The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, March 27, 1898, Page 25

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, MARCH 27, 1898. CAPT. A. J. LOWELI TTHE NEWTLIGHT: v. TAKE THEPLACE e OF T WHISTLING BUQGH: ofF: THE GOLDEM: \ : FIRST MATE JULIUS HUEBNER SHIEF ENGINEER CHAS.ALEE LONE LIFE OF THE CREW ON THE NEW LIGHTSHIP it in the least. To be anchored in front of the Golden Gate for three months and never going ashore is to me Just a long sea voy- The only difference is that you don’t get anywhere.” H, I don't mi in this c The speaker was Captain A. J. Low- ell, master of the handsome new light- ship San Francisco, that within a few days will be anchored out on the bar to replace the time-honored whistling buoy. At present the new lightship is 1aid up beside the wharf at Goat Island receiving the last finishing touches be- fore going on her station as part of the United States Lighthouse Department. These are busy times out on the new vessel, for there is a great deal to be done yet in spite of the fact that the craft has been declared to be “finished.” About twenty men are now at work on her. Machini are “turning over” the engines, electricians are examining dy- namos and testing lights and wires, carpenters are finishing woodwork and painters are giving the last touches here and there. The entire crew has already been se- lected, and they are a willing and able-bodied corps of men. The vessel will be in charge of Captain A. J. Low- ell. Julius Huebner will be first mate, Charles A. Lee chief engineer and Al- bert H. Pep-er assistant. Stephen Case and Jefferson Todd will be firemen. There will be six seamen, as follows: Severin T. John Fallon, D. McCarth Orindersen, T. Winters, n and Charles Carlson. A. O. Chris- d will act as cook. All of these men have taken up their quarters on the new vessel, and are and willing to go to sea at any —even if they do run the chance ¢ getting ashore again for several Furthermore, they are all ‘oud of their new ship. And they have good reason to be proud of her, for she is one of the finest lightships afloat. There are only two that equal her and none that is her su- perior. The San Francisco, No. 70, a er ship of ships 68 and 69. The former is anchored off Diamond Shoals on the Atlantic coast and the latter off Fire Island, near the entrance to New York harbor. The three vessels were built out of the same appropriation, from the same specifications, and are " all exactly alike in every particular. The San Francisco is as trim a look- ing vessel as ever a sailor clapped his eyes on. She is 114 feet long and 30 foot beam.. Built entirely of steel with copper bottom and bilge keels, and on the lines that have been found to be the best adapted to the service, she is strong enough to weather any storm that has ever blown in the history of man. The new lightship carries two masts and on the top of each there is a crow’s nest containing three electric lamps. The power plant consists of an engine to drive the propeller wheel, engines and dynamos for the signal lamps and for lighting the vessel, machinery for fogbell and automatic foghorn. There is also steam gear for handling the two big anchors. In fact, nothing that mod- ern science can suggest has been omitted from“this vessel. She is simply perfect. Nor is the mechanical part all that Uncle Sam has looked out for. He has also considered the comfort of his men and endeavored to make their lot as agreeable and pleasant as the circumstances will permit of. There are two cabins. One is locat- ed amidships and the other takes up the afterpart of the vessel. Both are as finely finished as the cabins of many first-class passenger steamers. And they are every bit as clean and com- fortable. The captain’s cabin is a gem in its way, and the main saloon is fitted with big cushions and easy lounges. Each man has a stateroom to himself and if he is not comfortable it is his own fault. “The fo’castle is the finest fo'castle I ever saw, and I have been on boarq many fine ships.” is the way one of the seamen described his new quarters. Ana when & sailor talks that way no fur- ther praise or comment is necessary. The cooks' galley is as perfect in ap- pointments as the cuisine of the Pal- ace Hotel,'and the cook says the crew is going to eat as well as the guests of that famous hostelry do. Which being the case it is safe to say there will bs no insubordination among the sailors. All ‘will be as happy and obedient as if the millennium had come. But how do these men look upon their possible imprisonment on the ves- sel for months at a time? The ques- tion was asked of several, and all had a different answer. The service calls for three months on board ship and a month’s shore ieave. But, of course, it may be that after a man’s three months are up the weather will be so bad he cannot leave the vessel. This may keep him on board some weeks longer, so that there is no telling how leng he may be on board at a stretch. None of the crew have ever been on board a lightship, but all seem to real- ize what their lot is to be after they once get anchored out on the bar. “When the weather is fine it will be like paradise,” said the mate. “We will have very little work to do and can lie on deck in the sunshine and let our ship swing. We can listen to the water gurgling under her keel and hear the sea birds scream as they fly about. There will always be ships and tug- boats in sight, so that I don’t think we will be lonesome.” “But when the weather is bad?” “Oh, I don’t think about that. It's going to be nice for some months now and when winter comes we will be used to it and not mind. Besides our vessel has bilge keels and carries sea anchors, so she will not roll very much. And if the weather become very rough we can steam ahead so that she will take the seas nicely and it will be just like taking a long voyage.” “I have never been on board a light- ship,” said one of the oldest members of the crew, “but I have been anchored in a gale for days at.a time and I tell vyou there is no fun in it. I do not ex- pect our life aboard the new ship to be like taking a pleasure trip. But it's my business and I am glad to do it. This is the best job I have ever had, and I will be glad to stick to it. “When I think of my past experience, though, it seems awful. You have no idea how monotonous it gets when the weather is bad. Everything about the ship gets damp and cold and how she does roll. Day and night and night and day the never-ending movement keeps up. Now it is on one side and now on the other. Now she pitches up and now she pitches down. Then something gets the matter with one of the lamps and you have to go aloft in rain and darkness while the whole world seems swinging beneath you. The days drag on so that you forget all about the cal- endar and can only wonder what is going on in the world that is so near and yet so far. But when a fog comes up and the bells and whistles are going day and night, then our troubles will begin. But I don’t want to talk about that. At least not until my business compels me to. I say, though, isn’t this a fine ship we have? She’s the finet I ever saw.” Whatever any of the men thought of the long, monotonous days that they must spend on board the new lightship out on the rolling bar all were anxious to get out there and get to work. If all goes well the new lightship will L anchored on her station before the 7th of next month. And there she is € cted to remain, unless some serious accident happens to the machinery, pitching and rolling in the angry waves for six long year: g KANSAS CRUSADE I.\C!NNST QUM CHEWING. HEY are always doing something “different” in S When they are not fighting grasshoppers or electing farmer legislators they are doing somethir else out of the ordinary. The latest is a crusade against the habit of chewing gum. It broke out almost simultaneously in two different parts of the State. At Pleasanton one of the teachers in the public schools found -that nearly half of her pupils had become inveter- ate gum-chewers. She deprecated the habit and pleaded with them to stop it, but all to no avail. She resolved to adopt heroic measures. A few mornings ago she supplied herself with a liberal quantity of quinine. ‘When the pupils assembled several of them were working their submaxil- laries at a lively gait. 4 The teacher waited until the morning session had convened, and then com- pelled the gum-chewers to disgorge their quids. A nice, white coating of quinine was applied to each wad of gum and then they were not only urged but coerced into a resumption of the process of mastication. But the gum had lost its good, sweet taste. After the recalcitrants had been sufficiently punished the teacher al- lowed them to remove their cuds, but since that time there has been no gum- chewing in that particular room of the Pleasanton public school, whatever the pupils may do on the outside. About the same time Rev. A. S. Em- bree of Topeka conceived a violent dis- like for the gum-chewing habit, and de- termined to raise his voice against it as a public nuisance and a blot on the community. This he did, both in his pulpit and through the newspapers, and for sev- eral days there has been a violent dis- cussion of the subject in Topeka. Many people are not inclined to the belief that chewing gum is either foolish, un- wise or sinful, and the chances are that the practice will not be wiped out at once. However, President A. H. Taylor of the State Normal has taken a hand in the crusade, and has given his moral and personal support to the Rev. Mr. Embree in his efforts to eradicate the gum-chewing habit and cause a slump in the tutti frutti market. In a private letter to a friend at To- peka, President Taylor says: “Chewing gum is as nasty a habit as the use of tobacco, and a gum-chewer becomes as addicted to the habit as a tobacco-chewer. Then it is always stuck on the furniture and looks bad. I am putting forth my best efforts for the abolishment of the habit here.” From which statement it would ap- pear that a gum-chewer will never be able to make a hit with President Taylor. . Every NEW LIGHTSHIP THAT WILL BE STATIONED JUST OFF THE GOLDEN ] SR = RS S S IR L —_ == CAPTAINS z 5 3 '.'f CABIN _ HER MAJESTY'S “JOLLY” "AND THE AMERICAN TAR F there is one thing more than an- other which the present interna- tional crises has brought home to the people of the United States, it is the need of a properly trained fighting force to man our navy. Ships we have in plenty; we are justly proud of our White Navy, which includes some of the most powerful battleships to be found in the world, and money to provide as many more as may be needed can be had in abundance. Bat thoughtful people, whose minds are not unhinged by the frantic shriek- ing of the yellow jingoes, are begin- ning to ask themselves, what good will these ships be to us unless we have men competent to sail and fight them? 1t is little use to answer that in the event of war breaking out volunteers could be obtained by ‘the thousand. Of course they could. Our patriotic spirit is strong enough to induce every man on the coast line of the Union, whether in the Atlantic or the Pacific, to offer his services. Among nations the United States Is the only naval power which has not long since recognized the change in the conditions of sea life wrought by the introduction of steam ani iron plating. continental power has ample provision for the scientific train- ing of its sailors. France, Germany and Italy found the problem easy to solve, as the conscription placed the whole seafaring population of the coasts at the disposal of the naval authorities. But in England the adoption of a new system was not so easy, because, since the time of the press gang, the idea of compulsory service, whether in army or navy, has never met with favor in the eyes of the British public. It is with England, therefore, we must make our comparison, the condi- tion of each country being analagous. The people rule in each land, the spirit of liberty is abroad, and the adoption of the conscription is an equal impos- sibility in either case. Therefore the navy must be manned by volunteers, but the volunteers can no longer be drawn from the mature men of the mercantile marine. The special duties involved render it necessary that the training should be commenced while young, the younger the better. Long ago the British Board of Ad- miralty recognized this fact, and ini- tiated a system of recruiting and train- ing boys which has proved successful even beyond the hopes of its pro- moters. In the British army short service has been tried, though with indifferent suc- cess. But in the navy such a system was manifestly impossible; more than a few years are required to make a perfect modern sailor, and once trained it is obviously to the advantage of the State to retain the man's services for as lcng a period as possible. At first, when boys were recruited, the term of service was ten years after the age of 18. Now it has heen lengthened to 12 vears, and every inducement is held out to the men to re-engage for a fur- ther term of service. There are recruiting stations at Lon- don and most of the principal seaport towns, and the conditions of admission to the service are by no means strin- gent. The boy must be between 15 and 16% years of age; he must be able to produce his certificate of birth and the written consent of his parents or guar- dians to his enlistment. Once admitted to the service the State becomes his guardian, and the parents have no more to say in the matter. Of course, there is a strict medical examination, and fair physical qualifications are insisted en. Accord- ing to age the height must be not less than 5 feet to 5 feet 31, and the chest measurement from 30 to 3214 inches. Starting thus with a good basis of health and stamina to work upon, the admiralty takes the lad under its en- tire charge and proceeds to mold him into a first-class English seaman. The lad is fed on the best of food, his ail- ments are attended to by skilled doc- tors, he leads the healthiest of lives, and his whole frame is developed by the constant exercise involved in the system of training. This, too, at the most critical period of his life, for the making of the man depends entirely upon the treatment received by the lad. It is no wonder that he grows up into a fine, well-proportioned man; in the whole crew of a British man-of-war it s impossible to find a weedy or {ll pro- portioned individual. Of course, being under constant ob- servation during the entire period of training, the lads of a sickly or un- wholesome disposition are soon weed- ed out, and the service knows them no more. The training is largely car- ried on in sailing vessels, for despite the fact that canvas is an obsolete fac- tor in naval warfare, many authorities still hold that the qualities developed by the old methods of navigation are the best preparation for service under the new regime. Little sailing brigs may be constantly seen cruising in and out of the great Southern dock- yards of Portsmouth and Plymouth, and upon these handy vessels the boys acquire readiness and resource, be- come used to prompt action and obedi- ence, and learn in moments of difficulty GATE. 2 and danger the invaluable quality of self-reliance. When the boy reaches the- age of 18 he is admitted as an ordinary sea- man upon one of the regular ships of the navy, and upon his own ability his whole career depends. He may, if he lacks smartness, never rise above the rank of able seaman, or he may, if he possesses sufficient ability, rise to be a warrant officer. This is the highest he can get, the commissioned ranks are absolutely barred to him. In the army a soldier is sometimes promoted to be an officer, but in the navy no such ad- vancement is possible. The result of this system, carried on for a number of years, is that the British man-of-war sailor has become a class all to himself. There are close upon a hundred thdusand men sailing on British warships, and every one belongs to the service and to the ser- vice only. No- interloper is admitte@ to their rank; the merchant sailor is never, as in the old days, shipped by men-of-war. Entering as boys the men have never known any other ser- vice, the State is their foster nurse, the Board of Admiralty their guard- ian. Under these conditions a most amaz- ing esprit de corps is developed, dis- cipline is readily maintained, because the men from earliest years have been accustomed to the severest form of it. If there is anything stricter than the rule which prevails on board an Eng- lish man-of-war, I have never met with it. Yet, remarkably enough, in spite of this stringency the system de- velops, to a marked degree, the habits of sobriety and good order. I have seen more than a thousand sailors on leave together In the streets of Syd- ney, exposed to every temptation which the slums of a great city can furnish. Yet there was hardly a visi- ble case of drunkenness, not a sign of riot or disorder anywhere, and the black lists of the vessels on the fol- lowing morning would record but half a dozen cases of excess. Of course, I do not mean to assert that the British man-of-war’'s man never gets drunk, but, as Mulvaney would say, he knows how to carry his liouor like a man. By contrast with this orderly, well- organized method of recruiting, the United States system of shipping men for a three-years’ commission seems haphazard and slipshod. And per- haps the greatest of all advantages of the British system is that it pre- serves the nationality of the navy. The mercantile marine of England is large- ly manned by foreigners, the navy en- tirely by Englishmen. No foreigner can obtain a berth in one of her Ma- jesty’s ships, and Uncle Sam, his pat- riotism recently aroused, desires also to man his fleet with men of American nationality only.-