to discriminate
correctly, or to assign to each man, with any justice, the exact
rating which his knowledge of seamanship, his experience in the
exercise of that knowledge, his general good conduct, and his
abilities, might entitle him to. An Order in Council, dated November,
1816, established a new system of Ratings; and by another Order, dated
the 23rd of June, 1824, "the net sea pay of the flag-officers of His
Majesty's fleet" was established, "together with the net sea pay and
number of their retinue; the number of commissioned, warrant, petty,
and non-commissioned officers, and the ratings of every description
both of seamen and marines, allowed to each class of His Majesty's
ships, with their rates of net sea pay respectively; and
distinguishing the several classes for sharing the produce of
seizures."[6]
As soon as the ship's company have been mustered, the captain takes
off his hat and reads the Articles of War, to which, out of respect to
this important act of parliament, the people listen in like manner
uncovered. Between breakfast and divisions, some captains occupy
themselves in examining the weekly reports of the expenditure of
boatswain's, gunner's, and carpenter's stores; and in going over with
the purser the account of the remains of provisions, fuel, and
slop-clothing on board. After which he may overhaul the midshipmen's
log-books, watch, station, and quarter bills, or take a look at their
school-books. If the ship be in harbour, he also glances his eye at
their accounts; and he generally takes occasion to indulge in a little
kindly gossip about their mess, their love of the sea, and the last
letters they received from home.
Thus the gallant skipper, as well as his gallant crew, has seldom much
spare time on his hands during the forenoon of Sunday. I should be
right glad, indeed, to be informed what day, or hour, or even what
half-hour, in the whole week, from end to end, the captain can fairly
call his own. Not one! Every other person on board has his hour, or
his four hours, or his eight hours of rest, and of relief from all
anxiety; but the poor captain has not a minute. He is the chief over
all, it is true; but he pays dearly and deeply for this distinction in
the shape of heavy responsibilities, and perpetual trials of various
kinds. Our poet says, "uneasy lies the head that wears a crown"--I am
quite sure that unburdened never lie the shoulders that wear two
epaulettes. The captain is at all calls, and must be ready at all
seasons with resources, good or bad, to supply the failures or
indolence of others; while his own fate, fortunes, and character, as
well as the credit of the service, and sometimes that of the country,
are made to hang upon the instantaneous nature of his decisions, and
upon the vigour and efficiency of his exertions, at moments perhaps
when his powers are nearly exhausted, and his spirit all but crushed
by sheer fatigue. The simple enumeration of a captain of a
man-of-war's ordinary responsibilities, I have often thought, would
win for his class a degree of considerate forbearance, and candid
allowance for his difficulties, which, perhaps, it has never yet
fairly received from the public. If, to such enumeration, a notice
respecting the duties of each were appended, an interesting peep
might be afforded to the curious of the internal government of our
singular community, and information supplied on not a few points,
respecting which most people are entirely ignorant.
It is frequently the practice in the navy on Sundays to muster clothes
at divisions, and to take a list of what slops are required by the men
to complete their kit, or stock of worldly goods. This overhaul or
inspection happens once a month; and when such is the intention, the
word is passed along the lower deck at breakfast-time, that the ship's
company are to "muster clothes at divisions." When the drum beats,
each man brings his bag to the place where he stands in his division,
and proceeds to arrange his things in order on the deck before him,
each article being placed separately, that the officer may count, and,
if he pleases, examine them, after the mates and mids have first
called over the names, to ascertain that every man has the proper
complement of articles, in good order, and well washed. A note is then
taken of what things are wanted, in the way of slops, to supply
worn-out and condemned clothes. "Slops" is the technical name for
jackets, trousers, shirts, and other articles of a sailor's wardrobe,
before they have been used. They are sent on board in bales and boxes
by government, and placed in charge of the purser.
All this is reported in detail to the lieutenant of the division, who
continues walking backwards and forwards while the inspection is going
on, ready to answer appeals in the event of any difficulties or doubts
arising. He carries in his hand a complete list of his division, and
of each man's clothes; and when the young gentlemen under his orders
have finished their work, and taken down what is wanted, the
lieutenant goes along the line to investigate the whole anew. He then
collects the different memorandums of slops wanted, and proceeds to
make his report to the captain, who either sanctions or disapproves of
the decision of the officer, as he pleases. Frequently the captain
himself goes along the divisions, to look at the men's clothing; but
the glance which he takes is necessarily of a more cursory nature; his
object is, to let the men feel that he is ready to interfere, if need
be, but also to show, that, unless there is any special call for the
interposition of his authority, he confides in those under him.
A commander should recollect, that, whether it be he himself, or
chiefly his officers and crew, who perform any useful public service,
he invariably reaps at least his full share of the credit. His real
interest, therefore, must always be, not merely to draw about him the
ablest men he can induce to follow him, but to allow them the utmost
latitude of independent action and responsibility, and as much of the
merit of success as possible. If he persevere sincerely in this
course, he will soon discover that the more he endeavours to remove
the credit from himself, or, rather, to divide it handsomely with
those who are acting with him, the more will he generally find the
merit given back to himself.
I suspect few people have the smallest notion of what a sailor's
wardrobe consists. Every one has, indeed, a vague idea that he must
have a blue jacket and trousers, and a low, canvas, shining sort of
affair, stuck on one side of his head, and called by him a hat. But of
any further particulars, the shore-going world really knows about as
little as they do respecting the dresses of the Emperor of China.
Honest Jack, it is very true, is not much encumbered with clothes;
and too often his wardrobe sadly resembles that of the Honourable Mr.
Dowlas, which was so easily transportable in the Honourable Mr.
Dowlas's pocket-handkerchief. Yet if he have the opportunity, poor
fellow, and be duly encouraged, he is not a little of a dandy in his
way.
In a well-regulated ship, a sailor's kit consists generally of at
least two blue jackets, and one pea jacket, which is a sort of
lumbering shaggy surtout, or curtailed great-coat, capable of being
wrapped round the body, so as to cover the thighs. Why it is called a
pea jacket I should be glad to be informed by any knowing person; and
I beg leave accordingly to refer the question to that corner of the
United Service Journal reserved for technical queries, a valuable
niche in that ably conducted periodical. A seaman must also have two
pairs of blue trousers, two pairs of shoes, six shirts, four pairs of
stockings, two Guernsey frocks, made of a sort of worsted
stocking-work, without any opening in front; two hats, two black
handkerchiefs, and a comforter to wrap round the throat; together with
several pairs of flannel drawers and waistcoats; for in hot, as well
as in cold climates, and at all times of the year, the men are now
encouraged, as much as possible, to wear flannel next the skin.
The above forms the kit of a sailor in a ship stationed in high
latitudes. On the Mediterranean station, or on that of North America,
there is such a mixture of severe and mild weather, that a larger
stock is necessary than when the ship is employed exclusively in a
cold, or in a hot climate. On the Indian, South American, and West
Indian stations, which lie almost entirely between the tropics,
woollen clothing gradually disappears, and the men are apt to suffer a
good deal on returning to colder regions; it being hardly to be
expected that folks of such improvident habits as sailors will be able
to take care of articles of dress, for several years together, for
which they have no immediate use.
I remember a captain, whose ship had been often exposed to these
alternations, amusing his people very much on entering the tropics, by
directing them to roll up all their blue clothes, worsted stockings,
and so on, in neat bundles, each having the name and number of the
person it belonged to written on a wooden tally, and fastened to it.
These being all collected, and packed carefully in well-dried,
watertight casks, were stowed away in the hold, and forgotten, till
the pinching blasts off Cape Horn made the unpacking of the casks a
scene of as great joy as ever attended the opening of a box of finery
at a boarding-school gala.
In warm climates, the stock of a man-of-war sailor consists of four
duck frocks, which are more like shirts than anything else, with
sundry strings, and touches of blue binding about the breast and
collar, which is generally lined with blue, and allowed to fall over
the shoulders. It is totally contrary to Jack's habits to have
anything tight about his throat; and one of the chief causes of his
invincible estrangement from the royal marine corps is their
stiff-necked custom of wearing polished leather stocks. I hardly
suppose there could be found any motive strong enough to induce a
genuine sailor to buckle a permanent collar round his neck with any
tolerable grace; the alternative of the yard-arm would almost be
preferable! His delight is to place a black or coloured silk
handkerchief lightly over his neck, and to confine its ends across his
breast by means of one of the small bones or vertebræ of a shark,
which forms a neat, white, perforated cylinder. Some very prime
dandies of the mizen-top fold a part of their handkerchief over the
shoulders and back; but it requires the aid of a handsome person, and
a good deal of modest assurance, to make this tolerable.
They must also provide themselves with four pairs of duck trousers, a
straw hat for fine weather, and a canvas or beaver one for squalls,
though this need not be insisted on. Shoes are not much used, except
by those whose work lies aloft; and prudent hands generally keep a
blue jacket by them, in case of rain or night-work. It is not a bad
rule to muster the crew occasionally with blue jackets, even in hot
weather, to see that such things are really in existence. Each man
has, of course, a bed, a pillow, and two blankets; sheets are never
heard of. He has also two hammocks, one of which is slung and in use,
the other scrubbed, dry, and stowed away, ready to be exchanged for
the dirty one. The hammocks, at the time I first went to sea (1802),
were made of a coarse brown stuff, which it was difficult, if not
impossible, to make white by any amount of scrubbing; and, what was
worse, so thick that it was by no means easily dried. Now-a-days, they
are generally made either of canvas, or of a twilled sacking, and,
when spread out, measure 4-1/2 feet by 3-1/2; but when lashed up, and
ready for stowing away in the netting, they form long sacks, about as
big as a man's body, but not tapering to the ends.
In ships where much pains is taken to have the hammocks stowed
properly, they are lashed up, so as to preserve the same width all
along, and with neither more nor fewer than seven turns with a
well-blacked small lashing, carefully passed round at equal intervals.
When the hammocks are prepared in this way, and all made of the same
size, (which condition may be secured by putting them through a ring
of given dimensions,) they are laid in symmetrical order all round the
ship, above the bulwark, on the quarter-deck and forecastle, and in
the waist nettings along the gangways. Each hammock, it may be
mentioned, has a separate number painted neatly upon it on a small,
white, oval patch, near one of the corners; so that, when they are all
stowed in the nettings, a uniform line of numbers extends round the
ship, and the hammock of any man who may be taken ill can be found by
his messmates in a moment. The bags, in like manner, of which each
person has two, are numbered separately. In rainy weather the hammocks
are securely covered by painted cloths.
As a seaman's kit generally forms his whole property, it ought to be
carefully preserved, and every possible facility given that the
service will allow of for his keeping it in good order. A captain of
any consideration will naturally bear in mind, that, as the comfort
and health of the men under his command depend most materially upon
the manner in which they are clad, and especially upon the damp or dry
state of their dress, it becomes an important branch of his duty to
see that their things are taken care of with as much exactness as the
spare sails, cordage, or provisions. It much too frequently happens,
however, that the unfortunate sailors' clothes are more torment to
them than advantage, and they may think themselves lucky if they can
catch hold of a jacket or trousers to shift withal, so eternally are
they interfered with by some inconsiderate officers. "Pipe the bags
up!" "Pipe the bags down!" "Stow the bags afresh!" "Pipe to scrub the
bags!" and twenty such orders are given in a day in some ships, to the
endless misery of the people. It is, no doubt, necessary that the bags
should be scrubbed and stowed properly, and be piped up and down at
the proper times and seasons. But there are two ways of doing these
things: one, which gives the men no more trouble than is absolutely
unavoidable; the other, which harasses and justly provokes them. It is
not enough to say that they must submit, whether they like it or not.
They will submit, it is true; but in what temper? and how will these
men work when called upon to exert themselves, if they are habitually
treated with disrespect, and exposed to needless, and even impertinent
worry? I have even heard of some crack ships, as they are termed,
where the poor devils are obliged to pipe-clay their bags, to make
them look white, forsooth! Why, the very idea of pipe-clay is gall and
wormwood to the taste of the Johnnies. Of late years I understand
there have been introduced black painted water-proof bags, which are a
great comfort to the men. Besides keeping out wet, they require no
trouble to scrub and dry, and, after all, are fully as clean, and far
more useful in every respect.
To show the various sorts of outfit which the men composing a
man-of-war's crew may be furnished with on first coming on board, I
shall describe a scene which took place on the Leander's
quarter-deck, off the Port of New York, in 1804. We were rather
short-handed in those days; and being in the presence of a blockaded
enemy, and liable, at half-an-hour's warning, to be in action, we
could not afford to be very scrupulous as to the ways and means by
which our numbers were completed, so that able-bodied men were secured
to handle the gun-tackle falls. It chanced one day that we fell in
with a ship filled with emigrants; a description of vessel called, in
the classical dictionary of the cockpit, an "Irish guinea man." Out of
her we pressed twenty Irishmen, besides two strapping fellows from
Yorkshire, and one canny Scot.
Each of this score of Pats was rigged merely in a great coat, and a
pair of something which might be called an apology for inexpressibles;
while the rest of their united wardrobe could have been stowed away in
the crown of any one of their hats. Their motives for emigrating to a
country where mere health and strength of body are sure to gain an
independent provision were obvious enough; and I must say, that to
this hour I have not been able to forget the melancholy cry or howl
with which the separation of these hardy settlers from their families
was effected by the strong arm of power. It was a case of necessity,
it is true; but still it was a cruel case, and one for the exercise of
which the officer who put it in force deserves almost as much pity as
the poor wretches whose feelings and interests it became his bounden
duty to disregard.
In most admired contrast to this bewildered drove of half-starved
Paddies stood the two immense, broad-shouldered, high-fed
Yorkshiremen, dressed in long-tailed coats, corduroy breeches, and
yellow-topped boots, each accompanied by a chest of clothes not much
less than a pianoforte, and a huge pile of spades, pick-axes, and
other implements of husbandry. They possessed money also, and letters
of credit, and described themselves as being persons of some substance
at home. Why they emigrated they would not tell; but such were their
prospects, that it was difficult to say whether they or the wild
Irishers were the most to be commiserated for so untoward an
interruption. Be this as it may, it cost the clerk half-an-hour to
write down a list of their multifarious goods and chattels, while a
single scratch of the pen sufficed for that of all the Irishmen.
At last honest Saunders came under review. He was a tall, raw-boned,
grave-looking personage, much pitted with the smallpox, and wearing a
good deal of that harassed and melancholy air, which, sooner or later,
settles on the brow of an assistant to a village pedagogue. He was
startled, but not abashed, when drawn to the middle of the deck, and
asked, in the presence of fifty persons, what clothes and other things
he possessed? Not choosing at first to betray his poverty, he made no
answer, but looked round, as if to discover where his chest had been
placed. He then glanced at his thread-bare sleeve and tattered shoon,
with a slight touch of dry and bitter humour playing about the corners
of his mouth, and a faint sparkle lighting up his grey and sunken eye,
as he returned the impatient official stare of the clerk, who stood,
pen in hand, ready to note down the items.
"Don't be frightened, man," said the captain; "no one is going to
hurt you, your things are quite safe. What does your property consist
of?"
"A trifle, sir, a trifle," quoth poor Sawney; "fourpence ha'penny and
an auld knife!"
Before concluding this subject, it may perhaps be useful to remark,
that, unless in those cases where such a measure is absolutely
necessary, the actual examination and minute recording of the men's
clothes might, in general, be advantageously dispensed with. I have,
indeed, occasionally fancied I saw traces of irritation and wounded
pride amongst the men, when all their little knick-knacks, every hat,
hose, and handkerchief, or old shoe, was examined into and noted down,
to be reproduced that day month, or its absence accounted for. I tried
a middle course in my own ship, which appeared to answer all the
purposes required. From time to time the men were ordered to bring
their bags to divisions, and to spread out their clothes to air on the
deck, over the guns, along the hammock-nettings, or in the rigging. In
this way the officers and mids, who passed repeatedly up and down the
line, had opportunities enough, if they did their duty, to see that
all the clothes were clean, dry, and in good order. When any man's
things were observed not to be in the condition demanded by the
regulations of the ship, or he was found ragged in his clothes, or not
properly dressed, then such delinquent was no longer indulged with the
exemption, but had his kit subjected to a daily, or weekly, or monthly
scrutiny, as the case might be. As long as he was in this predicament,
he was obliged to exhibit every article in proper condition, and was
not at liberty, without asking leave, to destroy even such worn-out
things as an old Jew clothesman would turn up his beard at. I took
care that no part of this surveillance should be talked of as a
punishment, although, unquestionably, it was intended and felt as
such; but studied rather to give it the character of a necessary duty
in the instance of individuals who, if not so watched, would, by their
misconduct, hurt the general discipline of the ship. It was very
seldom that any one exposed to such drilling for a month or six weeks
ever brought himself within the range of its humiliation a second
time.
FOOTNOTES:
[6] CLASSES AND DENOMINATIONS OF HER MAJESTY'S SHIPS.
1. Rated Ships, viz.:--
_First Rate_.--All Three-decked Ships.
_Second Rate_.--One of Her Majesty's Yachts, and all Two-decked Ships
whose war complements consist of 700 men and upwards.
_Third Rate_.--Her Majesty's other Yachts, and all such Yachts as may
bear the Flag or Pendant of an Admiral or Captain Superintending one
of Her Majesty's Dock-yards; and all Ships whose complements are under
700 and not less than 600.
_Fourth Rate_.--Ships whose complements are under 600 and not less
than 400.
_Fifth Rate_.--Ships whose complements are under 400 and not less than
250.
_Sixth Rate_.--Ships under 250.
2. Sloops and Bomb-Vessels; all such as are commanded by Commanders.
3. All other smaller Vessels; such as are commanded by Lieutenants or
inferior officers.