The Project Gutenberg eBook of American Merchant = Ships and Sailors, by Willis J. Abbot

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American Merchant

Ships and Sailors

Willis J. Abbot

Illustrated by Ray Brown

1902

BOOKS BY WILLIS J. ABBOT

Preface

In an earlier series of books the present writer told the story of = the high=20 achievements of the men of the United States Navy, from the day of Paul = Jones to=20 that of Dewey, Schley, and Sampson. It is a record Americans may well = regard=20 with pride, for in wars of defense or offense, in wars just or unjust, = the=20 American blue jacket has discharged the duty allotted to him cheerfully, = gallantly, and efficiently.

But there are triumphs to be won by sea and by land greater than = those of=20 war, dangers to be braved, more menacing than the odds of battle. It was = a=20 glorious deed to win the battle of Santiago, but Fulton and Ericsson = influenced=20 the progress of the world more than all the heroes of history. The daily = life of=20 those who go down to the sea in ships is one of constant battle, and the = whaler=20 caught in the ice-pack is in more direful case than the blockaded = cruiser; while=20 the captain of the ocean liner, guiding through a dense fog his colossal = craft=20 freighted with two thousand human lives, has on his mind a weightier = load of=20 responsibility than the admiral of the fleet.

In all times and ages, the deeds of the men who sail the deep as its=20 policemen or its soldiery have been sung in praise. It is time for = chronicle of=20 the high courage, the reckless daring, and oftentimes the noble = self-sacrifice=20 of those who use the Seven Seas to extend the markets of the world, to = bring=20 nations nearer together, to advance science, and to cement the world = into one=20 great interdependent whole.

List of Illustrations

	PAGE
New England early Took the Lead = in=20 Building Ships	Frontispiece
The Shallop	2
The Ketch	<= B>5
"The Broad Arrow Was Put on all = White=20 Pines 24 Inches in Diameter"	<= B>7
"The Farmer-Builder Took his = Place at the=20 Helm"	= 8
Schooner-Rigged = Sharpie	11
After a British Lieutenant Had = Picked the=20 Best of her Crew	18
Early Type of Smack	<= B>21
The Snow, an Obsolete = Type	29
The Bug-Eye	= 34
A "Pink"	38
"Instantly the Gun was Run Out = and=20 Discharged"	42
"The Water Front of a Great = Seaport like=20 New York"	<= B>55
An Armed Cutter	= 57
"The Loud Laugh often Rose at = my=20 Expense"	<= B>65
"The Dreadnaught"=97New York = and Liverpool=20 Packet	<= B>69
There are Building in American=20 Yards	facing 82
"A Favorite Trick of the = Fleeing Slaver=20 was to Throw over Slaves"	<= B>95
Dealers who Came on Board were = Themselves=20 Kidnapped	facing 98
"The Rope was Put Around his=20 Neck"	103
"Bound them to the Chain = Cable"	<= B>114
"Sending Boat and Men Flying = into the=20 Air"	128
"Suddenly the Mate Gave a = Howl=97'Starn=20 All!"	facing 132
"Rot at Mouldering = Wharves"	= 140
"There she Blows!"	<= B>144
"Taking it in his = Jaws"	146
Nearly every Man on the = Quarterdeck of=20 the "Argo" was Killed or Wounded	= 162
The Prison Ship = "Jersey"	= 163
If they Retreated farther He = would Blow=20 Up the Ship	facing 176
"I Think she is a Heavy = Ship"	<= B>179
"Striving to Reach her Decks at = every=20 Point"	186
"They Fell Down and Died as = they=20 Walked"	199
"The Treacherous = Kayak"	<= B>203
The Ship was Caught in the Ice=20 Pack	facing = 204
Adrift on an Ice = Floe	= 206
DeLong's Men Dragging their = Boats over=20 the Ice	210
An Arctic House	<= B>224
An Esquimau	227
The Wooden Bateaux of the Fur=20 Traders	facing 236
"The Red-Men Set upon them and = Slew them=20 all"	= 241
One of the first Lake = Sailors	243
"Two Boat-Loads of Redcoats = Boarded us=20 and Took us Prisoners"	<= B>245
A Vanishing Type on the = Lakes	249
"The Whaleback"	253
Flatboats Manned with = Riflemen	facing 266
"The Evening would Pass in Rude = and=20 Harmless Jollity"	271
The Mississippi = Pilot	<= B>286
A Deck Load of = Cotton	= 290
Feeding the Furnace	293
On the Banks	<= B>314
"The Boys Marked their Fish by = Cutting=20 off their Tails"	= 322
Fishing from the = Rail	328
Trawling from a = Dory	333
Strikes a Schooner and Shears = through her=20 Like a Knife	facing 334
Minot's Ledge Light	<= B>345
Whistling Buoy	354
Revenue Cutter	360
Launching a Lifeboat through = the=20 Surf	364
The Exciting Moment in the = Pilot's=20 Trade	facing 366

The American Ship and the American Sailor=97New = England's=20 Lead on the Ocean=97The Earliest American Ship-Building=97How the = Shipyards=20 Multiplied=97Lawless Times on the High Seas=97Ship-Building in the = Forests and on=20 the Farm=97Some Early Types=97The Course of Maritime Trade=97The First = Schooner and=20 the First Full-rigged Ship=97Jealousy and Antagonism of England=97The = Pest of=20 Privateering=97Encouragement from Congress=97The Golden Days of Our = Merchant=20 Marine=97Fighting Captains and Trading Captains=97Ground Between France = and=20 England=97Checked by the Wars=97Sealing and Whaling=97Into the = Pacific=97How Yankee Boys=20 Mounted the Quarter-deck=97Some Stories of Early Seamen=97The Packets = and Their=20 Exploits= 1

The Transition from Sails to Steam=97The Change = in Marine=20 Architecture=97the Depopulation of the Ocean=97Changes in the Sailor's = Lot=97From Wood=20 to Steel=97The Invention of the Steamboat=97The Fate of Fitch=97Fulton's = Long=20 Struggles=97Opposition of the Scientists=97The "Clermont"=97The = Steamboat On the=20 Ocean=97On Western Rivers=97The Transatlantic Passage=97The "Savannah" = Makes the First=20 Crossing=97Establishment of British Lines=97Efforts of United States = Ship-Owners to=20 Compete=97The Famous Collins Line=97The Decadence of Our Merchant = Marine=97Signs of=20 Its Revival=97Our Great Domestic Shipping Interest=97America's Future on = the=20 Sea53

An Ugly Feature of Early Seafaring=97The Slave = Trade and Its=20 Promoters=97Part Played by Eminent New Englanders=97How the Trade Grew = Up=97The Pious=20 Auspices Which Surrounded the Traffic=97Slave-Stealing and=20 Sabbath-Breaking=97Conditions of the Trade=97Size of the Vessels=97How = the Captives=20 Were Treated=97Mutinies, Man-Stealing, and Murder=97The Revelations of = The Abolition=20 Society=97Efforts to Break Up the Trade=97An Awful Retribution=97England = Leads the=20 Way=97Difficulty of Enforcing the Law=97America's Shame=97The End of the = Evil=97The Last=20 Slaver89

The Whaling Industry=97Its Early Development in = New=20 England=97Known to the Ancients=97Shore Whaling Beginnings of the = Deep-Sea=20 Fisheries=97The Prizes of Whaling=97Piety of Its Early Promoters=97The = Right Whale and=20 the Cachalot=97A Flurry=97Some Fighting Whales=97The "Essex" and the = "Ann=20 Alexander"=97Types of Whalers=97Decadence of the Industry=97Effect of = Our National=20 Wars=97The Embargo=97Some Stories of Whaling Life121

The Privateers=97Part Taken by Merchant Sailors = in Building=20 up the Privateering System=97Lawless State of the High Seas=97Method of = Distributing=20 Privateering Profits=97Picturesque Features of the Calling=97The = Gentlemen=20 Sailors=97Effects on the Revolutionary Army=97Perils of = Privateering=97The Old Jersey=20 Prison Ship=97Extent of Privateering=97effect On American Marine = Architecture=97some=20 Famous Privateers=97The "Chasseur," the "Prince de Neufch=E1tel," the = "Mammoth"=97The=20 System of Convoys and the "Running Ships"=97A Typical Privateers' = Battle=97The=20 "General Armstrong" at Fayal=97Summary of the Work of the = Privateers155

The Arctic Tragedy=97American Sailors in the = Frozen Deep=97The=20 Search for Sir John Franklin=97Reasons for Seeking the North = Pole=97Testimony of=20 Scientists And Explorers=97Pertinacity of Polar Voyagers=97Dr. Kane and = Dr.=20 Hayes=97Charles F. Hall, Journalist and Explorer=97Miraculous Escape of = His=20 Party=97The Ill-Fated "Jeannette" Expedition=97Suffering and Death of = DeLong and His=20 Companions=97A Pitiful Diary=97The Greely Expedition=97Its Careful Plan = and Complete=20 Disaster=97Rescue of the Greely Survivors=97Peary, Wellman, and = Baldwin193

The Great Lakes=97Their Share in the Maritime = Traffic of the=20 United States=97The Earliest Recorded Voyagers=97Indians and Fur = Traders=97The Pigmy=20 Canal at the Sault Ste. Marie=97Beginning of Navigation by Sails=97De La = Salle and=20 The "Griffin"=97Recollections of Early Lake Seamen=97The Lakes as a = Highway for=20 Westward Emigration=97The First Steamboat=97Effect of Mineral = Discoveries on Lake=20 Superior=97The Ore-Carrying Fleet=97The Whalebacks=97The Seamen of the = Lakes=97The Great=20 Canal at the "Soo"=97The Channel to Buffalo=97Barred Out From the = Ocean233

The Mississippi = and Tributary=20 Rivers=97The Changing Phases of Their Shipping=97River Navigation as a=20 Nation-Building Force=97The Value of Small Streams=97Work of the Ohio = Company=97An=20 Early Propeller=97The French First on the Mississippi=97The Spaniards at = New=20 Orleans=97Early Methods of Navigation=97The Flatboat, the Broadhorn, and = the=20 Keelboat=97Life of the Rivermen=97Pirates and Buccaneers=97Lafitte and = the=20 Baratarians=97The Genesis of the Steamboats=97Capricious River=97Flush = Times in New=20 Orleans=97Rapid Multiplication of Steamboats=97Recent Figures on River=20 Shipping=97Commodore Whipple's Exploit=97The Men Who Steered the = Steamboats=97Their=20 Technical Education=97The Ships They Steered=97Fires and = Explosions=97Heroism of the=20 Pilots=97The Races261

The New England Fisheries=97Their Part in = Effecting the=20 Settlement of America=97Their Rapid Development=97Wide Extent of the = Trade=97Effort of=20 Lord North to Destroy It=97The Fishermen in the Revolution=97Efforts to = Encourage=20 the Industry=97Its Part in Politics and Diplomacy=97The Fishing = Banks=97Types of=20 Boats=97Growth of the Fishing Communities=97Farmers and Sailors by = Turns=97The=20 Education of the Fishermen=97Methods of Taking Mackerel=97The Seine and = the=20 Trawl=97Scant Profits of the Industry=97Perils of the Banks=97Some = Personal=20 Experiences=97The Fog and the Fast Liners=97The Tribute of Human = Life303

The Sailor's Safeguards=97Improvements in Marine=20 Architecture=97The Mapping of the Seas=97The Lighthouse = System=97Building a=20 Lighthouse=97Minot's Ledge and Spectacle Reef=97Life in a = Lighthouse=97Lightships and=20 Other Beacons=97The Revenue Marine Service=97Its Function as a Safeguard = to=20 Sailors=97Its Work in the North Pacific=97The Life-Saving Service=97Its = Record for One=20 Year=97Its Origin and Development=97The Pilots of New York=97Their = Hardships and=20 Slender Earnings=97Jack Ashore=97The Sailors' Snug Harbor341

American Merchant Ships and Sailors

CHAPTER I.

The American Ship and the American Sailor=97New = England's=20 Lead on the Ocean=97The Earliest American Ship-Building=97How the = Shipyards=20 Multiplied=97Lawless Times on the High Seas=97Ship-Building in the = Forests and on=20 the Farm=97Some Early Types=97The Course of Maritime Trade=97The First = Schooner and=20 the First Full-Rigged Ship=97Jealousy and Antagonism of England=97The = Pest of=20 Privateering=97Encouragement from Congress=97The Golden Days of Our = Merchant=20 Marine=97Fighting Captains and Trading Captains=97Ground Between France = and=20 England=97Checked by the Wars=97Sealing and Whaling=97Into the = Pacific=97How Yankee Boys=20 Mounted the Quarter-deck=97Some Stories of Early Seamen=97The Packets = and Their=20 Exploits.

When the Twentieth Century opened, the American sailor was almost = extinct.=20 The nation which, in its early and struggling days, had given to the = world a=20 race of seamen as adventurous as the Norse Vikings had, in the days of = its=20 greatness and prosperity turned its eyes away from the sea and yielded = to other=20 people the mastery of the deep. One living in the past, reading the = newspapers,=20 diaries and record-books of the early days of the Nineteenth Century, = can hardly=20 understand how an occupation which played so great a part in American = life as=20 seafaring could ever be permitted to decline. The dearest ambition Page 2of the American boy = of our=20 early national era was to command a clipper ship=97but how many years it = has been=20 since that ambition entered into the mind of young America! In those = days the=20 people of all the young commonwealths from Maryland northward found = their=20 interests vitally allied with maritime adventure. Without railroads, and = with=20 only the most wretched excuses for post-roads, Page 3the States were = linked together=20 by the sea; and coastwise traffic early began to employ a considerable = number of=20 craft and men. Three thousand miles of ocean separated Americans from = the market=20 in which they must sell their produce and buy their luxuries. = Immediately upon=20 the settlement of the seaboard the Colonists themselves took up this = trade,=20 building and manning their own vessels and speedily making their way = into every=20 nook and corner of Europe. We, who have seen, in the last quarter of the = Nineteenth Century, the American flag the rarest of all ensigns to be = met on the=20 water, must regard with equal admiration and wonder the zeal for = maritime=20 adventure that made the infant nation of 1800 the second seafaring = people in=20 point of number of vessels, and second to none in energy and = enterprise.

New England early took the lead in building ships and manning them, = and this=20 was but natural since her coasts abounded in harbors; navigable streams = ran=20 through forests of trees fit for the ship-builder's adze; her soil was = hard and=20 obdurate to the cultivator's efforts; and her people had not, like those = who=20 settled the South, been drawn from the agricultural classes. Moreover, = as I=20 shall show in other chapters, the sea itself thrust upon the New = Englanders its=20 riches for them to gather. The cod-fishery was long pursued within a few = miles=20 of Cape Ann, and the New Englanders had become well habituated to it = before the=20 growing scarcity of the fish compelled them to seek the teeming waters = of=20 Newfoundland banks. The value of the whale was first taught them by = great=20 carcasses washed up on the shore of Cape Cod, and for years this = gigantic game=20 was pursued in open boats within sight of the coast. From neighborhood = seafaring=20 such as this the progress was easy to coasting voyages, and so to Europe = and to=20 Asia.Page = 4

There is some conflict of historians over the time and place of the = beginning=20 of ship-building in America. The first vessel of which we have record = was the=20 "Virginia," built at the mouth of the Kennebec River in 1608, to carry = home a=20 discontented English colony at Stage Island. She was a two-master of 30 = tons=20 burden. The next American vessel recorded was the Dutch "yacht" = "Onrest," built=20 at New York in 1615. Nowadays sailors define a yacht as a vessel that = carries no=20 cargo but food and champagne, but the "Onrest" was not a yacht of this = type. She=20 was of 16 tons burden, and this small size explains her description.

The first ship built for commercial purposes in New England was "The = Blessing=20 of the Bay," a sturdy little sloop of 60 tons. Fate surely designed to = give a=20 special significance to this venture, for she was owned by John = Winthrop, the=20 first of New England statesmen, and her keel was laid on the Fourth of = July,=20 1631=97a day destined after the lapse of one hundred and forty-five = years to mean=20 much in the world's calendar. Sixty tons is not an awe-inspiring = register. The=20 pleasure yacht of some millionaire stock-jobber to-day will be ten times = that=20 size, while 20,000 tons has come to be an every-day register for an = ocean=20 vessel; but our pleasure-seeking "Corsairs," and our castellated "City = of New=20 York" will never fill so big a place in history as this little sloop, = the size=20 of a river lighter, launched at Mistick, and straightway dispatched to = the trade=20 with the Dutch at New Amsterdam. Long before her time, however, in 1526, = the=20 Spanish adventurer, Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon, losing on the coast of = Florida a=20 brigantine out of the squadron of three ships which formed his = expedition, built=20 a small craft called a gavarra to replace it.

From that early Fourth of July, for more than two Page 5hundred years = shipyards=20 multiplied and prospered along the American coast. The Yankees, with = their=20 racial adaptability, which long made them jacks of all trades and good = at all,=20 combined their shipbuilding with other industries, and to the hurt of = neither.=20 Early in 1632, at Richmond Island, off the coast of Maine, was built = what was=20 probably the first regular packet between England and America. She = carried to=20 the old country lumber, fish, furs, oil, and other colonial products, = and=20 brought back guns, ammunition, and liquor=97not a fortunate exchange. Of = course=20 meanwhile English, Dutch, and Spanish ships were trading to the = colonies, and=20 every local Page = 6essay=20 in shipbuilding meant competition with old and established ship-yards = and ship=20 owners. Yet the industry throve, not only in the considerable yards = established=20 at Boston and other large towns, but in a small way all along the coast. = Special=20 privileges were extended to ship-builders. They were exempt from = military and=20 other public duties. In 1636 the "Desire," a vessel of 120 tons, was = built at=20 Marblehead, the largest to that time. By 1640 the port records of = European ports=20 begin to show the clearings of American-built vessels.

In those days of wooden hulls and tapering masts the forests of New = England=20 were the envy of every European monarch ambitious to develop a navy. It = was a=20 time, too, of greater naval activity than the world had ever = seen=97though but=20 trivial in comparison with the present expenditures of Christian nations = for=20 guns and floating steel fortresses. England, Spain, Holland, and France = were=20 struggling for the control of the deep, and cared little for = considerations of=20 humanity, honor, or honesty in the contest. The tall, straight pines of = Maine=20 and New Hampshire were a precious possession for England in the work of = building=20 that fleet whose sails were yet to whiten the ocean, and whose guns, = under Drake=20 and Rodney, were to destroy successfully the maritime prestige of the = Dutch and=20 the Spaniards. Sometimes a colony, seeking royal favor, would send to = the king a=20 present of these pine timbers, 33 to 35 inches in diameter, and worth = =A395 to=20 =A3115 each. Later the royal mark, the "broad arrow," was put on all = white pines=20 24 inches in diameter 3 feet from the ground, that they might be saved = for=20 masts. It is, by the way, only about fifteen years since our own United = States=20 Government has disposed of its groves of live oaks, that for nearly a = century=20 were preserved to furnish oaken knees for navy vessels.Page 7

The great number of navigable streams soon led to shipbuilding in the = interior. It was obviously cheaper to build the vessel at the edge of = the=20 forest, where all the material grew ready to hand, and sail the = completed craft=20 to the seaboard, than to first transport the material thither in the = rough. But=20 American resourcefulness before long went even further. As the forests = receded=20 from the banks of the streams before the woodman's axe, the shipwrights=20 followed. In the depths of the woods, miles perhaps from Page 8water, snows, = pinnaces,=20 ketches, and sloops were built. When the heavy snows of winter had = fallen, and=20 the roads were hard and smooth, runners were laid under the little = ships, great=20 teams of oxen=97sometimes more than one hundred yoke=97were attached, = and the craft=20 dragged down to the river, to lie there on the ice until the spring thaw = came to=20 gently let it down into its proper element. Many a farmer, too, whose = lands=20 sloped down to a small harbor, or stream, set up by the water side the = frame of=20 a vessel, and worked patiently at it during the winter days when the = flinty soil=20 repelled the plough and farm work was stopped. Stout little craft were = thus put=20 together, and sometimes when the vessel was completed the farmer-builder = took=20 his place at the helm and steered her to the fishing banks, or took her = through=20 Hell Gate to the great and thriving city of New York. The world has = never seen a=20 more amphibious populace.

The cost of the little vessels of colonial times we learn from old = letters=20 and accounts to have averaged four pounds sterling to the ton. Boston,=20 Charleston, Salem, Ipswich, Salisbury, and Portsmouth were the chief = building=20 places in Massachusetts; New London in Connecticut, and Providence in = Rhode=20 Island. Vessels of a type not seen to-day made up the greater part of = the New=20 England fleet. The ketch, often referred to in early annals, was a = two-master,=20 sometimes rigged with lanteen sails, but more often with the foremast=20 square-rigged, like a ship's foremast, and the mainmast like the mizzen = of a=20 modern bark, with a square topsail surmounting a fore-and-aft mainsail. = The=20 foremast was set very much aft=97often nearly amidships. The snow was = practically=20 a brig, carrying a fore-and-aft sail on the mainmast, with a square sail = directly above it. A pink was rigged like a schooner, but without a = bowsprit or=20 jib. For the fisheries a multitude of smaller types were = constructed=97such as the=20 lugger, the shallop, the sharpie, the bug-eye, the smack. Some of these = survive=20 to the present day, and in many cases the name has passed into disuse, = while the=20 type itself is now and then to be met with on our coasts.

The importance of ship-building as a factor in the development of New = England=20 did not rest merely upon the use of ships by the Americans alone. That = was a day=20 when international trade was just beginning to be understood and pushed, = and=20 every people wanted ships to carry their goods to foreign lands and = bring back=20 coveted articles in exchange. The New England vessel seldom made more = than two=20 voyages across the Atlantic without being snapped up by some purchaser = beyond=20 seas. The ordinary course was for the new craft to load with masts or = spars,=20 always in demand, or with fish; set sail for a promising market, dispose = of her=20 cargo, and take freight Page=20 10for England. There she would be sold, her crew making their way = home in=20 other ships, and her purchase money expended in articles needed in the = colonies.=20 This was the ordinary practice, and with vessels sold abroad so soon = after their=20 completion the shipyards must have been active to have fitted out, as = the=20 records show, a fleet of fully 280 vessels for Massachusetts alone by = 1718.=20 Before this time, too, the American shipwrights had made such progress = in the=20 mastery of their craft that they were building ships for the royal navy. = The=20 "Falkland," built at Portsmouth about 1690, and carrying 54 guns, was = the=20 earliest of these, but after her time corvettes, sloops-of-war, and = frigates=20 were launched in New England yards to fight for the king. It was good=20 preparation for building those that at a later date should fight against = him.

Looking back over the long record of American maritime progress, one = cannot=20 but be impressed with the many and important contributions made by=20 Americans=97native or adopted=97to marine architecture. To an American = citizen, John=20 Ericsson, the world owes the screw propeller. Americans sent the first = steamship=20 across the ocean=97the "Savannah," in 1819. Americans, engaged in a = fratricidal=20 war, invented the ironclad in the "Monitor" and the "Merrimac," and,=20 demonstrating the value of iron ships for warfare, sounded the knell of = wooden=20 ships for peaceful trade. An American first demonstrated the commercial=20 possibilities of the steamboat, and if history denies to Fulton entire=20 precedence with his "Clermont," in 1807, it may still be claimed for = John Fitch,=20 another American, with his imperfect boat on the Delaware in 1787. But = perhaps=20 none of these inventions had more homely utility than the New England = schooner,=20 which had its birth and its christening at Gloucester in 1713. The story = of its=20 naming is one of the oldest in our marine folk-lore.Page 11

"See how she schoons!" cried a bystander, coining a verb to describe = the=20 swooping slide of the graceful hull down the ways into the placid = water.

"A schooner let her be!" responded the builder, proud of his = handiwork, and=20 ready to seize the opportunity to confer a novel title upon his novel = creation.=20 Though a combination of old elements, the schooner was in effect a new = design.=20 Barks, ketches, snows, and brigantines carried fore-and-aft rigs in = connection=20 with square sails on either mast, but now for the first time two masts = were=20 rigged fore and aft, and the square sails wholly discarded. The = advantages of=20 the new rig were quickly discovered. Vessels carrying it were found to = sail=20 closer Page = 12to the=20 wind, were easier to handle in narrow quarters, and=97what in the end = proved of=20 prime importance=97could be safely manned by smaller crews. With these = advantages=20 the schooner made its way to the front in the shipping lists. The New = England=20 shipyards began building them, almost to the exclusion of other types. = Before=20 their advance brigs, barks, and even the magnificent full-rigged ship = itself=20 gave way, until now a square-rigged ship is an unusual spectacle on the = ocean.=20 The vitality of the schooner is such that it bids fair to survive both = of the=20 crushing blows dealt to old-fashioned marine architecture=97the = substitution of=20 metal for wood, and of steam for sails. To both the schooner adapted = itself.=20 Extending its long, slender hull to carry four, five, and even seven = masts, its=20 builders abandoned the stout oak and pine for molded iron and later = steel=20 plates, and when it appeared that the huge booms, extending the mighty = sails,=20 were difficult for an ordinary crew to handle, one mast, made like the = rest of=20 steel, was transformed into a smokestack=97still bearing sails=97a = donkey engine was=20 installed in the hold, and the booms went aloft, or the anchor rose to = the peak=20 to the tune of smoky puffing instead of the rhythmical chanty songs of = the=20 sailors. So the modern schooner, a very leviathan of sailing craft, = plows the=20 seas, electric-lighted, steering by steam, a telephone system connecting = all=20 parts of her hull=97everything modern about her except her name. Not as = dignified,=20 graceful, and picturesque as the ship perhaps=97but she lasts, while the = ship=20 disappears.

But to return to the colonial shipping. Boston soon became one of the = chief=20 building centers, though indeed wherever men were gathered in a seashore = village=20 ships were built. Winthrop, one of the pioneers in the industry, writes: = "The=20 work was hard to accomplish for want of Page 13money, etc., but our shipwrights were = content to=20 take such pay as the country could make," and indeed in the old account = books of=20 the day we can read of very unusual payments made for labor, as shown, = for=20 example, in a contract for building a ship at Newburyport in 1141, by = which the=20 owners were bound to pay "=A3300 in cash, =A3300 by orders on good shops = in Boston;=20 two-thirds money; four hundred pounds by orders up the river for tim'r = and=20 plank, ten bbls. flour, 50 pounds weight of loaf sugar, one bagg of = cotton wool,=20 one hund. bushels of corn in the spring; one hhd. of Rum, one hundred = weight of=20 cheese * * * whole am't of price for vessel =A33000 lawful money."

By 1642 they were building good-sized vessels at Boston, and the year = following was launched the first full-rigged ship, the "Trial," which = went to=20 Malaga, and brought back "wine, fruit, oil, linen and wool, which was a = great=20 advantage to the country, and gave encouragement to trade." A year = earlier there=20 set out the modest forerunner of our present wholesale spring = pilgrimages to=20 Europe. A ship set sail for London from Boston "with many passengers, = men of=20 chief rank in the country, and great store of beaver. Their adventure = was very=20 great, considering the doubtful estate of affairs of England, but many = prayers=20 of the churches went with them and followed after them."

By 1698 Governor Bellomont was able to say of Boston alone, "I = believe there=20 are more good vessels belonging to the town of Boston than to all = Scotland and=20 Ireland." Thereafter the business rapidly developed, until in a map of = about=20 1730 there are noted sixteen shipyards. Rope walks, too, sprung up to = furnish=20 rigging, and presently for these Boston was a centre. Another industry, = less=20 commendable, grew up in this as in other shipping Page 14centres. Molasses = was one of=20 the chief staples brought from the West Indies, and it came in = quantities far in=20 excess of any possible demand from the colonial sweet tooth. But it = could be=20 made into rum, and in those days rum was held an innocent beverage, = dispensed=20 like water at all formal gatherings, and used as a matter of course in = the=20 harvest fields, the shop, and on the deck at sea. Moreover, it had been = found to=20 have a special value as currency on the west coast of Africa. The negro = savages=20 manifested a more than civilized taste for it, and were ready to sell = their=20 enemies or their friends, their sons, fathers, wives, or daughters into = slavery=20 in exchange for the fiery fluid. So all New England set to turning the = good=20 molasses into fiery rum, and while the slave trade throve abroad the rum = trade=20 prospered at home.

Of course the rapid advance of the colonies in shipbuilding and in = maritime=20 trade was not regarded in England with unqualified pride. The theory of = that=20 day=97and one not yet wholly abandoned=97was that a colony was a mine, = to be worked=20 for the sole benefit of the mother country. It was to buy its goods in = no other=20 market. It was to use the ships of the home government alone for its = trade=20 across seas. It must not presume to manufacture for itself articles = which=20 merchants at home desired to sell. England early strove to impress such = trade=20 regulations upon the American colonies, and succeeded in embarrassing = and=20 handicapping them seriously, although evasions of the navigation laws = were=20 notorious, and were winked at by the officers of the crown. The = restrictions=20 were sufficiently burdensome, however, to make the ship-owners and = sailors of=20 1770 among those most ready and eager for the revolt against the = king.

The close of the Revolution found American shipping in a reasonably=20 prosperous condition. It is true that the Page 15peaceful vocation of the seamen had been=20 interrupted, all access to British ports denied them, and their voyages = to=20 Continental markets had for six years been attended by the ever-present = risk of=20 capture and condemnation. But on the other hand, the war had opened the = way for=20 privateering, and out of the ports of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and=20 Connecticut the privateers swarmed like swallows from a chimney at dawn. = To the=20 adventurous and not over-scrupulous men who followed it, privateering = was a=20 congenial pursuit=97so much so, unhappily, that when the war ended, and = a treaty=20 robbed their calling of its guise of lawfulness, too many of them still=20 continued it, braving the penalties of piracy for the sake of its gains. = But=20 during the period of the Revolution privateering did the struggling = young nation=20 two services=97it sorely harassed the enemy, and it kept alive the = seafaring zeal=20 and skill of the New Englanders.

For a time it seemed that not all this zeal and skill could replace = the=20 maritime interests where they were when the Revolution began. For most = people in=20 the colonies independence meant a broader scope of activity=97to the = shipowner and=20 sailor it meant new and serious limitations. England was still engaged = in the=20 effort to monopolize ocean traffic by the operation of tariffs and = navigation=20 laws. New England having become a foreign nation, her ships were denied=20 admittance to the ports of the British West Indies, with which for years = a=20 nourishing trade had been conducted. Lumber, corn, fish, live stock, and = farm=20 produce had been sent to the islands, and coffee, sugar, cotton, rum, = and indigo=20 brought back. This commerce, which had come to equal =A33,500,000 a = year, was shut=20 off by the British after American independence, despite the protest of = Pitt, who=20 saw clearly that the West Indians would suffer even more than the = Americans.=20 Time Page = 16showed his=20 wisdom. Terrible sufferings came upon the West Indies for lack of the = supplies=20 they had been accustomed to import, and between 1780 and 1787 as many as = 15,000=20 slaves perished from starvation.

Another cause held the American merchant marine in check for several = years=20 succeeding the declaration of peace. If there be one interest which must = have=20 behind it a well-organized, coherent national government, able to = protect it and=20 to enforce its rights in foreign lands, it is the shipping interest. But = American ships, after the Treaty of Paris, hailed from thirteen = independent but=20 puny States. They had behind them the shadow of a confederacy, but no = substance.=20 The flags they carried were not only not respected in foreign = countries=97they=20 were not known. Moreover, the States were jealous of each other, = possessing no=20 true community of interest, and each seeking advantage at the expense of = its=20 neighbors. They were already beginning to adopt among themselves the = very=20 tactics of harassing and crippling navigation laws which caused the = protest=20 against Great Britain. This "Critical Period of American History," as = Professor=20 Fiske calls it, was indeed a critical period for American shipping.

The new government, formed under the Constitution, was prompt to = recognize=20 the demands of the shipping interests upon the country. In the very = first=20 measure adopted by Congress steps were taken to encourage American = shipping by=20 differential duties levied on goods imported in American and foreign = vessels.=20 Moreover, in the tonnage duties imposed by Congress an advantage of = almost 50=20 per cent. was given ships built in the United States and owned abroad. = Under=20 this stimulus the shipping interests throve, despite hostile legislation = in=20 England, and the disordered state of the high seas, where French Page 17and British = privateers were=20 only a little less predatory than Algierian corsairs or avowed pirates. = It was=20 at this early day that Yankee skippers began making those long voyages = that are=20 hardly paralleled to-day when steamships hold to a single route like a = trolley=20 car between two towns. The East Indies was a favorite trading point. = Carrying a=20 cargo suited to the needs of perhaps a dozen different peoples, the = vessel would=20 put out from Boston or Newport, put in at Madeira perhaps, or at some = West=20 Indian port, dispose of part of its cargo, and proceed, stopping again = and again=20 on its way, and exchanging its goods for money or for articles thought = to be=20 more salable in the East Indies. Arrived there, all would be sold, and a = cargo=20 of tea, coffee, silks, spices, nankeen cloth, sugar, and other products = of the=20 country taken on. If these goods did not prove salable at home the ship = would=20 make yet another voyage and dispose of them at Hamburg or some other = Continental=20 port. In 1785 a Baltimore ship showed the Stars and Stripes in the = Canton River,=20 China. In 1788 the ship "Atlantic," of Salem, visited Bombay and = Calcutta. The=20 effect of being barred from British ports was not, as the British had = expected,=20 to put an abrupt end to American maritime enterprise. It only sent our = hardy=20 seamen on longer voyages, only brought our merchants into touch with the = commerce of the most distant lands. Industry, like men, sometimes = thrives upon=20 obstacles.

For twenty-five years succeeding the adoption of the Constitution the = maritime interest=97both shipbuilding and shipowning=97thrived more, = perhaps, than=20 any other gainful industry pursued by the Americans. Yet it was a time = when=20 every imaginable device was employed to keep our people out of the=20 ocean-carrying trade. The British regulations, which denied us access to = their=20 ports, were imitated by the French. The Napoleonic wars came Page 18on, and the = belligerents=20 bombarded each other with orders in council and decrees that fell short = of their=20 mark, but did havoc among neutral merchantmen. To the ordinary perils of = the=20 deep the danger of capture=97lawful or unlawful=97by cruiser or = privateer, was=20 always to be added. The British were still enforcing their so-called = "right of=20 search," and many an American ship was left short-handed far out at sea, = after a=20 British naval lieutenant had picked the best of her crew on the pretense = that=20 they were British subjects. The superficial differences between an = American and=20 an Englishman not being as great as those Page 19between an albino and a Congo black, it is = not=20 surprising that the boarding officer should occasionally make=20 mistakes=97particularly when his ship was in need of smart, active = sailors.=20 Indeed, in those years the civilized=97by which at that period was meant = the=20 warlike=97nations were all seeking sailors. Dutch, Spanish, French, and = English=20 were eager for men to man their fighting ships; hired them when they = could, and=20 stole them when they must. It was the time of the press gang, and the = day when=20 sailors carried as a regular part of their kit an outfit of women's = clothing in=20 which to escape if the word were passed that "the press is hot = to-night." The=20 United States had never to resort to impressment to fill its navy ships' = companies, a fact perhaps due chiefly to the small size of its navy in=20 comparison with the seafaring population it had to draw from.

As for the American merchant marine, it was full of British seamen. = Beyond=20 doubt inducements were offered them at every American port to desert and = ship=20 under the Stars and Stripes. In the winter of 1801 every British ship = visiting=20 New York lost the greater part of its crew. At Norfolk the entire crew = of a=20 British merchantman deserted to an American sloop-of-war. A lively trade = was=20 done in forged papers of American citizenship, and the British naval = officer who=20 gave a boat-load of bluejackets shore leave at New York was liable to = find them=20 all Americans when their leave was up. Other nations looked covetously = upon our=20 great body of able-bodied seamen, born within sound of the swash of the = surf,=20 nurtured in the fisheries, able to build, to rig, or to navigate a ship. = They=20 were fighting sailors, too, though serving only in the merchant marine. = In those=20 days the men that went down to the sea in ships had to be prepared to = fight=20 other antagonists than Neptune and =C6olus. All the ships Page 20went armed. It is = curious to=20 read in old annals of the number of cannon carried by small merchantmen. = We find=20 the "Prudent Sarah" mounting 10 guns; the "Olive Branch," belied her = peaceful=20 name with 3, while the pink "Friendship" carried 8. These years, too, = were the=20 privateers' harvest time. During the Revolution the ships owned by one=20 Newburyport merchant took 23,360 tons of shipping and 225 men, the = prizes with=20 their cargoes selling for $3,950,000. But of the size and the profits of = the=20 privateering business more will be said in the chapter devoted to that = subject.=20 It is enough to note here that it made the American merchantman = essentially a=20 fighting man.

The growth of American shipping during the years 1794-1810 is almost=20 incredible in face of the obstacles put in its path by hostile = enactments and=20 the perils of the war. In 1794 United States ships, aggregating 438,863 = tons,=20 breasted the waves, carrying fish and staves to the West Indies, = bringing back=20 spices, rum, cocoa, and coffee. Sometimes they went from the West Indies = to the=20 Canaries, and thence to the west coast of Africa, where very valuable = and very=20 pitiful cargoes of human beings, whose black skins were thought to = justify their=20 treatment as dumb beasts of burden, were shipped. Again the East Indies = opened=20 markets for buying and selling both. But England and almost the whole of = Western=20 Europe were closed.

It is not possible to understand the situation in which the American = sailor=20 and shipowner of that day was placed, without some knowledge of the = navigation=20 laws and belligerent orders by which the trade was vexed. In 1793 the = Napoleonic=20 wars began, to continue with slight interruptions until 1815. France and = England=20 were the chief contestants, and between them American shipping was Page 21sorely harried. = The French at=20 first seemed to extend to the enterprising Americans a boon of = incalculable=20 value to the maritime interest, for the National Convention promulgated = a decree=20 giving to neutral ships=97practically to American ships, for they were = the bulk of=20 the neutral shipping=97the rights of French ships. Overjoyed by this = sudden=20 opening of a rich market long closed, the Yankee barks and brigs slipped = out of=20 the New England harbors in schools, while the shipyards rung with the = blows of=20 the hammers, and the forest resounded with the shouts of the woodsmen = getting=20 out ship-timbers. The ocean Page 22pathway to the French West Indies was = flecked with=20 sails, and the harbors of St. Kitts, Guadaloupe, and Martinique were = crowded.=20 But this bustling trade was short-lived. The argosies that set forth on = their=20 peaceful errand were shattered by enemies more dreaded than wind or sea. = Many a=20 ship reached the port eagerly sought only to rot there; many a merchant = was=20 beggared, nor knew what had befallen his hopeful venture until some = belated=20 consular report told of its condemnation in some French or English = admiralty=20 court.

For England met France's hospitality with a new stroke at American = interests.=20 The trade was not neutral, she said. France had been forced to her = concession by=20 war. Her people were starving because the vigilance of British cruisers = had=20 driven French cruisers from the seas, and no food could be imported. To = permit=20 Americans to purvey food for the French colonies would clearly be to = undo the=20 good work of the British navy. Obviously food was contraband of war. So = all=20 English men-of-war were ordered to seize French goods on whatever ship = found; to=20 confiscate cargoes of wheat, corn, or fish bound for French ports as = contraband,=20 and particularly to board all American merchantmen and scrutinize the = crews for=20 English-born sailors. The latter injunction was obeyed with peculiar = zeal, so=20 that the State Department had evidence that at one time, in 1806, there = were as=20 many as 6000 American seamen serving unwillingly in the British = navy.

France, meanwhile, sought retaliation upon England at the expense of = the=20 Americans. The United States, said the French government, is a sovereign = nation.=20 If it does not protect its vessels against unwarrantable British = aggressions it=20 is because the Americans are secretly in league with the British. France = recognizes no difference Page=20 23between its foes. So it is ordered that any American vessel = which=20 submitted to visitation and search from an English vessel, or paid dues = in a=20 British port, ceased to be neutral, and became subject to capture by the = French.=20 The effect of these orders and decrees was simply that any American ship = which=20 fell in with an English or French man-of-war or privateer, or was forced = by=20 stress of weather to seek shelter in an English or French port, was lost = to her=20 owners. The times were rude, evidence was easy to manufacture, captains = were=20 rapacious, admiralty judges were complaisant, and American commerce was = rich=20 prey. The French West Indies fell an easy spoil to the British, and at=20 Martinique and Basseterre American merchantmen were caught in the = harbor. Their=20 crews were impressed, their cargoes, not yet discharged, seized, the = vessels=20 themselves wantonly destroyed or libelled as prizes. Nor were passengers = exempt=20 from the rigors of search and plunder. The records of the State = Department and=20 the rude newspapers of the time are full of the complaints of = shipowners,=20 passengers, and shipping merchants. The robbery was prodigious in its = amount,=20 the indignity put upon the nation unspeakable. And yet the least = complaint came=20 from those who suffered most. The New England seaport towns were filled = with=20 idle seamen, their harbors with pinks, schooners, and brigs, lying = lazily at=20 anchor. The sailors, with the philosophy of men long accustomed to = submit=20 themselves to nature's moods and the vagaries of breezes, cursed British = and=20 French impartially, and joined in the general depression and idleness of = the=20 towns and counties dependent on their activity.

It was about this period (1794) that the American navy was begun; = though,=20 curiously enough, its foundation was not the outcome of either British = or French=20 depredations, but of the piracies of the Algerians. That fierce and Page = 24predatory people=20 had for long years held the Mediterranean as a sort of a private lake = into which=20 no nation might send its ships without paying tribute. With singular = cowardice,=20 all the European peoples had acquiesced in this conception save England = alone.=20 The English were feared by the Algerians, and an English pass=97which = tradition=20 says the illiterate Corsairs identified by measuring its enscrolled = border,=20 instead of by reading=97protected any vessel carrying it. American = ships, however,=20 were peculiarly the prey of the Algerians, and many an American sailor = was sold=20 by them into slavery until Decatur and Rodgers in 1805 thrashed the = piratical=20 states of North Africa into recognition of American power. In 1794, = however, the=20 Americans were not eager for war, and diplomats strove to arrange a = treaty which=20 would protect American shipping, while Congress prudently ordered the = beginning=20 of six frigates, work to be stopped if peace should be made with the = Dey. The=20 treaty=97not one very honorable to us=97was indeed made some months = later, and the=20 frigates long remained unfinished.

It has been the fashion of late years to sneer at our second war with = England=20 as unnecessary and inconclusive. But no one who studies the records of = the life,=20 industry, and material interests of our people during the years between = the=20 adoption of the Constitution and the outbreak of that war can fail to = wonder=20 that it did not come sooner, and that it was not a war with France as = well as=20 England. For our people were then essentially a maritime people. Their = greatest=20 single manufacturing industry was ship-building. The fisheries=97whale, = herring,=20 and cod=97employed thousands of their men and supported more than one = considerable=20 town. The markets for their products lay beyond seas, and for their = commerce an=20 undisputed right to the peaceful passage of the Page 25ocean was = necessary. Yet=20 England and France, prosecuting their own quarrel, fairly ground = American=20 shipping as between two millstones. Our sailors were pressed, our ships = seized,=20 their cargoes stolen, under hollow forms of law. The high seas were = treated as=20 though they were the hunting preserves of these nations and American = ships were=20 quail and rabbits. The London "Naval Chronicle" at that time, and for = long=20 after, bore at the head of its columns the boastful lines:

And France, while vigorously denying the maxim in so far as it = related to=20 British domination, was not able to see that the ocean could be no one = nation's=20 domain, but must belong equally to all. It was the time when the French = were=20 eloquently discoursing of the rights of man; but they did not appear to = regard=20 the peaceful navigation of the ocean as one of those rights; they were = preaching=20 of the virtues of the American republic, but their rulers issued orders = and=20 decrees that nearly brought the two governments to the point of actual = war. But=20 the very fact that France and England were almost equally arrogant and=20 aggressive delayed the formal declaration of hostilities. Within the = United=20 States two political parties=97the Federalists and the = Republicans=97were struggling=20 for mastery. The one defended, though half-heartedly, the British, and = demanded=20 drastic action against the French spoliators. The other denounced = British=20 insolence and extolled our ancient allies and brothers in republicanism, = the=20 French. While the politicians quarreled the British stole our sailors = and the=20 French stole our ships. In 1798 our, then infant, navy gave bold = resistance to=20 the French ships, and for a time Page 26a quasi-war was waged on the ocean, in = which the=20 frigates "Constitution" and "Constellation" laid the foundation for that = fame=20 which they were to finally achieve in the war with Great Britain in = 1812. No=20 actual war with France grew out of her aggressions. The Republicans came = into=20 power in the United States, and by diplomacy averted an actual conflict. = But the=20 American shipping interests suffered sadly meanwhile. The money finally = paid by=20 France as indemnity for her unwarranted spoliations lay long undivided = in the=20 United States Treasury, and the easy-going labor of urging and = adjudicating=20 French spoliation claims furnished employment to some generations of = politicians=20 after the despoiled seamen and shipowners had gone down into their = graves.

In 1800 the whole number of American ships in foreign and coasting = trades and=20 the fisheries had reached a tonnage of 972,492. The growth was constant, = despite=20 the handicap resulting from the European wars. Indeed, it is probable = that those=20 wars stimulated American shipping more than the restrictive decrees = growing out=20 of them retarded it, for they at least kept England and France (with her = allies)=20 out of the active encouragement of maritime enterprise. But the vessels = of that=20 day were mere pigmies, and the extent of the trade carried on in them = would at=20 this time seem trifling. The gross exports and imports of the United = States in=20 1800 were about $75,000,000 each. The vessels that carried them were of = about=20 250 tons each, the largest attaining 400 tons. An irregular traffic was = carried=20 on along the coast, and it was 1801 before the first sloop was built to = ply=20 regularly on the Hudson between New York and Albany. She was of 100 = tons, and=20 carried passengers only. Sometimes the trip occupied a week, and the = owner of=20 the sloop established an innovation by supplying beds, provisions, Page 27and wines for his = passengers.=20 Between Boston and New York communication was still irregular, = passengers=20 waiting for cargoes. But small as this maritime interest now seems, more = money=20 was invested in it, and it occupied more men, than any other American = industry,=20 save only agriculture.

To this period belong such shipowners as William Gray, of Boston, who = in=20 1809, though he had sixty great square-rigged ships in commission, = nevertheless=20 heartily approved of the embargo with which President Jefferson vainly = strove to=20 combat the outrages of France and England. Though the commerce of those = days was=20 world-wide, its methods=97particularly on the bookkeeping side=97were = primitive. "A=20 good captain," said Merchant Gray, "will sail with a load of fish to the = West=20 Indies, hang up a stocking in the cabin on arriving, put therein hard = dollars as=20 he sells fish, and pay out when he buys rum, molasses, and sugar, and = hand in=20 the stocking on his return in full of all accounts." The West Indies, = though a=20 neighboring market, were far from monopolizing the attention of the New = England=20 shipping merchants. Ginseng and cash were sent to China for silks and = tea, the=20 voyage each way, around the tempestuous Horn, occupying six months. In = 1785 the=20 publication of the journals of the renowned explorer, Captain Cook, = directed the=20 ever-alert minds of the New Englanders to the great herds of seal and = sea-otters=20 on the northwestern coast of the United States, and vessels were soon = faring=20 thither in pursuit of fur-bearing animals, then plentiful, but now = bidding fair=20 to become as rare as the sperm-whale. A typical expedition of this sort = was that=20 of the ship "Columbia," Captain Kendrick, and the sloop "Washington," = Captain=20 Gray, which sailed September 30, 1787, bound to the northwest coast and = China.=20 The merchant who Page=20 28saw his ships drop down the bay bound on such a voyage said = farewell to=20 them for a long time=97perhaps forever. Years must pass before he could = know=20 whether the money he had invested, the cargo he had adventured, the = stout ships=20 he had dispatched, were to add to his fortune or to be at last a total = loss.=20 Perhaps for months he might be going about the wharves and = coffee-houses,=20 esteeming himself a man of substance and so held by all his neighbors, = while in=20 fact his all lay whitening in the surf on some far-distant Pacific = atoll. So it=20 was almost three years before news came back to Boston of these two = ships; but=20 then it was glorious, for then the "Federalist," of New York, came into = port,=20 bringing tidings that at Canton she had met the "Columbia," and had been = told of=20 the discovery by that vessel of the great river in Oregon to which her = name had=20 been given. Thus Oregon and Washington were given to the infant Union, = the=20 latter perhaps taking its name from the little sloop of 90 tons which=20 accompanied the "Columbia" on her voyage. Six months later the two = vessels=20 reached Boston, and were greeted with salutes of cannon from the forts. = They=20 were the first American vessels to circumnavigate the globe. It is = pleasant to=20 note that a voyage which was so full of advantage to the nation was = profitable=20 to the owners. Thereafter an active trade was done with miscellaneous = goods to=20 the northwest Indians, skins and furs thence to the Chinese, and teas = home. A=20 typical outbound cargo in this trade was that of the "Atakualpa" in = 1800. The=20 vessel was of 218 tons, mounted eight guns, and was freighted with = broadcloth,=20 flannel, blankets, powder, muskets, watches, tools, beads, and = looking-glasses.=20 How great were the proportions that this trade speedily assumed may be = judged=20 from the fact that between June, 1800, and January, 1803, there were = imported Page 29into = China, in=20 American vessels, 34,357 sea-otter skins worth on an average $18 to $20 = each.=20 Over a million sealskins were imported. In this trade were employed 80 = ships and=20 9 brigs and schooners, more than half of them from Boston.

Indeed, by the last decade of the eighteenth century Boston had = become the=20 chief shipping port of the United States. In 1790 the arrivals from = abroad at=20 that port Page = 30were=20 60 ships, 7 snows, 159 brigs, 170 schooners, 59 sloops, besides coasters = estimated to number 1,220 sail. In the Independent Chronicle, of = October=20 27, 1791, appears the item: "Upwards of seventy sail of vessels sailed = from this=20 port on Monday last, for all parts of the world." A descriptive sketch, = written=20 in 1794 and printed in the Massachusetts Historical Society collections, = says of=20 the appearance of the water front at that time:

"There are eighty wharves and quays, chiefly on the east side of the = town. Of=20 these the most distinguished is Boston pier, or the Long Wharf, which = extends=20 from the bottom of State Street 1,743 feet into the harbor. Here the = principal=20 navigation of the town is carried on; vessels of all burdens load and = unload;=20 and the London ships generally discharge their cargoes.... The harbor of = Boston=20 is at this date crowded with vessels. It is reckoned that not less than = 450 sail=20 of ships, brigs, schooners, sloops, and small craft are now in this = port."

New York and Baltimore, in a large way; Salem, Hull, Portsmouth, New = London,=20 New Bedford, New Haven, and a host of smaller seaports, in a lesser = degree,=20 joined in this prosperous industry. It was the great interest of the = United=20 States, and so continued, though with interruptions, for more than half = a=20 century, influencing the thought, the legislation, and the literature of = our=20 people. When Daniel Webster, himself a son of a seafaring State, sought = to=20 awaken his countrymen to the peril into which the nation was drifting = through=20 sectional dissensions and avowed antagonism to the national authority, = he chose=20 as the opening metaphor of his reply to Hayne the description of a ship, = drifting rudderless and helpless on the trackless ocean, exposed to = perils both=20 known and unknown. The orator knew his audience. To all New England the = picture=20 had the vivacity Page=20 31of life. The metaphors of the sea were on every tongue. The = story is a=20 familiar one of the Boston clergyman who, in one of his discourses, = described a=20 poor, sinful soul drifting toward shipwreck so vividly that a sailor in = the=20 audience, carried away by the preacher's imaginative skill, cried out: = "Let go=20 your best bower anchor, or you're lost." In another church, which had = its pulpit=20 set at the side instead of at the end, as customary, a sailor remarked=20 critically: "I don't like this craft; it has its rudder amidships."

At this time, and, indeed, for perhaps fifty years thereafter, the = sea was a=20 favorite career, not only for American boys with their way to make in = the world,=20 but for the sons of wealthy men as well. That classic of New England = seamanship,=20 "Two Years Before the Mast," was not written until the middle of the = nineteenth=20 century, and its author went to sea, not in search of wealth, but of = health. But=20 before the time of Richard Henry Dana, many a young man of good family = and=20 education=97a Harvard graduate like him, perhaps=97bade farewell to a = home of=20 comfort and refinement and made his berth in a smoky, fetid forecastle = to learn=20 the sailor's calling. The sons of the great shipping merchants almost = invariably=20 made a few voyages=97oftenest as supercargoes, perhaps, but not = infrequently as=20 common seamen. In time special quarters, midway between the cabin and = the=20 forecastle, were provided for these apprentices, who were known as the = "ship's=20 cousins." They did the work of the seamen before the mast, but were = regarded as=20 brevet officers. There was at that time less to engage the activities = and arouse=20 the ambitions of youth than now, and the sea offered the most promising = career.=20 Moreover, the trading methods involved, and the relations of the captain = or=20 other officers to the owners, were Page 32such as to spur ambition and promise = profit. The=20 merchant was then greatly dependent on his captain, who must judge = markets, buy=20 and sell, and shape his course without direction from home. So the = custom arose=20 of giving the captain=97and sometimes other officers=97an opportunity to = carry goods=20 of their own in the ship, or to share the owner's adventure. In the = whaling and=20 fishery business we shall see that an almost pure communism prevailed. = These=20 conditions attracted to the maritime calling men of an enterprising and=20 ambitious nature=97men to whom the conditions to-day of mere wage = servitude, fixed=20 routes, and constant dependence upon the cabled or telegraphed orders of = the=20 owner would be intolerable. Profits were heavy, and the men who earned = them were=20 afforded opportunities to share them. Ships were multiplying fast, and = no really=20 lively and alert seaman need stay long in the forecastle. Often they = became=20 full-fledged captains and part owners at the age of twenty-one, or even = earlier,=20 for boys went to sea at ages when the youngsters of equally prosperous = families=20 in these days would scarcely have passed from the care of a nurse to = that of a=20 tutor. Thomas T. Forbes, for example, shipped before the mast at the age = of=20 thirteen; was commander of the "Levant" at twenty; and was lost in the = Canton=20 River before he was thirty. He was of a family great in the history of = New=20 England shipping for a hundred years. Nathaniel Silsbee, afterwards = United=20 States Senator from Massachusetts, was master of a ship in the East = India trade=20 before he was twenty-one; while John P. Cushing at the age of sixteen = was the=20 sole=97and highly successful=97representative in China of a large Boston = house.=20 William Sturges, afterwards the head of a great world-wide trading = house,=20 shipped at seventeen, was a captain and manager in the China trade at = nineteen,=20 and Page = 33at=20 twenty-nine left the quarter-deck with a competence to establish his = firm, which=20 at one time controlled half the trade between the United States and = China. A=20 score of such successes might be recounted.

But the fee which these Yankee boys paid for introduction into their = calling=20 was a heavy one. Dana's description of life in the forecastle, written = in 1840,=20 holds good for the conditions prevailing for forty years before and = forty after=20 he penned it. The greeting which his captain gave to the crew of the = brig=20 "Pilgrim" was repeated, with little variation, on a thousand = quarter-decks:

"Now, my men, we have begun a long voyage. If we get along well = together we=20 shall have a comfortable time; if we don't, we shall hay hell afloat. = All you=20 have to do is to obey your orders and do your duty like men=97then you = will fare=20 well enough; if you don't, you will fare hard enough, I can tell you. If = we pull=20 together you will find me a clever fellow; if we don't, you will find me = a=20 bloody rascal. That's all I've got to say. Go below the larboard = watch."

But the note of roughness and blackguardism was not always sounded on = American ships. We find, in looking over old memoirs, that more than one = vessel=20 was known as a "religious ship"=97though, indeed, the very fact that few = were thus=20 noted speaks volumes for the paganism of the mass. But the shipowners of = Puritan=20 New England not infrequently laid stress on the moral character of the = men=20 shipped. Nathaniel Ames, a Harvard graduate who shipped before the mast, = records=20 that on his first vessel men seeking berths even in the forecastle were = ordered=20 to bring certificates of good character from the clergyman whose church = they had=20 last attended. Beyond doubt, however, this was a most unusual = requirement. More=20 often the majority of the crew were rough, illiterate Page 34fellows, often = enticed into=20 shipping while under the influence of liquor, and almost always coming = aboard at=20 the last moment, much the worse for long debauches. The men of a better = sort who=20 occasionally found themselves unluckily shipped with such a crew, have = left on=20 record many curious stories of the way in which sailors, utterly unable = to walk=20 on shore or on deck for intoxication, would, at the word of command, = spring into=20 the rigging, clamber up the shrouds, shake out reefs, and perform the = most=20 difficult duties aloft.

Most of the things which go to make the sailor's lot Page 35at least = tolerable nowadays,=20 were at that time unknown. A smoky lamp swung on gimbals half-lighted = the=20 forecastle=97an apartment which, in a craft of scant 400 tons, did not = afford=20 commodious quarters for a crew of perhaps a score, with their sea chests = and=20 bags. The condition of the fetid hole at the beginning of the voyage, = with four=20 or five apprentices or green hands deathly sick, the hardened seamen = puffing out=20 clouds of tobacco smoke, and perhaps all redolent of rum, was enough to=20 disenchant the most ardent lover of the sea. The food, bad enough in all = ages of=20 seafaring, was, in the early days of our merchant marine, too often = barely fit=20 to keep life in men's bodies. The unceasing round of salt pork, stale = beef,=20 "duff," "lobscouse," doubtful coffee sweetened with molasses, and water, = stale,=20 lukewarm, and tasting vilely of the hogshead in which it had been = stored,=20 required sturdy appetites to make it even tolerable. Even in later days = Frank T.=20 Bullen was able to write: "I have often seen the men break up a couple = of=20 biscuits into a pot of coffee for their breakfast, and after letting it = stand a=20 minute or two, skim off the accumulated scum of vermin from the = top=97maggots,=20 weevils, etc=97to the extent of a couple of tablespoonsful, before they = could=20 shovel the mess into their craving stomachs."

It may be justly doubted whether history has ever known a race of men = so=20 hardy, so self-reliant, so adaptable to the most complex situations, so=20 determined to compel success, and so resigned in the presence of = inevitable=20 failure, as the early American sea captains. Their lives were spent in a = ceaseless conflict with the forces of nature and of men. They had to = deal with a=20 mutinous crew one day and with a typhoon the next. If by skillful = seamanship a=20 piratical schooner was avoided in the reaches of the Spanish Main, the = resources=20 of diplomacy Page=20 36would be taxed the next day to persuade some English or French = colonial=20 governor not to seize the cargo that had escaped the pirates. The = captain must=20 be a seaman, a sea-soldier, a sea-lawyer, and a sea-merchant, shut off = from his=20 principals by space which no electric current then annihilated. He must = study=20 markets, sell his cargo at the most profitable point, buy what his = prophetic=20 vision suggested would sell profitably, and sell half a dozen = intermediate=20 cargoes before returning, and even dispose of the vessel herself, if = gain would=20 result. His experience was almost as much commercial as nautical, and = many of=20 the shipping merchants who formed the aristocracy of old New York and = Boston,=20 mounted from the forecastle to the cabin, thence to the = counting-room.

In a paper on the maritime trade of Salem, the Rev. George Bachelor = tells of=20 the conditions of this early seafaring, the sort of men engaged in it, = and the=20 stimulus it offered to all their faculties:

"After a century of comparative quiet, the citizens of the little = town were=20 suddenly dispersed to every part of the Oriental world, and to every = nook of=20 barbarism which had a market and a shore. The borders of the commercial = world=20 received sudden enlargement, and the boundaries of the intellectual = world=20 underwent similar expansion. The reward of enterprise might be the = discovery of=20 an island in which wild pepper enough to load a ship might be had almost = for the=20 asking, or of forests where precious gems had no commercial value, or = spice=20 islands unvisited and unvexed by civilization. Every ship-master and = every=20 mariner returning on a richly loaded ship was the custodian of valuable=20 information. In those days crews were made up of Salem boys, every one = of whom=20 expected to become an East Indian merchant. When a captain was asked at = Manila=20 how he contrived to find his way in the teeth of a northeast monsoon by = mere=20 dead reckoning, he replied that he had a crew of twelve men, any one of = whom=20 could take and work a lunar observation as well, for all practical = purposes, as=20 Sir Isaac Newton himself.Page=20 37

"When, in 1816, George Coggeshall coasted the Mediterranean in the=20 'Cleopatra's Barge,' a magnificent yacht of 197 tons, which excited the = wonder=20 even of the Genoese, the black cook, who had once sailed with Bowditch, = was=20 found to be as competent to keep a ship's reckoning as any of the = officers.

"Rival merchants sometimes drove the work of preparation night and = day, when=20 virgin markets had favors to be won, and ships which set out for unknown = ports=20 were watched when they slipped their cables and sailed away by night, = and dogged=20 for months on the high seas, in the hopes of discovering a secret, well = kept by=20 the owner and crew. Every man on board was allowed a certain space for = his own=20 little venture. People in other pursuits, not excepting the owner's = minister,=20 entrusted their savings to the supercargo, and watched eagerly the = result of=20 their adventure. This great mental activity, the profuse stores of = knowledge=20 brought by every ship's crew, and distributed, together with India = shawls, blue=20 china, and unheard-of curiosities from every savage shore, gave the = community a=20 rare alertness of intellect."

The spirit in which young fellows, scarcely attained to years of = maturity,=20 met and overcame the dangers of the deep is vividly depicted in Captain = George=20 Coggeshall's narrative of his first face-to-face encounter with death. = He was in=20 the schooner "Industry," off the Island of Teneriffe, during a heavy = gale.

"Captain K. told me I had better go below, and that he would keep an = outlook=20 and take a little tea biscuit on deck. I had entered the cabin, when I = felt a=20 terrible shock. I ran to the companion-way, when I saw a ship athwart = our bows.=20 At that moment our foremast went by the board, carrying with it our main = topmast. In an instant the two vessels separated, and we were left a = perfect=20 wreck. The ship showed a light for a few moments and then disappeared, = leaving=20 us to our fate. When we came to examine our situation, we found our = bowsprit=20 gone close to the knight-heads." An investigation Page 38showed that the = collision had=20 left the "Industry" in a grievous state, while the gale, ever = increasing, blew=20 directly on shore. But the sailors fought sturdily for life. "To retard = the=20 schooner's drift, we kept the wreck of the foremast, bowsprit, sails, = spars,=20 etc., fast by the bowsprit shrouds and other ropes, so that we drifted = to=20 leeward but about two miles the hour. To secure the mainmast was now the = first=20 object. I therefore took with me one of the best of the crew, and = carried the=20 end Page = 39of a rope=20 cable with us up to the mainmast head, and clenched it round the mast, = while it=20 was badly springing. We then took the cable to the windlass and hove = taut, and=20 thus effectually secured the mast.... We were then drifting directly on = shore,=20 where the cliffs were rocky, abrupt, and almost perpendicular, and were = perhaps=20 almost 1,000 feet high. At each blast of lightning we could see the surf = break,=20 whilst we heard the awful roar of the sea dashing and breaking against = the rocks=20 and caverns of this iron-bound island.

"When I went below I found the captain in the act of going to bed; = and as=20 near as I can recollect, the following dialogue took place:

"'Well, Captain K., what shall we do next? We have now about six = hours to=20 pass before daylight; and, according to my calculation, we have only = about three=20 hours more drift. Still, before that time there may, perhaps, be some = favorable=20 change.'

"He replied: 'Mr. C., we have done all we can, and can do nothing = more. I am=20 resigned to my fate, and think nothing can save us.'

"I replied: 'Perhaps you are right; still, I am resolved to struggle = to the=20 last. I am too young to die; I am only twenty-one years of age, and have = a=20 widowed mother, three brothers, and a sister looking to me for support = and=20 sympathy. No, sir, I will struggle and persevere to the last.'

"'Ah,' said he, 'what can you do? Our boat will not live five minutes = in the=20 surf, and you have no other resource.'

"'I will take the boat,' said I, 'and when she fills I will cling to = a spar.=20 I will not die until my strength is exhausted and I can breathe no = longer.' Here=20 the conversation ended, when the captain covered his head with Page 40a blanket. I then = wrote the=20 substance of our misfortune in the log-book, and also a letter to my = mother;=20 rolled them up in a piece of tarred canvas; and, assisted by the = carpenter, put=20 the package into a tight keg, thinking that this might probably be = thrown on=20 shore, and thus our friends might perhaps know of our end."

Men who face Death thus sturdily are apt to overcome him. The gale = lessened,=20 the ship was patched up, the craven captain resumed command, and in two = weeks'=20 time the "Industry" sailed, sorely battered, into Santa Cruz, to find = that she=20 had been given up as lost, and her officers and crew "were looked upon = as so=20 many men risen from the dead." Young Coggeshall lived to follow the sea = until=20 gray-haired and weather-beaten, to die in his bed at last, and to tell = the story=20 of his eighty voyages in two volumes of memoirs, now growing very rare. = Before=20 he was sixteen he had made the voyage to Cadiz=97a port now moldering, = but which=20 once was one of the great portals for the commerce of the world. In his = second=20 voyage, while lying in the harbor of Gibraltar, he witnessed one of the = almost=20 every-day dangers to which American sailors of that time were = exposed:

"While we were lying in this port, one morning at daylight we heard = firing at=20 a distance. I took a spy-glass, and from aloft could clearly see three = gunboats=20 engaged with a large ship. It was a fine, clear morning, with scarcely = wind=20 enough to ruffle the glass-like surface of the water. During the first = hour or=20 two of this engagement the gunboats had an immense advantage; being = propelled=20 both by sails and oars, they were enabled to choose their own position. = While=20 the ship lay becalmed and unmanageable they poured grape and canister = shot into=20 her stern and bows like hailstones. At this time the ship's crew could = not bring=20 a single gun to bear upon them, and all they could do was to use their = small=20 arms through the ports and over the rails. Fortunately for the crew, the = ship=20 had thick and high bulwarks, which protected them from the fire of the = enemy, so=20 that while they Page=20 41were hid and screened by the boarding cloths, they could use = their=20 small arms to great advantage. At this stage of the action, while the = captain,=20 with his speaking-trumpet under his left arm, was endeavoring to bring = one of=20 his big guns to bear on one of the gunboats, a grapeshot passed through = the port=20 and trumpet and entered his chest near his shoulder-blade. The chief = mate=20 carried him below and laid him upon a mattress on the cabin floor. For a = moment=20 it seemed to dampen the ardor of the men; but it was but for an instant. = The=20 chief mate (I think his name was Randall), a gallant young man from = Nantucket,=20 then took the command, rallied, and encouraged the men to continue the = action=20 with renewed obstinacy and vigor. At this time a lateen-rigged vessel, = the=20 largest of the three privateers, was preparing to make a desperate = atempt to=20 board the ship on the larboard quarter, and, with nearly all his men on = the=20 forecastle and long bowsprit, were ready to take the final leap.

"In order to meet and frustrate the design of the enemy, the mate of = the ship=20 had one of the quarter-deck guns loaded with grape and canister shot; he = then=20 ordered all the ports on this quarter to be shut, so that the gun could = not be=20 seen; and thus were both parties prepared when the privateer came boldly = up=20 within a few yards of the ship's lee quarter. The captain, with a = threatening=20 flourish of his sword, cried out with a loud voice, in broken English: = 'Strike,=20 you damned rascal, or I will put you all to death.' At this moment a=20 diminutive-looking man on board the 'Louisa,' with a musket, took = deliberate aim=20 through one of the waist ports, and shot him dead. Instantly the gun was = run out=20 and discharged upon the foe with deadly effect, so that the remaining = few on=20 board the privateer, amazed and astounded, were glad to give up the = conflict and=20 get off the best way they could.

"Soon after this a breeze sprung up, so that they could work their = great guns=20 to some purpose. I never shall forget the moment when I saw the = Star-Spangled=20 Banner blow out and wave gracefully in the wind, through the smoke. I = also at=20 the same moment saw with pleasure the three gunboats sailing and rowing = away=20 toward the land to make their escape. When the ship drew near the port, = all the=20 boats from the American shipping voluntarily went to assist in bringing = her to=20 anchor. She proved to be the letter-of-marque ship 'Louisa,' of = Philadelphia.Page 42

"I went with our captain on board of her, and we there learned that, = with the=20 exception of the captain, not a man had been killed or wounded. The ship = was=20 terribly cut up and crippled in her sails and rigging=97lifts and braces = shot=20 away; her stern was literally riddled like a grater, and both large and = small=20 shot, in great numbers, had entered her hull and were sticking to her = sides. How=20 the officers and crew escaped unhurt is almost impossible to conceive. = The poor=20 captain was immediately taken on shore, but only survived his wound a = few days.=20 He had a public funeral, and was followed to the grave by all the = Americans in=20 Gibraltar, and very many of the officers of the garrison and inhabitants = of the=20 town.

3D'"INSTANTLY
"INSTANTLY=20 THE GUN WAS RUN OUT AND DISCHARGED"

"The ship had a rich cargo of coffee, sugar, and India goods on = board, and I=20 believe was bound for Leghorn. The gunboats belonged to Algeciras and = fought=20 under French colors, but were probably manned by the debased of all = nations. I=20 can form no idea how many were killed or wounded on board the gunboats, = but from=20 the great number of men on board, and from Page 43the length of the action, there must have = been great=20 slaughter. Neither can I say positively how long the engagement lasted; = but I=20 should think at least from three to four hours. To the chief mate too = much=20 credit can not be given for saving the ship after the captain was=20 shot."

This action occurred in 1800, and the assailants fought under French = colors,=20 though the United States were at peace with France. It was fought within = easy=20 eyesight of Gibraltar, and therefore in British waters; but no effort = was made=20 by the British men-of-war=97always plentiful there=97to maintain the = neutrality of=20 the port. For sailors to be robbed or murdered, or to fight with = desperation to=20 avert robbery and murder, was then only a commonplace of the sea. Men = from the=20 safety of the adjoining shore only looked on in calm curiosity, as = nowadays men=20 look on indifferently to see the powerful freebooter of the not less = troubled=20 business sea rob, impoverish, and perhaps drive down to untimely death = others=20 who only ask to be permitted to make their little voyages unvexed by=20 corsairs.

From a little book of memoirs of Captain Richard J. Cleveland, the = curious=20 observer can learn what it was to belong to a seafaring family in the = golden=20 days of American shipping. His was a Salem stock. His father, in 1756, = when but=20 sixteen years old, was captured by a British press-gang in the streets = of=20 Boston, and served for years in the British navy. For this compulsory = servitude=20 he exacted full compensation in later years by building and commanding = divers=20 privateers to prey upon the commerce of England. His three sons all = became=20 sailors, taking to the water like young ducks. A characteristic note of = the=20 cosmopolitanism of the young New Englander of that day is sounded in the = most=20 matter-of-fact fashion by young Cleveland Page 44in a letter from Havre: "I can't help = loving home,=20 though I think a young man ought to be at home in any part of the = globe." And at=20 home everywhere Captain Cleveland certainly was. All his life was spent = in=20 wandering over the Seven Seas, in ships of every size, from a 25-ton = cutter to a=20 400-ton Indiaman. In those days of navigation laws, blockades, hostile = cruisers,=20 hungry privateers, and bloodthirsty pirates, the smaller craft was often = the=20 better, for it was wiser to brave nature's moods in a cockle-shell than = to=20 attract men's notice in a great ship. Captain Cleveland's voyages from = Havre to=20 the Cape of Good Hope, in a 45-ton cutter; from Calcutta to the Isle of = France,=20 in a 25-ton sloop; and Captain Coggeshall's voyage around Cape Horn in = an=20 unseaworthy pilot-boat are typical exploits of Yankee seamanship. We see = the=20 same spirit manifested occasionally nowadays when some New Englander = crosses the=20 ocean in a dory, or circumnavigates the world alone in a 30-foot sloop. = But=20 these adventures are apt to end ignominiously in a dime museum.

A noted sailor in his time was Captain Benjamin I. Trask, master of = many=20 ships, ruler of many deeps, who died in harness in 1871, and for whom = the flags=20 on the shipping in New York Bay were set at half-mast. An appreciative = writer,=20 Mr. George W. Sheldon, in Harper's Magazine, tells this story to = show=20 what manner of man he was; it was on the ship "Saratoga," from Havre to = New=20 York, with a crew among whom were several recently liberated French=20 convicts:

"The first day out the new crew were very troublesome, owing in part, = doubtless, to the absence of the mate, who was ill in bed and who died = after a=20 few hours. Suddenly the second mate, son of the commander, heard his = father call=20 out, 'Take hold of the wheel,' and going forward, saw him holding a = sailor Page 45at = arm's length.=20 The mutineer was soon lodged in the cockpit; but all hands=97the watch = below and=20 the watch on deck=97came aft as if obeying a signal, with threatening = faces and=20 clenched fists. The captain, methodical and cool, ordered his son to run = a line=20 across the deck between him and the rebellious crew, and to arm the = steward and=20 the third mate.

"'Now go forward and get to work', he said to the gang, who = immediately made=20 a demonstration to break the line. 'The first man who passes that rope,' = added=20 the captain, 'I will shoot. I am going to call you one by one; if two = come at a=20 time I will shoot both.'

"The first to come forward was a big fellow in a red shirt. He had = hesitated=20 to advance when called; but the 'I will give you one more invitation, = sir,' of=20 the captain furnished him with the requisite resolution. So large were = his=20 wrists that ordinary shackles were too small to go around them, and=20 ankle-shackles took their place. Escorted by the second and third mates = to the=20 cabin, he was made to lie flat on his stomach, while staples were driven = through=20 the chains of his handcuffs to pin him down. After eighteen of the = mutineers had=20 been similarly treated, the captain himself withdrew to the cabin and = lay on a=20 sofa, telling the second mate to call him in an hour. The next minute he = was=20 asleep with the stapled ruffians all around him."

As the ocean routes became more clearly defined, and the limitations = and=20 character of international trade more systematized, there sprung up a = new type=20 of American ship-master. The older type=97and the more romantic=97was = the man who=20 took his ship from Boston or New York, not knowing how many ports he = might enter=20 nor in how many markets he might have to chaffer before his return. But = in time=20 there came to be regular trade routes, over which ships went and came = with=20 almost the regularity of the great steamships on the Atlantic ferry = to-day.=20 Early in the nineteenth century the movement of both freight and = passengers=20 between New York or Boston on this side and London and Liverpool on the = other=20 began to demand regular sailings on announced Page 46days, and so the = era of the=20 American packet-ship began. Then, too, the trade with China grew to such = great=20 proportions that some of the finest fortunes America knew in the days = before the=20 "trust magnate" and the "multimillionaire"=97were founded upon it. The=20 clipper-built ship, designed to bring home the cargoes of tea in season = to catch=20 the early market, was the outcome of this trade. Adventures were still = for the=20 old-time trading captain who wandered about from port to port with = miscellaneous=20 cargoes; but the new aristocracy of the sea trod the deck of the packets = and the=20 clippers. Their ships were built all along the New England coast; but = builders=20 on the shores of Chesapeake Bay soon began to struggle for pre=EBminence = in this=20 style of naval architecture. Thus, even in the days of wooden ships, the = center=20 of the ship-building industry began to move toward that point where it = now seems=20 definitely located. By 1815 the name "Baltimore clipper" was taken all = over the=20 world to signify the highest type of merchant vessel that man's skill = could=20 design. It was a Baltimore ship which first, in 1785, displayed the = American=20 flag in the Canton River and brought thence the first cargo of silks and = teas.=20 Thereafter, until the decline of American shipping, the Baltimore = clippers led=20 in the Chinese trade. These clippers in model were the outcome of forty = years of=20 effort to evade hostile cruisers, privateers, and pirates on the lawless = seas.=20 To be swift, inconspicuous, quick in maneuvering, and to offer a small = target to=20 the guns of the enemy, were the fundamental considerations involved in = their=20 design. Mr. Henry Hall, who, as special agent for the United States = census, made=20 in 1880 an inquiry into the history of ship-building in the United = States, says=20 in his report:Page=20 47

"A permanent impression has been made upon the form and rig of = American=20 vessels by forty years of war and interference. It was during that = period that=20 the shapes and fashions that prevail to-day were substantially attained. = The old=20 high poop-decks and quarter galleries disappeared with the lateen and = the=20 lug-sails on brigs, barks, and ships; the sharp stem was permanently = abandoned;=20 the curving home of the stem above the house poles went out of vogue, = and=20 vessels became longer in proportion to beam. The round bottoms were much = in use,=20 but the tendency toward a straight rise of the floor from the keel to a = point=20 half-way to the outer width of the ship became marked and popular. = Hollow=20 water-lines fore and aft were introduced; the forefoot of the hull = ceased to be=20 cut away so much, and the swell of the sides became less marked; the = bows became=20 somewhat sharper and were often made flaring above the water, and the = square=20 sprit-sail below the bowsprit was given up. American ship-builders had = not yet=20 learned to give their vessels much sheer, however, and in a majority of = them the=20 sheer line was almost straight from stem to stern; nor had they learned = to=20 divide the topsail into an upper and lower sail, and American vessels = were=20 distinguished by their short lower mast and the immense hoist of the = topsail.=20 The broadest beam was still at two-fifths the length of the hull. Hemp = rigging,=20 with broad channels and immense tops to the masts, was still retained; = but the=20 general arrangement and cut of the head, stay, square, and spanker sails = at=20 present in fashion were reached. The schooner rig had also become = thoroughly=20 popularized, especially for small vessels requiring speed; and the fast = vessels=20 of the day were the brigs and schooners, which were made long and sharp = on the=20 floor and low in the water, with considerable rake to the = masts."

Such is the technical description of the changes which years of peril = and of=20 war wrought in the model of the American sailing ship. How the vessel = herself,=20 under full sail, looked when seen through the eyes of one who was a = sailor, with=20 the education of a writer and the temperament of a poet, is well told in = these=20 lines from "Two Years Before the Mast":Page 48

"Notwithstanding all that has been said about the beauty of a ship = under full=20 sail, there are very few who have ever seen a ship literally under all = her sail.=20 A ship never has all her sail upon her except when she has a light, = steady=20 breeze very nearly, but not quite, dead aft, and so regular that it can = be=20 trusted and is likely to last for some time. Then, with all her sails, = light and=20 heavy, and studding-sails on each side alow and aloft, she is the most = glorious=20 moving object in the world. Such a sight very few, even some who have = been at=20 sea a good deal, have ever beheld; for from the deck of your own vessel = you can=20 not see her as you would a separate object.

"One night, while we were in the tropics, I went out to the end of = the flying=20 jib-boom upon some duty; and, having finished it, turned around and lay = over the=20 boom for a long time, admiring the beauty of the sight before me. Being = so far=20 out from the deck, I could look at the ship as at a separate vessel; and = there=20 rose up from the water, supported only by the small black hull, a = pyramid of=20 canvas spreading far out beyond the hull and towering up almost, as it = seemed in=20 the indistinct night, into the clouds. The sea was as still as an inland = lake;=20 the light trade-wind was gently and steadily breathing from astern; the=20 dark-blue sky was studded with the tropical stars; there was no sound = but the=20 rippling of the water under the stem; and the sails were spread out wide = and=20 high=97the two lower studding-sails stretching on either side far beyond = the deck;=20 the topmost studding-sails like wings to the topsails; the topgallant=20 studding-sails spreading fearlessly out above them; still higher the two = royal=20 studding-sails, looking like two kites flying from the same string; and = highest=20 of all the little sky-sail, the apex of the pyramid, seeming actually to = touch=20 the stars and to be out of reach of human hand. So quiet, too, was the = sea, and=20 so steady the breeze, that if these sails had been sculptured marble = they could=20 not have been more motionless=97not a ripple on the surface of the = canvas; not=20 even a quivering of the extreme edges of the sail, so perfectly were = they=20 distended by the breeze. I was so lost in the sight that I forgot the = presence=20 of the man who came out with me, until he said (for he, too, rough old=20 man-of-war's man that he was, had been gazing at the show), half to = himself,=20 still looking at the marble sails: 'How quietly they do their work!'"Page = 49

The building of packet ships began in 1814, when some semblance of = peace and=20 order appeared upon the ocean, and continued until almost the time of = the Civil=20 War, when steamships had already begun to cut away the business of the = old=20 packets, and the Confederate cruisers were not needed to complete the = work. But=20 in their day these were grand examples of marine architecture. The first = of the=20 American transatlantic lines was the Black Ball line, so called from the = black=20 sphere on the white pennant which its ships displayed. This line was = founded in=20 1815, by Isaac Wright & Company, with four ships sailing the first = of every=20 month, and making the outward run in about twenty-three days, the = homeward=20 voyage in about forty. These records were often beaten by ships of this = and=20 other lines. From thirteen to fifteen days to Liverpool was not an = unknown=20 record, but was rare enough to cause comment.

It was in this era that the increase in the size of ships began=97an = increase=20 which is still going on without any sign of check. Before the War of = 1812 men=20 circumnavigated the world in vessels that would look small now carrying = brick on=20 the Tappan Zee. The performances of our frigates in 1812 first called = the=20 attention of builders to the possibilities of the bigger ship. The early = packets=20 were ships of from 400 to 500 tons each. As business grew larger ones = were=20 built=97stout ships of 900 to 1100 tons, double-decked, with a poop-deck = aft and a=20 top-gallant forecastle forward. The first three-decker was the "Guy = Mannering,"=20 1419 tons, built in 1849 by William H. Webb, of New York, who later = founded the=20 college and home for ship-builders that stands on the wooded hills north = of the=20 Harlem River. In 1841, Clark & Sewall, of Bath, Me.=97an historic = house=97built=20 the "Rappahannock," 179.6 feet long, with a tonnage ofPage 50 1133 tons. For a = time she=20 was thought to be as much of a "white elephant" as the "Great Eastern"=20 afterwards proved to be. People flocked to study her lines on the ways = and see=20 her launched. They said only a Rothschild could afford to own her, and = indeed=20 when she appeared in the Mississippi=97being built for the cotton = trade=97freights=20 to Liverpool instantly fell off. But thereafter the size of ships=97both = packet=20 and clippers=97steadily and rapidly increased. Glancing down the long = table of=20 ships and their records prepared for the United States census, we find = such=20 notations as these.

Ship "Flying Cloud," built 1851; tonnage 1782; 374 miles in one day; = from New=20 York to San Francisco in 89 days 18 hours; in one day she made 433-1/2 = miles,=20 but reducing this to exactly 24 hours, she made 427-1/2 miles.

Ship "Comet," built 1851; tonnage 1836; beautiful model and good = ship; made=20 332 knots in 24 hours, and 1512 knots in 120 consecutive hours.

"Sovereign of the Seas," built 1852; tonnage 2421; ran 6,245 miles in = 22=20 days; 436 miles in one day; for four days her average was 398 miles.

"Lightning," built 1854; tonnage 2084; ran 436 miles in 24 hours, = drawing 22=20 feet; from England to Calcutta with troops, in 87 days, beating other = sailing=20 vessels by from 16 to 40 days; from Boston to Liverpool in 13 days 20 = hours.

"James Baines," built 1854, tonnage 2515; from Boston to Liverpool in = 12 days=20 6 hours.

Three of these ships came from the historic yards of Donald McKay, at = New=20 York, one of the most famous of American ship-builders. The figures show = the=20 steady gain in size and speed that characterized the work of American=20 ship-builders in those days. Then the United States was in truth a = maritime=20 nation. Every boy knew the Page 51sizes and records of the great ships, and = each=20 magnificent clipper had its eager partisans. Foreign trade was active. = Merchants=20 made great profit on cargoes from China, and speed was a prime element = in the=20 value of a ship. In 1840 the discovery of gold in California added a new = demand=20 for ocean shipping; the voyage around the Horn, already common enough = for=20 whalemen and men engaged in Asiatic trade, was taken by tens of = thousands of=20 adventurers. Then came the news of gold in Australia, and again demands = were=20 clamorous for more swift American ships. All nations of Europe were = buyers at=20 our shipyards, and our builders began seriously to consider whether the = supply=20 of timber would hold out. The yards of Maine and Massachusetts sent far = afield=20 for white oak knees and pine planking. Southern forests were drawn upon, = and=20 even the stately pines of Puget Sound were felled to make masts for a = Yankee=20 ship.Page = 52

CHAPTER II.

Page = 53The Transition from Sails to Steam=97The Change in Marine=20 Architecture=97The Depopulation of the Ocean=97Changes in the Sailor's = Lot=97From Wood=20 to Steel=97The Invention of the Steamboat=97The Fate of Fitch=97Fulton's = Long=20 Struggles=97Opposition of the Scientists=97The "Clermont"=97The = Steamboat on The=20 Ocean=97On Western Rivers=97The Transatlantic Passage=97The "Savannah" = Makes the First=20 Crossing=97Establishment of British Lines=97Efforts of United States = Ship-owners to=20 Compete=97The Famous Collins Line=97The Decadence of Our Merchant = Marine=97Signs of=20 Its Revival=97Our Great Domestic Shipping Interest=97America's Future On = The=20 Sea.

Even as recently as twenty years ago, the water front of a great = seaport like=20 New York, viewed from the harbor, showed a towering forest of tall and = tapering=20 masts, reaching high up above the roofs of the water-side buildings, = crossed=20 with slender spars hung with snowy canvas, and braced with a web of taut = cordage. Across the street that passed the foot of the slips, reached = out the=20 great bowsprits or jibbooms, springing from fine-drawn bows where, above = a keen=20 cut-water, the figurehead=97pride of the ship=97nestled in confident = strength.=20 Neptune with his trident, Venus rising from the sea, admirals of every = age and=20 nationality, favorite heroes like Wellington and Andrew Jackson were = carved,=20 with varying skill, from stout oak, and set up to guide their vessels = through=20 tumultuous seas.

To-day, alas, the towering masts, the trim yards, the web of cordage, = the=20 quaint figureheads, are gone or going fast. The docks, once so populous, = seem=20 deserted=97not Page=20 54because maritime trade has fallen off, but because one = steamship does=20 the work that twenty stout clippers once were needed for. The clipper = bow with=20 figurehead and reaching jib-boom are gone, for the modern steamship has = its bow=20 bluff, its stem perpendicular, the "City of Rome" being the last great = steamship=20 to adhere to the old model. It is not improbable, however, that in this = respect=20 we shall see a return to old models, for the straight stem=97an American = invention, by the way=97is held to be more dangerous in case of = collisions. Many=20 of the old-time sailing ships have been shorn of their towering masts, = robbed of=20 their canvas, and made into ignoble barges which, loaded with coal, are = towed=20 along by some fuming, fussing tugboat=97as Samson shorn of his locks was = made to=20 bear the burdens of the Philistines. This transformation from sail to = steam has=20 robbed the ocean of much of its picturesqueness, and seafaring life of = much of=20 its charm, as well as of many of its dangers.

The greater size of vessels and their swifter trips under steam, have = had the=20 effect of depopulating the ocean, even in established trade routes. In = the old=20 days of ocean travel the meeting of a ship at sea was an event long to = be=20 remembered. The faint speck on the horizon, discernible only through the = captain's glass, was hours in taking on the form of a ship. If a = full-rigged=20 ship, no handiwork of man could equal her impressiveness as she bore = down before=20 the wind, sail mounting on sail of billowing whiteness, until for the = small hull=20 cleaving the waves so swiftly, to carry all seemed nothing sort of = marvelous.=20 Always there was a hail and an interchange of names and ports; sometimes = both=20 vessels rounded to and boats passed and repassed. But now the courtesies = of the=20 sea have gone with its picturesqueness. Great ocean liners rushing = through the=20 deep, give each other as little Page 55heed as = railway=20 trains passing on parallel tracks. A twinkle of electric signals, or a=20 fluttering of parti-colored flags, and each seeks its own horizon=97the = incident=20 bounded by minutes where once it would have taken hours.

It would not be easy to say whether the sailor's lot has been = lightened or=20 not, by the substitution of steel for wood, of steam for sail. Perhaps = the best=20 evidence that the native-born American does not regard the change as = wholly a=20 blessing, is to be found in the fact that but few of them now follow the = sea,=20 and scarcely a vestige is left of the old New England seafaring = population=20 except in the fisheries=97where sails are still the rule. Doubtless the=20 explanation of this lies in the changed conditions of seafaring as a = business.=20 In the days which I have sketched in the first chapter, the boy of good = habits=20 and reasonable education who shipped before the mast, was fairly sure of = prompt=20 promotion to the quarter-deck, of a right to share in the profits of the = voyage,=20 and of finally owning his own ship. After 1860 all these conditions = changed.=20 Steamships, always costly to build, involved greater and greater = investments as=20 their size increased. Early in the history of steam navigation they = became=20 exclusively the property of corporations. Latterly the steamship lines = have=20 become adjuncts to great railway lines, and are conducted by the = practiced stock=20 manipulator=97not by the veteran sea captain.

Richard J. Cleveland, a successful merchant navigator of the early = days of=20 the nineteenth century, when little more than a lad, undertook an = enterprise,=20 thus described by him in a letter from Havre:

"I have purchased a cutter-sloop of forty-three tons burden, on a = credit of=20 two years. This vessel was built at Dieppe and fitted out for a = privateer; was=20 taken by the English, and has Page 57been plying between Dover and Calais as a=20 packet-boat. She has excellent accommodations and sails fast. I shall = copper=20 her, put her in ballast, trim with =A31000 or =A31500 sterling in cargo, = and proceed=20 to the Isle of France and Bourbon, where I expect to sell her, as well = as the=20 cargo, at a very handsome profit, and have no doubt of being well paid = for my=20 twelve months' work, calculating to be with you next August."

In such enterprises the young American sailors were always = engaging=97braving=20 equally the perils of the deep Page 58and not less treacherous reefs and shoals = of=20 business but always struggling to become their own masters to command = their own=20 ships, and if possible, to carry their own cargoes. The youth of a = nation that=20 had fought for political independence, fought themselves for economic=20 independence.

To men of this sort the conditions bred by the steam-carrying trade = were=20 intolerable. To-day a great steamship may well cost $2,000,000. It must = have the=20 favor of railway companies for cargoes, must possess expensive wharves = at each=20 end of its route, must have an army of agents and solicitors ever = engaged upon=20 its business. The boy who ships before the mast on one of them, is less = likely=20 to rise to the position of owner, than the switchman is to become = railroad=20 president=97the latter progress has been known, but of the former I can = not find a=20 trace. So comparatively few young Americans choose the sea for their = workshop in=20 this day of steam.

If this book were the story of the merchant marine of all lands and = all=20 peoples, a chapter on the development of the steamship would be, = perhaps, the=20 most important, and certainly the most considerable part of it. But with = the=20 adoption of steam for ocean carriage began the decline of American = shipping, a=20 decline hastened by the use of iron, and then steel, for hulls. Though = we credit=20 ourselves=97not without some protest from England=97with the invention = of the=20 steamboat, the adaptation of the screw to the propulsion of vessels, and = the=20 invention of triple-expansion engines, yet it was England that seized = upon these=20 inventions and with them won, and long held, the commercial mastery of = the seas.=20 To-day (1902) it seems that economic conditions have so changed that the = shipyards of the United States will again compete for the business of = the world.=20 We are building ships as good=97perhaps Page 59better=97than can be constructed anywhere = else, but=20 thus far we have not been able to build them as cheap. Accordingly our = builders=20 have been restricted to the construction of warships, coasters, and = yachts.=20 National pride has naturally demanded that all vessels for the navy be = built in=20 American shipyards, and a federal law has long restricted the trade = between=20 ports of the United States to ships built here. The lake shipping,=20 too=97prodigious in numbers and activity=97is purely American. But until = within a=20 few years the American flag had almost disappeared from vessels engaged = in=20 international trade. Americans in many instances are the owners of ships = flying=20 the British flag, for the United States laws deny American = registry=97which is to=20 a ship what citizenship is to a man=97to vessels built abroad. While the = result of=20 this attempt to protect American shipyards has been to drive our flag = from the=20 ocean, there are indications now that our shipyards are prepared to = build as=20 cheaply as others, and that the flag will again figure on the high = seas.

Popular history has ascribed to Robert Fulton the honor of building = and=20 navigating the first steamboat. Like claims to priority in many other=20 inventions, this one is strenuously contested. Two years before Fulton's = "Clermont" appeared on the Hudson, John Stevens, of Hoboken, built a = steamboat=20 propelled by a screw, the model of which is still in the Stevens = Polytechnic=20 Institute. Earlier still, John Fitch, of Pennsylvania, had made a = steamboat, and=20 urged it upon Franklin, upon Washington, and upon the American = Philosophical=20 Society without success; tried it then with the Spanish minister, and = was=20 offered a subsidy by the King of Spain for the exclusive right to the = invention.=20 Being a patriotic American, Fitch refused. "My invention must be first = for my=20 own country and then for all the world," said he. But Page 60later, after = failing to reap=20 any profit from his discover and finding himself deprived even of the = honor of=20 first invention, he wrote bitterly in 1792:

"The strange ideas I had at that time of serving my country, without = the=20 least suspicion that my only reward would be contempt and opprobrious = names! To=20 refuse the offer of the Spanish nation was the act of a blockhead of = which I=20 should not be guilty again."

Indeed Fitch's fortune was hard. His invention was a work of the = purest=20 originality. He was unread, uneducated, and had never so much as heard = of a=20 steam-engine when the idea of propelling boats by steam came to him. = After=20 repeated rebuffs=97the lot of every inventor=97he at length secured from = the State=20 of New Jersey the right to navigate its waters for a term of years. With = this a=20 stock company was formed and the first boat built and rebuilt. At first = it was=20 propelled by a single paddle at the stem; then by a series of paddles = attached=20 to an endless chain on each side of the boat; afterwards by = paddle-wheels, and=20 finally by upright oars at the side. The first test made on the Delaware = River=20 in August, 1787=97twenty years before Fulton=97in the presence of many = distinguished=20 citizens, some of them members of the Federal Convention, which had = adjourned=20 for the purpose, was completely successful. The boiler burst before the=20 afternoon was over, but not before the inventor had demonstrated the = complete=20 practicability of his invention.

For ten years, struggling the while against cruel poverty, John Fitch = labored=20 to perfect his steamboat, and to force it upon the public favor, but in = vain.=20 Never in the history of invention did a new device more fully meet the=20 traditional "long-felt want." Here was a growing nation made up of a = fringe of=20 colonies strung along an extended coast. No roads were built. Dense = forests=20 blocked the Page 61way=20 inland but were pierced by navigable streams, deep bays, and placid = sounds. The=20 steamboat was the one thing necessary to cement American unity and speed = American progress; but a full quarter of a century passed after Fitch = had=20 steamed up and down the Delaware before the new system of propulsion = became=20 commercially useful. The inventor did not live to see that day, and was = at least=20 spared the pain of seeing a later pioneer get credit for a discovery he = thought=20 his own. In 1798 he died=97of an overdose of morphine=97leaving behind = the bitter=20 writing: "The day will come when some powerful man will get fame and = riches from=20 my invention; but nobody will ever believe that poor John Fitch can do = anything=20 worthy of attention."

In trying to make amends for the long injustice done to poor Fitch, = modern=20 history has come near to going beyond justice. It is undoubted that = Fitch=20 applied steam to the propulsion of a boat, long before Fulton, but that = Fitch=20 himself was the first inventor is not so certain. Blasco de Garay built = a rude=20 steamboat in Barcelona in 1543; in Germany one Papin built one a few = years=20 later, which bargemen destroyed lest their business be injured by it. = Jonathan=20 Hulls, of Liverpool, in 1737 built a stern-wheeler, rude engravings of = which are=20 still in existence, and Symington in 1801 built a thoroughly practical = steamboat=20 at Dundee. 'Tis a vexed question, and perhaps it is well enough to say = that=20 Fitch first scented the commercial possibilities of steam navigation, = while=20 Fulton actually developed them=97the one "raised" the fox, while the = other was in=20 at the death.

To trace a great idea to the actual birth is apt to be obstructive to = national pride. It is even said that the Chinese of centuries ago = understood the=20 value of the Page=20 62screw-propeller=97for inventing which our adoptive citizen = Ericsson=20 stands in bronze on New York's Battery.

From the time of Robert Fulton, at any rate, dates the commercial = usage of=20 the steamboat. Others had done the pioneering=97Fitch on the Delaware, = James=20 Rumsey on the Potomac, William Longstreet on the Savannah, Elijah = Ormsley on the=20 waters of Rhode Island, while Samuel Morey had actually traveled by = steamboat=20 from New Haven to New York. Fulton's craft was not materially better = than any of=20 these, but it happened to be launched on

But the flood of that tide did not come to Fulton without long = waiting and=20 painstaking preparation. He was the son of an Irish immigrant, and born = in=20 Pennsylvania in 1765. To inventive genius he added rather unusual gifts = for=20 drawing and painting; for a time followed the calling of a painter of = miniatures=20 and went to London to study under Benjamin West, whom all America of = that day=20 thought a genius scarcely second to Raphael or Titian. He was not, like = poor=20 Fitch, doomed to the narrowest poverty and shut out from the society of = the men=20 of light and learning of the day, for we find him, after his London = experience,=20 a member of the family of Joel Barlow, then our minister to France. By = this time=20 his ambition had forsaken art for mechanics, and he was deep in plans = for diving=20 boats, submarine torpedoes, and steamboats. Through various channels he=20 succeeded in getting his plan for moving vessels with steam, before=20 Napoleon=97then First Consul=97who ordered the Minister of Marine to = treat with the=20 inventor. The Minister in due time suggested that 10,000 francs be spent = on=20 experiments to be made in the Harbor of Brest. To this Napoleon = assented, Page 63and = sent Fulton to=20 the Institute of France to be examined as to his fitness to conduct the = tests.=20 Now the Institute is the most learned body in all France. In 1860 one of = its=20 members wrote a book to prove that the earth does not revolve upon its = axis, nor=20 move about the sun. In 1878, when Edison's phonograph was being = exhibited to the=20 eminent scientists of the Institute, one rushed wrathfully down the = aisle and=20 seizing by the collar the man who manipulated the instrument, cried out, = "Wretch, we are not to be made dupes of by a ventriloquist!" So it is = readily=20 understandable that after being referred to the Institute, Fulton and = his=20 project disappeared for a long time.

The learned men of the Institute of France were not alone in their=20 incredulity. In 1803 the Philosophical Society of Rotterdam wrote to the = American Philosophical Society of Philadelphia, for information = concerning the=20 development of the steam-engine in the United States. The question was = referred=20 to Benjamin H. Latrobe, the most eminent engineer in America, and his = report was=20 published approvingly in the Transactions. "A sort of mania," = wrote Mr.=20 Latrobe, "had indeed prevailed and not yet entirely subsided, for = impelling=20 boats by steam-engines." But his scientific hearers would at once see = that there=20 were general objections to it which could not be overcome. "These are, = first,=20 the weight of the engine and of the fuel; second, the large space it = occupies;=20 third, the tendency of its action to rack the vessel and render it = leaky;=20 fourth, the expense of maintenance; fifth, the irregularity of its = motion and=20 the motion of the water in the boiler and cistern, and of the fuel = vessel in=20 rough weather; sixth, the difficulty arising from the liability of the = paddles,=20 or oars, to break, if light, and from the weight if made strong."Page 64

But the steamboat survived this scientific indictment in six counts. = Visions=20 proved more real than scientific reasoning.

While in the shadow of the Institute's disfavor, Fulton fell in with = the new=20 minister to France, Robert R. Livingston, and the result of this = acquaintance=20 was that America gained primacy in steam navigation, and Napoleon lost = the=20 chance to get control of an invention which, by revolutionizing = navigation,=20 might have broken that British control of the sea, that in the end = destroyed the=20 Napoleonic empire. Livingston had long taken an intelligent interest in = the=20 possibilities of steam power, and had built and tested, on the Hudson, = an=20 experimental steamboat of his own. Perhaps it was this, as much as = anything,=20 which aroused the interest of Thomas Jefferson=97to whom he owed his = appointment=20 as minister to France=97for Jefferson was actively interested in every = sort of=20 mechanical device, and his mind was not so scientific as to be = inhospitable to=20 new, and even, revolutionary, ideas. But Livingston was not possessed by = that=20 idea which, in later years, politicians have desired us to believe = especially=20 Jeffersonian. He was no foe to monopoly. Indeed, before he had perfected = his=20 steamboat, he used his political influence to get from New York the = concession=20 of the exclusive right to navigate her lakes and rivers by steam. = The=20 grant was only to be effective if within one year he should produce a = boat of=20 twenty tons, moved by steam. But he failed, and in 1801 went to France, = where he=20 found Fulton. A partnership was formed, and it was largely through = Livingston's=20 money and influence that Fulton succeeded where others, earlier in the = field=20 than he, had failed. Yet even so, it was not all easy sailing for him. = "When I=20 was building my first steamboat," he said, "the project was viewed by = the public=20 either with indifference, or Page 65with contempt as a visionary scheme. My = friends,=20 indeed, were civil, but were shy. They listened with patience to my=20 explanations, but with a settled cast of incredulity upon their = countenances. I=20 felt the full force of the lamentation of the poet=97

"As I had occasion to pass daily to and from the building yard while = my boat=20 was in progress, I have often loitered unknown near the idle groups of = strangers=20 gathered in little circles and heard various inquiries as to the object = of this=20 new vehicle. The language was uniformly that of scorn, or sneer, or = ridicule.=20 The loud laugh often rose at my expense; the dry jest; the wise = calculation of=20 Page = 66losses and=20 expenditures; the dull, but endless repetition of 'the Fulton Folly.' = Never did=20 a single encouraging remark, a bright hope, or a warm wish cross my = path."

The boat which Fulton was building while the wiseacres wagged their = heads and=20 prophesied disaster, was named "The Clermont." She was 130 feet long, 18 = feet=20 wide, half-decked, and provided with a mast and sail. In the undecked = part were=20 the boiler and engine, set in masonry. The wheels were fifteen feet in = diameter,=20 with buckets four feet wide, dipping two feet into the water.

It was 1806 when Fulton came home to begin her construction. Since = his=20 luckless experience with the French Institute he had tested a steamer on = the=20 Seine; failed to interest Napoleon; tried, without success, to get the = British=20 Government to adopt his torpedo; tried and failed again with the = American=20 Government at Washington. Fulton's thoughts seemed to have been riveted = on his=20 torpedo; but Livingston was confident of the future of the steamboat, = and had=20 had an engine built for it in England, which Fulton found lying on a = wharf,=20 freight unpaid, on his return from Europe. The State of New York had = meantime=20 granted the two another monopoly of steam navigation, and gave them = until 1807=20 to prove their ability and right. The time, though brief, proved = sufficient, and=20 on the afternoon of August 7, 1807, the "Clermont" began her = epoch-making=20 voyage. The distance to Albany=97150 miles=97she traversed in thirty-two = hours, and=20 the end of the passenger sloop traffic on the Hudson was begun. Within a = year=20 steamboats were plying on the Raritan, the Delaware, and Lake Champlain, = and the=20 development and use of the new invention would have been more rapid than = it was,=20 save for the monopoly rights which had been granted to Livingston and = Fulton.=20 They had the sole right to navigate by steam, the waters Page 67of New York. Well = and good.=20 But suppose the stream navigated touched both New York and New Jersey. = What=20 then? Would it be seriously asserted that a steamer owned by New Jersey = citizens=20 could not land passengers at a New York port?

Fulton and Livingston strove to protect their monopoly, and the two = States=20 were brought to the brink of war. In the end the courts settled the = difficulty=20 by establishing the exclusive control of navigable waters by the Federal = Government.

From the day the "Clermont" breasted the tide of the Hudson there was = no=20 check in the conquest of the waters by steam. Up the narrowest rivers, = across=20 the most tempestuous bays, along the placid waters of Long Island Sound, = coasting along the front yard of the nation from Portland to Savannah = the=20 steamboats made their way, tying the young nation indissolubly together. = Curiously enough it was Livingston's monopoly that gave the first = impetus to the=20 extension of steam navigation. A mechanic by the name of Robert L. = Stevens, one=20 of the first of a family distinguished in New York and New Jersey, built = a=20 steamboat on the Hudson. After one or two trips had proved its = usefulness, the=20 possessors of the monopoly became alarmed and began proceedings against = the new=20 rival. Driven from the waters about New York, Stevens took his boat = around to=20 Philadelphia. Thus not only did he open an entirely new field of river = and=20 inland water transportation, but the trip to Philadelphia demonstrated = the=20 entire practicability of steam for use in coastwise navigation. = Thereafter the=20 vessels multiplied rapidly on all American waters. Fulton himself set up = a=20 shipyard, in which he built steam ferries, river and coastwise = steamboats. In=20 1809 he associated himself with Nicholas J. Roosevelt, to whom credit is = due for=20 the invention Page=20 68of the vertical paddle-wheel, in a partnership for the purpose = of=20 putting steamboats on the great rivers of the Mississippi Valley, and in = 1811=20 the "New Orleans" was built and navigated by Roosevelt himself, from = Pittsburg=20 to the city at the mouth of the Mississippi. The voyage took fourteen = days, and=20 before undertaking it, he descended the two rivers in a flatboat, to = familiarize=20 himself with the channel. The biographer of Roosevelt prints an = interesting=20 letter from Fulton, in which he says, "I have no pretensions to be the = inventor=20 of the steamboat. Hundreds of others have tried it and failed." Four = years after=20 Roosevelt's voyage, the "Enterprise" made for the first time in history = the=20 voyage up the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers from New Orleans to = Louisville, and=20 from that era the great rivers may be said to have been fairly opened to = that=20 commerce, which in time became the greatest agency in the building up of = the=20 nation. The Great Lakes were next to feel the quickening influence of = the new=20 motive power, but it was left for the Canadian, John Hamilton, of = Queenston, to=20 open this new field. The progress of steam navigation on both lakes and = rivers=20 will be more fully described in the chapters devoted to that topic.

So rapidly now did the use of the steamboat increase on Long Island = Sound, on=20 the rivers, and along the coast that the newspapers began to discuss = gravely the=20 question whether the supply of fuel would long hold out. The boats used = wood=20 exclusively=97coal was then but little used=97and despite the vast = forests which=20 covered the face of the land the price of wood in cities rose because of = their=20 demand. Mr. McMaster, the eminent historian, discovers that in 1825 = thirteen=20 steamers plying on the Hudson burned sixteen hundred cords of wood per = week.=20 Fourteen hundred cords more were used by New York Page 69ferry boats, and each trip of a Sound steamer = consumed sixty=20 cords. The American who traverses the placid waters of Long Island Sound = to-day=20 in one of the swift and splendid steamboats of the Fall River or other = Sound=20 lines, enjoys very different accommodations from those which in the = second=20 quarter of the last century were regarded as palatial. The luxury of = that day=20 was a simple sort at best. When competition became strong, the old = Fulton=20 company, then running boats to Albany, announced as a special attraction = the=20 "safety barge." This was a craft without either sails or steam, of about = two=20 hundred tons burden, and used exclusively for passengers. It boasted a = spacious=20 dining-room, ninety feet long, a deck cabin for ladies, a reading room, = a=20 promenade deck, shaded and provided with seats. One of the regular = steamers of=20 the line towed it to Albany, and its passengers were assured freedom = from the=20 noise and vibration of machinery, as well as safety from possible boiler = explosions=97the latter rather a common peril of steamboating in those = days.

It was natural that the restless mind of the American, untrammeled by = traditions and impatient of convention, should turn eagerly and early to = the=20 question of crossing the ocean by steam. When the rivers had been made = busy=20 highways for puffing steamboats; when the Great Lakes, as turbulent as = the=20 ocean, and as vast as the Mediterranean, were conquered by the new = marine=20 device; when steamships plied between New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, = Savannah, and Charleston, braving what is by far more perilous than = mid-ocean,=20 the danger of tempests on a lee shore, and the shifting sands of = Hatteras, there=20 seemed to the enterprising man no reason why the passage from New York = to=20 Liverpool might not be made by the same agency. The scientific = authorities were=20 all against it. Curiously Page 71enough, the weight of scientific authority = is always=20 against anything new. Marine architects and mathematicians proved to = their own=20 satisfaction at least that no vessel could carry enough coal to cross = the=20 Atlantic, that the coal bunkers would have to be bigger than the vessel = itself,=20 in order to hold a sufficient supply for the furnaces. It is a matter of = history=20 that an eminent British scientist was engaged in delivering a lecture on = this=20 very subject in Liverpool when the "Savannah," the first steamship to = cross the=20 ocean, steamed into the harbor. It is fair, however, to add that the=20 "Savannah's" success did not wholly destroy the contention of the = opponents of=20 steam navigation, for she made much of the passage under sail, being = fitted only=20 with what we would call now "auxiliary steam power." This was in 1819, = but so=20 slow were the shipbuilders to progress beyond what had been done with = the=20 "Savannah," that in 1835 a highly respected British scientist said in = tones of=20 authority: "As to the project which was announced in the newspapers, of = making=20 the voyage from New York to Liverpool direct by steam, it was, he had no = hesitation in saying, perfectly chimerical, and they might as well talk = of=20 making a voyage from New York or Liverpool to the moon." Nevertheless, = in three=20 years from that time transatlantic steam lines were in operation, and = the doom=20 of the grand old packets was sealed.

The American who will read history free from that national prejudice = which is=20 miscalled patriotism, can not fail to be impressed by the fact that, = while as a=20 nation we have led the world in the variety and audacity of our = inventions, it=20 is nearly always some other nation that most promptly and most = thoroughly=20 utilizes the genius of our inventors. Emphatically was this the case = with the=20 application of steam power to ocean steamships. Americans Page 72showed the way, = but=20 Englishmen set out upon it and were traveling it regularly before = another=20 American vessel followed in the wake of the "Savannah." In 1838 two = English=20 steamships crossed the Atlantic to New York, the "Sirius" and the "Great = Western." That was the beginning of that great fleet of British steamers = which=20 now plies up and down the Seven Seas and finds its poet laureate in Mr. = Kipling.=20 A very small beginning it was, too. The "Sirius" was of 700 tons burden = and 320=20 horse-power; the "Great Western" was 212 feet long, with a tonnage of = 1340 and=20 engines of 400 horse-power. The "Sirius" brought seven passengers to New = York,=20 at a time when the sailing clippers were carrying from eight hundred to = a=20 thousand immigrants, and from twenty to forty cabin passengers. To those = who=20 accompanied the ship on her maiden voyage it must have seemed to justify = the=20 doubts expressed by the mathematicians concerning the practicability of=20 designing a steamship which could carry enough coal to drive the engines = all the=20 way across the Atlantic, for the luckless "Sirius" exhausted her four = hundred=20 and fifty tons of coal before reaching Sandy Hook, and could not have = made the=20 historic passage up New York Bay under steam, except for the liberal use = of=20 spars and barrels of resin which she had in cargo. Her voyage from Cork = had=20 occupied eighteen and a half days. The "Great Western," which arrived at = the=20 same time, made the run from Queenstown in fifteen days. That two = steamships=20 should lie at anchor in New York Bay at the same time, was enough to = stir the=20 wonder and awaken the enthusiasm of the provincial New Yorkers of that = day. The=20 newspapers published editorials on the marvel, and the editor of The = Courier=20 and Enquirer, the chief maritime authority of the time, hazarded a = prophecy=20 in this cautious fashion:Page=20 73

"What may be the ultimate fate of this excitement=97whether or not = the expenses=20 of equipment and fuel will admit of the employment of these vessels in = the=20 ordinary packet service=97we cannot pretend to form an opinion; but of = the entire=20 feasibility of the passage of the Atlantic by steam, as far as regards = safety,=20 comfort, and dispatch, even in the roughest and most boisterous weather, = the=20 most skeptical must now cease to doubt."

Unfortunately for our national pride, the story of the development of = the=20 ocean steamship industry from this small beginning to its present = prodigious=20 proportions, is one in which we of the United States fill but a little = space. We=20 have, it is true, furnished the rich cargoes of grain, of cotton, and of = cattle,=20 that have made the ocean passage in one direction profitable for = shipowners. We=20 found homes for the millions of immigrants who crowded the "'tween = decks" of=20 steamers of every flag and impelled the companies to build bigger and = bigger=20 craft to carry the ever increasing throngs. And in these later days of = luxury=20 and wealth unparalleled, we have supplied the millionaires, whose = demands for=20 quarters afloat as gorgeous as a Fifth Avenue club have resulted in the = building=20 of floating palaces. America has supported the transatlantic lines, but = almost=20 every civilized people with a seacoast has outdone us in building the = ships. For=20 a time, indeed, it seemed that we should speedily overcome the lead that = England=20 immediately took in building steamships. Her entrance upon this industry = was, as=20 we have seen, in 1838. The United States took it up about ten years = later. In=20 1847 the Ocean Steam Navigation Company was organized in this country = and=20 secured from the Government a contract to carry the mails between New = York and=20 Bremen. Two ships were built and regular trips made for a year or more; = but when=20 the Government contract expired and was not renewed, the venture Page 74was abandoned. = About the same=20 time the owners of one of the most famous packet lines, the Black Ball, = tried=20 the experiment of supplementing their sailing service with a steamship, = but it=20 proved unprofitable. Shortly after the New York and Havre Steamship = Company,=20 with two vessels and a postal subsidy of $150,000, entered the field and = continued operations with only moderate success until 1868.

The only really notable effort of Americans in the early days of = steam=20 navigation to get their share of transatlantic trade=97indeed, I might = almost say=20 the most determined effort until the present time=97was that made by the = projectors of the Collins line, and it ended in disaster, in heavy = financial=20 loss, and in bitter sorrow.

E.K. Collins was a New York shipping merchant, the organizer and = manager of=20 one of the most famous of the old lines of sailing packets between that = port and=20 Liverpool=97the Dramatic line, so called from the fact that its ships = were named=20 after popular actors of the day. Recognizing the fact that the sailing = ship was=20 fighting a losing fight against the new style of vessels, Mr. Collins = interested=20 a number of New York merchants in a distinctly American line of = transatlantic=20 ships. It was no easy task. Capital was not over plenty in the American = city=20 which now boasts itself the financial center of the world, while the=20 opportunities for its investment in enterprises longer proved and less = hazardous=20 than steamships were numerous. But a Government mail subsidy of $858,000 = annually promised a sound financial basis, and made the task of = capitalization=20 possible. It seems not unlikely that the vicissitudes of the line were = largely=20 the result of this subsidy, for one of its conditions was extremely = onerous:=20 namely, that the vessels making twenty-six voyages annually between New = York and=20 Liverpool, should always Page=20 75make the passage in better time than the British Cunard line, = which was=20 then in its eighth year. However, the Collins line met the exaction = bravely.=20 Four vessels were built, the "Atlantic," "Pacific," "Arctic," and = "Baltic," and=20 the time of the fleet for the westward passage averaged eleven days, ten = hours=20 and twenty-one minutes, while the British ships averaged twelve days, = nineteen=20 hours and twenty-six minutes=97a very substantial triumph for American = naval=20 architecture. The Collins liners, furthermore, were models of comfort = and even=20 of luxury for the times. They averaged a cost of $700,000 apiece, a good = share=20 of which went toward enhancing the comfort of passengers. To our English = cousins=20 these ships were at first as much of a curiosity as our vestibuled = trains were a=20 few years since. When the "Atlantic" first reached Liverpool in 1849, = the=20 townspeople by the thousand came down to the dock to examine a ship with = a=20 barber shop, fitted with the curious American barber chairs enabling the = customer to recline while being shaved. The provision of a special = deck-house=20 for smokers, was another innovation, while the saloon, sixty-seven by = twenty=20 feet, the dining saloon sixty by twenty, the rich fittings of rosewood = and=20 satinwood, marble-topped tables, expensive upholstery, and stained-glass = windows, decorated with patriotic designs, were for a long time the = subject of=20 admiring comment in the English press. Old voyagers who crossed in the = halcyon=20 days of the Collins line and are still taking the "Atlantic ferry," = agree in=20 saying that the increase in actual comfort is not so great as might = reasonably=20 be expected. Much of the increased expenditures of the companies has = gone into=20 more gorgeous decoration, vastly more of course into pushing for greater = speed;=20 but even in the early days there was a lavish table, and before the days = of the=20 steamships the Page=20 76packets offered such private accommodations in the of roomy = staterooms=20 as can be excelled only by the "cabins de luxe" of the modern liner. = Aside from=20 the question of speed, however, it is probable that the two inventions = which=20 have added most to the passengers' comfort are the electric light and = artificial=20 refrigeration.

The Collins line charged from thirty to forty dollar a ton for = freight, a=20 charge which all the modern improvements and the increase in the size of = vessels, has not materially lessened. In six years, however, the = corporation was=20 practically bankrupt. The high speed required by the Government more = than offset=20 the generous subsidy, and misfortune seemed to pursue the ships. The = "Arctic"=20 came into collision with a French steamer in 1854, and went down with = two=20 hundred and twenty-two of the two hundred and sixty-eight people on = board. The=20 "Pacific" left Liverpool June 23, 1856, and was never more heard of. = Shortly=20 thereafter the subsidy was withdrawn, and the famous line went slowly = down to=20 oblivion.

It was during the best days of the Collins line that it seemed that = the=20 United States might overtake Great Britain in the race for supremacy on = the=20 ocean. In 1851 the total British steam shipping engaged in foreign trade = was=20 65,921 tons. The United States only began building steamships in 1848, = yet by=20 1851 its ocean-going steamships aggregated 62,390 tons. For four years = our=20 growth continued so that in 1855 we had 115,000 tons engaged in foreign = trade.=20 Then began the retrograde movement, until in 1860=97before the time of = the=20 Confederate cruisers=97there were; according to an official report to = the National=20 Board of Trade, "no ocean mail steamers away from our own coasts, = anywhere on=20 the globe, under the American flag, except, perhaps, on the route = between New=20 York and Havre, where two steamships may then Page 77have been in = commission,=20 which, however, were soon afterward withdrawn. The two or three = steamship=20 companies which had been in existence in New York had either failed or = abandoned=20 the business; and the entire mail, passenger, and freight traffic = between Great=20 Britain and the United States, so far as this was carried on by steam, = was=20 controlled then (as it mainly is now) by British companies." And from = this=20 condition of decadence the merchant marine of the United States is just=20 beginning to manifest signs of recovery.

When steam had fairly established its place as the most effective = power for=20 ocean voyages of every duration, and through every zone and clime, = improvements=20 in the methods of harnessing it, and in the form and material of the = ships that=20 it was to drive, followed fast upon each other. As in the case of the = invention=20 of the steamboat, the public has commonly lightly awarded the credit for = each=20 invention to some belated experimenter who, walking more firmly along a = road=20 which an earlier pioneer had broken, attained the goal that his = predecessor had=20 sought in vain. So we find credit given almost universally to John = Ericsson, the=20 Swedish-born American, for the invention of the screw-propeller. But as = early as=20 1770 it was suggested by John Watt, and Stevens, the American inventor, = actually=20 gave a practical demonstration of its efficiency in 1804. Ericsson = perfected it=20 in 1836, and soon thereafter the British began building steamships with = screws=20 instead of paddle-wheels. For some reason, however, not easy now to = conjecture,=20 shipbuilders clung to the paddle-wheels for vessels making the = transatlantic=20 voyage, long after they were discarded on the shorter runs along the = coasts of=20 the British isles. It so happened, too, that the first vessel to use the = screw=20 in transatlantic voyages, was also first iron ship built. She was the = "Great=20 Britain," a Page=20 78ship of 3,000 tons, built for the Great Western Company at = Bristol,=20 England, and intended to eclipse any ship afloat. Her hull was well on = the way=20 to completion when her designer chanced to see the "Archimedes," the = first screw=20 steamer built, and straightway changed his plans to admit the use of the = new=20 method of propulsion So from 1842 may be dated the use of both screw = propellers=20 and iron ships. We must pass hastily over the other inventions, rapidly=20 following each other, and all designed to make ocean travel more swift, = more=20 safe, and more comfortable, and to increase the profit of the shipowner. = The=20 compound engine, which has been so developed that in place of Fulton's = seven=20 miles an hour, our ocean steamships are driven now at a speed sometimes = closely=20 approaching twenty-five miles an hour, seems already destined to give = way to the=20 turbine form of engine which, applied thus far to torpedo-boats only, = has made a=20 record of forty-four miles an hour. Iron, which stood for a revolution = in 1842,=20 has itself given way to steel. And a new force, subtile, swift, and = powerful,=20 has found endless application in the body of the great ships, so that = from stem=20 to stern-post they are a network of electric wires, bearing messages,=20 controlling the independent engines that swing the rudder, closing = water-tight=20 compartments at the first hint of danger, and making the darkest places = of the=20 great hulls as light as day at the throwing of a switch. During the = period of=20 this wonderful advance in marine architecture ship-building in the = United States=20 languished to the point of extinction. Yachts for millionaires who could = afford=20 to pay heavily for the pleasure of flying the Stars and Stripes, ships = of 2500=20 to 4000 tons for the coasting trade, in which no foreign-built vessel = was=20 permitted to compete, and men-of-war=97very few of them before = 1890=97kept a few=20 shipyards from complete Page=20 79obliteration. But as an industry, ship-building, which once = ranked at=20 the head of American manufactures, had sunk to a point of = insignificance.

The present moment (1902) seems to show the American shipping = interest in the=20 full tide of successful re=EBstablishment. In Congress and in boards of = trade men=20 are arguing for and against subsidies, for and against the policy of = permitting=20 Americans to buy ships of foreign builders if they will, and fly the = American=20 flag above them. But while these things remain subjects of discussion = natural=20 causes are taking Americans again to sea. Some buy great British ships, = own and=20 manage them, even although the laws of the United States compel the = flying of a=20 foreign flag. For example, the Atlantic Transport line is owned wholly = by=20 citizens of the United States, although at the present moment all its = ships fly=20 the British flag. Two new ships are, however, being completed for this = line in=20 American shipyards, the "Minnetonka" and "Minnewaska," of 13,401 tons = each. This=20 line, started by Americans in 1887, was the first to use the so-called = bilge=20 keels, or parallel keels along each side of the hull to prevent rolling. = It now=20 has a fleet of twenty-three vessels, with a total tonnage of about = 90,000, and=20 does a heavy passenger business despite the fact that its ships were = primarily=20 designed to carry cattle. Quite as striking an illustration of the fact = that=20 capital is international, and will be invested in ships or other = enterprises=20 which promise profit quite heedless of sentimental considerations of = flags, was=20 afforded by the purchase in 1901 of the Leyland line of British = steamships by an=20 American. Immediately following this came the consolidation of = ownership, or=20 merger, of the principal British-American lines, in one great = corporation, a=20 majority of the stock of which is held by Americans. Despite their = ownership Page 80on = this side of=20 the water, these ships will still fly the British flag, and a part of = the=20 contract of merger is that a British shipyard shall for ten years build = all new=20 vessels needed by the consolidated lines this situation will persist. = This=20 suggests that the actual participation of Americans in the = ocean-carrying trade=20 of the world is not to be estimated by the frequency or infrequency with = which=20 the Stars and Stripes are to be met on the ocean. It furthermore gives = some=20 indication of the rapidity with which the American flag would reappear = if the=20 law to register only ships built in American yards were repealed.

Indeed, it would appear that the law protecting American = ship-builders, while=20 apparently effective for that purpose, has destroyed American shipping. = Our=20 ship-building industry has attained respectable and even impressive = proportions;=20 but our shipping, wherever brought into competition with foreign ships, = has=20 vanished. One transatlantic line only, in 1902 displayed the American = flag, and=20 that line enjoyed special and unusual privileges, without which it = probably=20 could not have existed. In consideration of building two ships in = American=20 yards, this line, the International Navigation Company, was permitted to = transfer two foreign-built ships to American registry, and a ten years' = postal=20 contract was awarded it, which guaranteed in advance the cost of = construction of=20 all the ships it was required to build. It is a fact worth noting that, = while=20 the foreign lines have been vying with each other in the construction of = faster=20 and bigger ships each year, this one has built none since its initial=20 construction, more than a decade ago. Ten years ago its American-built = ships,=20 the "New York" and the "Paris," were the largest ships afloat; now there = are=20 eighteen larger in commission, and many building. Besides this, there = are only=20 two American lines on the Atlantic which ply to Page 81other than = coastwise=20 ports=97the Pacific Mail, which is run in connection with the Panama = railway, and=20 the Admiral line, which plies between New York and the West Indies. = Indeed, the=20 Commissioner of Navigation, in his report for 1901, said:

"For serious competition with foreign nations under the conditions = now=20 imposed upon ocean navigation, we are practically limited to our = registered iron=20 and steam steel vessels, which in all number 124, of 271,378 gross tons. = Those=20 under 1,000 gross tons are not now commercially available for oversea = trade.=20 There remains 4 steamships, each of over 10,000 gross tons; 5 of between = 5,000=20 and 6,000 gross tons; 2 of between 4,000 and 5,000 tons; 18 between 3000 = and=20 4000 tons; 35 between 2000 and 3000 tons, and 33 between 1000 and 2000 = tons; in=20 all 97 steamships over 1000 tons, aggregating 260,325 gross tons."

Most of these are engaged in coastwise trade. The fleet of the=20 Hamburg-American line alone, among our many foreign rivals, aggregates = 515,628=20 gross tons.

However, we must bear in mind that this seemingly insignificant place = held by=20 the United States merchant marine represents only the part it holds in = the=20 international carrying trade of the world. Such a country as Germany = must expend=20 all its maritime energies on international trade. It has little or no = river and=20 coastwise traffic. But the United States is a little world in itself; = not so=20 very small, and of late years growing greater. Our wide extended coasts = on=20 Atlantic, Pacific, and the Mexican Gulf, are bordered by rich States = crowded=20 with a people who produce and consume more per capita than any other = race. From=20 the oceans great navigable rivers, deep bays, and placid sounds, extend = into the=20 very heart of the country. The Great Lakes are bordered by States Page 82more populous and = cities more=20 busy and enterprising than those, which in the proudest days of Rome, = and=20 Carthage and Venice skirted the Mediterranean and the Adriatic. The = traffic of=20 all these trade highways is by legislation reserved for American ships = alone. On=20 the Great Lakes has sprung up a merchant marine rivaling that of some of = the=20 foremost maritime peoples, and conducting a traffic that puts to shame = the=20 busiest maritime highways of Europe. Long Island Sound bears on its = placid bosom=20 steamships that are the marvel of the traveling public the world over. = The=20 Hudson, the Ohio, the Mississippi, are all great arteries through which = the life=20 current of trade is ceaselessly flowing. A book might be written on the = one=20 subject of the part that river navigation has played in developing the = interior=20 States of this Union. Another could well be devoted to the history of = lake=20 navigation, which it is no overstatement to pronounce the most = impressive=20 chapter in the history of the American merchant marine. In this volume, = however,=20 but brief attention can be given to either.

The figures show how honorably our whole body of shipping compares in = volume=20 to that operated by any maritime people. Our total registered shipping = engaged=20 in the fisheries, coastwise, and lake traffic, and foreign trade = numbered at the=20 beginning of 1902, 24,057 vessels, with an aggregate tonnage of = 5,524,218 tons.=20 In domestic trade alone we had 4,582,683 tons, or an amount exceeding = the total=20 tonnage of Germany and Norway combined, or of Germany and France. Only = England=20 excelled us, but her lead, which in 1860 was inconsiderable, in 1901 was = prodigious; the British flag flying over no less than 14,261,254 tons of = shipping, more than three times our tonnage! It is proper to note that = more than=20 two-thirds of our registered tonnage is of wood.Page 83

I have already given reasons why, in the natural course of things, = this=20 disparity between the American and the British foreign-going merchant = marine=20 will not long continue. And indeed, as this book is writing, it is = apparent that=20 its end is near. Though shipyards have multiplied fast in the last five = years of=20 the nineteenth century, the first years of the new century found them = all=20 occupied up to the very limit of their capacity. Yards that began, like = the=20 Cramps, building United States warships and finding little other work, = were soon=20 under contract to build men-of-war for Russia and Japan. The interest of = the=20 people in the navy afforded a great stimulus to shipbuilding. It is told = of one=20 of the principal yards, that its promotor went to Washington with a bid = for=20 naval construction in his pocket, but without either a shipyard or = capital=20 wherewith to build one. He secured a contract for two ships, and capital = readily=20 interested itself in his project. When that contract is out of the way = the yard=20 will enter the business of building merchant vessels, just as several = yards,=20 which long had their only support from naval contracts, are now doing. = There=20 were built in the year ending June 30, 1901, in American yards, 112 = vessels of=20 over 1000 tons each, or a total of 311,778. Many of these were lake = vessels;=20 some were wooden ships. Of modern steel steamers, built on the seaboard, = there=20 were but sixteen. At the present moment there are building in American = yards, or=20 contracted for, almost 255,325 tons of steel steamships, to be launched = within a=20 year=97or 89 vessels, more than twice the output of any year in our = history, and=20 an impressive earnest for the future. Nor is this rapid increase in the=20 ship-building activity of the United States accompanied by any reduction = in the=20 wages of the American working men. Their high wages, of which = ship-builders=20 complain, and in which everyone else Page 84rejoices, remain high. But it has been = demonstrated=20 to the satisfaction, even of foreign observers, that the highly-paid = American=20 labor is the most effective, and in the end the cheapest. Our workingmen = know=20 how to use modern tools, to make compressed air, steam, electricity do = their=20 work at every possible point, and while the United States still ranks = far below=20 England as a ship-building center, Englishmen, Germans, and Frenchmen = are coming=20 over here to learn how we build the ships that we do build. If it has = not yet=20 been demonstrated that we can build ships as cheaply as any other = nation, we are=20 so near the point of demonstration, that it may be said to be expected=20 momentarily. With the cheapest iron in the world, we have at least = succeeded in=20 making steel, the raw material of the modern ship, cheaper than it can = be made=20 elsewhere, and that accomplished, our primacy in the matter of = ship-building is=20 a matter of the immediate future. A picturesque illustration of this = change is=20 afforded by the fact that in 1894 the plates of the "Dirigo," the first = steel=20 square-rigged vessel built in the United States, were imported from = England. In=20 1898 we exported to England some of the plates for the "Oceanic," the = largest=20 vessel built to that time.

Even the glory, such as it may be, of building the biggest ship of = the time=20 is now well within the grasp of the United States. At this writing, = indeed, the=20 biggest ship is the "Celtic," British built, and of 20,000 tons. But the = distinction is only briefly for her, for at New London, Connecticut, two = ponderous iron fabrics are rising on the ways that presently shall take = form as=20 ocean steamships of 25,000 tons each, to fly the American flag, and to = ply=20 between Seattle and China. These great ships afford new illustrations of = more=20 than one point already made in this chapter. To begin with they are, of = course,=20 not constructed Page=20 85for any individual owner. Time was that the farmer with land = sloping=20 down to New London would put in his spare time building a staunch = schooner of=20 200 tons, man her with his neighbors, and engage for himself in the = world's=20 carrying trade. It is rather different now. The Northern Pacific = railroad=20 directors concluded that their railroad could not be developed to its = fullest=20 earning capacity without some way of carrying to the markets of the far = East the=20 agricultural products gathered up along its line. As the tendency of the = times=20 is toward gathering all branches of a business under one control, they=20 determined to not rely upon independent shipowners, but to build their = own=20 vessels. That meant the immediate letting of a contract for $5,000,000 = worth of=20 ship construction, and that in turn meant that there was a profit to = somebody in=20 starting an entirely new shipyard to do the work. So, suddenly, one of = the=20 sleepiest little towns in New England, Groton, opposite New London, was = turned=20 into a ship-building port. The two great Northern Pacific ships will be = launched=20 about the time this book is published, but the yard by that time will = have=20 become a permanent addition to the ship-building enterprises of the = United=20 States. So, too, all along the Atlantic coast, we find ancient shipyards = where,=20 in the very earliest colonial days, wooden vessels were built, adapting=20 themselves to the construction of the new steel steamships.

How wonderful is the contrast between the twentieth century, steel,=20 triple-screw, 25,000-ton, electric-lighted, 25-knot steamship, and = Winthrop's=20 little "Blessing of the Bay," or Fulton's "Clermont," or even the ships = of the=20 Collins line=97floating palaces as they were called at the time! Time = has made=20 commonplace the proportions of the "Great Eastern," the marine marvel = not only=20 of her age, but of the forty years that succeeded her breaking-up Page 86as impracticable = on account=20 of size. She was 19,000 tons, 690 feet long, and built with both = paddle-wheels=20 and a screw. The "Celtic" is 700 feet long, 20,000 tons, with twin = screws. The=20 one was too big to be commercially valuable, the other has held the = record for=20 size only for a year, being already outclassed by the Northern Pacific=20 25,000-ton monsters. That one was a failure, the other a success, is = almost=20 wholly due to the improvements in engines, which effect economy of space = both in=20 the engine-room and in the coal bunkers. It is, by the way, rather a = curious=20 illustration of the growing luxury of life, and of ocean travel, that = the first=20 voyage of this enormous ship was made as a yacht, carrying a party of=20 pleasure-seekers, with not a pound of cargo, through the show places of = the=20 Mediterranean.

It will be interesting to chronicle here some of the characteristics = of the=20 most modern of ocean steamships, and to show by the use of some figures, = the=20 enormous proportions to which their business has attained. For this = purpose it=20 will be necessary to use figures drawn from the records of foreign = lines, and=20 from such vessels as the "Deutschland" and the "Celtic," although the = purpose of=20 this book is to tell the story of the American merchant marine. But the = figures=20 given will be approximately correct for the great American ships now = building,=20 while there are not at present in service any American passenger ships = which are=20 fairly representative of the twentieth century liner.

The "Celtic," for example, will carry 3,294 persons, of whom 2,859 = will be=20 passengers. That is, it could furnish comfortable accommodations, heated = and=20 lighted, with ample food for all the students in Harvard University, or = the=20 University of Michigan, or ColumbiaPage 87 University, or all in Amherst, Dartmouth, = Cornell,=20 and Williams combined. If stood on end she would almost attain the = height of the=20 Washington monument placed on the roof of the Capitol at Washington. She = has=20 nine decks, and a few years ago, if converted into a shore edifice, = might fairly=20 have been reckoned in the "skyscraper" class. Her speed, as she was = built=20 primarily for capacity is only about seventeen knots, and to attain that = she=20 burns about 260 tons of coal a day. The "Deutschland," which holds the = ocean=20 record for speed, burns nearly 600 tons of coal a day, and with it = carries=20 through the seas only 16,000 tons as against the "Celtic's" 20,000. But = she is=20 one of the modern vessels built especially to carry passengers. In her = hold,=20 huge as it is, there is room for only about 600 tons of cargo, and she = seldom=20 carries more than one-sixth of that amount. One voyage of this great = ship costs=20 about $45,000, and even at that heavy expense, she is a profit earner, = so great=20 is the volume of transatlantic travel and so ready are people to pay for = speed=20 and luxury. Her coal alone costs $5,000 a trip, and the expenses of the = table,=20 laundry, etc., equal those of the most luxurious hotel.

But will ever these great liners, these huge masses of steel, guided = by=20 electricity and sped by steam, build up anew the race of American = sailors? Who=20 shall say now? To-day they are manned by Scandinavians and officered, in = the=20 main, by the seamen of the foreign nations whose flags they float. But = the=20 American is an adaptable type. He at once attends upon changing = conditions and=20 conquers them. He turned from the sea to the railroads when that seemed = to be=20 the course of progress; he may retrace his steps now that the pendulum = seems to=20 swing the other way. And if he finds under the new regime less chance = for the=20 hardy topman, no opportunity for the shrewd Page 88trader to a hundred ports, the gates = closed to the=20 man of small capital, yet be sure he will conquer fate in some way. We = have seen=20 it in the armed branch of the seafaring profession only within a few = months.=20 When the fine old sailing frigates vanished from the seas, when the=20 "Constitution" and the "Hartford" became as obsolete as the caravels of=20 Columbus, when a navy officer found that electricity and steam were more = serious=20 problems in his calling than sails and rigging, and a bluejacket could = be with=20 the best in his watch without ever having learned to furl a royal, then = said=20 everybody: "The naval profession has gone to the dogs. Its romance has = departed.=20 Our ships should be manned from our boiler shops, and officered from our = institutions of technology. There will be no more Decaturs, Somerses, = Farraguts,=20 Cushings." And then came on the Spanish war and the rush of the "Oregon" = around=20 Cape Horn, the cool thrust of Dewey's fleet into the locked waters of = Manila=20 Bay, the plucky fight and death of Bagley at Cardenas, the braving of = death by=20 Hobson at Santiago, and the complete destruction of Cervera's fleet by = Schley=20 showed that Americans could fight as well in steel ships as in wooden = ones. Nor=20 can we doubt that the history of the next half-century will show that = the new=20 order at sea will breed a new race of American seamen able as in the = past to=20 prove themselves masters of the deep.Page 89

CHAPTER III

Looking upon Newport to-day, and finding it all so fair, it seems = hard to=20 believe that the foundation of all its wealth and prosperity rested upon = the=20 most cruel, the most execrable, the most inhuman traffic that ever was = plied by=20 degraded men=97the traffic in slaves. Yet in the old days the trade was = far from=20 being held either cruel inhuman=97indeed, vessels often set sail for the = Bight of=20 Benin to swap rum for slaves, after their owners had invoked the = blessing of God=20 upon their enterprise. Nor were its promoters held by the community to = be=20 degraded. Indeed, some of the most eminent men in the community engaged = in it,=20 and its receipts were so considerable that as early as 1729 one-half of = the=20 impost levied on slaves imported into the colony was appropriated to = pave the=20 streets of the town and build its bridges=97however, we are not informed = that the=20 streets were very well paved.

It was not at Newport, however, nor even in New England that the = importation=20 of slaves first began, though for reasons which I will presently show, = the bulk=20 of the traffic in them fell ultimately to New Englanders. The first = African=20 slaves in America were landed by a Dutch vessel at Jamestown, Virginia, = in 1619.=20 The last kidnapped Africans were brought here probably some time in the = latter=20 part of 1860=97for though the traffic was prohibited in 1807, the = rigorous=20 blockade of the ports of the Confederacy during the Civil War was = necessary to=20 bring it actually to an end. The amount of human misery which that = frightful=20 traffic entailed during those 240 years almost baffles the imagination. = The=20 bloody Civil War which had, perhaps, its earliest cause in the landing = of those=20 twenty blacks at Jamestown, was scarcely more than a fitting penalty, = and there=20 was justice in the fact that it fell on North and South alike, for if = the South=20 clung longest to slavery, it was the North=97even Page 91abolition New = England=97which=20 had most to do with establishing it on this continent.

However, it is not with slavery, but with the slave trade we have to = do.=20 Circumstances largely forced upon the New England colonies their = unsavory pre=EBminence in=20 this sort of commerce. To begin with, their people were as we have = already seen,=20 distinctively the seafaring folk of North America. Again, one of their = earliest=20 methods of earning a livelihood was in the fisheries, and that curiously = enough,=20 led directly to the trade in slaves. To sell the great quantities of = fish they=20 dragged up from the Banks or nearer home, foreign markets must needs be = found.=20 England and the European countries took but little of this sort of = provender,=20 and moreover England, France, Holland, and Portugal had their own = fishing fleets=20 on the Banks. The main markets for the New Englanders then were the West = India=20 Islands, the Canaries, and Madeira. There the people were accustomed to = a fish=20 diet and, indeed, were encouraged in it by the frequent fastdays of the = Roman=20 Catholic church, of which most were devout members. A voyage to the = Canaries=20 with fish was commonly prolonged to the west coast of Africa, where = slaves were=20 bought with rum. Thence the vessel would proceed to the West Indies = where the=20 slaves would be sold, a large part of the purchase price being taken in=20 molasses, which, in its turn, was distilled into rum at home, to be used = for=20 buying more slaves=97for in this traffic little of actual worth was paid = for the=20 hapless captives. Fiery rum, usually adulterated and more than ever = poisonous,=20 was all the African chiefs received for their droves of human cattle. = For it=20 they sold wives and children, made bloody war and sold their captives, = kidnapped=20 and sold their human booty.

Nothing in the history of our people shows so strikingly Page 92the progress of = man toward=20 higher ideals, toward a clearer sense of the duties of humanity and the = rightful=20 relation of the strong toward the weak, than the changed sentiment = concerning=20 the slave trade. In its most humane form the thought of that traffic = to-day=20 fills us with horror. The stories of its worst phases seem almost = incredible,=20 and we wonder that men of American blood could have been such utter = brutes. But=20 two centuries ago the foremost men of New England engaged in the trade = or=20 profited by its fruits. Peter Fanueil, who-built for Boston that = historic hall=20 which we call the Cradle of Liberty, and which in later years resounded = with the=20 anti-slavery eloquence of Garrison and Phillips, was a slave owner and = an actual=20 participant in the trade. The most "respectable" merchants of Providence = and=20 Newport were active slavers=97just as some of the most respectable = merchants and=20 manufacturers of to-day make merchandise of white men, women, and = children,=20 whose slavery is none the less slavery because they are driven by the = fear of=20 starvation instead of the overseer's lash. Perhaps two hundred years = from now=20 our descendants will see the criminality of our industrial system = to-day, as=20 clearly as we see the wrong in that of our forefathers. The utmost piety = was=20 observed in setting out a slave-buying expedition. The commissions were = issued=20 "by the Grace of God," divine guidance was implored for the captain who = was to=20 swap fiery rum for stolen children, and prayers were not infrequently = offered=20 for long delayed or missing slavers. George Dowing, a Massachusetts = clergyman,=20 wrote of slavery in Barbadoes: "I believe they have bought this year no = less=20 than a thousand negroes, and the more they buie, the better able they = are to=20 buie, for in a year and a half they will earne with God's = blessing, as=20 much as they cost." Most of the slaves brought from Page 93the coast of = Guinea in New=20 England vessels were deported again=97sent to the southern States or to = the West=20 Indies for a market. The climate and the industrial conditions of New = England=20 were alike unfavorable to the growth there of slavery, and its ports = served=20 chiefly as clearing-houses for the trade. Yet there was not even among = the most=20 enlightened and leading people of the colony any moral sentiment against = slavery, and from Boston to New York slaves were held in small numbers = and their=20 prices quoted in the shipping lists and newspapers like any other = merchandise.=20 Curiously enough, the first African slaves brought to Boston were sent = home=20 again and their captors prosecuted=97not wholly for stealing men, but = for breaking=20 the Sabbath. It happened in this way: A Boston ship, the "Rainbow," in = 1645,=20 making the usual voyage to Madeira with staves and salt fish, touched on = the=20 coast of Guinea for a few slaves. Her captain found the English slavers = on the=20 ground already, mightily discontented, for the trade was dull. It was = still the=20 time when there was a pretense of legality about the method of procuring = the=20 slaves; they were supposed to be malefactors convicted of crime, or at = the very=20 least, prisoners taken by some native king in war. In later years the = native=20 kings, animated by an ever-growing thirst for the white man's rum, = declared war=20 in order to secure captives, and employed decoys to lure young men into = the=20 commission of crime. These devices for keeping the man-market fully = supplied had=20 not at this time been invented, and the captains of the slavers, lying = off a=20 dangerous coast in the boiling heat of a tropical country, grew restive = at the=20 long delay. Perhaps some of the rum they had brought to trade for slaves = inflamed their own blood. At any rate, dragging ashore a small cannon = called=20 significantly enough a "murderer," they attacked a village, killed Page 94many of its = people, and=20 brought off a number of blacks, two of whom fell to the lot of the = captain of=20 the "Rainbow," and were by him taken to Boston. He found no profit, = however, in=20 his piratical venture, for the story coming out, he was accused in court = of=20 "murder, man-stealing, and Sabbath-breaking," and his slaves were sent = home. It=20 was wholly as merchandise that the blacks were regarded. It is = impossible to=20 believe that the brutalities of the traffic could have been tolerated so = long=20 had the idea of the essential humanity of the Africa been grasped by = those who=20 dealt in them. Instead, they were looked upon as a superior sort of = cattle, but=20 on the long voyage across the Atlantic were treated as no cattle are = treated=20 to-day in the worst "ocean tramps" in the trade. The vessels were small, = many of=20 them half the size of the lighters that ply sluggishly up and down New = York=20 harbor. Sloops, schooners, brigantines, and scows of 40 or 50 tons = burden,=20 carrying crews of nine men including the captain and mates, were the = customary=20 craft in the early days of the eighteenth century.

In his work on "The American Slave-Trade," Mr. John R. Spears gives = the=20 dimensions of some of these puny vessels which were so heavily freighted = with=20 human woe. The first American slaver of which we have record was the = "Desire,"=20 of Marblehead, 120 tons. Later vessels, however, were much smaller. The = sloop,=20 "Welcome," had a capacity of 5000 gallons of molasses. The "Fame" was 79 = feet=20 long on the keel=97about a large yacht's length. In 1847, some of the = captured=20 slavers had dimensions like these: The "Felicidade" 67 tons; the "Maria" = 30=20 tons; the "Rio Bango" 10 tons. When the trade was legal and regulated by = law,=20 the "Maria" would have been permitted to carry 45 slaves=97or one and = one-half to=20 each ton register. In 1847, the trade being outlawed, no regulations Page 95were = observed, and=20 this wretched little craft imprisoned 237 negroes. But even this 10-ton = slaver=20 was not the limit. Mr. Spears finds that open rowboats, no more than 24 = feet=20 long by 7 wide, landed as many as 35 children in Brazil out of say 50 = with which=20 the voyage began. But the size of the vessels made little difference in = the=20 comfort of the slaves. Greed packed the great ones equally with the = small. The=20 blacks, stowed in rows between decks, the roof barely 3 feet 10 inches = above the=20 floor on which they lay side by side, sometimes in "spoon-fashion"Page 96 with from 10 to = 16 inches=20 surface-room for each, endured months of imprisonment. Often they were = so packed=20 that the head of one slave would be between the thighs of another, and = in this=20 condition they would pass the long weeks which the Atlantic passage = under sail=20 consumed. This, too, when the legality of the slave trade was = recognized, and=20 nothing but the dictates of greed led to overcrowding. Time came when = the trade=20 was put under the ban of law and made akin to piracy. Then the need for = fast=20 vessels restricted hold room and the methods of the trade attained a = degree of=20 barbarity that can not be paralleled since the days of Nero.

Shackled together "spoon-wise," as the phrase was, they suffered and=20 sweltered through the long middle passage, dying by scores, so that = often a=20 fifth of the cargo perished during the voyage. The stories of those who = took=20 part in the effort to suppress the traffic give some idea of its = frightful=20 cruelty.

The Rev. Pascoa Grenfell Hill, a chaplain in the British navy, once = made a=20 short voyage on a slaver which his ship, the "Cleopatra," had captured. = The=20 vessel had a full cargo, and when the capture was effected, the negroes = were all=20 brought on deck for exercise and fresh air. The poor creatures quite = understood=20 the meaning of the sudden change in their masters, and kissed the hands = and=20 clothing of their deliverers. The ship was headed for the Cape of Good = Hope,=20 where the slaves were to be liberated; but a squall coming on, all were = ordered=20 below again. "The night," enters Mr. Hill in his journal, "being = intensely hot,=20 four hundred wretched beings thus crammed into a hold twelve yards in = length,=20 seven feet in breadth, and only three and one-half feet in height, = speedily=20 began to make an effort to reissue to the open air. Being thrust back = and=20 striving the more to get Page=20 97out, the afterhatch was forced down upon them. Over the other = hatchway,=20 in the fore part of the vessel, a wooden grating was fastened. To this, = the sole=20 inlet for the air, the suffocating heat of the hold and, perhaps, panic = from the=20 strangeness of their situation, made them flock, and thus a great part = of the=20 space below was rendered useless. They crowded to the grating and = clinging to it=20 for air, completely barred its entrance. They strove to force their way = through=20 apertures in length fourteen inches and barely six inches in breadth, = and in=20 some instances succeeded. The cries, the heat, I may say without = exaggeration,=20 the smoke of their torment which ascended can be compared to nothing = earthly.=20 One of the Spaniards gave warning that the consequences would be 'many = deaths;'=20 this prediction was fearfully verified, for the next morning 54 crushed = and=20 mangled corpses were brought to the gangway and thrown overboard. Some = were=20 emaciated from disease, many bruised and bloody. Antoine tells me that = some were=20 found strangled; their hands still grasping each others' throats."

It is of a Brazilian slaver that this awful tale is told, but the = event=20 itself was paralleled on more than one American ship. Occasionally we = encounter=20 stories of ships destroyed by an exploding magazine, and the slaves, = chained to=20 the deck, going down with the wreck. Once a slaver went ashore off = Jamaica, and=20 the officers and crew speedily got out the boats and made for the beach, = leaving=20 the human cargo to perish. When dawn broke it was seen that the slaves = had rid=20 themselves of their fetters and were busily making rafts on which the = women and=20 children were put, while the men, plunging into the sea, swam alongside, = and=20 guided the rafts toward the shore. Now mark what the white man, the = supposed=20 representative of civilization and Christianity, did. Fearing Page 98that the negroes = would=20 exhaust the store of provisions and water that had been landed, they = resolved to=20 destroy them while still in the water. As soon as the rafts came within = range,=20 those on shore opened fire with rifles and muskets with such deadly = effect that=20 between three hundred and four hundred blacks were murdered. Only = thirty-four=20 saved themselves=97and for what? A few weeks later they were sold in the = slave=20 mart at Kingston.

In the early days of the trade, the captains dealt with recognized = chiefs=20 along the coast of Guinea, who conducted marauding expeditions into the = interior=20 to kidnap slaves. Rum was the purchase price, and by skillful dilution, = a=20 competent captain was able to double the purchasing value of his cargo. = The=20 trade was not one calculated to develop the highest qualities of honor, = and to=20 swindling the captains usually added theft and murder. Any negro who = came near=20 the ship to trade, or through motives of curiosity, was promptly seized = and=20 thrust below. Dealers who came on board with kidnapped negroes were = themselves=20 kidnapped after the bargain was made. Never was there any inquiry into = the title=20 of the seller. Any slave offered was bought, though the seller had no = right=97even=20 under legalized slavery=97to sell.

A picturesque story was told in testimony before the English House of = Commons. To a certain slaver lying off the Windward coast a girl was = brought in=20 a canoe by a well-known black trader, who took his pay and paddled off. = A few=20 moments later another canoe with two blacks came alongside and inquired = for the=20 girl. They were permitted to see her and declared she had been = kidnapped; but=20 the slaver, not at all put out by that fact, refused to give her up. = Thereupon=20 the blacks paddled swiftly off after her seller, overtook, and captured = him.=20 Presently they brought him back to the deck of the ship=97an Page 99article of = merchandise, where=20 he had shortly before been a merchant.

"You won't buy me," cried the captive. "I a grand trading man! I = bring you=20 slaves."

But no scruples entered the mind of the captain of the slaver. "If = they will=20 sell you I certainly will buy you," he answered, and soon the kidnapped=20 kidnapper was in irons and thrust below in the noisome hold with the = unhappy=20 being he had sent there. A multitude of cases of negro slave-dealers = being=20 seized in this way, after disposing of their human cattle, are = recorded.

It is small wonder that torn thus from home and relatives, immured in = filthy=20 and crowded holds, ill fed, denied the two great gifts of God to = man=97air and=20 water=97subjected to the brutality of merciless men, and wholly ignorant = of the=20 fate in store for them, many of the slaves should kill themselves. As = they had a=20 salable value the captains employed every possible device to defeat this = end=97every device, that is, except kind treatment, which was beyond the = comprehension of the average slaver. Sometimes the slaves would try to = starve=20 themselves to death. This the captains met by torture with the cat and=20 thumbscrews. There is a horrible story in the testimony before the = English House=20 of Commons about a captain who actually whipped a nine-months-old child = to death=20 trying to force it to eat, and then brutally compelled the mother to = throw the=20 lacerated little body overboard. Another captain found that his captives = were=20 killing themselves, in the belief that their spirits would return to = their old=20 home. By way of meeting this superstition, he announced that all who = died in=20 this way should have their heads cut off, so that if they did return to = their=20 African homes, it would be as headless spirits. The outcome of this = threat was=20 very different from what the captain had Page 100anticipated. When a number of the slaves = were=20 brought on deck to witness the beheading of the body of one of their = comrades,=20 they seized the occasion to leap overboard and were drowned. Many sought = death=20 in this way, and as they were usually good swimmers, they actually = forced=20 themselves to drown, some persistently holding their heads under water, = others=20 raising their arms high above their heads, and in one case two who died = together=20 clung to each other so that neither could swim. Every imaginable way in = which=20 death could be sought was employed by these hopeless blacks, though, = indeed, the=20 hardships of the voyage were such as to bring it often enough = unsought.

When the ship's hold was full the voyage was begun, while from the = suffering=20 blacks below, unused to seafaring under any circumstances, and = desperately sick=20 in their stifling quarters, there arose cries and moans as if the cover = were=20 taken off of purgatory. The imagination recoils from the thought of so = much=20 human wretchedness.

The publications of some of the early anti-slavery associations tell = of the=20 inhuman conditions of the trade. In an unusually commodious ship = carrying over=20 six hundred slaves, we are told that "platforms, or wide shelves, were = erected=20 between the decks, extending so far from the side toward the middle of = the=20 vessel as to be capable of containing four additional rows of slaves, by = which=20 means the perpendicular height between each tier was, after allowing for = the=20 beams and platforms, reduced to three feet, six inches, so that they = could not=20 even sit in an erect posture, besides which in the men's apartment, = instead of=20 four rows, five were stowed by putting the head of one between the = thighs of=20 another." In another ship, "In the men's apartment the space allowed to = each is=20 six feet length by sixteen inches in breadth, the boys are each allowed = Page = 101five feet by=20 fourteen inches, the women five feet, ten by sixteen inches, and the = girls four=20 feet by one foot each."

"A man in his coffin has more room than one of these blacks," is the = terse=20 way in which witness after witness before the British House of Commons = described=20 the miserable condition of the slaves on shipboard.

An amazing feature of this detestable traffic is the smallness and = often the=20 unseaworthiness of the vessels in which it was carried on. Few such = picayune=20 craft now venture outside the landlocked waters of Long Island Sound, or = beyond=20 the capes of the Delaware and Chesapeake. In the early days of the = eighteenth=20 century hardy mariners put out in little craft, the size of a Hudson = River=20 brick-sloop or a harbor lighter, and made the long voyage to the = Canaries and=20 the African West Coast, withstood the perils of a prolonged anchorage on = a=20 dangerous shore, went thence heavy laden with slaves to the West Indies, = and so=20 home. To cross the Atlantic was a matter of eight or ten weeks; the = whole voyage=20 would commonly take five or six months. Nor did the vessels always make = up in=20 stanchness for their diminutive proportions. Almost any weather-beaten = old hulk=20 was thought good enough for a slaver. Captain Linsday, of Newport, who = wrote=20 home from Aumboe, said: "I should be glad I cood come rite home with my = slaves,=20 for my vessel will not last to proceed far. We can see daylight all = round her=20 bow under deck." But he was not in any unusual plight. And not only the = perils=20 of the deep had to be encountered, but other perils, some bred of man's=20 savagery, then more freely exhibited than now, others necessary to the = execrable=20 traffic in peaceful blacks. It as a time of constant wars and the seas = swarmed=20 with French privateers alert for fat prizes. When a slaver Page 102met a privateer = the battle=20 was sure to be a bloody one for on either side fought desperate = men=97one party=20 following as a trade legalized piracy and violent theft of cargoes, the = other=20 employed in the violent theft of men and women, and the incitement of = murder and=20 rapine that their cargoes might be the fuller. There would have been but = scant=20 loss to mankind in most of these conflicts had privateer and slaver both = gone to=20 the bottom. Not infrequently the slavers themselves turned pirate or = privateer=20 for the time=97sometimes robbing a smaller craft of its load of slaves, = sometimes=20 actually running up the black flag and turning to piracy for a permanent = calling.

In addition to the ordinary risks of shipwreck or capture the slavers = encountered perils peculiar to their calling. Once in a while the slaves = would=20 mutiny, though such is the gentle and almost childlike nature of the = African=20 negro that this seldom occurred. The fear of it, however, was ever = present to=20 the captains engaged in the trade, and to guard against it the = slaves=97always the=20 men and sometimes the women as well=97were shackled together in pairs. = Sometimes=20 they were even fastened to the floor of the dark and stifling hold in = which they=20 were immured for months at a time. If heavy weather compelled the = closing of the=20 hatches, or if disease set in, as it too often did, the morning would = find the=20 living shackled to the dead. In brief, to guard against insurrection the = captains made the conditions of life so cruel that the slaves were = fairly forced=20 to revolt. In 1759 a case of an uprising that was happily successful was = recorded. The slaver "Perfect," Captain Potter, lay at anchor at Mana = with one=20 hundred slaves aboard. The mate, second mate, the boatswain, and about = half the=20 crew were sent into the interior to buy some more slaves. Noticing the = reduced=20 numbers of their jailors, the slaves Page 103determined to rise. Ridding themselves of = their=20 irons, they crowded to the deck, and, all unarmed as they were, killed = the=20 captain, the surgeon, the carpenter, the cooper, and a cabin-boy. = Whereupon the=20 remainder of the crew took to the boats and boarded a neighboring = slaver, the=20 "Spencer." The captain of this craft prudently declined to board the = "Perfect,"=20 and reduce the slaves to subjection again; but he had no objection to=20 slaughtering naked blacks at long range, so he warped his craft into = position=20 and opened fire with his guns. For about an hour this butchery was = continued,=20 and then such of the slaves as still lived, ran the schooner ashore, = plundered,=20 and burnt her.

How such insurrections were put down was told nearly a hundred years = later in=20 an official communication Page 104to Secretary of State James Buchanan, by = United=20 States Consul George W. Gordon, the story being sworn testimony before = him. The=20 case was that of the slaver "Kentucky," which carried 530 slaves. An=20 insurrection which broke out was speedily suppressed, but fearing lest = the=20 outbreak should be repeated, the captain determined to give the wretched = captives an "object lesson" by punishing the ringleaders. This is how he = did=20 it:

"They were ironed, or chained, two together, and when they were hung, = a rope=20 was put around their necks and they were drawn up to the yard-arm clear = of the=20 sail. This did not kill them, but only choked or strangled them. They = were then=20 shot in the breast and the bodies thrown overboard. If only one of two = that were=20 ironed together was to be hung, the rope was put around his neck and he = was=20 drawn up clear of the deck, and his leg laid across the rail and chopped = off to=20 save the irons and release him from his companion, who at the same time = lifted=20 up his leg until the other was chopped off as aforesaid, and he = released. The=20 bleeding negro was then drawn up, shot in the breast and thrown = overboard. The=20 legs of about one dozen were chopped off this way.

"When the feet fell on the deck they were picked up by the crew and = thrown=20 overboard, and sometimes they shot at the body while it still hung, = living, and=20 all sorts of sport was made of the business."

Forty-six men and one woman were thus done to death: "When the woman = was hung=20 up and shot, the ball did not take effect, and she was thrown overboard = living,=20 and was seen to struggle some time in the water before she sunk;" and = deponent=20 further says, "that after this was over, they brought up and flogged = about=20 twenty men and six women. The flesh of some of them where they were = flogged=20 putrified, and came off, in some cases, six Page 105or eight inches = in=20 diameter, and in places half an inch thick."

This was in 1839, a time when Americans were very sure that for = civilization,=20 progress, humanity, and the Christian virtues, they were at least on as = high a=20 plane as the most exalted peoples of the earth.

Infectious disease was one of the grave perils with which the slavers = had to=20 reckon. The overcrowding of the slaves, the lack of exercise and fresh = air, the=20 wretched and insufficient food, all combined to make grave, general = sickness an=20 incident of almost every voyage, and actual epidemics not infrequent. = This was a=20 peril that moved even the callous captains and their crews, for scurvy = or=20 yellow-jack developing in the hold was apt to sweep the decks clear as = well. A=20 most gruesome story appears in all the books on the slave trade, of the=20 experience of the French slaver, "Rodeur." With a cargo of 165 slaves, = she was=20 on the way to Guadaloupe in 1819, when opthalmia=97a virulent disease of = the=20 eyes=97appeared among the blacks. It spread rapidly, though the captain, = in hopes=20 of checking its ravages, threw thirty-six negroes into the sea alive. = Finally it=20 attacked the crew, and in a short time all save one man became totally = blind.=20 Groping in the dark, the helpless sailors made shift to handle the = ropes, while=20 the one man still having eyesight clung to the wheel. For days, in this = wretched=20 state, they made their slow way along the deep, helpless and hopeless. = At last a=20 sail was sighted. The "Rodeur's" prow is turned toward it, for there is = hope,=20 there rescue! As the stranger draws nearer, the straining eyes of the = French=20 helmsman discerns something strange and terrifying about her appearance. = Her=20 rigging is loose and slovenly, her course erratic, she seems to be idly=20 drifting, and there is no one at the wheel. A derelict, abandoned at = sea, she Page = 106mocks their=20 hopes of rescue. But she is not entirely deserted, for a faint shout = comes=20 across the narrowing strip of sea and is answered from the "Rodeur." The = two=20 vessels draw near. There can be no launching of boats by blind men, but = the=20 story of the stranger is soon told. She, too, is a slaver, a Spaniard, = the=20 "Leon," and on her, too, every soul is blind from opthalmia originating = among=20 the slaves. Not even a steersman has the "Leon." All light has gone out = from=20 her, and the "Rodeur" sheers away, leaving her to an unknown fate, for = never=20 again is she heard from. How wonderful the fate=97or the = Providence=97that directed=20 that upon all the broad ocean teeming with ships, engaged in honest or = in=20 criminal trade, the two that should meet must be the two on which the = hand of=20 God was laid most heavily in retribution for the suffering and the woe = which=20 white men and professed Christians were bringing to the peaceful and = innocent=20 blacks of Africa.

It will be readily understood that the special and always menacing = dangers=20 attending the slave trade made marine insurance upon that sort of = cargoes=20 exceedingly high. Twenty pounds in the hundred was the usual figure in = the early=20 days. This heavy insurance led to a new form of wholesale murder = committed by=20 the captains. The policies covered losses resulting from jettisoning, or = throwing overboard the cargo; they did not insure against loss from = disease.=20 Accordingly, when a slaver found his cargo infected, he would promptly = throw=20 into the sea all the ailing negroes, while still alive, in order to save = the=20 insurance. Some of the South American states, where slaves were bought, = levied=20 an import duty upon blacks, and cases are on record of captains going = over their=20 cargo outside the harbor and throwing into the Page 107sea all who by = disease or=20 for other causes, were rendered unsalable=97thus saving both duty and=20 insurance.

In the clearer light which illumines the subject to-day, the = prolonged=20 difficulty which attended the destruction of the slave trade seems = incredible.=20 It appears that two such powerful maritime nations as Great Britain and = the=20 United States had only to decree the trade criminal and it would be = abandoned.=20 But we must remember that slaves were universally regarded as property, = and an=20 attempt to interfere with the right of their owners to carry them where = they=20 would on the high seas was denounced as an interference with property = rights. We=20 see that even to-day men are very tenacious of "property rights," and = the law=20 describes them as sacred=97however immoral or repugnant to common sense = and common=20 humanity they may be. So the effort to abolish the "right" of a slaver = to=20 starve, suffocate, mutilate, torture, or murder a black man in whom he = had=20 acquired a property right by the simple process of kidnapping required = more than=20 half a century to attain complete success.

The first serious blow to the slave-trade fell in 1772, when an = English court=20 declared that any slave coming into England straightway became free. = That closed=20 all English ports to the slavers. Two years after the American = colonists, then=20 on the threshold of the revolt against Great Britain, thought to put = America on=20 a like high plane, and formally resolved that they would "not purchase = any slave=20 imported after the first day of December next; after which time, we will = wholly=20 discontinue the slave-trade, and will neither be concerned in it = ourselves, nor=20 will we hire our vessels, nor sell our commodities or manufactures to = those who=20 are concerned in it." But to this praiseworthy determination the = colonists were=20 unable to live up, and in 1776, when Jefferson proposed Page 108to put into the = Declaration=20 of Independence the charge that the British King had forced the = slave-trade on=20 the colonies, a proper sense of their own guilt made the delegates = oppose=20 it.

It was in England that the first earnest effort to break up the = slave-trade=20 began. It was under the Stars and Stripes that the slavers longest = protected=20 their murderous traffic. For a time the effort of the British = humanitarians was=20 confined to the amelioration of the conditions of the trade, prescribing = space=20 to be given each slave, prescribing surgeons, and offering bounties to = be paid=20 captains who lost less than two per cent. of their cargoes on the = voyage. It is=20 not recorded that the bounty was often claimed. On the contrary, the = horrors of=20 what was called "the middle passage" grew with the greed of the slave = captains.=20 But the revelations of inhumanity made during the parliamentary = investigation=20 were too shocking for even the indifferent and callous public sentiment = of that=20 day. Humane people saw at once that to attempt to regulate a traffic so=20 abhorrent to every sense of humanity, was for the nation to go into = partnership=20 with murderers and manstealers, and so the demand for the absolute = prohibition=20 of the traffic gained strength from the futile attempt to regulate it. = Bills for=20 its abolition failed, now in the House of Lords, then in the House of = Commons;=20 but in 1807 a law prohibiting all participation in the trade by British = ships or=20 subjects was passed. The United States moved very slowly. Individual = States=20 under the old confederation prohibited slavery within their borders, and = in some=20 cases the slave trade; but when our forefathers came together to form = that=20 Constitution under which the nation still exists, the opposition of = certain=20 Southern States was so vigorous that the best which could be done was to = authorize a tax on slaves of not more than Page 109ten dollars a = head, and to=20 provide that the traffic should not be prohibited before 1808. But there = followed a series of acts which corrected the seeming failure of the=20 constitutional convention. One prohibited American citizens "carrying on = the=20 slave trade from the United States to any foreign place or country." = Another=20 forbade the introduction of slaves into the Mississippi Territory. = Others made=20 it unlawful to carry slaves to States which prohibited the traffic, or = to fit=20 out ships for the foreign slave trade, or to serve on a slaver. The = discussion=20 caused by all these measures did much to build up a healthy public = sentiment,=20 and when 1808=97the date set by the Constitution=97came round, a = prohibitory law was=20 passed, and the President was authorized to use the armed vessels of the = United=20 States to give it force and effect. Notwithstanding this, however, the = slave=20 trade, though now illegal and outlawed, continued for fully half a = century.=20 Slaves were still stolen on the coast of Africa by New England sea = captains,=20 subjected to the pains and horrors of the middle passage, and smuggled = into=20 Georgia or South Carolina, to be eagerly bought by the Southern = planters. A=20 Congressman estimated that 20,000 blacks were thus smuggled into the = United=20 States annually. Lafitte's nest of pirates at Barataria was a regular = slave=20 depot; so, too, was Amelia Island, Florida. The profit on a slave = smuggled into=20 the United States amounted to $350 or $500, and the temptation was too = great for=20 men to be restrained by fear of a law, which prescribed but light = penalties. It=20 is even matter of record that a governor of Georgia resigned his office = to enter=20 the smuggling trade on a large scale. The scandal was notorious, and the = rapidly=20 growing abolition sentiment demanded that Congress so amend its laws as = to make=20 manstealers at least as subject to them as other malefactors. But = Congress tried=20 the politician's Page=20 110device of passing laws which would satisfy the abolitionists, = the=20 slave trader, and the slave owner as well. To-day the duty of the nation = seems=20 to have been so clear that we have scant patience with the paltering = policy of=20 Congress and the Executive that permitted half a century of profitable=20 law-breaking. But we must remember that slaves were property, that = dealing in=20 them was immensely profitable, and that while New England wanted this = profit the=20 South wanted the blacks. Macaulay said that if any considerable = financial=20 interest could be served by denying the attraction of gravitation, there = would=20 be a very vigorous attack on that great physical truth. And so, as there = were=20 many financial interests concerned in protecting slavery, every effort = to=20 effectually abolish the trade was met by an outcry and by shrewd = political=20 opposition. The slaves were better off in the United States than at = home,=20 Congress was assured; they had the blessings of Christianity; were freed = from=20 the endless wars and perils of the African jungle. Moreover, they were = needed to=20 develop the South, while in the trade, the hardy and daring sailors were = trained, who in time would make the American navy the great power of the = deep.=20 Political chicanery in Congress reinforced the clamor from without, and = though=20 act after act for the destruction of the traffic was passed, none proved = to be=20 enforcible=97in each was what the politicians of a later day called a = "little=20 joker," making it ineffective. But in 1820 a law was passed declaring=20 slave-trading piracy, and punishable with death. So Congress had done = its duty=20 at last, but it was long years before the Executive rightly enforced the = law.

It is needless to go into the details of the long series of Acts of=20 Parliament and of Congress, treaties, conventions, and naval = regulations, which=20 gradually made the outlawry of the slaver on the ocean complete. In the = Page = 111humane work=20 England took the lead, sacrificing the flourishing Liverpool slave-trade = with=20 all its allied interests; sacrificing, too, the immediate prosperity of = its West=20 Indian colonies, whose plantations were tilled exclusively with slave = labor, and=20 even paying heavy cash indemnity to Spain to secure her acquiescence. = Unhappily,=20 the United States was as laggard as England was active. Indeed, a = curious=20 manifestation of national pride made the American flag the slaver's = badge of=20 immunity, for the Government stubbornly=97and properly=97refused to = grant to British=20 cruisers the right to search vessels under our flag, and as there were = few or no=20 American men-of-war cruising on the African coast, the slaver under the = Stars=20 and Stripes was virtually immune from capture. In 1842 a treaty with = Great=20 Britain bound us to keep a considerable squadron on that coast, and = thereafter=20 there was at least some show of American hostility to the infamous = traffic.

The vitality of the traffic in the face of growing international = hostility is=20 to be explained by its increasing profits. The effect of the laws passed = against=20 it was to make slaves cheaper on the coast of Africa and dearer at the = markets=20 in America. A slave that cost $20 would bring $500 in Georgia. A ship = carrying=20 500 would bring its owners $240,000, and there were plenty of men = willing to=20 risk the penalties of piracy for a share of such prodigious profits. = Moreover,=20 the seas swarmed then with adventurous sailors=97mostly of American = birth=97to whom=20 the very fact that slaving was outlawed made it more attractive. The = years of=20 European war had bred up among New Englanders a daring race of=20 privateersmen=97their vocation had long been piracy in all but name, a = fact which=20 in these later days the maritime nations recognize by trying to abolish=20 privateering by international Page 112agreement. When the wars of the early = years of the=20 nineteenth century ended the privateersmen looked about for some = seafaring=20 enterprise which promised profit. A few became pirates, more went into = the=20 slave-trade. Men of this type were not merely willing to risk their = lives in a=20 criminal calling, but were quite as ready to fight for their property as = to try=20 to save it by flight. The slavers soon began to carry heavy guns, and = with=20 desperate crews were no mean antagonists for a man-of-war. Many of the = vessels=20 that had been built for privateers were in the trade, ready to fight a = cruiser=20 or rob a smaller slaver, as chance offered. We read of some carrying as = many as=20 twenty guns, and in that sea classic, "Tom Cringle's Log," there is a=20 story=97obviously founded on fact=97of a fight between a British = sloop-of-war and a=20 slaver that gives a vivid idea of the desperation with which the outlaws = could=20 fight. But sometimes the odds were hopeless, and the slaver could not = hope to=20 escape by force of arms or by flight. Then the sternness of the law, = together=20 with a foolish rule concerning the evidence necessary to convict, = resulted in=20 the murder of the slaves, not by ones or twos, but by scores, and even = hundreds,=20 at a time. For it was the unwise ruling of the courts that actual = presence of=20 slaves on a captured ship was necessary to prove that she was engaged in = the=20 unlawful trade. Her hold might reek with the odor of the imprisoned = blacks, her=20 decks show unmistakable signs of their recent presence, leg-irons and = manacles=20 might bear dumb testimony to the purpose of her voyage, informers in the = crew=20 might even betray the captain's secret; but if the boarders from the = man-of-war=20 found no negroes on the ship, she went free. What was the natural = result? When a=20 slaver, chased by a cruiser, found that capture was certain, her cargo = of slaves=20 was thrown overboard. The cruiser in the distance might Page 113detect the = frightful odor=20 that told unmistakably of a slave-ship. Her officers might hear the = screams of=20 the unhappy blacks being flung into the sea. They might even see the = bodies=20 floating in the slaver's wake; but if, on boarding the suspected craft, = they=20 found her without a single captive, they could do nothing. This was the = law for=20 many years, and because of it thousands of slaves met a cruel death as = the=20 direct result of the effort to save them from slavery. Many stories are = told of=20 these wholesale drownings. The captain of the British cruiser "Black = Joke"=20 reports of a case in which he was pursuing two slave ships:

"When chased by the tenders both put back, made all sail up the = river, and=20 ran on shore. During the chase they were seen from our vessels to throw = the=20 slaves overboard by twos, shackled together by the ankles, and left in = this=20 manner to sink or swim as best they could. Men, women, and children were = seen in=20 great numbers struggling in the water by everyone on board the two = tenders, and,=20 dreadful to relate, upward of 150 of these wretched creatures perished = in this=20 way."

In this case, the slavers did not escape conviction, though the only = penalty=20 inflicted was the seizure of their vessels. The pursuers rescued some of = the=20 drowning negroes, who were able to testify that they had been on the = suspected=20 ship, and condemnation followed. The captain of the slaver "Brillante" = took no=20 chance of such a disaster. Caught by four cruisers in a dead calm, = hidden from=20 his enemy by the night, but with no chance of escaping before dawn, this = man-stealer set about planning murder on a plan so large and with such = system as=20 perhaps has not been equaled since Caligula. First he had his heaviest = anchor so=20 swung that cutting a rope would drop it. Then the chain cable was = stretched=20 about the ship, Page=20 114outside the rail, and held up by light bits of rope, that = would give=20 way at any stout pull. Then the slaves=97600 in all=97were brought up = from below,=20 open-eyed, whispering, wondering what new act in the pitiful drama of = their=20 lives this midnight summons portended. With blows and curses the sailors = ranged=20 them along the rail and bound them to the chain cable. The anchor was = cut loose,=20 plunging into the sea it carried the cable and the shackled slaves with = it to=20 the bottom. The men on the approaching man-of-war's boats, heard a great = wail of=20 many voices, a rumble, a splash, then silence, and when they reached the = ship=20 its captain politely showed them that there were no slaves aboard, and = laughed=20 at their comments on the obvious signs of the recent presence of the = blacks.

A favorite trick of the slaver, fleeing from a man-of-war, was to = throw over=20 slaves a few at a time in the hope Page 115that the humanity of the pursuers would = impel them=20 to stop and rescue the struggling negroes, thus giving the slave-ship a = better=20 chance of escape. Sometimes these hapless blacks thus thrown out, as = legend has=20 it Siberian peasants sometimes throw out their children as ransom to = pursuing=20 wolves, were furnished with spars or barrels to keep them afloat until = the=20 pursuer should come up; and occasionally they were even set adrift by=20 boat-loads. It was hard on the men of the navy to steel their hearts to = the=20 cries of these castaways as the ship sped by them; but if the great evil = was to=20 be broken up it could not be by rescuing here and there a slave, but by=20 capturing and punishing the traders. Many officers of our navy have left = on=20 record their abhorrence of the service they were thus engaged in, but at = the=20 same time expressed their conviction that it was doing the work of = humanity.=20 They were obliged to witness such human suffering as might well move the = stoutest human heart. At times they were even forced to seem as = merciless to the=20 blacks as the slave-traders themselves; but in the end their work, like = the=20 merciful cruelty of the surgeon, made for good.

When a slaver was overhauled after so swift a chase that her master = had no=20 opportunity to get rid of his damning cargo, the boarding officers saw = sights=20 that scarce Inferno itself could equal. To look into her hold, filled = with=20 naked, writhing, screaming, struggling negroes was a sight that one = could see=20 once and never forget. The effluvium that arose polluted even the fresh = air of=20 the ocean, and burdened the breeze for miles to windward. The first duty = of the=20 boarding officer was to secure the officers of the craft with their = papers. Not=20 infrequently such vessels would be provided with two captains and two = sets of=20 papers, to be used according to the nationality of the warship that = might make=20 the capture; but the men of Page 116all navies cruising on the slave coast = came in time=20 to be expert in detecting such impostures. The crew once under guard, = the first=20 task was to alleviate in some degree the sufferings of the slaves. But = this was=20 no easy task, for the overcrowded vessel could not be enlarged, and its = burden=20 could in no way be decreased in mid-ocean. Even if near the coast of = Africa, the=20 negroes could not be released by the simple process of landing them at = the=20 nearest point, for the land was filled with savage tribes, the captives = were=20 commonly from the interior, and would merely have been murdered or sold = anew=20 into slavery, had they been thus abandoned. In time the custom grew up = of taking=20 them to Liberia, the free negro state established in Africa under the = protection=20 of the United States. But it can hardly be said that much advantage = resulted to=20 the individual negroes rescued by even this method, for the Liberians = were not=20 hospitable, slave traders camped upon the borders of their state, and it = was not=20 uncommon for a freed slave to find himself in a very few weeks back = again in the=20 noisome hold of the slaver. Even under the humane care of the navy = officers who=20 were put in command of captured slavers the human cattle suffered = grievously.=20 Brought on deck at early dawn, they so crowded the ships that it was = almost=20 impossible for the sailors to perform the tasks of navigation. One = officer, who=20 was put in charge of a slaver that carried 700 slaves, writes:

"They filled the waist and gangways in a fearful jam, for there were = over 700=20 men, women, boys, and young girls. Not even a waistcloth can be = permitted among=20 slaves on board ship, since clothing even so slight would breed disease. = To ward=20 off death, ever at work on a slave ship, I ordered that at daylight the = negroes=20 should be taken in squads of twenty or more, and given a salt-water Page = 117bath by the=20 hose-pipe of the pumps. This brought renewed life after their fearful = nights on=20 the slave deck.... No one who has never seen a slave deck can form an = idea of=20 its horrors. Imagine a deck about 20 feet wide, and perhaps 120 feet = long, and 5=20 feet high. Imagine this to be the place of abode and sleep during long, = hot,=20 healthless nights of 720 human beings! At sundown, when they were = carried below,=20 trained slaves received the poor wretches one by one, and laying each = creature=20 on his side in the wings, packed the next against him, and the next, and = the=20 next, and so on, till like so many spoons packed away they fitted into = each=20 other a living mass. Just as they were packed so must they remain, for = the=20 pressure prevented any movement or the turning of hand or foot, until = the next=20 morning, when from their terrible night of horror they were brought on = deck once=20 more, weak and worn and sick." Then, after all had come up and been = splashed=20 with salt water from the pumps, men went below to bring up the dead. = There was=20 never a morning search of this sort that was fruitless. The stench, the=20 suffocation, the confinement, oftentimes the violence of a neighbor, = brought to=20 every dawn its tale, of corpses, and with scant gentleness all were = brought up=20 and thrown over the side to the waiting sharks. The officer who had this = experience writes also that it was thirty days after capturing the = slaver before=20 he could land his helpless charges.

No great moral evil can long continue when the attention of men has = been=20 called to it, and when their consciences, benumbed by habit, have been = aroused=20 to appreciation of the fact that it is an evil. To be sure, we, with the = accumulated knowledge of our ancestors and our minds filled with a = horror which=20 their teachings instilled, sometimes think that they were slow to awaken = to the=20 Page = 118enormity of=20 some evils they tolerated. So perhaps our grandchildren may wonder that = we=20 endured, and even defended, present-day conditions, which to them will = appear=20 indefensible. And so looking back on the long continuance of the = slave-trade, we=20 wonder that it could have made so pertinacious a fight for life. We = marvel, too,=20 at the character of some of the men engaged in it in its earlier and = more lawful=20 days, forgetting that their minds had not been opened, that they = regarded the=20 negro as we regard a beeve. If in some future super-refined state men = should=20 come to abstain from all animal food, perhaps the history of the Chicago = stock-yards will be as appalling as is that of the Bight of Benin = to-day, and=20 that the name of Armour should be given to a great industrial school = will seem=20 as curious as to us it is inexplicable that the founder of Fanueil Hall = should=20 have dealt in human flesh.

It is, however, a chapter in the story of the American merchant = sailor upon=20 which none will wish to linger, and yet which can not be ignored. In = prosecuting=20 the search for slaves and their markets he showed the qualities of = daring, of=20 fine seamanship, of pertinacity, which have characterized him in all his = undertakings; but the brutality, the greed, the inhumanity inseparable = from the=20 slave-trade make the participation of Americans in it something not = pleasant to=20 enlarge upon. It was, as I have said, not until the days of the Civil = War=20 blockade that the traffic was wholly destroyed. As late as 1860 the = yacht=20 "Wanderer," flying the New York Yacht Club's flag, owned by a club = member, and=20 sailing under the auspices of a member of one of the foremost families = of the=20 South, made several trips, and profitable ones, as a slaver. No armed = vessel=20 thought to overhaul a trim yacht, flying a private flag, and on her = first trip=20 her officers actually entertained at Page 119dinner the officers of a British cruiser = watching=20 for slavers on the African coast. But her time came, and when in 1860 = the=20 slaver, Nathaniel Gordon, a citizen of Portland, Maine, was actually = hanged as a=20 pirate, the death-blow of the slave-trade was struck. Thereafter the end = came=20 swiftly.Page = 120

CHAPTER IV

Page = 121The Whaling Industry=97Its Early Development in New = England=97Known To=20 The Ancients=97Shore Whaling=97Beginnings of the Deep-Sea = Fisheries=97The Prizes of=20 Whaling=97Piety of Its Early Promoters=97The Right Whale and the = Cachalot=97A=20 Flurry=97Some Fighting Whales=97The "Essex" and the "Ann = Alexander"=97Types of=20 Whalers=97Decadence of the Industry=97Effect of Our National Wars=97The = Embargo=97Some=20 Stories of Whaling Life.

In the old "New England Primer," on which the growing minds of Yankee = infants=20 in the early days of the eighteenth century were regaled, appears a = clumsy=20 woodcut of a spouting whale, with these lines of excellent piety but = doubtful=20 rhyme:

It is significant of the part which the whale then played in domestic = economy=20 that his familiar bulk should be utilized to "point a moral and adorn a = tale" in=20 the most elementary of books for the instruction of children. And indeed = by the=20 time the "New England Primer" was published, with its quaint lettering = and rude=20 illustrations, the whale fishery had come to be one of the chief = occupations of=20 the seafaring men of the North Atlantic States. The pursuit of this = "royal=20 fish"=97as the ancient chroniclers call him in contented ignorance of = the fact=20 that he is not a fish at all=97had not, indeed, originated in New = England, but had=20 been practised by all maritime peoples of whom history has knowledge, = while the=20 researches of archeologists Page 122have shown that prehistoric peoples were = accustomed=20 to chase the gigantic cetacean for his blubber, his oil, and his bone. = The=20 American Indians, in their frail canoes, the Esquimaux, in their crank = kayaks,=20 braved the fury of this aquatic monster, whose size was to that of one = of his=20 enemies as the bulk of a battle-ship is to that of a pigmy torpedo = launch. But=20 the whale fishery in vessels fitted for cruises of moderate length had = its=20 origin in Europe, where the Basques during the Middle Ages fairly drove = the=20 animals from the Bay of Biscay, which had long swarmed with them. Not a = prolific=20 breeder, the whales soon showed the effect of Europe's eagerness for = oil,=20 whalebone and ambergris, and by the beginning of the sixteenth century = the=20 industry was on the verge of extinction. Then began that search for a = sea=20 passage to India north of the continents of Europe and America, which I = have=20 described in another chapter. The passage was not discovered, but in the = icy=20 waters great schools of right whales were found, and the chase of the = "royal=20 fish" took on new vigor. Of course there was effort on the part of one = nation to=20 acquire by violence a monopoly of this profitable business, and the = Dutch, who=20 have done much in the cause of liberty, defeated the British in a naval = battle=20 at the edge of the ice before the principle of the freedom of the = fisheries was=20 accepted. To-day science has discovered substitutes for almost all of = worth that=20 the whales once supplied, and the substitutes are in the main marked=20 improvements on the original. But in the seventeenth and eighteenth = centuries=20 the clear whale oil for illuminating purposes, the tough and supple = whalebone,=20 the spermaceti which filled the great case in the sperm-whale's head, = the=20 precious ambergris=97prized even among the early Hebrews, and chronicled = in the=20 Scriptures as a thing of great price=97were prizes, in pursuit of which = men Page = 123braved every=20 terror of the deep, threaded the ice-floes of the Arctic, fought against = the=20 currents about Cape Horn, and steered to every corner of the Seven Seas = the=20 small, stout brigs and barks of New England make.

The whale came to the New Englander long before the New Englanders = went after=20 him. In the earliest colonial days the carcasses of whales were = frequently found=20 stranded on the beaches of Cape Cod and Long Island. Old colonial = records are=20 full of the lawsuits growing out of these pieces of treasure-trove, the = finder,=20 the owner of the land where the gigantic carrion lay stranded, and the = colony=20 all claiming ownership, or at least shares. By 1650 all the northern = colonies=20 had begun to pursue the business of shore whaling to some extent. Crews = were=20 organized, boats kept in readiness on the beach, and whenever a whale = was=20 sighted they would put off with harpoons and lances after the huge game, = which,=20 when slain, would be towed ashore, and there cut up and tried out, to = the=20 accompaniment of a prodigious clacking of gulls and a widely diffused = bad smell.=20 This method of whaling is still followed at Amagansett and Southampton, = on the=20 shore of Long Island, though the growing scarcity of whales makes = catches=20 infrequent. In the colonial days, however, it was a source of profit = assiduously=20 cultivated by coastwise communities, and both on Long Island and Cape = Cod=20 citizens were officially enjoined to watch for whales off shore. Whales = were=20 then seen daily in New York harbor, and in 1669 one Samuel Maverick = recorded in=20 a letter that thirteen whales had been taken along the south shore = during the=20 winter, and twenty in the spring.

Little by little the boat voyages after the leviathans extended = further into=20 the sea as the industry grew and the game became scarce and shy. The = people of=20 Cape Cod were the first to begin the fishery, and earliest perfected Page = 124the art of=20 "saving" the whale=97that is, of securing all of value in the carcass. = But the=20 people of the little island of Nantucket brought the industry to its = highest=20 development, and spread most widely the fame of the American whaleman. = Indeed, a=20 Nantucket whaler laden with oil was the first vessel flying the Stars = and=20 Stripes that entered a British port. It is of a sailor on this craft = that a=20 patriotic anecdote, now almost classic, is told. He was unhappily = deformed, and=20 while passing along a Liverpool street was greeted by a British tar with = a blow=20 on his "humpback" and the salutation: "Hello, Jack! What you got there?" = "Bunker=20 Hill, d=97=97n ye!" responded the Yankee. "Think you can climb it?" Far = out at sea,=20 swept ever by the Atlantic gales, a mere sand-bank, with scant surface = soil to=20 support vegetation, this island soon proved to its settlers its = unfitness to=20 maintain an agricultural people. There is a legend that an islander, = weary=20 perhaps with the effort of trying to wrest a livelihood from the = unwilling soil,=20 looked from a hilltop at the whales tumbling and spouting in the ocean. = "There,"=20 he said, "is a green pasture where our children's grandchildren will go = for=20 bread." Whether the prophecy was made or not, the event occurred, for = before the=20 Revolution the American whaling fleet numbered 360 vessels, and in the = banner=20 year of the industry, 1846, 735 ships engaged in it, the major part of = the fleet=20 hailing from Nantucket. The cruises at first were toward Greenland after = the=20 so-called right whales, a variety of the cetaceans which has an added = commercial=20 value because of the baleen, or whalebone, which hangs in great strips = from the=20 roof of its mouth to its lower jaw, forming a sort of screen or sieve by = which=20 it sifts its food out of prodigious mouthfuls of sea water. This most = enormous=20 of known living creatures feeds upon very small shell-fish, Page 125swarm in the = waters it=20 frequents. Opening wide its colossal mouth, a cavity often more than = fifteen=20 feet in length, and so deep from upper to lower jaw that the flexible = sheets of=20 whalebone, sometimes ten feet long, hang straight without touching its = floor, it=20 takes a great gulp of water. Then the cavernous jaws slowly close, = expelling the=20 water through the whalebone sieve, somewhat as a Chinese laundryman = sprinkles=20 clothes, and the small marine animals which go to feed that prodigious = bulk are=20 caught in the strainer. The right whale is from 45 to 60 feet long in = its=20 maturity, and will yield about 15 tons of oil and 1500 weight of = whalebone,=20 though individuals have been known to give double this amount.

Most of the vessels which put out of Nantucket and New Bedford, in = the=20 earliest days of the industry, after whales of this sort, were not = fitted with=20 kettles and furnaces for trying out the oil at the time of the catch, as = was=20 always the custom in the sperm-whale fishery. Their prey was near at = hand, their=20 voyages comparatively short. So the fat, dripping, reeking blubber was = crammed=20 into casks, or some cases merely thrown into the ship's hold, just as it = was cut=20 from the carcass, and so brought back weeks later to the home port=97a = shipload of=20 malodorous putrefaction. Old sailors who have cruised with cargoes of = cattle, of=20 green hides, and of guano, say that nothing that ever offended the = olfactories=20 of man equals the stench of a right-whaler on her homeward voyage. = Scarcely even=20 could the slave-ships compare with it. Brought ashore, this noisome mass = was=20 boiled in huge kettles, and the resulting oil sent to lighten the night = in all=20 civilized lands. England was a good customer of the colonies, and Boston = shipowners did a thriving trade with oil from New Bedford or Nantucket = to=20 London. The sloops and ketches engaged in this commerce Page 126brought back, = as an old=20 letter of directions from shipowner to skipper shows, "course wicker = flasketts,=20 Allom, Copress, drum rims, head snares, shod shovells, window-glass." = The trade=20 was conducted with the same piety that we find manifested in the = direction of=20 slave-ships and privateers. In order that the oil may fetch a good = price, and=20 the voyage be speedy, the captain is commended to God, and "That hee may = please=20 to take the Conduct of you, we pray you look carefully that hee bee = worshipped=20 dayly in yor shippe, his Sabbaths Sanctifiede, and all sinne and = prophainesse=20 let bee Surpressed." In the Revolution the fisheries suffered severely = from the=20 British cruisers, and when, after peace was declared, the whalemen began = coming=20 back from the privateers, in which they had sought service, and the = wharves of=20 Nantucket, New Bedford, and New London began again to show signs of = life, the=20 Americans were confronted by the closing of their English markets. "The = whale=20 fisheries and the Newfoundland fisheries were the nurseries of British = seamen,"=20 said the British ministry to John Adams, who went to London to = remonstrate. "If=20 we let Americans bring oil to London, and sell fish to our West India = colonies,=20 the British marine will decline." For a long time, therefore, the = whalers had to=20 look elsewhere than to England for a market. Nevertheless the trade = grew. New=20 Bedford, which by the middle of the nineteenth century held = three-fourths of the=20 business, took it up with great vigor. For a time Massachusetts gave = bounties to=20 encourage the industry, but it was soon strong enough to dispense with = them. By=20 1789 the whalers found their way to the Pacific=97destined in later = years to be=20 their chief fishing-ground. In that year the total whaling tonnage of=20 Massachusetts was 10,210, with 1611 men and an annual product of 7880 = barrels=20 sperm and 13,130 barrels Page 127whale oil. Fifteen years earlier=97before = the war=97the=20 figures were thrice as great.

Before this period, however, whaling had taken on a new form. = Deep-sea=20 whaling, as it was called, to distinguish it from the shore fisheries, = had begun=20 long ago. Capt. Christopher Hursey, a stout Nantucket whaleman, cruising = about=20 after right whales, ran into a stiff northwest gale and was carried far = out to=20 sea. He struck a school of sperm-whales, killed one, and brought blubber = home.=20 It was not a new discovery, for the sperm-whale or cachalot, had been = known for=20 years, but the great numbers of right whales and the ease with which = they were=20 taken, had made pursuit of this nobler game uncommon. But now the fact, = growing=20 yearly more apparent, that right whales were being driven to more = inaccessible=20 haunts, made whalers turn readily to this new prey. Moreover, the = sperm-whale=20 had in him qualities of value that made him a richer prize than his = Greenland=20 cousin. True, he lacked the useful bone. His feeding habits did not = necessitate=20 a sieve, for, as beseems a giant, he devoured stout victuals, pieces of = great=20 squids=97the fabled devil-fish=97as big as a man's body being found in = his stomach.=20 Such a diet develops his fighting qualities, and while the right whale = usually=20 takes the steel sullenly, and dies like an overgrown seal, the cachalot = fights=20 fiercely, now diving with such a rush that he has been known to break = his jaw by=20 the fury with which he strikes the bottom at the depth of 200 fathoms; = now=20 raising his enormous bulk in air, to fall with an all-obliterating crash = upon=20 the boat which holds his tormentors, or sending boat and men flying into = the air=20 with a furious blow of his gristly flukes, or turning on his back and = crunching=20 his assailants between his cavernous jaws. Descriptions of the dying = flurry of=20 the sperm-whale are plentiful in whaling literature, many of Page 128the best of = them being in=20 that ideal whaleman's log "The Cruise of the Cachalot," by Frank T. = Bullen. I=20 quote one of these:

"Suddenly the mate gave a howl: 'Starn all=97starn all! Oh, starn!' = and the=20 oars bent like canes as we obeyed=97there was an upheaval of the sea = just ahead;=20 then slowly, majestically, the vast body of our foe rose into the air. = Up, up it=20 went while my heart stood still, until the whole of that immense = creature hung=20 on high, apparently motionless, and then fell=97a hundred tons of solid = flesh=97back=20 into the sea. On either side of that mountainous mass the waters rose in = shining=20 towers of snowy foam, which Page 129fell in their turn, whirling and eddying = around us=20 as we tossed and fell like a chip in a whirlpool. Blinded by the flying = spray,=20 baling for very life to free the boat from the water, with which she was = nearly=20 full, it was some minutes before I was able to decide whether we were = still=20 uninjured or not. Then I saw, at a little distance, the whale lying = quietly. As=20 I looked he spouted and the vapor was red with his blood. 'Starn all!' = again=20 cried our chief, and we retreated to a considerable distance. The old = warrior's=20 practised eye had detected the coming climax of our efforts, the dying = agony, or=20 'flurry,' of the great mammal. Turning upon his side, he began to move = in a=20 circular direction, slowly at first, then faster and faster, until he = was=20 rushing round at tremendous speed, his great head raised quite out of = water at=20 times, slashing his enormous jaws. Torrents of blood poured from his = spout-hole,=20 accompanied by hoarse bellowings, as of some gigantic bull, but really = caused by=20 the laboring breath trying to pass through the clogged air-passages. The = utmost=20 caution and rapidity of manipulation of the boat was necessary to avoid = his=20 maddened rush, but this gigantic energy was short-lived. In a few = minutes he=20 subsided slowly in death, his mighty body reclined on one side, the fin=20 uppermost waving limply as he rolled to the swell, while the small waves = broke=20 gently over the carcass in a low, monotonous surf, intensifying the = profound=20 silence that had succeeded the tumult of our conflict with the late = monarch of=20 the deep."

Not infrequently the sperm-whale, breaking loose from the harpoon, = would=20 ignore the boats and make war upon his chief enemy=97the ship. The = history of the=20 whale fishery is full of such occurrences. The ship "Essex," of = Nantucket, was=20 attacked and sunk by a whale, which Page 130planned its campaign of destruction as = though=20 guided by human intelligence. He was first seen at a distance of several = hundred=20 yards, coming full speed for the ship. Diving, he rose again to the = surface=20 about a ship's length away, and then surged forward on the surface, = striking the=20 vessel just forward of the fore-chains. "The ship brought up as suddenly = and=20 violently as if she had struck a rock," said the mate afterward, "and = trembled=20 for few seconds like a leaf." Then she began to settle, but not fast = enough to=20 satisfy the ire of the whale. Circling around, he doubled his speed, and = bore=20 down upon the "Essex" again. This time his head fairly stove in the = bows, and=20 the ship sank so fast that the men were barely able to provision and = launch the=20 boats. Curiously enough, the monster that had thus destroyed a stout = ship paid=20 no attention whatsoever to the little boats, which would have been like=20 nutshells before his bulk and power. But many of the men who thus = escaped only=20 went to a fate more terrible than to have gone down with their stout = ship.=20 Adrift on a trackless sea, 1000 miles from land, in open boats, with = scant=20 provision of food or water, they faced a frightful ordeal. After = twenty-eight=20 days they found an island, but it proved a desert. After leaving it the = boats=20 became separated=97one being never again heard of. In the others men = died fast,=20 and at last the living were driven by hunger actually to eat the dead. = Out of=20 the captain's boat two only were rescued; out of the mate's, three. In = all=20 twelve men were sacrificed to the whale's rage.

Mere lust for combat seemed to animate this whale, for he had not = been=20 pursued by the men of the "Essex," though perhaps in some earlier = meeting with=20 men he had felt the sting of the harpoon and the searching thrust of the = lance.=20 So great is the vitality of the cachalot that it Page 131not = infrequently breaks=20 away from its pursuers, and with two or three harpoon-heads in its body = lives to=20 a ripe, if not a placid, old age. The whale that sunk the New Bedford = ship "Ann=20 Alexander" was one of these fighting veterans. With a harpoon deep in = his side=20 he turned and deliberately ran over and sunk the boat that was fast to = him; then=20 with equal deliberation sent a second boat to the bottom. This was = before noon,=20 and occurred about six miles from the ship, which bore down as fast as = could be=20 to pick up the struggling men. The whale, apparently contented with his = escape,=20 made off. But about sunset Captain Delois, iron in hand, watching from = the=20 knight-heads of the "Ann Alexander" for other whales to repair his = ill-luck, saw=20 the redoubtable fighter not far away, swimming at about a speed of five = knots.=20 At the same time the whale spied the ship. Increasing his speed to = fifteen=20 knots, he bore down upon her, and with the full force of his more than = 100 tons=20 bulk struck her "a terrible blow about two feet from the keel and just = abreast=20 of the foremast, breaking a large hole in her bottom, through which the = water=20 poured in a rushing stream." The crew had scarce time to get out the = boats, with=20 one day's provisions, but were happily picked up by a passing vessel two = days=20 later. The whale itself met retribution five months later, when it was = taken by=20 another American ship. Two of the "Ann Alexander's" harpoons were in = him, his=20 head bore deep scars, and in it were imbedded pieces of the ill-fated = ship's=20 timbers.

Instances of the combativeness of the sperm-whale are not confined to = the=20 records of the whale fishery. Even as I write I find in a current San = Francisco=20 newspaper the story of the pilot-boat "Bonita," sunk near the Farallon = Islands=20 by a whale that attacked her out of sheer wantonness and lust for fight. = The=20 "Bonita" was lying hove-to, lazily Page 132riding the swells, when in the dark=97it = was 10=20 o'clock at night=97there came a prodigious shock, that threw all = standing to the=20 deck and made the pots and pans of the cook's galley jingle like a chime = out of=20 tune. From the deck the prodigious black bulk of a whale, about eighty = feet=20 long, could be made out, lying lazily half out of water near the vessel. = The=20 timbers of the "Bonita" must have been crushed by his impact, for she = began to=20 fill, and soon sank.

In this case the disaster was probably not due to any rage or = malicious=20 intent on the part of the whale. Indeed, in the days when the ocean was = more=20 densely populated with these huge animals, collision with a whale was a=20 well-recognized maritime peril. How many of the stout vessels against = whose=20 names on the shipping list stands the fatal word "missing," came to = their ends=20 in this way can never be known; but maritime annals are full of the = reports of=20 captains who ran "bows on" into a mysterious reef where the chart showed = no=20 obstruction, but which proved to be a whale, reddening the sea with his = blood,=20 and sending the ship=97not less sorely wounded=97into some neighboring = port to=20 refit.

The tools with which the business of hunting the whale is pursued are = simple,=20 even rude. Steam, it is true, has succeeded to sails, and explosives = have=20 displaced the sinewy arm of the harpooner for launching the deadly = shafts; but=20 in the main the pursuit of the monsters is conducted now as it was sixty = years=20 ago, when to command a whaler was the dearest ambition of a New England=20 coastboy. The vessels were usually brigs or barks, occasionally = schooners,=20 ranging from 100 to 500 tons. They had a characteristic architecture, = due in=20 part to the subordination of speed to carrying capacity, and further to = the=20 specially heavy timbering about the bows to withstand Page 133the crushing of = the Arctic=20 ice-pack. The bow was scarce distinguishable from the stern by its = lines, and=20 the masts stuck up straight, without that rake, which adds so much to = the trim=20 appearance of a clipper. Three peculiarities chiefly distinguished the = whalers=20 from other ships of the same general character. At the main royal-mast = head was=20 fixed the "crow's nest"=97in some vessels a heavy barrel lashed to the = mast, in=20 others merely a small platform laid on the cross-trees, with two hoops = fixed to=20 the mast above, within which the lookout could stand in safety. On the = deck,=20 amidships, stood the "try-works," brick furnaces, holding two or three = great=20 kettles, in which the blubber was reduced to odorless oil. Along each = rail were=20 heavy, clumsy wooden cranes, or davits, from which hung the = whale-boats=97never=20 less than five, sometimes more, while still others were lashed to the = deck, for=20 boats were the whale's sport and playthings, and seldom was a big "fish" = made=20 fast that there was not work for the ship's carpenter.

The whale-boat, evolved from the needs of this fishery, is one of the = most=20 perfect pieces of marine architecture afloat=97a true adaptation of = means to an=20 end. It is clinker-built, about 27 feet long, by 6 feet beam, with a = depth of=20 about 2 feet 6 inches; sharp at both ends and clean-sided as a mackerel. = Each=20 boat carried five oarsmen, who wielded oars of from nine to sixteen feet = in=20 length, while the mate steers with a prodigious oar ten feet long. The = bow=20 oarsman is the harpooner, but when he has made fast to the whale he goes = aft and=20 takes the mate's place at the steering oar, while the latter goes = forward with=20 the lances to deal the final murderous strokes. This curious and = dangerous=20 change of position in the boat, often with a heavy sea running, and with = a=20 100-ton whale tugging at the tug-line seems to have grown out Page 134of nothing more = sensible=20 than the insistence of mates on recognition of their rank. But a = whale-boat is=20 not the only place where a spill is threatened because some one in power = insists=20 on doing something at once useless and dangerous.

The whale-boat also carried a stout mast, rigging two sprit sails. = The mast=20 was instantly unshipped when the whale was struck. The American boats = also=20 carried centerboards, lifting into a framework extending through the = center of=20 the craft, but the English whalemen omitted these appendages. A rudder = was hung=20 over the side, for use in emergencies. Into this boat were packed, with = the=20 utmost care and system, two line-tubs, each holding from 100 to 200 = fathoms of=20 fine manila rope, one and one-half inches round, and of a texture like = yellow=20 silk; three harpoons, wood and iron, measuring about eight feet over = all, and=20 weighing about ten pounds; three lances of the finest steel, with wooden = handles, in all about eight feet long; a keg of drinking water and one = of=20 biscuits; a bucket and piggin for bailing, a small spade, knives, axes, = and a=20 shoulder bomb-gun. It can be understood easily that six men, maneuvering = in so=20 crowded a boat, with a huge whale flouncing about within a few feet, a = line=20 whizzing down the center, to be caught in which meant instant death, and = the sea=20 often running high, had need to keep their wits about them.

Harpoons and lances are kept ground to a razor edge, and, propelled = by the=20 vigorous muscles of brawny whalemen, often sunk out of sight through the = papery=20 skin and soft blubber of the whale. Beyond these primitive appliances = the whale=20 fishery never progressed very far. It is true that in later days a = shoulder-gun=20 hurled the harpoon, explosive bombs replaced the lances, the ships were = in some=20 cases fitted with auxiliary steam-power, and in Page 135a few = infrequent instances=20 steam launches were employed for whale-boats. But progress was not = general. The=20 old-fashioned whaling tubs kept the seas, while the growing scarcity of = the=20 whales and the blow to the demand for oil dealt by the discovery of = petroleum,=20 checked the development of the industry. Now the rows of whalers rotting = at New=20 Bedford's wharves, and the somnolence of Nantucket, tell of its virtual=20 demise.

These two towns were built upon the prosperity of the whale fishery. = When it=20 languished their fortunes sunk, never to rise to their earlier heights, = though=20 cotton-spinning came to occupy the attention of the people of New = Bedford, while=20 Nantucket found a placid prosperity in entertaining summer boarders. And = even=20 during the years when whales were plentiful, and their oil still in good = demand,=20 there came periods of interruption to the trade and poverty to its = followers.=20 The Revolution first closed the seas to American ships for seven long = years, and=20 at its close the whalers found their best market=97England=97still shut = against=20 them. Moreover, the high seas during the closing years of the eighteenth = and the=20 opening of the nineteenth centuries were not as to-day, when a pirate is = as=20 scarce a beast of prey as a highwayman on Hounslow Heath. The Napoleonic = wars=20 had broken down men's natural sense of order and of right, and the seas = swarmed=20 with privateers, who on occasion were ready enough to turn pirates. Many = whalers=20 fell a prey to these marauders, whose operations were rather encouraged = than=20 condemned by the European nations. Both England and France were at this = period=20 endeavoring to lure the whalemen from the United Colonies by promise of = special=20 concessions in trade, or more effective protection on the high seas than = their=20 own weakling governments could assure them. Some Nantucket whalemen Page = 136were indeed=20 enticed to the new English whaling town at Dartmouth, near Halifax, or = to the=20 French town of Dunkirk. But the effort to transplant the industry did = not=20 succeed, and the years that followed, until the fateful embargo of 1807, = were a=20 period of rapid growth for the whale fishery and increasing wealth for = those who=20 pursued it. In the form of its business organization the business of = whaling was=20 the purest form of profit-sharing we have ever seen in the United = States.=20 Everybody on the ship, from captain to cabin-boy, was a partner, vitally = interested in the success of the voyage. Each had his "lay"=97that is to = say, his=20 proportionate share of the proceeds of the catch. Obed Macy, in his = "History of=20 Nantucket," says: "The captain's lay is generally one-seventeenth part = of all=20 obtained; the first officer's one-twenty-eighth part; the second = officer's,=20 one-forty-fifth; the third officer's, one-sixtieth; a boat-steerer's = from an=20 eightieth to a hundred-and-twentieth, and a foremast hand's, from a=20 hundred-and-twentieth to a hundred-and-eighty-fifth each." These = proportions, of=20 course, varied=97those of the men according to the ruling wages in other = branches=20 of the merchant service; those of the officers to correspond with = special=20 qualities of efficiency. All the remainder of the catch went to the = owners, who=20 put into the enterprise the ship and outfitted her for a cruise, which = usually=20 occupied three years. Their investment was therefore a heavy one, a = suitable=20 vessel of 300-tons burden costing in the neighborhood of $22,000, and = her outfit=20 $18,000 to $20,000. Not infrequently the artisans engaged in fitting out = a ship=20 were paid by being given "lays," like the sailor. In such a case the = boatmaker=20 who built the whale-boats, the ropemaker who twisted the stout, flexible = manila=20 cord to hold the whale, the sailmaker and the cooper were all interested = with=20 the crew and the Page=20 137owners in the success of the voyage. It was the most practical = communism that industry has ever seen, and it worked to the satisfaction = of all=20 concerned as long as the whaling trade continued profitable.

The wars in which the American people engaged during the active days = of the=20 whale fishery=97the Revolution, the War of 1812, and the Civil = War=97were disastrous=20 to that industry, and from the depredations committed by the Confederate = cruisers in the last conflict it never fully recovered. The nature of = their=20 calling made the whalemen peculiarly vulnerable to the evils of war. = Cruising in=20 distant seas, always away from home for many months, often for years, a = war=20 might be declared and fought to a finish before they knew of it. In the=20 disordered Napoleonic days they never could tell whether the flag = floating at=20 the peak of some armed vessel encountered at the antipodes was that of = friend or=20 foe. During both the wars with England they were the special objects of = the=20 enemy's malignant attention. From the earliest days American progress in = maritime enterprise was viewed by the British with apprehension and = dislike.=20 Particularly did the growth of the cod fisheries and the chase of the = whale=20 arouse transatlantic jealousy, the value of these callings as nurseries = for=20 seamen being only too plainly apparent. Accordingly the most was made of = the=20 opportunities afforded by war for crushing the whaling industry. Whalers = were=20 chased to their favorite fishing-grounds, captured, and burned. With = cynical=20 disregard of all the rules of civilized warfare=97supposing war ever to = be=20 civilized=97the British gave to the captured whalers only the choice of = serving in=20 British men-of-war against their own countrymen, or re-entering the = whaling=20 trade on British ships, thus building up the British whale fishery at = the=20 expense of the American. The American response to these tactics Page 138was to abandon = the business=20 during war time. In 1775 Nantucket alone had had 150 vessels, = aggregating 15,000=20 tons, afloat in pursuit of the whale. The trade was pushed with such = daring and=20 enterprise that Edmund Burke was moved to eulogize its followers in an = eloquent=20 speech in the British House of Commons. "Neither the perseverance of = Holland,"=20 he said, "nor the activity of France, nor the dexterous and firm = sagacity of=20 English enterprise, ever carried this most perilous mode of hardy = industry to=20 the extent to which it has been pushed by this most recent people." But = the=20 eloquence of Burke could not halt the British ministry in its purpose to = tax the=20 colonies despite their protests. The Revolution followed, and the = whalemen of=20 Nantucket and New Bedford stripped their vessels, sent down yards and = all=20 running rigging, stowed the sails, tied their barks and brigs to the = deserted=20 wharves and went out of business. The trade thus rudely checked had for = the year=20 preceding the outbreak of the war handled 45,000 barrels of sperm oil, = 8500=20 barrels of right-whale oil, and 75,000 pounds of bone.

The enforced idleness of the Revolutionary days was not easily = forgotten by=20 the whalemen, and their discontent and complainings were great when the = nation=20 was again embroiled in war with Great Britain in 1812. It can not be = said that=20 their attitude in the early days of that conflict was patriotic. They = had=20 suffered=97both at the hands of France and England=97wrongs which might = well rouse=20 their resentment. They had been continually impressed by England, and = the=20 warships of both nations had seized American whalers for real or alleged = violations of the Orders in Council or the Ostend Manifesto; but the = whalemen=20 were more eager for peace, even with the incidental perils due to war in = Europe,=20 than for war, with Page=20 139its enforced idleness. When Congress ordered the embargo the = whalers=20 were at first explicitly freed from its operations; but this provision = being=20 seized upon to cover evasions of the embargo, they were ultimately = included.=20 When war was finally declared, the protests of the Nantucket people = almost=20 reached the point of threatening secession. A solemn memorial was first=20 addressed to Congress, relating the exceedingly exposed condition of the = island=20 and its favorite calling to the perils of war, and begging that the = actual=20 declaration of war might be averted. When this had availed nothing, and = the=20 young nation had rushed into battle with a courage that must seem to us = now=20 foolhardy, the Nantucketers adopted the doubtful expedient of seeking = special=20 favor from the enemy. An appeal for immunity from the ordinary acts of = war was=20 addressed to the British Admiral Cochrane, and a special envoy was sent = to the=20 British naval officer commanding the North American station, to announce = the=20 neutrality of the island and to beg immunity from assault and pillage, = and=20 assurance that one vessel would be permitted to ply unmolested between = the=20 island and the mainland. As a result of these negotiations, Nantucket = formally=20 declared her neutrality, and by town meeting voted to accede to the = British=20 demand that her people pay no taxes for the support of the United = States. In all=20 essential things the island ceased to be a part of the United States, = its people=20 neither rendering military service nor contributing to the revenues. But = their=20 submission to the British demands did not save the whale-trade, for = repeated=20 efforts to get the whalers declared neutral and exempt from capture = failed.

Half a century of peace followed, during which the whaling industry = rose to=20 its highest point; but was again on the wane when the Civil War let = loose upon=20 the remaining Page=20 140whalemen the Confederate cruisers, the "Shenandoah" alone = burning=20 thirty-four of them. From this last stroke the industry, enfeebled by = the=20 lessened demand for its chief product, and by the greater cost and = length of=20 voyages resulting from the growing scarcity of whales, never recovered. = To-day=20 its old-time ports are deserted by traffic. Stripped of all that had = salable=20 value, its ships rot on mud-banks or at moldering wharves. The New = England boy,=20 whose ambition half a century ago was to ship on a whaler, with a boy's = lay and=20 a straight path to the quarter-deck, now goes into a city office, or = makes for=20 the West as a miner or a railroad man. The whale bids fair to become as = extinct=20 as the dodo, and the whaleman is already as rare as the buffalo.

With the extension of the fishing-grounds to the Pacific Page 141began the = really great days=20 of the whale fishery. Then, from such a port as Nantucket or New Bedford = a=20 vessel would set out, to be gone three years, carrying with her the = dearest=20 hopes and ambitions of all the inhabitants. Perhaps there would be no = house=20 without some special interest in her cruise. Tradesmen of a dozen sorts = supplied=20 stores on shares. Ambitious boys of the best families sought places = before the=20 mast, for there was then no higher goal for youthful ambition than = command of a=20 whaler. Not infrequently a captain would go direct from the marriage = altar to=20 his ship, taking a young bride off on a honeymoon of three years at sea. = Of=20 course the home conditions created by this almost universal masculine = employment=20 were curious. The whaling towns were populated by women, children, and = old men.=20 The talk of the street was of big catches and the prices of oil and = bone. The=20 conversation in the shaded parlors, where sea-shells, coral, and the = trophies of=20 Pacific cruises were the chief ornaments, was of the distant husbands = and sons,=20 the perils they braved, and when they might be expected home. The solid, = square=20 houses the whalemen built, stoutly timbered as though themselves ships, = faced=20 the ocean, and bore on their ridge-pole a railed platform called the = bridge,=20 whence the watchers could look far out to sea, scanning the horizon for = the=20 expected ship. Lucky were they if she came into the harbor without = half-masted=20 flag or other sign of disaster. The profits of the calling in its best = days were=20 great. The best New London record is that of the "Pioneer," made in an=20 eighteen-months' cruise in 1864-5. She brought back 1391 barrels of oil = and=20 22,650 pounds of bone, all valued at $150,060. The "Envoy," of New = Bedford,=20 after being condemned as unseaworthy, was fitted out in 1847 at a cost = of $8000,=20 and sent out on a Page=20 142final cruise. She found oil and bone to the value of $132,450; = and=20 reaching San Francisco in the flush times, was sold for $6000. As an = offset to=20 these records, is the legend of the Nantucket captain who appeared off = the=20 harbor's mouth after a cruise of three years. "What luck, cap'n?" asked = the=20 first to board. "Well, I got nary a barrel of oil and nary a pound of = bone; but=20 I had a mighty good sail."

When the bar was crossed and the ship fairly in blue water, work = began.=20 Rudyard Kipling has a characteristic story, "How the Ship Found = Herself,"=20 telling how each bolt and plate, each nut, screw-thread, brace, and = rivet in one=20 of those iron tanks we now call ships adjusts itself to its work on the = first=20 voyage. On the whaler the crew had to find itself, to readjust its = relations,=20 come to know its constituent parts, and learn the ways of its superiors. = Sometimes a ship was manned by men who had grown up together and who had = served=20 often on the same craft; but as a rule the men of the forecastle were a = rough=20 and vagrant lot; capable seamen, indeed, but of the adventurous and=20 irresponsible sort, for service before the mast on a whaler was not = eagerly=20 sought by the men of the merchant service. For a time Indians were = plenty, and=20 their fine physique and racial traits made them skillful harpooners. As = they=20 became scarce, negroes began to appear among the whalemen, with now and = then a=20 Lascar, a South Sea Islander, Portuguese, and Hawaiians. The alert New=20 Englanders, trained to the life of the sea, seldom lingered long in the=20 forecastle, but quickly made their way to the posts of command. There = they were=20 despots, for nowhere was the discipline more severe than on whalemen. = The rule=20 was a word and a blow=97and the word was commonly a curse. The ship was = out for a=20 five-years' cruise, perhaps, and the captain Page 143knew that the = safety of all=20 depended upon unquestioning obedience to his authority. Once in a while = even the=20 cowed crew would revolt, and infrequent stories of mutiny and murder = appear in=20 the record of the whale trade. The whaler, like a man-of-war, carried a = larger=20 crew than was necessary for the work of navigation, and it was necessary = to=20 devise work to keep the men employed. As a result, the ships were kept = cleaner=20 than any others in the merchant service, even though the work of trying = out the=20 blubber was necessarily productive of smoke, soot, and grease.

As a rule the voyage to the Pacific whaling waters was round Cape = Horn,=20 though occasionally a vessel made its way to the eastward and rounded = the Cape=20 of Good Hope. Almost always the world was circumnavigated before return. = In=20 early days the Pacific whalers found their game in plenty along the = coast of=20 Chili; but in time they were forced to push further and further north = until the=20 Japan Sea and Bering Sea became the favorite fishing places.

The whale was usually first sighted by the lookout in the crow's = nest. A=20 warm-blooded animal, breathing with lungs, and not with gills, like a = fish, the=20 whale is obliged to come to the surface of the water periodically to = breathe. As=20 he does so he exhales the air from his lungs through blow-holes or = spiracles at=20 the top of his head; and this warm, moist air, coming thus from his = lungs into=20 the cool air, condenses, forming a jet of vapor looking like a fountain, = though=20 there is, in fact, no spout of water. "There she blows! B-l-o-o-o-ws!=20 Blo-o-ows!" cries the lookout at this spectacle. All is activity at once = on=20 deck, the captain calling to the lookout for the direction and character = of the=20 "pod" or school. The sperm whale throws his spout forward at an angle, = instead=20 Page = 144of=20 perpendicularly into the air, and hence is easily distinguished from = right=20 whales at a distance. The ship is then headed toward the game, coming to = about a=20 mile away. As the whale, unless alarmed, seldom swims more than two and = a half=20 miles an hour, and usually stays below only about forty-five minutes at = a time,=20 there is little difficulty in overhauling him. Then the boats are = launched, the=20 captain and a sufficient number of men staying with the ship.

In approaching the whale, every effort is made to Page 145come up to him = at the point=20 of least danger. This point is determined partly by the lines of the = whale's=20 vision, partly by his methods of defense. The right whale can only see = dead=20 ahead, and his one weapon is his tail, which gigantic fin, weighing = several tons=20 and measuring sometimes twenty feet across the tips of the flukes, he = swings=20 with irresistible force and all the agility of a fencer at sword-play. = He,=20 therefore, is attacked from the side, well toward his jaws. The sperm = whale,=20 however, is dangerous at both ends. His tail, though less elastic than = that of=20 the right whale, can deal a prodigious up-and-down blow, while his = gigantic=20 jaws, well garnished with sharp teeth, and capacious gullet, that = readily could=20 gulp down a man, are his chief terrors. His eyes, too, set obliquely, = enable him=20 to command the sea at all points save dead ahead, and it is accordingly = from=20 this point that the fishermen approach him. But however stealthily they = move,=20 the opportunities for disappointment are many. Big as he is, the whale = is not=20 sluggish. In an instant he may sink bodily from sight; or, throwing his = flukes=20 high in air, "sound," to be seen no more; or, casting himself bodily on = the=20 boat, blot it out of existence; or, taking it in his jaws, carry it down = with=20 him. But supposing the whale to be oblivious of its approach, the boat = comes as=20 near as seems safe, and the harpooner, poised in the bow, his knee = against the=20 bracket that steadies him, lets fly his weapon; and, hit or miss, = follows it up=20 at once with a second bent onto the same line. Some harpooners were of = such=20 strength and skill that they could hurl their irons as far as four or = five=20 fathoms. In one famous case boats from an American and British ship were = in=20 pursuit of the same whale, the British boat on the inside. It is the law = of the=20 fishery that the whale belongs to the boat that first makes fast=97and = Page = 146many a pretty=20 quarrel has grown out of this rule. So in this instance=97seeing the = danger that=20 his rival might win the game=97the American harpooner, with a prodigious = effort,=20 darted his iron clear over the rival boat and deep into the mass of = blubber.

What a whale will do when struck no man can tell before the event. = The=20 boat-load of puffing, perspiring men who have pulled at full speed up to = the=20 monster may suddenly find themselves confronted with a furious, = vindictive,=20 aggressive beast weighing eighty tons, and bent on grinding their boat = and=20 themselves to powder; or he may simply turn tail and run. Sometimes he = sounds,=20 going down, down, down, until all the line in the boat is exhausted, and = all=20 that other boats can bend on is gone too. Then the end is thrown over = with a=20 drag, and his Page=20 147reappearance awaited. Sometimes he dashes off over the surface = of the=20 water at a speed of fifteen knots an hour, towing the boat, while the = crew hope=20 that their "Nantucket sleigh-ride" will end before they lose the ship = for good.=20 But once fast, the whalemen try to pull close alongside the monster. = Then the=20 mate takes the long, keen lance and plunges it deep into the great = shuddering=20 carcass, "churning" it up and down and seeking to pierce the heart or = lungs.=20 This is the moment of danger; for, driven mad with pain, the great beast = rolls=20 and thrashes about convulsively. If the boat clings fast to his side, it = is in=20 danger of being crushed or engulfed at any moment; if it retreats, he = may=20 recover himself and be off before the death-stroke can be delivered. In = later=20 days the explosive bomb, discharged from a distance, has done away with = this=20 peril; but in the palmy days of the whale fishery the men would rush = into the=20 circle of sea lashed into foam by those mighty fins, get close to the = whale, as=20 the boxer gets under the guard of his foe, smite him with lance and = razor-edged=20 spade until his spouts ran red, and to his fury there should succeed the = calm of=20 approaching death. Then the boats, pulled off. The command was "Pipes = all"; and,=20 placidly smoking in the presence of that mighty death, the whalers = awaited their=20 ship.

Stories of "fighting whales" fill the chronicles of our old whaling = ports.=20 There was the old bull sperm encountered by Captain Huntling off the = River De La=20 Plata, which is told us in a fascinating old book, "The Nimrod of the = Sea." The=20 first boat that made fast to this tough old warrior he speedily bit in = two; and=20 while her crew were swimming away from the wreck with all possible = speed, the=20 whale thrashed away at the pieces until all were reduced to small bits. = Two=20 other boats Page=20 148meanwhile made fast to the furious animal. Wheeling about in = the foam,=20 reddened with his blood, he crushed them as a tiger would crunch its = prey. All=20 about him were men struggling in the water=97twelve of them, the crews = of the two=20 demolished boats. Of the boats themselves nothing was left big enough to = float a=20 man. The ship was miles away. Three of the sailors climbed on the back = of their=20 enemy, clinging by the harpoons and ropes still fast to him, while the = others=20 swam away for dear life, thinking only of escaping that all-engulfing = jaw or the=20 blows of that murderous tail. Now came another boat from the ship, = picked up the=20 swimmers, and cautiously rescued those perched on the whale's back from = their=20 island of shuddering flesh. The spirit of the monster was still = undaunted.=20 Though six harpoons were sunk into his body and he was dragging 300 = fathoms of=20 line, he was still in fighting mood, crunching oars, kegs, and bits of = boat for=20 more enemies to demolish. All hands made for the ship, where Captain = Hunting,=20 quite as dogged and determined as his adversary, was preparing to renew = the=20 combat. Two spare boats were fitted for use, and again the whalemen = started=20 after their foe. He, for his part, remained on the battle-ground, amid = the=20 d=E9bris of his hunters' property, and awaited attack. Nay, more; he = churned the=20 water with his mighty tail and moved forward to meet his enemy, with = ready jaw=20 to grind them to bits. The captain at the boat-oar, or steering-oar, = made a=20 mighty effort and escaped the rush; then sent an explosive bomb into the = whale's=20 vitals as he surged past. Struck unto death, the great bull went into = his=20 flurry; but in dying he rolled over the captain's boat like an = avalanche,=20 destroying it as completely as he had the three others. So man won the = battle,=20 but at a heavy cost. The whaleman who chronicled this fight Page 149says = significantly: "The=20 captain proceeded to Buenos Ayres, as much to allow his men, who were = mostly=20 green, to run away, as for the purpose of refitting, as he knew they = would be=20 useless thereafter." It was well recognized in the whaling service that = men once=20 thoroughly "gallied," or frightened, were seldom useful again; and, = indeed, most=20 of the participants in this battle did, as the captain anticipated, = desert at=20 the first port.

Curiously enough, there did not begin to be a literature of whaling = until the=20 industry went into its decadence. The old-time whalers, leading lives of = continual romance and adventure, found their calling so commonplace that = they=20 noted shipwrecks, mutinies, and disaster in the struggles of the whale = baldly in=20 their logbooks, without attempt at graphic description. It is true the = piety of=20 Nantucket did result in incorporating the whale in the local hymn-book, = but with=20 what doubtful literary success these verses from the pen of Peleg = Folger=97himself=20 a whaleman=97will too painfully attest:

Stories of the whale fishery are plentiful, and of late years there = has been=20 some effort made to gather these Page 150into a kind of popular history of the = industry. The=20 following incidents are gathered from a pamphlet, published in the early = days of=20 the nineteenth century, by Thomas Nevins, a New England whaler:

"A remarkable instance of the power which the whale possesses in its = tail was=20 exhibited within my own observation in the year 1807. On the 29th of May = a whale=20 was harpooned by an officer belonging to the 'Resolution.' It descended = a=20 considerable depth, and on its reappearance evinced an uncommon degree = of=20 irritation. It made such a display of its fins and tail that few of the = crew=20 were hardy enough to approach it. The captain, observing their timidity, = called=20 a boat and himself struck a second harpoon. Another boat immediately = followed,=20 and unfortunately advanced too far. The tail was again reared into the = air in a=20 terrific attitude. The impending blow was evident. The harpooner, who = was=20 directly underneath, leaped overboard, and the next moment the = threatened stroke=20 was impressed on the center of the boat, which it buried in the water. = Happily=20 no one was injured. The harpooner who leaped overboard escaped death by = the act,=20 the tail having struck the very spot on which he stood. The effects of = the blow=20 were astonishing=97the keel was broken, the gunwales and every plank = excepting two=20 were cut through, and it was evident that the boat would have been = completely=20 divided, had not the tail struck directly upon a coil of lines. The boat = was=20 rendered useless.

"The Dutch ship 'Gort-Moolen,' commanded by Cornelius Gerard = Ouwekaas, with a=20 cargo of seven fish, was anchored in Greenland, in the year 1660. The = captain,=20 perceiving a whale ahead of his ship, beckoned his attendants and threw = himself=20 into a boat. He was the first to approach the whale, and was fortunate = enough to=20 harpoon it before the arrival of the second boat, which was on the = advance.=20 Jacques Vienkes, who had the direction of it, joined his captain = immediately=20 afterward, and prepared to make a second attack on the fish when it = should=20 remount to the surface. At the moment of its ascension, the boat of = Vienkes,=20 happening, unfortunately, to be perpendicularly above it, was so = suddenly and=20 forcibly lifted up by a stroke of the head of the whale that it was = dashed to=20 pieces before the Page=20 151harpooner could discharge his weapon. Vienkes flew along with = the=20 pieces of the boat, and fell upon the back of the animal. This intrepid = seaman,=20 who still retained his weapon in his grasp, harpooned the whale on which = he=20 stood; and by means of the harpoon and the line, which he never = abandoned, he=20 steadied himself firmly upon the fish, notwithstanding his hazardous = situation,=20 and regardless of a considerable wound that he received in his leg in = his fall=20 along with the fragments of the boat. All the efforts of the other boats = to=20 approach the whale and deliver the harpooner were futile. The captain, = not=20 seeing any other method of saving his unfortunate companion, who was in = some way=20 entangled with the line, called him to cut it with his knife and betake = himself=20 to swimming. Vienkes, embarrassed and disconcerted as he was, tried in = vain to=20 follow this council. His knife was in the pocket of his drawers, and = being=20 unable to support himself with one hand, he could not get it out. The = whale,=20 meanwhile, continued advancing along the surface of the water with great = rapidity, but fortunately never attempted to dive. While his comrades = despaired=20 of his life, the harpoon by which he held at length disengaged itself = from the=20 body of the whale. Vienkes, being thus liberated, did not fail to take = advantage=20 of this circumstance. He cast himself into the sea, and by swimming = endeavored=20 to regain the boats, which continued the pursuit of the whale. When his=20 shipmates perceived him struggling with the waves, they redoubled their=20 exertions. They reached him just as his strength was exhausted, and had = the=20 happiness of rescuing this adventurous harpooner from his perilous=20 situation.

"Captain Lyons, of the 'Raith,' of Leith, while prosecuting the whale = fishery=20 on the Labrador coast, in the season of 1802, discovered a large whale = at a=20 short distance from the ship. Four boats were dispatched in pursuit, and = two of=20 them succeeded in approaching it so closely together that two harpoons = were=20 struck at the same moment. The fish descended a few fathoms in the = direction of=20 another of the boats, which was on the advance, rose accidentally = beneath it,=20 struck it with his head, and threw the boat, men, and apparatus about = fifteen=20 feet in the air. It was inverted by the stroke, and fell into the water = with its=20 keel upward. All the people were picked up alive by the fourth boat, Page = 152which was just=20 at hand, excepting one man, who, having got entangled in the boat, fell = beneath=20 it and was unfortunately drowned. The fish was soon afterward = killed.

"In 1822 two boats belonging to the ship 'Baffin' went in pursuit of = a whale.=20 John Carr was harpooner and commander of them. The whale they pursued = led them=20 into a vast shoal of his own species. They were so numerous that their = blowing=20 was incessant, and they believed that they did not see fewer than a = hundred.=20 Fearful of alarming them without striking any, they remained a while = motionless.=20 At last one rose near Carr's boat, and he approached and, fatally for = himself,=20 harpooned it. When he struck, the fish was approaching the boat; and, = passing=20 very rapidly, jerked the line out of its place over the stern and threw = it upon=20 the gunwale. Its pressure in this unfavorable position so careened the = boat that=20 the side was pulled under water and it began to fill. In this emergency = Carr,=20 who was a brave, active man, seized the line, and endeavored to release = the boat=20 by restoring it to its place; but by some circumstance which was never = accounted=20 for, a turn of the line flew over his arm, dragged him overboard in an = instant,=20 and drew him under the water, never more to rise. So sudden was the = accident=20 that only one man, who was watching him, saw what had happened; so that = when the=20 boat righted, which it immediately did, though half full of water, the = whole=20 crew, on looking round, inquired what had become of Carr. It is = impossible to=20 imagine a death more awfully sudden and unexpected. The invisible bullet = could=20 not have effected more instantaneous destruction. The velocity of the = whale at=20 its first descent is from thirteen to fifteen feet per second. Now, as = this=20 unfortunate man was adjusting the line at the water's very edge, where = it must=20 have been perfectly tight, owing to its obstruction in running out of = the boat,=20 the interval between the fastening of the line about him and his = disappearance=20 could not have exceeded the third part of a second of time, for in one = second=20 only he must have been dragged ten or twelve feet deep. Indeed, he had = not time=20 for the least exclamation; and the person who saw his removal observed = that it=20 was so exceeding quick that, though his eye was upon him at the moment, = he could=20 scarcely distinguish his figure as he disappeared.Page 153

"As soon as the crew recovered from their consternation, they applied = themselves to the needful attention which the lines required. A second = harpoon=20 was struck from the accompanying boat, on the rising of the whale to the = surface, and some lances were applied; but this melancholy occurrence = had cast=20 such a damp on all present that they became timid and inactive in their=20 subsequent duties. The whale, when nearly exhausted, was allowed to = remain some=20 minutes unmolested, till, having recovered some degree of energy, it = made a=20 violent effort and tore itself away from the harpoons. The exertions of = the=20 crews thus proved fruitless, and were attended with serious loss.

"A harpooner belonging to the 'Henrietta,' of Whitby, when engaged in = lancing=20 a whale into which he had previously struck a harpoon, incautiously cast = a=20 little line under his feet that he had just hauled into the boat, after = it had=20 been drawn out by the fish. A painful stroke of his lance induced the = whale to=20 dart suddenly downward. His line began to run out from under his feet, = and in an=20 instant caught him by a turn round his body. He had but just time to cry = out,=20 'Clear away the line! Oh, dear!' when he was almost cut asunder, dragged = overboard, and never seen afterward. The line was cut at that moment, = but=20 without avail. The fish descended to a considerable depth and died, from = whence=20 it was drawn to the surface by the lines connected with it and=20 secured."

Whaling has almost ceased to have a place in the long list of our = national=20 industries. Its implements and the relics of old-time cruises fill = niches in=20 museums as memorials of a practically extinct calling. Along the wharves = of New=20 Bedford and New London a few old brigs lie rotting, but so effective = have been=20 the ravages of time that scarcely any of the once great fleet survive = even in=20 this invalid condition. The whales have been driven far into the Arctic = regions,=20 whither a few whalers employing the modern and unsportsmanlike devices = of steam=20 and explosives, follow them for a scanty profit. But the glory of the = whale=20 fishery is gone, leaving hardly Page 154a record behind it. In its time it = employed=20 thousands of stout sailors; it furnished the navy with the material that = made=20 that branch of our armed service the pride and glory of the nation. It = explored=20 unknown seas and carried the flag to undiscovered lands. Was not an = Austrian=20 exploring expedition, interrupted as it was about to take possession of = land in=20 the Antarctic in the name of Austria by encountering an American whaler, = trim=20 and trig, lying placidly at anchor in a harbor where the Austrian = thought no man=20 had ever been? It built up towns in New England that half a century of = lethargy=20 has been unable to kill. And so if its brigs=97and its men=97now molder, = if its=20 records are scanty and its history unwritten, still Americans must ever = regard=20 the whale fishery as one of the chief factors in the building of the = nation=97one=20 of the most admirable chapters in our national story.Page 155

CHAPTER V

It is hardly too much to say that the nineteenth century was already = well=20 into its second quarter before there was a semblance of recognized law = upon the=20 high seas.Page 156=20 Pirates and buccaneers, privateers, and the naval vessels of the times = that were=20 little more than pirates, made the lot of the merchant sailor of the = seventeenth=20 and eighteenth centuries a precarious one. Wars were constant, declared = on the=20 flimsiest pretexts and with scant notice; so that the sailor putting out = from=20 port in a time of universal peace could feel no certainty that the first = foreign=20 vessel he met might not capture him as spoil of some war of which he had = no=20 knowledge. Accordingly, sailors learned to defend themselves, and the = ship's=20 armory was as necessary and vastly better stocked than the ship's = medicine case.=20 To point a carronade became as needful an accomplishment as to box the = compass;=20 and he was no A.B. who did not know how to swing a cutlass.

Out of such conditions, and out of the wars which the Napoleonic = plague=20 forced upon the world, sprung the practise of privateering; and while it = is the=20 purpose of this book to tell the story of the American merchant sailor = only, it=20 could not be complete without some account, however brief, of the = American=20 privateersman. For, indeed, the two were one throughout a considerable = period of=20 our maritime history, the sailor turning privateersman or the = privateersman=20 sailor as political or trade conditions demanded. In our colonial times, = and in=20 the earlier days of the nation, to be a famous privateersman, or to have = had a=20 hand in fitting out a successful privateer, was no mean passport to fame = and=20 fortune. Some of the names most eminent in the history of our country = appear in=20 connection with the outfitting or command of privateers; and not a few = of the=20 oldest fortunes of New England had their origin in this form of = legalized=20 piracy. And, after all, it is the need of the times that fixes the = morality of=20 an act. To-day privateering is Page 157dead; not by any formal agreement, for = the United=20 States, at the Congress of Paris, refused to agree to its outlawry; but = in our=20 war with Spain no recourse was had to letters of marque by either = combatant, and=20 it seems unlikely that in any future war between civilized nations = either party=20 will court the contempt of the world by going back to the old custom of=20 chartering banditti to steal the property of private citizens of the = hostile=20 nation if found at sea. Private property on shore has long been = respected by the=20 armies of Christendom, and why its presence in a ship rather than in a = cart=20 makes it a fit object of plunder baffles the understanding. Perhaps in = time the=20 kindred custom of awarding prize money to naval officers, which makes of = them a=20 species of privateers, and pays them for capturing a helpless merchant = ship,=20 while an army officer gets nothing for taking the most powerful fort, = may=20 likewise be set aside as a relic of medieval warfare.

In its earliest days, of course, privateering was the weapon of a = nation weak=20 at sea against one with a large navy. So when the colonies threw down = the gage=20 of battle to Great Britain, almost the first act of the Revolutionary = government=20 was to authorize private owners to fit out armed ships to prey on = British=20 commerce. Some of the shipowners of New England had enjoyed some = experience of=20 the profits of this peculiar industry in the Seven Years' War, when = quite a=20 number of colonial privateers harried the French on the seas, and = accordingly=20 the response was prompt. In enterprises of this character the system of=20 profit-sharing, already noted in connection with whaling, obtained. The = owners=20 took a certain share of each prize, and the remainder was divided among = the=20 officers and crew in certain fixed proportions. How great were the = profits=20 accruing to a privateersman in Page 158a "run of luck" might be illustrated by = two facts=20 set forth by Maclay, whose "History of American Privateers" is the chief = authority on the subject. He asserts that "it frequently happened that = even the=20 common sailors received as their share in one cruise, over and above = their=20 wages, one thousand dollars=97a small fortune in those days for a = mariner," and=20 further that "one of the boys in the 'Ranger,' who less than a month = before had=20 left a farm, received as his share one ton of sugar, from thirty to = forty=20 gallons of fourth-proof Jamaica rum, some twenty pounds of cotton, and = about the=20 same quantity of ginger, logwood, and allspice, besides seven hundred = dollars in=20 money." To be sure, in order to enjoy gains like these, the men had to = risk the=20 perils of battle in addition to the common ones of the sea; but it is a = curious=20 fact, recognized in all branches of industry, that the mere peril of a = calling=20 does not deter men from following it, and when it promises high profit = it is=20 sure to be overcrowded. In civil life to-day the most dangerous callings = are=20 those which are, as a rule, the most ill paid.

Very speedily the privateersmen became the most prosperous and the = most=20 picturesque figures along the waterside of the Atlantic cities. While = the=20 dignified merchant or shipowner, with a third interest in the = "Daredevil" or the=20 "Flybynight," might still maintain the sober demeanor of a good citizen = and a=20 pillar of the church, despite his profits of fifty or an hundred per = cent. on=20 each cruise, the gallant sailors who came back to town with pockets full = of=20 easily-won money, and the recollection of long and dismal weeks at sea = behind=20 them, were spectacular in their rejoicings. Their money was poured out = freely=20 while it lasted; and their example stirred all the townsboys, from the = best=20 families down to the scourings of the docks, to enter the same = gentlemanlike=20 profession.Page=20 159

Queerly enough, in a time of universal democracy, a provision was = made on=20 many of the privateers for the young men of family who desired to follow = the=20 calling. They were called "gentlemen sailors," and, in consideration of = their=20 social standing and the fact that they were trained to arms, were = granted=20 special and unusual privileges, such as freedom from the drudgery of = working the=20 ship, better fare than the common sailors, and more comfortable = quarters.=20 Indeed, they were free of duty except when fighting was to be done, and = at other=20 times fulfilled the function of the marine guards on our modern = men-of-war. This=20 came to be a very popular calling for adventurous young men of some = family=20 influence.

It has been claimed by some writers that "the Revolution was won by = the New=20 England privateers"; and, indeed, there can be no doubt that their = activity did=20 contribute in no small degree to the outcome of that struggle. Britain = was then,=20 as now, essentially a commercial nation, and the outcry of her merchants = when=20 the ravages of American privateers drove marine insurance rates up to=20 thirty-three per cent., and even for a time made companies refuse it = altogether,=20 was clamorous. But there was another side to the story. Privateering, = like all=20 irregular service, was demoralizing, not alone to the men engaged in it, = but to=20 the youth of the country as well. The stories of the easy life and the = great=20 profits of the privateersmen were circulated in every little town, while = the=20 revels of these sea soldiers in the water-front villages were described = with=20 picturesque embellishments throughout the land. As a result, it became = hard to=20 get young men of spirit into the patriot armies. Washington complained = that when=20 the fortunes of his army were at their lowest, when he could not get = clothing=20 for his soldiers, and the snow at Valley Forge was stained with the = blood Page = 160of their unshod=20 feet, any American shipping on a privateer was sure of a competence, = while great=20 fortunes were being made by the speculators who fitted them out. Nor was = this=20 all. Such was the attraction of the privateer's life that it drew to it = seamen=20 from every branch of the maritime calling. The fisheries and the West = India=20 trade, which had long been the chief mainstay of New England commerce, = were=20 ruined, and it seemed for a time as if the hardy race of American seamen = were to=20 degenerate into a mere body of buccaneers, operating under the = protection of=20 international law, but plunderers and spoilers nevertheless. = Fortunately, the=20 long peace which succeeded the War of 1812 gave opportunity for the = naturally=20 lawful and civilized instincts of the Americans to assert themselves, = and this=20 peril was averted.

It is, then, with no admiration for the calling, and yet with no=20 underestimate of its value to the nation, that I recount some of the=20 achievements of those who followed it. The periods when American = privateering=20 was important were those of the Revolution and the War of 1812. During = the Civil=20 War the loss incurred by privateers fell upon our own people, and it is = curious=20 to note how different a tone the writers on this subject adopt when = discussing=20 the ravages of the Confederate privateers and those which we let loose = upon=20 British commerce in the brave days of 1812.

A true type of the Revolutionary privateersmen was Captain Silas = Talbot, of=20 Massachusetts. He was one of the New England lads apprenticed to the sea = at an=20 early age, having been made a cabin-boy at twelve. He rose to command = and=20 acquired means in his profession, as we have seen was common among our = early=20 merchant sailors, and when the Revolution broke out was living = comfortably in=20 his own mansion in Providence. He enlisted Page 161in Washington's = army, but=20 left it to become a privateer; and from that service he stepped to the=20 quarter-deck of a man-of-war. This was not an uncommon line of = development for=20 the early privateersmen; and, indeed, it was not unusual to find navy = officers,=20 temporarily without commands, taking a cruise or two as privateers, = until=20 Congress should provide more ships for the regular service=97a system = which did=20 not tend to make a Congress, which was niggardly at best, hasten to = provide=20 public vessels for work which was being reasonably well done at private = expense.=20 As a result of this system, we find such famous naval names as Decatur, = Porter,=20 Hopkins, Preble, Barry, and Barney also figuring in the lists of = privateersmen.=20 Talbot's first notable exploit was clearing New York harbor of several = British=20 men-of-war by the use of fire-ships. Washington, with his army, was then = encamped at Harlem Heights, and the British ships were in the Hudson = River=20 menacing his flank. Talbot, in a fire-ship, well loaded with = combustibles,=20 dropped down the river and made for the biggest of the enemy's fleet, = the=20 "Asia." Though quickly discovered and made the target of the enemy's = battery, he=20 held his vessel on her course until fairly alongside of and entangled = with the=20 "Asia," when the fuses were lighted and the volcanic craft burst into = roaring=20 flames from stem to stern. So rapid was the progress of the flames that = Talbot=20 and his companions could scarcely escape with their lives from the = conflagration=20 they had themselves started, and he lay for days, badly burned and = unable to=20 see, in a little log hut on the Jersey shore. The British ships were not = destroyed; but, convinced that the neighborhood was unsafe for them, = they=20 dropped down the bay; so the end sought for was attained. In 1779 Talbot = was=20 given command of the sloop "Argo," of 100 tons; "a mere Page 162shallop, like a = clumsy=20 Albany sloop," says his biographer. Sixty men from the army, most of = whom had=20 served afloat, were given him for crew, and he set out to clear Long = Island=20 Sound of Tory privateers; for the loyalists in New York were quite as = avid for=20 spoils as the New England Revolutionists. On his second cruise he took = seven=20 prizes, including two of these privateers. One of these was a 300-ton = ship,=20 vastly superior to the "Argo" in armament and numbers, and the battle = was a=20 fierce one. Nearly every man on the quarter-deck of the "Argo" was = killed or=20 wounded; the speaking trumpet in Talbot's hand was pierced by two = bullets, and a=20 cannon-ball carried away the tail of his coat. The damages sustained in = this=20 battle were scarce repaired when another British privateer appeared, and = Talbot=20 again went Page=20 163into action and took her, though of scarce half her size. In = all this=20 little "Argo"=97which, by the way, belonged to Nicholas Low, of New = York, an=20 ancestor of the eminent Seth Low=97took twelve prizes. Her commander was = finally=20 captured and sent first to the infamous "Jersey" prison-ship, and = afterward to=20 the Old Mill Prison in England.

The "Jersey" prison-ship was not an uncommon lot for the bold = privateersman,=20 who, when once consigned to it, found that the reward of a sea-rover was = not=20 always wealth and pleasure. A Massachusetts privateersman left on record = a=20 contemporary account of the sufferings of himself and his comrades in = this=20 pestilential hulk, which may well be condensed here to show some of the = perils=20 that the adventurers dared when they took to the sea.

After about one-third of the captives made with this writer had been = seized=20 and carried away to serve against their country on British war-ships, = the rest=20 were conveyed to the "Jersey," which had been originally a 74-gun ship, = Page = 164then cut down=20 to a hulk and moored at the Wallabout, at that time a lonely and = deserted place=20 on the Long Island shore, now about the center of the Brooklyn river = front. "I=20 found myself," writes the captive, "in a loathsome prison among a = collection of=20 the most wretched and disgusting objects I ever beheld in human form. = Here was a=20 motley crew covered with rags and filth, visages pallid with disease, = emaciated=20 with hunger and anxiety, and retaining hardly a trace of their original=20 appearance.... The first day we could obtain no food, and seldom on the = second=20 could prisoners secure it in season for cooking it. Each prisoner = received=20 one-third as much as was allotted to a tar in the British navy. Our bill = of fare=20 was as follows: On Sunday, one pound of biscuit, one pound of pork, and = half a=20 pint of peas; Monday, one pound of biscuit, one pint of oatmeal, and two = ounces=20 of butter; Tuesday, one pound of biscuit and two pounds of salt beef, = etc., etc.=20 If this food had been of good quality and properly cooked, as we had no = labor to=20 perform, it would have kept us comfortable; but all our food appeared to = be=20 damaged. As for the pork, we were cheated out of more than half of it, = and when=20 it was obtained one would have judged from its motley hues, exhibiting = the=20 consistency and appearance of variegated fancy soap, that it was the = flesh of=20 the porpoise or sea-hog, and had been an inhabitant of the ocean rather = than the=20 sty. The peas were about as digestible as grape-shot; and the = butter=97had it not=20 been for its adhesive properties to retain together the particles of = biscuit=20 that had been so riddled by the worms as to lose all their attraction of = cohesion, we should not have considered it a desirable addition to our = viands.=20 The flour and oatmeal were sour, and the suet might have been nosed the = whole=20 length of our ship. Many times since, when I have Page 165seen in the = country a large=20 kettle of potatoes and pumpkins steaming over the fire to satisfy the = appetite=20 of some farmer's swine, I have thought of our destitute and starved = condition,=20 and what a luxury we should have considered the contents of that kettle = aboard=20 the 'Jersey.'... About two hours before sunset orders were given the = prisoners=20 to carry all their things below; but we were permitted to remain above = until we=20 retired for the night into our unhealthy and crowded dungeons. At sunset = our=20 ears were saluted with the insulting and hateful sound from our keepers = of=20 'Down, rebels, down,' and we were hurried below, the hatchways fastened = over us,=20 and we were left to pass the night amid the accumulated horrors of sighs = and=20 groans, of foul vapor, a nauseous and putrid atmosphere, in a stifled = and almost=20 suffocating heat.... When any of the prisoners had died during the = night, their=20 bodies were brought to the upper deck in the morning and placed upon the = gratings. If the deceased had owned a blanket, any prisoner might sew it = around=20 the corpse; and then it was lowered, with a rope tied round the middle, = down the=20 side of the ship into a boat. Some of the prisoners were allowed to go = on shore=20 under a guard to perform the labor of interment. In a bank near the = Wallabout, a=20 hole was excavated in the sand, in which the body was put, then slightly = covered. Many bodies would, in a few days after this mockery of a = burial, be=20 exposed nearly bare by the action of the elements."

Such was, indeed, the end of many of the most gallant of the = Revolutionary=20 privateersmen; but squalid and cruel as was the fate of these = unfortunates, it=20 had no effect in deterring others from seeking fortune in the same = calling. In=20 1775-76 there were commissioned 136 vessels, with 1360 guns; in 1777, 73 = vessels, with 730 guns; Page 166in 1778, 115 privateers, with a total of = 1150 guns;=20 in 1779, 167 vessels, with 2505 guns; in 1780, 228 vessels, with 3420 = guns; in=20 1781, 449 vessels, with 6735 (the high-water mark): and in 1782, 323 = vessels,=20 with 4845 guns. Moreover, the vessels grew in size and efficiency, until = toward=20 the latter end of the war they were in fact well-equipped war-vessels, = ready to=20 give a good account of themselves in a fight with a British frigate, or = even to=20 engage a shore battery and cut out prizes from a hostile harbor. It is, = in fact,=20 a striking evidence of the gallantry and the patriotism of the = privateersmen=20 that they did not seek to evade battle with the enemy's armed forces. = Their=20 business was, of course, to earn profits for the merchants who had = fitted them=20 out, and profits were most easily earned by preying upon inferior or = defenseless=20 vessels. But the spirit of the war was strong upon many of them, and it = is not=20 too much to say that the privateers were handled as gallantly and = accepted=20 unfavorable odds in battle as readily as could any men-of-war. Their = ravages=20 upon British commerce plunged all commercial England into woe. The war = had=20 hardly proceeded two years when it was formally declared in the House of = Commons=20 that the losses to American privateers amounted to seven hundred and=20 thirty-three ships, of a value of over $11,000,000. Mr. Maclay estimates = from=20 this that "our amateur man-of-war's men averaged more than four prizes = each,"=20 while some took twenty and one ship twenty-eight in a single cruise. = Nearly=20 eleven hundred prisoners were taken with the captured ships. While there = are no=20 complete figures for the whole period of the war obtainable, it is not = to be=20 believed that quite so high a record was maintained, for dread of = privateers=20 soon drove British shipping into their harbors, whence they put forth, = if at=20 all, under the protection Page 167of naval convoys. Nevertheless, the = number of=20 captures must have continued great for some years; for, as is shown by = the=20 foregoing figures, the spoils were sufficiently attractive to cause a = steady=20 increase in the number of privateers until the last year of the war.

There followed dull times for the privateersmen. Most of them = returned to=20 their ordinary avocations of sea or shore=97became peaceful sailors, or = fishermen,=20 or ship-builders, or farmers once again. But in so great a body of men = who had=20 lived sword in hand for years, and had fattened on the spoils of the = commerce of=20 a great nation, it was inevitable that there should be many utterly = unable to=20 return to the humdrum life of honest industry. Many drifted down to that = region=20 of romance and outlawry, dear to the heart of the romantic boy, the = Spanish=20 Main, and there, as pirates in a small way and as buccaneers, pursued = the=20 predatory life. For a time the war which sprung up between England and = France=20 seemed to promise these turbulent spirits congenial and lawful = occupation.=20 France, it will be remembered, sent the Citizen Genet over to the United = States=20 to take advantage of the supposed gratitude of the American people for = aid=20 during the Revolution to fit out privateers and to make our ports bases = of=20 operation against the British. It must be admitted that Genet would have = had an=20 easy task, had he had but the people to reckon with. He found = privateering=20 veterans by the thousand eager to take up that manner of life once more. = In all=20 the seacoast towns were merchants quite as ready for profitable ventures = in=20 privateering under the French flag as under their own, provided they = could be=20 assured of immunity from governmental prosecution. And, finally, he = found the=20 masses of the people fired with enthusiasm for the principles of the = French=20 Revolution, and eager Page=20 168to show sympathy for a people who, like themselves, had thrown = off the=20 yoke of kings. The few privateers that Minister Genet fitted out before=20 President Washington became aroused to his infraction of the principles = of=20 neutrality were quickly manned, and began sending in prizes almost = before they=20 were out of sight of the American shore. The crisis came, however, when = one of=20 these ships actually captured a British merchantman in Delaware Bay. = Then the=20 administration made a vigorous protest, demanded the release of the = vessels=20 taken, arrested two American sailors who had shipped on the privateer, = and broke=20 up at once the whole project of the Frenchman. It was a critical moment = in our=20 national history, for, between France and England abroad, the Federalist = and=20 Republican at home, the President had to steer a course beset with = reefs. The=20 maritime community was not greatly in sympathy with his suppression of = the=20 French minister's plans, and with some reason, for British privateers = had been=20 molesting our vessels all along our coasts and distant waters. It was a = time=20 when no merchant could tell whether the stout ship he had sent out was = even then=20 discharging her cargo at her destination, or tied up as a prize in some = British=20 port. We Americans are apt to regard with some pride Washington's stout=20 adherence to the most rigid letter of the law of neutrality in those = troublous=20 times, and our historians have been at some pains to impress us with the = impropriety of Jefferson's scarcely concealed liking for France; but the = fact is=20 that no violation of the neutrality law which Genet sought was more = glaring than=20 those continually committed by Great Britain, and which our Government = failed to=20 resent. In time France, moved partly by pique because of our refusal to = aid her,=20 and partly by contempt for a nation that failed to protect its Page 169ships against = British=20 aggression, began itself to prey upon our commerce. Then the state of = our=20 maritime trade was a dismal one. Our ships were the prey of both France = and=20 England; but since we were neutral, the right of fitting out privateers = of our=20 own was denied our shipping interests. We were ground between the upper = and=20 nether millstones.

But, as so often happens, persecution bred the spirit and created the = weapons=20 for its correction. When it was found that every American vessel was the = possible spoil of any French or English cruiser or privateer that she = might=20 encounter; that our Government was impotent to protect its seamen; that = neither=20 our neutrality rights nor the neutrality of ports in which our vessels = lay=20 commanded the respect of the two great belligerents, the Yankee shipping = merchants set about meeting the situation as best they might. They did = not give=20 up their effort to secure the world's trade=97that was never an American = method of=20 procedure. But they built their ships so as to be able to run away from = anything=20 they might meet; and they manned and armed them so as to fight if = fighting=20 became necessary. So the American merchantman became a long, sharp,=20 clipper-built craft that could show her heels to almost anything afloat; = moderate of draft, so that she could run into lagoons and bays where no = warship=20 could follow. They mounted from four to twelve guns, and carried an = armory of=20 rifles and cutlasses which their men were well trained to handle. = Accordingly,=20 when the depredations of foreign nations became such as could not longer = be=20 borne, and after President Jefferson's plan of punishing Europe for = interfering=20 with our commerce by laying an embargo which kept our ships at home had = failed,=20 war was declared with England; and from every port on the Atlantic = seaboard=20 privateers=97ships Page=20 170as fit for their purpose as though specially built for = it=97swarmed=20 forth seeking revenge and spoils. Their very names told of the reasons = of the=20 American merchantmen for complaint=97the reasons why they rejoiced that = they were=20 now to have their turn. There were the "Orders-in-Council," the=20 "Right-of-Search," the "Fair-trader," the "Revenge." Some were mere = pilot-boats,=20 with a Long Tom amidships and a crew of sixty men; others were vessels = of 300=20 tons, with an armament and crew like a man-of-war. Before the middle of = July,=20 1812, sixty-five such privateers had sailed, and the British merchantmen = were=20 scudding for cover like a covey of frightened quail.

The War of 1812 was won, so far as it was won at all, on the ocean. = In the=20 land operations from the very beginning the Americans came off second = best; and=20 the one battle of importance in which they were the victors=97the battle = of New=20 Orleans=97was without influence upon the result, having been fought = after the=20 treaty of peace had been signed at Ghent. But on the ocean the honors = were all=20 taken by the Americans, and no small share of these honors fell to the = private=20 armed navy of privateers. As the war progressed these vessels became in = type=20 more like the regular sloop-of-war, for the earlier craft, while useful = before=20 the British began sending out their merchantmen under convoy, proved to = be too=20 small to fight and too light to escape destruction from one well-aimed=20 broadside. The privateer of 1813 was usually about 115 to 120 feet long = on the=20 spar-deck, 31 feet beam, and rigged as a brig or ship. They were always = fast=20 sailers, and notable for sailing close to the wind. While armed to = fight, if=20 need be, that was not their purpose, and a privateersman who gained the=20 reputation among owners of being a fighting captain was likely toPage 171 go long = without a command.=20 Accordingly, these vessels were lightly built and over-rigged (according = to the=20 ideas of British naval construction), for speed was the great = desideratum. They=20 were at once the admiration and the envy of the British, who imitated = their=20 models without success and tried to utilize them for cruisers when = captured, but=20 destroyed their sailing qualities by altering their rig and = strengthening their=20 hulls at the expense of lightness and symmetry.

I have already referred to Michael Scott's famous story of sea life, = "Tom=20 Cringle's Log," which, though in form a work of fiction, contains so = many=20 accounts of actual happenings, and expresses so fully the ideas of the = British=20 naval officer of that time, that it may well be quoted in a work of = historical=20 character. Tom Cringle, after detailing with a lively description the = capture of=20 a Yankee privateer, says that she was assigned to him for his next = command. He=20 had seen her under weigh, had admired her trim model, her tapering = spars, her=20 taut cordage, and the swiftness with which she came about and reached to = windward. He thus describes the change the British outfitters made in = her:

"When I had last seen her she was the most beautiful little craft, = both in=20 hull and rigging, that ever delighted the eyes of a sailor; but the dock = yard=20 riggers and carpenters had fairly bedeviled her at least so far as = appearances=20 went. First, they had replaced the light rail on her gunwale by heavy, = solid=20 bulwarks four feet high, surmounted by hammock nettings at least another = foot;=20 so that the symmetrical little vessel, that formerly floated on the foam = light=20 as a seagull, now looked like a clumsy, dish-shaped Dutch dogger. Her = long,=20 slender wands of masts, which used to swing about as if there were = neither=20 shrouds nor stays to support them, were now as taut and stiff as=20 church-steeples, with four heavy shrouds of a side, and stays, and = back-stays,=20 and the devil knows what all."Page 172

It is a curious fact that no nation ever succeeded in imitating these = craft.=20 The French went into privateering without in the least disturbing the = equanimity=20 of the British shipowner; but the day the Yankee privateers took the sea = a cry=20 went up from the docks and warehouses of Liverpool and London that = reverberated=20 among the arches of Westminster Hall. The newspapers were loud in their = attacks=20 upon the admiralty authorities. Said the Morning Chronicle in = 1814:

"That the whole coast of Ireland, from Wexford round by Cape Clear to = Carrickfergus, should have been for above a month under the unresisted=20 domination of a few petty fly-by-nights from the blockaded ports of the = United=20 States is a grievance equally intolerable and disgraceful."

This wail may have resulted from the pleasantry of one Captain Boyle, = of the=20 privateer "Chasseur," a famous Baltimore clipper, mounting sixteen guns, = with a=20 complement of one hundred officers, seamen, and marines. Captain Boyle, = after=20 exhausting, as it seemed to him, the possibilities of the West Indies = for=20 excitement and profit, took up the English channel for his favorite=20 cruising-ground. One of the British devices of that day for the = embarrassment of=20 an enemy was what is called a "paper blockade." That is to say, when it = appeared=20 that the blockading fleet had too few vessels to make the blockade = really=20 effective by watching each port, the admiral commanding would issue a=20 proclamation that such and such ports were in a state of blockade, and = then=20 withdraw his vessels from those ports; but still claim the right to = capture any=20 neutral vessels which he might encounter bound thither. This practise is = now=20 universally interdicted by international law, which declares that a = blockade, to=20 be binding upon neutrals, must be effective. But in those days England = made her=20 own Page=20 173international law=97for the sea, at any rate=97and the paper = blockade was=20 one of her pet weapons. Captain Boyle satirized this practise by drawing = up a=20 formal proclamation of blockade of all the ports of Great Britain and = Ireland,=20 and sending it to Lloyds, where it was actually posted. His action was = not=20 wholly a jest, either, for he did blockade the port of St. Vincent so=20 effectively for five days that the inhabitants sent off a pitiful appeal = to=20 Admiral Durham to send a frigate to their relief.

It was at this time, too, that the Annual Register recorded as = "a most=20 mortifying reflection" that, with a navy of more than one thousand ships = in=20 commission, "it was not safe for a British vessel to sail without convoy = from=20 one part of the English or Irish Channel to another." Merchants held = meetings,=20 insurance corporations and boards of trade memorialized the government = on the=20 subject; the shipowners and merchants of Glasgow, in formal resolutions, = called=20 the attention of the admiralty to the fact that "in the short space of=20 twenty-four months above eight hundred vessels have been captured by the = power=20 whose maritime strength we have hitherto impolitically held in = contempt." It=20 was, indeed, a real blockade of the British Isles that was effected by = these=20 irregular and pigmy vessels manned by the sailors of a nation that the = British=20 had long held in high scorn. The historian Henry Adams, without = attempting to=20 give any complete list of captures made on the British coasts in 1814, = cites=20 these facts:

"The 'Siren,' a schooner of less than 200 tons, with seven guns and=20 seventy-five men, had an engagement with His Majesty's cutter = 'Landrail,' of=20 four guns, as the cutter was crossing the Irish sea with dispatches. The = 'Landrail' was captured, after a somewhat smart action, and was sent to = America,=20 but was recaptured on the way. The victory was not remarkable, but the = place of=20 capture was very significant, and it happened July 12 Page 174only a = fortnight after=20 Blakely captured the 'Reindeer' farther westward. The 'Siren' was but = one of=20 many privateers in those waters. The 'Governor Tompkins' burned fourteen = vessels=20 successively in the British Channel. The 'Young Wasp,' of Philadelphia, = cruised=20 nearly six months about the coasts of England and Spain, and in the = course of=20 West India commerce. The 'Harpy,' of Baltimore, another large vessel of = some 350=20 tons and fourteen guns, cruised nearly three months off the coast of = Ireland, in=20 the British Channel, and in the Bay of Biscay, and returned safely to = Boston=20 filled with plunder, including, as was said, upward of =A3100,000 in = British=20 treasury notes and bills of exchange. The 'Leo,' a Boston schooner of = about 200=20 tons, was famous for its exploits in these waters, but was captured at = last by=20 the frigate 'Tiber,' after a chase of about eleven hours. The 'Mammoth,' = a=20 Baltimore schooner of nearly 400 tons, was seventeen days off Cape = Clear, the=20 southernmost point of Ireland. The most mischievous of all was the = 'Prince of=20 Neufch=E2tel,' New York, which chose the Irish Channel as its favorite = haunt,=20 where during the summer it made ordinary coasting traffic = impossible."

The vessels enumerated by Mr. Adams were by no means among the more = famous of=20 the privateers of the War of 1812; yet when we come to examine their = records we=20 find something notable or something romantic in the career of each=97a = fact full=20 of suggestion of the excitement of the privateersman's life. The "Leo," = for=20 example, at this time was under command of Captain George Coggeshall, = the=20 foremost of all the privateers, and a man who so loved his calling that = he wrote=20 an excellent book about it. Under an earlier commander she made several = most=20 profitable cruises, and when purchased by Coggeshall's associates was = lying in a=20 French port. France and England were then at peace, and it may be that = the=20 French remembered the way in which we had suppressed the Citizen Genet. = At any=20 rate, they refused to let Coggeshall take his ship out of the harbor Page = 175with more than=20 one gun=97a Long Tom=97aboard. Nothing daunted, he started out with this = armament,=20 to which some twenty muskets were added, on a privateering cruise in the = channel, which was full of British cruisers. Even the Long Tom proved=20 untrustworthy, so recourse was finally had to carrying the enemy by = boarding;=20 and in this way four valuable prizes were taken, of which three were = sent home=20 with prize crews. But a gale carried away the "Leo's" foremast, and she = fell a=20 prey to an English frigate which happened along untimely.

The "Mammoth" was emphatically a lucky ship. In seven weeks she took=20 seventeen merchantmen, paying for herself several times over. Once she = fought a=20 lively battle with a British transport carrying four hundred men, but = prudently=20 drew off. True, the Government was paying a bonus of twenty-five dollars = a head=20 for prisoners; but cargoes were more valuable. Few of the privateers = troubled to=20 send in their prisoners, if they could parole and release them. In all, = the=20 "Mammoth" captured twenty-one vessels, and released on parole three = hundred=20 prisoners.

Of all the foregoing vessels, the "Prince de Neufch=E1tel" was the = most famous.=20 She was an hermaphrodite brig of 310 tons, mounting 17 guns. She was a = "lucky"=20 vessel, several times escaping a vastly superior force and bringing into = port,=20 for the profit of her owners, goods valued at $3,000,000, besides large=20 quantities of specie. Her historic achievement, however, was beating off = the=20 British frigate "Endymion," off Nantucket, one dark night, after a = battle=20 concerning which a British naval historian, none too friendly to = Americans,=20 wrote: "So determined and effective a resistance did great credit to the = American captain and his crew." The privateer had a prize in tow, by = which, of=20 course, her movements Page=20 176were much hampered, for her captain was not inclined to save = himself=20 at the expense of his booty. But, more than this, she had thirty-seven = prisoners=20 aboard, while her own crew was sorely reduced by manning prizes. The = night being=20 calm, the British attempted to take the ship by boarding from small = boats, for=20 what reason does not readily appear, since the vessels were within range = of each=20 other, and the frigate's superior metal could probably have reduced the=20 Americans to subjection. Instead, however, of opening fire with his = broadside,=20 the enemy sent out boarding parties in five boats. Their approach was = detected=20 on the American vessel, and a rapid fire with small arms and cannon = opened upon=20 them, to which they paid no attention, but pressed doggedly on. In a = moment the=20 boats surrounded the privateer=97one on each bow, one on each side, and = one under=20 the stern=97and the boarders began to swarm up the sides like cats. It = was a=20 bloody hand-to-hand contest that followed, in which every weapon, from = cutlass=20 and clubbed musket down to bare hands, was employed. Heavy shot, which = had been=20 piled up in readiness on deck, were thrown into the boats in an effort = to sink=20 them. Hundreds of loaded muskets were ranged along the rail, so that the = firing=20 was not interrupted to reload. Time and again the British renewed their = efforts=20 to board, but were hurled back by the American defenders. A few who = succeeded in=20 reaching the decks were cut down before they had time to profit by their = brief=20 advantage. Once only did it seem that the ship was in danger. Then the=20 assailants, who outnumbered the Americans four to one, had reached the = deck over=20 the bows in such numbers that they were gradually driving the defenders = aft.=20 Every moment more men came swarming over the side; and as the Americans = ran from=20 all parts of the ship to Page 177meet and overpower those who had already = reached=20 the deck, new ways were opened for others to clamber aboard. The = situation was=20 critical; but was saved by Captain Ordronaux by a desperate expedient, = and one=20 which it is clear would have availed nothing had not his men known him = for a man=20 of fierce determination, ready to fulfil any desperate threat. Seizing a = lighted=20 match from one of the gunners, he ran to the hatch immediately over the=20 magazine, and called out to his men that if they retreated farther he = would blow=20 up the ship, its defenders, and its assailants. The men rallied. They = swung a=20 cannon in board so that it commanded the deck, and swept away the = invaders with=20 a storm of grape. In a few minutes the remaining British were driven = back to=20 their boats. The battle had lasted less than half an hour when the = British=20 called for quarter, the smoke cleared away, the cries of combat ceased, = and both=20 parties were able to count their losses. The crew of the privateer had = numbered=20 thirty-seven, of whom seven were killed and twenty-four wounded. The = British had=20 advanced to the attack with a force of one hundred and twenty-eight, in = five=20 boats. Three of the boats drifted away empty, one was sunk, and one was=20 captured. Of the attacking force not one escaped; thirty were made = prisoners,=20 many of them sorely wounded, and the rest were either killed or swept = away by=20 the tide and drowned. The privateers actually had more prisoners than = they had=20 men of their own. Some of the prisoners were kept towing in a launch at = the=20 stern, and, by way of strategy, Captain Ordronaux set two boys to = playing a fife=20 and drum and stamping about in a sequestered part of his decks as though = he had=20 a heavy force aboard. Only by sending the prisoners ashore under parole = was the=20 danger of an uprising among the captives averted.Page 178

In the end the "Prince de Neufch=E1tel" was captured by a British = squadron, but=20 only after a sudden squall had carried away several of her spars and = made her=20 helpless.

As the war progressed it became the custom of British merchants to = send out=20 their ships only in fleets, convoyed by one or two men-of-war, a system = that, of=20 course, could be adopted only by nations very rich in war-ships. The = privateers'=20 method of meeting this was to cruise in couples, a pair of swift, light=20 schooners, hunting the prize together. When the convoy was encountered, = both=20 would attack, picking out each its prey. The convoys were usually made = up with a=20 man-of-war at the head of the column, and as this vessel would make sail = after=20 one of the privateers, the other would rush in at some point out of = range, and=20 cut out its prize. When the British began sending out two ships of war = with each=20 convoy, the privateers cruised in threes, and the same tactics were=20 observed.

But the richest prizes won by the privateer were the single going = ships,=20 called "running ships," that were prepared to defend themselves, and = scorned to=20 wait for convoy. These were generally great packets trading to the = Indies, whose=20 cargoes were too valuable to be delayed until some man-of-war could be = found for=20 their protection. They were heavily armed, often, indeed, equaling a = frigate in=20 their batteries and the size of their crews. But, although to attack one = of=20 these meant a desperate fight, the Yankee privateer always welcomed the = chance,=20 for besides a valuable cargo, they were apt to carry a considerable sum = in=20 specie. The capture of one of these vessels, too, was the cause of = annoyance to=20 the enemy disproportionate to even their great value to their captors, = for they=20 not only carried the Royal Mail, but were usually the agencies by which = the=20 dispatches of the British Page 179general were forwarded. Mail and = dispatches, alike,=20 were promptly thrown overboard by their captors.

In the diary of a privateersman of Revolutionary days is to be found = the=20 story of the capture of an Indiaman which may well be reprinted as = typical.

"As the fog cleared up, we perceived her to be a large ship under = English=20 colors, to the windward, standing athwart our starboard bow. As she came = down=20 upon us, she appeared as large as a seventy-four; and we were not = deceived=20 respecting her size, for it afterwards proved that she was an old East = Indiaman,=20 of 1100 tons burden, fitted out as a letter of marque for the West India = trade,=20 mounted with thirty-two guns, and furnished with a complement of one = hundred and=20 fifty men. She was called the 'Admiral Duff,' commanded by Richard = Strange, from=20 St. Christopher and St. Eustachia, laden with sugar Page 180and tobacco, = and bound to=20 London. I was standing near our first lieutenant, Mr. Little, who was = calmly=20 examining the enemy as she approached, with his spy-glass, when Captain = Williams=20 stepped up and asked his opinion of her. The lieutenant applied the = glass to his=20 eye again and took a deliberate look in silence, and replied: 'I think = she is a=20 heavy ship, and that we shall have some hard fighting, but of one thing = I am=20 certain, she is not a frigate; if she were, she would not keep yawing = and=20 showing her broadsides as she does; she would show nothing but her head = and=20 stern; we shall have the advantage of her, and the quicker we get = alongside the=20 better.' Our captain ordered English colors to be hoisted, and the ship = to be=20 cleared for action.

"The enemy approached 'till within musket-shot of us. The two ships = were so=20 near to each other that we could distinguish the officers from the men; = and I=20 particularly noticed the captain on the gangway, a noble-looking man, = having a=20 large gold-laced cocked hat on his head, and a speaking-trumpet in his = hand.=20 Lieutenant Little possessed a powerful voice, and he was directed to = hail the=20 enemy; at the same time the quartermaster was ordered to stand ready to = haul=20 down the English flag and to hoist up the American. Our lieutenant took = his=20 station on the after part of the starboard gangway, and elevating his = trumpet,=20 exclaimed: 'Hullo. Whence come you?'

"The English captain then thought it his turn to interrogate, and = asked the=20 name of our ship. Lieutenant Little, in order to gain time, put the = trumpet to=20 his ear, pretending not to hear the question. During the short Page 181interval thus = gained,=20 Captain Williams called upon the gunner to ascertain how many guns could = be=20 brought to bear upon the enemy. 'Five,' was the answer. 'Then fire, and = shift=20 the colors,' were the orders. The cannons poured forth their deadly = contents,=20 and, with the first flash, the American flag took the place of the = British=20 ensign at our masthead.

"The compliment was returned in the form of a full broadside, and the = action=20 commenced. I was stationed on the edge of the quarter-deck, to sponge = and load a=20 six-pounder; this position gave me a fine opportunity to see the whole = action.=20 Broadsides were exchanged with great rapidity for nearly an hour; our = fire, as=20 we afterward ascertained, produced a terrible slaughter among the enemy, = while=20 our loss was as yet trifling. I happened to be looking for a moment = toward the=20 main deck, when a large shot came through our ship's side and killed a=20 midshipman. At this moment a shot from one of our marines killed the man = at the=20 wheel of the enemy's ship, and, his place not being immediately = supplied, she=20 was brought alongside of us in such a manner as to bring her bowsprit = directly=20 across our forecastle. Not knowing the cause of this movement, we = supposed it to=20 be the intention of the enemy to board us. Our boarders were ordered to = be ready=20 with their pikes to resist any such attempt, while our guns on the main = deck=20 were sending death and destruction among the crew of the enemy. Their = principal=20 object now seemed to be to get liberated from us, and by cutting away = some of=20 their rigging, they were soon clear, and at the distance of a pistol = shot.

"The action was then renewed, with additional fury; broadside for = broadside=20 continued with unabated vigor; at times, so near to each other that the = muzzles=20 of our guns came almost in contact, then again at such a distance Page 182as to allow of = taking=20 deliberate aim. The contest was obstinately continued by the enemy, = although we=20 could perceive that great havoc was made among them, and that it was = with much=20 difficulty that their men were compelled to remain at their quarters. A = charge=20 of grape-shot came in at one of our portholes, which dangerously wounded = four or=20 five of our men, among whom was our third lieutenant, Mr. Little, = brother to the=20 first.

"The action had now lasted about an hour and a half, and the fire = from the=20 enemy began to slacken, when we suddenly discovered that all the sails = on her=20 mainmast were enveloped in a blaze. Fire spread with amazing rapidity, = and,=20 running down the after rigging, it soon communicated with her magazine, = when her=20 whole stern was blown off, and her valuable cargo emptied into the sea. = Our=20 enemy's ship was now a complete wreck, though she still floated, and the = survivors were endeavoring to save themselves in the only boat that had = escaped=20 the general destruction. The humanity of our captain urged him to make = all=20 possible exertions to save the miserable wounded and burned wretches, = who were=20 struggling for their lives in the water. The ship of the enemy was = greatly our=20 superior in size, and lay much higher out of the water. Our boats had = been=20 exposed to his fire, as they were placed on spars between the fore and = mainmasts=20 during the action, and had suffered considerable damage. The carpenters = were=20 ordered to repair them with the utmost expedition, and we got them out = in season=20 to take up fifty-five men, the greater part of whom had been wounded by = our=20 shot, or burned when the powder-magazine exploded. Their limbs were = mutilated by=20 all manner of wounds, while some were burned to such a degree that the = skin was=20 nearly flayed from their bodies. Our surgeon and his assistants had just = completed the Page=20 183task of dressing the wounds of our own crew, and then they = directed=20 their attention to the wounded of the enemy. Several of them suffered = the=20 amputation of their limbs, five of them died of their wounds, and were = committed=20 to their watery graves. From the survivors we learned that the British = commander=20 had frequently expressed a desire to come in contact with a 'Yankee = frigate'=20 during his voyage, that he might have a prize to carry to London. Poor = fellow.=20 He little thought of losing his ship and his life in an engagement with = a ship=20 so much inferior to his own=97with an enemy upon whom he looked with so = much=20 contempt."

But most notable of all the battles fought by privateersmen in the = War of=20 1812, was the defense of the brig "General Armstrong," in the harbor of = Fayal,=20 in September, 1814. This famous combat has passed into history, not only = because=20 of the gallant fight made by the privateer, but because the three = British=20 men-of-war to whom she gave battle, were on their way to cooperate with=20 Packenham at New Orleans, and the delay due to the injuries they = received, made=20 them too late to aid in that expedition, and may have thus contributed = to=20 General Jackson's success.

The "General Armstrong" had always been a lucky craft, and her = exploits in=20 the capture of merchantmen, no less than the daring of her commander in = giving=20 battle to ships-of-war which he encountered, had won her the peculiar = hate of=20 the British navy. At the very beginning of her career, when in command = of=20 Captain Guy R. Champlin, she fought a British frigate for more than an = hour, and=20 inflicted such grave damage that the enemy was happy enough to let her = slip away=20 when the wind freshened. On another occasion she engaged a British armed = ship of=20 vastly superior strength, off the Surinam River, Page 184and forced her = to run=20 ashore. Probably the most valuable prize taken in the war fell to her = guns=97the=20 ship "Queen," with a cargo invoiced at =A390,000. Indeed, such had been = her=20 audacity, and so many her successes, that the British were eager for her = capture=20 or destruction, above that of any other privateer.

In September, 1814, the "General Armstrong," now under command of = Captain=20 Samuel G. Reid, was at anchor in the harbor at Fayal, a port of = Portugal, when=20 her commander saw a British war-brig come nosing her way into the = harbor. Soon=20 after another vessel appeared, and then a third, larger than the first = two, and=20 all flying the British ensign. Captain Reid immediately began to fear = for his=20 safety. It was true that he was in a neutral port, and under the law of = nations=20 exempt from attack, but the British had never manifested that extreme = respect=20 for neutrality that they exacted of President Washington when=20 France tried to fit out privateers in our ports. More than once they had = attacked and destroyed our vessels in neutral ports, and, indeed, it = seemed that=20 the British test of neutrality was whether the nation whose flag was = thus=20 affronted, was able or likely to resent it. Portugal was not such a = nation.

All this was clear to Captain Reid, and when he saw a rapid signaling = begun=20 between the three vessels of the enemy, he felt confident that he was to = be=20 attacked. He had already discovered that the strangers were the 74-gun = ship of=20 the line "Plantagenet," the 38-gun frigate "Rota," and the 18-gun = war-brig=20 "Carnation," comprising a force against which he could not hope to win a = victory. The night came on clear, with a bright moon, and as the = American=20 captain saw boats from the two smaller vessels rallying about the larger = one, he=20 got out his sweeps and began moving his vessel inshore, so as to get = under Page = 185the guns of the=20 decrepit fort, with which Portugal guarded her harbor. At this, four = boats=20 crowded with men, put out from the side of the British ship, and made = for the=20 privateer, seeing which, Reid dropped anchor and put springs on his = cables, so=20 as to keep his broadside to bear on the enemy as they approached. Then = he=20 shouted to the British, warning them to keep off, or he would fire. They = paid no=20 attention to the warning, but pressed on, when he opened a brisk fire = upon them.=20 For a time there was a lively interchange of shots, but the superior=20 marksmanship of the Americans soon drove the enemy out of range with = heavy=20 casualties. The British retreated to their ships with a hatred for the = Yankee=20 privateer even more bitter than that which had impelled them to the = lawless=20 attack, and a fiercer determination for her destruction.

It is proper to note, that after the battle was fought, and the = British=20 commander had calmly considered the possible consequences of his = violation of=20 the neutrality laws, he attempted to make it appear that the Americans=20 themselves were the aggressors. His plea, as made in a formal report to = the=20 admiralty, was that he had sent four boats to discover the character of = the=20 American vessel; that they, upon hailing her, had been fired upon and = suffered=20 severe loss, and that accordingly he felt that the affront to the = British flag=20 could only be expiated by the destruction of the vessel. The explanation = was not=20 even plausible, for the British commander, elsewhere in his report, = acknowledged=20 that he was perfectly informed as to the identity of the vessel, and = even had=20 this not been the case, it is not customary to send four boats heavily = laden=20 with armed men, merely to discover = the=20 character of a ship in a friendly port.

The withdrawal of the British boats gave Captain Reid Page 186time to = complete the=20 removal of his vessel to a point underneath the guns of the Portuguese = battery.=20 This gave him a position better fitted for defense, although his hope = that the=20 Portuguese would defend the neutrality of their port, was destined to=20 disappointment, for not a shot was fired from the battery.

Toward midnight the attack was resumed, and by this time the firing = within=20 the harbor had awakened the people of the town, who crowded down to the = shore to=20 see the battle. The British, in explanation of the reverse which they = suffered,=20 declared that all the Americans in Fayal armed themselves, and from the = shore=20 supplemented the fire from the "General Armstrong." Captain Reid, = however, makes=20 no reference to this assistance. In all, some four hundred men joined in = the=20 second attack. Twelve Page=20 187boats were in line, most of them with a howitzer mounted in = the bow.=20 The Americans used their artillery on these craft as they approached, = and=20 inflicted great damage before the enemy were in a position to board. The = British=20 vessels, though within easy gun-fire, dared not use their heavy cannon, = lest=20 they should injure their own men, and furthermore, for fear that the = shot would=20 fall into the town. The midnight struggle was a desperate one, the enemy = fairly=20 surrounding the "General Armstrong," and striving to reach her decks at = every=20 point. But though greatly outnumbered, the defenders were able to = maintain their=20 position, and not a boarder succeeded in reaching the decks. The = struggle=20 continued for nearly three-quarters of an hour, after which the British = again=20 drew off. Two boats filled with dead and dying men, were captured by the = Americans, the unhurt survivors leaping overboard and swimming ashore. = The=20 British report showed, that in these two attacks there were about one = hundred=20 and forty of the enemy killed, and one hundred and thirty wounded. The = Americans=20 had lost only two killed and seven wounded, but the ship was left in no=20 condition for future defense. Many of the guns were dismounted, and the = Long=20 Tom, which had been the mainstay of the defense, was capsized. Captain = Reid and=20 his officers worked with the utmost energy through the night, trying to = fit the=20 vessel for a renewal of the combat in the morning, but at three o'clock = he was=20 called ashore by a note from the American consul. Here he was informed = that the=20 Portuguese Governor had made a personal appeal to the British commander = for a=20 cessation of the attack, but that it had been refused, with the = statement that=20 the vessel would be destroyed by cannon-fire from the British ships in = the=20 morning. Against an attack of this sort it was, of course, futile for = the=20 "GeneralPage = 188=20 Armstrong" to attempt to offer defense, and accordingly Captain Reid = landed his=20 men with their personal effects, and soon after the British began fire = in the=20 morning, scuttled the ship and abandoned her. He led his men into the = interior,=20 seized on an abandoned convent, and fortifying it, prepared to resist = capture.=20 No attempt, however, was made to pursue him, the British commander = contenting=20 himself with the destruction of the privateer. For nearly a week the = British=20 ships were delayed in the harbor, burying their dead and making repairs. = When=20 they reached New Orleans, the army which they had been sent to = reenforce, had=20 met Jackson on the plains of Chalmette, and had been defeated. The price = paid=20 for the "General Armstrong" was, perhaps, the heaviest of the war. The = British=20 commander seemed to appreciate this fact, for every effort was made to = keep the=20 news of the battle from becoming known in England, and when complete = concealment=20 was no longer possible, an official report was given out that minimized = the=20 British loss, magnified the number of the Americans, and totally = mis-stated the=20 facts bearing on the violation of the neutrality of the Portuguese port. = Captain=20 Reid, however, was made a hero by his countrymen. A Portuguese ship took = him and=20 his crew to Amelia Island, whence they made their way to New York. = Poughkeepsie=20 voted him a sword. Richmond citizens gave him a complimentary dinner, at = which=20 were drunk such toasts as: "The private cruisers of the United = States=97whose=20 intrepidity has pierced the enemy's channels and bearded the lion in his = den";=20 "Neutral Ports=97whenever the tyrants of the ocean dare to invade these=20 sanctuaries, may they meet with an 'Essex' and an 'Armstrong'"; and = "Captain=20 Reid=97his valor has shed a blaze of renown upon the character of our = seamen, and=20 won for himself a laurel of eternal Page 189bloom." The newspapers of the times rang = with=20 eulogies of Reid, and anecdotes of his seafaring experiences. But after = all, as=20 McMaster finely says in his history: "The finest compliment of all was = the=20 effort made in England to keep the details of the battle from the = public, and=20 the false report of the British commander."

In finally estimating the effect upon the American fortunes in the = War of=20 1812, of the privateers and their work, many factors must be taken into=20 consideration. At first sight it would seem that a system which gave the = services of five hundred ships and their crews to the task of annoying = the=20 British, and inflicting damage upon their commerce without cost to the = American=20 Government, must be wholly advantageous. We have already seen the losses = inflicted upon British commerce by our privateers reflected in the = rapidly=20 increasing cost of marine insurance. While the statistics in the = possession of=20 the Government are not complete, they show that twenty-five hundred = vessels at=20 least were captured during the War of 1812 by these privately-owned = cruisers,=20 and there can be no shadow of a doubt that the loss inflicted upon = British=20 merchants, and the constant state of apprehension for the safety of = their=20 vessels in which they were kept, very materially aided in extending = among them a=20 willingness to see peace made on almost any terms.

But this is the other side of the story: The prime purpose of the = privateer=20 was to make money for its owners, its officers, and its crew. The whole = design=20 and spirit of the calling was mercenary. It inflicted damage on the = enemy, but=20 only incidentally to earning dividends for its participants. If = Government=20 cruisers had captured twenty-five hundred British vessels, those vessels = would=20 have been lost to the enemy forever. But the privateer, seeking gains, = tried to=20 send them into port, however dangerous Page 190such a voyage might be, and accordingly, = rather=20 more than a third of them were recaptured by the enemy. We may note here = in=20 passing, that one reason why the so-called Confederate privateers during = our own=20 Civil War, did an amount of damage so disproportionate to their numbers, = was=20 that they were not, in fact, privateers at all. They were commissioned = by the=20 Confederate Government to inflict the greatest possible amount of injury = upon=20 northern commerce, and accordingly, when Semmes or Maffitt captured a = United=20 States vessel, he burned it on the spot. There was no question of profit = involved in the service of the "Alabama," the "Florida," or the = "Shenandoah,"=20 and they have been called privateers in our histories, mainly because = Northern=20 writers have been loath to concede, to what they called a rebel = government, the=20 right to equip and commission regular men-of-war.

But to return to the American privateers of 1812. While, as I have = pointed=20 out, there were many instances of enormous gains being made, it is = probable that=20 the business as a whole, like all gambling businesses as a whole, was = not=20 profitable. Some ships made lucky voyages, but there is on record in the = Navy=20 Department a list of three hundred vessels that took not one single = prize in the=20 whole year of 1813. The records of Congress show that, as a whole, the = business=20 was not remunerative, because there were constant appeals from people=20 interested. In response to this importunity, Congress at one time paid a = bounty=20 of twenty-five dollars a head for all prisoners taken. At other times it = reduced=20 the import duties on cargoes captured and landed by privateers. Indeed, = it is=20 estimated by a careful student, that the losses to the Government in the = way of=20 direct expenditures and remission of revenues through the privateering = system,=20 amounted to a sum sufficient to have kept twenty sloops of Page 191war on the sea = throughout=20 the period of hostilities, and there is little doubt that such vessels = could=20 have actually accomplished more in the direction of harassing the enemy = than the=20 privateers. A very grave objection to the privateering system, however, = was the=20 fact that the promise of profit to sailors engaged in it was so great, = that all=20 adventurous men flocked into the service, so that it became almost = impossible to=20 maintain our army or to man our ships. I have already quoted George = Washington's=20 objections to the practise during the Revolution. During the War of = 1812, some=20 of our best frigates were compelled to sail half manned, while it is = even=20 declared that the loss of the "Chesapeake" to the "Shannon" was largely = due to=20 the fact that her crew were discontented and preparing, as their time of = service=20 was nearly up, to quit the Government service for privateering. In a = history of=20 Marblehead, one of the famous old seafaring towns of Massachusetts, it = is=20 declared that of nine hundred men of that town who took part in the war, = fifty-seven served in the army, one hundred and twenty entered the navy, = while=20 seven hundred and twenty-six shipped on the privateers. These figures = afford a=20 fair indication of the way in which the regular branches of the service = suffered=20 by the competition of the system of legalized piracy.Page 192

CHAPTER VI.

Page = 193The Arctic Tragedy=97American Sailors in the Frozen = Deep=97The Search=20 for Sir John Franklin=97Reasons for Seeking the North Pole=97Testimony = of Scientists=20 and Explorers=97Pertinacity of Polar Voyagers=97Dr. Kane and Dr. = Hayes=97Charles F.=20 Hall, Journalist and Explorer=97Miraculous Escape of His Party=97The = Ill-fated=20 "Jeannette" Expedition=97Suffering and Death of De Long and His = Companions=97A=20 Pitiful Diary=97The Greely Expedition=97Its Careful Plan and Complete=20 Disaster=97Rescue of the Greely Survivors=97Peary, Wellman, and=20 Baldwin.

A chapter in the story of the American sailor, which, though begun = full an=20 hundred years ago, is not yet complete, is that which tells the = narrative of the=20 search for the North Pole. It is a story of calm daring, of indomitable=20 pertinacity, of patient endurance of the most cruel suffering, of heroic = invitation to and acceptance of death. The story will be completed only = when the=20 goal is won. Even as these words are being written, American sailors are = beleaguered in the frozen North, and others are preparing to follow them = thither, so that the narrative here set forth must be accepted as only a = partial=20 story of a quest still being prosecuted.

In the private office of the President of the United States at = Washington,=20 stands a massive oaken desk. It has been a passive factor in the making = of=20 history, for at it have eight presidents sat, and papers involving = almost the=20 life of the nation, have received the executive signature upon its = smooth=20 surface. The very timbers of which Page 194it is built were concerned in the making = of history=20 of another sort, for they were part of the frame of the stout British = ship=20 "Resolute," which, after a long search in the Polar regions for the = hapless Sir=20 John Franklin=97of whom more hereafter=97was deserted by her crew in the = Arctic=20 pack, drifted twelve hundred miles in the ice, and was then discovered = and=20 brought back home as good as new by Captain Buddington of the stanch = American=20 whaler, "George and Henry." The sympathies of all civilized peoples, and = particularly of English-speaking races, were at that time strongly = stirred by=20 the fate of Franklin and his brave companions, and so Congress = appropriated=20 $40,000 for the purchase of the vessel from the salvors, and her repair. = Refitted throughout, she was sent to England and presented to the Queen = in 1856.=20 Years later, when broken up, the desk was made from her timbers and = presented by=20 order of Victoria to the President of the United States, who at that = time was=20 Rutherford B. Hayes. It stands now in the executive mansion, an enduring = memorial of one of the romances of a long quest full of romance=97the = search for=20 the North Pole.

In all ages, the minds of men of the exploring and colonizing = nations, have=20 turned toward the tropics as the region of fabulous wealth, the field = for=20 profitable adventure. "The wealth of the Ind," has passed into proverb. = Though=20 exploration has shown that, it is the flinty North that hides beneath = its=20 granite bosom the richest stores of mineral wealth, almost four = centuries of=20 failure and disappointment were needed to rid men's minds of the notion = that the=20 jungles and the tropical forests were the most abundant hiding-places of = gold=20 and precious stones. The wild beauty of the tropics, the cloudless = skies, the=20 tangled thickets, ever green and rustling with a restless animal life, = the=20 content and Page=20 195amiability of the natives, combined in a picture irresistibly=20 attractive to the adventurer. Surely where there was so much beauty, so = much of=20 innocent joy in life, there must be the fountain of perpetual youth, = there must=20 be gold, and diamonds, and sapphires=97all those gewgaws, the worship of = which=20 shows the lingering taint of barbarism in the civilized man, and for = which the=20 English, Spanish, and Portuguese adventurers of three centuries ago, = were ready=20 to sacrifice home and family, manhood, honor, and life.

So it happened that in the early days of maritime adventure the = course of the=20 hardy voyagers was toward the tropics, and they made of the Spanish Main = a sea=20 of blood, while Pizzarro and Cortez, and after them the dreaded = buccaneers,=20 sacked towns, betrayed, murdered, and outraged, destroyed an ancient=20 civilization and fairly blotted out a people, all in the mad search for = gold.=20 Men only could have been guilty of such crimes, for man along, among = animals=20 endowed with life, kills for the mere lust of slaughter.

And yet, man alone stands ready to risk his life for an idea, to = brave the=20 most direful perils, to endure the most poignant suffering that the = world's=20 store of knowledge may be increased, that science may be advanced, that = just one=20 more fact may be added to the things actually known. If the record of = man in the=20 tropics has been stained by theft, rapine, and murder, the story of his = long=20 struggle with the Arctic ice, offers for his redemption a series of = pictures of=20 self-sacrifice, tenderness, honor, courage, and piety. No hope of profit = drew=20 the seamen of all maritime nations into the dismal and desolate = ice-floes that=20 guard the frozen North. No lust for gold impelled them to brave the = darkness,=20 the cold, and the terrifying silence of the six-months Arctic night. The = Page = 196men who=20 have=97thus far unsuccessfully=97fought with ice-bound nature for access = to the=20 Pole, were impelled only by honorable emulation and scientific zeal.

The earlier Arctic explorers were not, it is true, searchers for the = North=20 Pole. That quest=97which has written in its history as many tales of = heroism,=20 self-sacrifice, and patient resignation to adversity, as the poets have = woven=20 about the story of chivalry and the search for the Holy Grail=97was = begun only in=20 the middle of the last century, and by an American. But for three = hundred years=20 English, Dutch, and Portuguese explorers, and the stout-hearted American = whalemen, had been pushing further and further into the frozen deep. The = explorers sought the "Northwest Passage," or a water route around the = northern=20 end of North America, and so on to India and the riches of the East. Sir = John=20 Franklin, in the voyage that proved his last, demonstrated that such a = passage=20 could be made, but not for any practical or useful purpose. After him it = was=20 abandoned, and geographical research, and the struggle to reach the = pole, became=20 the motives that took men into the Arctic.

"But why," many people ask, with some reason, "should there be this=20 determined search for the North Pole. What good will come to the world = with its=20 discovery? Is it worth while to go on year after year, pouring out = treasure and=20 risking human lives, merely that any hardy explorer may stand at an = imaginary=20 point on the earth's surface which is already fixed geographically by=20 scientists?"

Let the scientists and the explorers answer, for to most of us the = questions=20 do not seem unreasonable.

Naturally, with the explorers' love for adventure, eagerness to see = any=20 impressive manifestations of nature's powers, and the ambition to attain = a spot=20 for which men Page=20 197have been striving for half a century, are the animating = purposes. So=20 we find Fridjof Nansen, who for a time held the record of having = attained the=20 "Furthest North," writing on this subject to an enquiring editor: "When = man=20 ceases to wish to know and to conquer every foot of the earth, which was = given=20 him to live upon and to rule, then will the decadence of the race begin. = Of=20 itself, that mathematical point which marks the northern termination of = the axis=20 of our earth, is of no more importance than any other point within the = unknown=20 polar area; but it is of much more importance that this particular point = be=20 reached, because there clings about it in the imagination of all = mankind, such=20 fascination that, till the Pole is discovered, all Arctic research must = be=20 affected, if not overshadowed, by the yearning to attain it."

George W. Melville, chief engineer of the United States Navy, who did = such=20 notable service in the Jeanette expedition of 1879, writes in words that = stir=20 the pulse:

"Is there a better school of heroic endeavor than the Arctic zone? It = is=20 something to stand where the foot of man has never trod. It is something = to do=20 that which has defied the energy of the race for the last twenty years. = It is=20 something to have the consciousness that you are adding your modicum of=20 knowledge to the world's store. It is worth a year of the life of a man = with a=20 soul larger than a turnip, to see a real iceberg in all its majesty and=20 grandeur. It is worth some sacrifice to be alone, just once, amid the = awful=20 silence of the Arctic snows, there to communicate with the God of = nature, whom=20 the thoughtful man finds best in solitude and silence, far from the = haunts of=20 men=97alone with the Creator."

Thus the explorers. The scientists look less upon the picturesque and = exciting side of Arctic exploration, and more upon its useful phases. = "It helps=20 to solve useful Page=20 198problems in the physics of the world," wrote Professor Todd of = Amherst=20 college. "The meteorology of the United States to-day; perfection of = theories of=20 the earth's magnetism, requisite in conducting surveys and navigating = ships; the=20 origin and development of terrestrial fauna and flora; secular variation = of=20 climate; behavior of ocean currents=97all these are fields of practical=20 investigation in which the phenomena of the Arctic and Antarctic worlds = play a=20 very significant role."

Lieutenant Maury, whose eminent services in mapping the ocean won him = international honors, writes of the polar regions:

"There icebergs are launched and glaciers formed. There the tides = have their=20 cradle, the whales their nursery. There the winds complete their = circuits, and=20 the currents of the sea their round in the wonderful system of = inter-oceanic=20 circulation. There the aurora borealis is lighted up, and the trembling = needle=20 brought to rest, and there, too, in the mazes of that mystic circle, = terrestrial=20 forces of occult power, and vast influence upon the well-being of men, = are=20 continually at play.... Noble daring has made Arctic ice and waters = classic=20 ground. It is no feverish excitement nor vain ambition that leads man = there. It=20 is a higher feeling, a holier motive, a desire to look into the works of = creation, to comprehend the economy of our planet, and to grow wiser and = better=20 by the knowledge."

Nor can it be said fairly that the polar regions have failed to = repay, in=20 actual financial profit, their persistent invasion by man. It is = estimated by=20 competent statisticians, that in the last two centuries no less than two = thousand million dollars' worth of furs, fish, whale-oil, whalebone, and = minerals, have been taken out of the ice-bound seas.Page 199

The full story=97at once sorrowful and stimulating=97of Arctic = exploration, can=20 not be told here. That would require volumes rather than a single = chapter. Even=20 the part played in it by Americans can be sketched in outline only. But = it is=20 worth remembering that the systematic attack of our countrymen upon the = Arctic=20 fortress, began with an unselfish and humane incentive. In 1845 Sir John = Franklin, a gallant English seaman, had set sail with two stout ships = and 125=20 men, to seek the Northwest Passage. Thereafter no word was heard from = him,=20 until, years later, a searching party found a cairn of stones on a = desolate,=20 ice-bound headland, and in it a faintly written record, which told of = the death=20 of Sir John and twenty-four of his associates. We know now, that all who = set out=20 on this ill-fated expedition, perished. Struggling to the southward = after=20 abandoning their ships, they fell one by one, and their lives ebbed away = on the=20 cruel ice. "They fell down and died as they walked," said an old = Esquimau woman=20 to Lieutenant McClintock, of the British navy, who sought for tidings of = them,=20 and, indeed, her report Page 200found sorrowful verification in the = skeletons=20 discovered years afterward, lying face downward in the snow. To the last = man=20 they died. Think of the state of that last man=97alone in the frozen = wilderness!=20 An eloquent writer, the correspondent McGahan, himself no stranger to = Arctic=20 pains and perils, has imagined that pitiful picture thus:

"One sees this man after the death of his last remaining companion, = all alone=20 in that terrible world, gazing round him in mute despair, the sole, = living thing=20 in that dark frozen universe. The sky is somber, the earth whitened with = a=20 glittering whiteness that chills the heart. His clothing is covered with = frozen=20 snow, his face lean and haggard, his beard a cluster of icicles. The = setting sun=20 looks back to see the last victim die. He meets her sinister gaze with a = steady=20 eye, as though bidding her defiance. For a few minutes they glare at = each other,=20 then the curtain is drawn, and all is dark."

As fears for Franklin's safety deepened into certainty of his loss = with the=20 passage of months and years, a multitude of searching expeditions were = sent out,=20 the earlier ones in the hope of rescuing him; the later ones with the = purpose of=20 discovering the records of his voyage, which all felt sure must have = been cached=20 at some accessible point. Americans took an active=97almost a = leading=97part in=20 these expeditions, braving in them the same perils which had overcome = the stout=20 English knight. By sea and by land they sought him. The story of the = land=20 expeditions, though full of interest, is foreign to the purpose of this = work,=20 and must be passed over with the mere note that Charles F. Hall, a = Cincinnati=20 journalist, in 1868-69, and Lieutenant Schwatka, and W.H. Gilder in = 1878-79=20 fought their way northward to the path followed by the English explorer, = found=20 many relics of his expedition, Page 201and from the Esquimaux gathered = indisputable=20 evidence of his fate. By sea the United States was represented in the = search for=20 Franklin, by the ships "Advance" and "Rescue." They accomplished little = of=20 importance, but on the latter vessel was a young navy surgeon, Dr. = Elisha Kent=20 Kane, who was destined to make notable contributions to Arctic = knowledge, both=20 as explorer and writer.

One who studies the enormous volume of literature in which the Arctic = story=20 is told, scarcely can fail to be impressed by the pertinacity with which = men,=20 after one experience in the polar regions, return again and again to the = quest=20 for adventure and honors in the ice-bound zone. The subaltern on the = expedition=20 of to-day, has no sooner returned than he sets about organizing a new=20 expedition, of which he may be commander. The commander goes into the = ice time=20 and again until, perhaps, the time comes when he does not come out. The = leader=20 of a rescue party becomes the leader of an exploring expedition, which = in its=20 turn, usually comes to need rescue.

So we find Dr. Kane, who was surgeon of an expedition for the rescue = of=20 Franklin, commanding four years later the brig "Advance," and voyaging = northward=20 through Baffin's Bay. Narrowly, indeed, he escaped the fate of the man = in the=20 search for whom he had gained his first Arctic experience. His ship, = beset by=20 ice, and sorely wounded, remained fixed and immovable for two years. At = first=20 the beleaguered men made sledge journeys in every direction for = exploratory=20 purposes, but the second year they sought rather by determined, though = futile=20 dashes across the rugged surface of the frozen sea, to find some place = of=20 refuge, some hope of emancipation from the thraldom of the ice. The = second=20 winter all of the brig except the hull, which served for shelter, was = burned for=20 fuel; two men had died, and many were sick Page 202of scurvy, the = sledge dogs=20 were all dead, and the end of the provisions was in sight. In May, 1855, = a=20 retreat in open boats, covering eighty-five days and over fifty miles of = open=20 sea, brought the survivors to safety.

When men have looked into the jaws of death, it might be thought they = would=20 strenuously avoid such another view. But there is an Arctic fever as = well as an=20 Arctic chill, and, once in the blood, it drags its victim irresistibly = to the=20 frozen North, until perhaps he lays his bones among the icebergs, cured = of all=20 fevers forever. And so, a year or two after the narrow escape of Dr. = Kane, the=20 surgeon of his expedition, Dr. Isaac I. Hayes, was hard at work fitting = out an=20 expedition of which he was to be commander, to return to Baffin's Bay = and Smith=20 sound, and if possible, fight its way into that open sea, which Dr. = Hayes long=20 contended surrounded the North Pole. No man in the Kane expedition had=20 encountered greater perils, or withstood more cruel suffering than Dr. = Hayes. A=20 boat trip which he made in search of succor, has passed into Arctic = history as=20 one of the most desperate expedients ever adopted by starving men. But = at the=20 first opportunity he returned again to the scenes of his peril and his = pain. His=20 expedition, though conducted with spirit and determination, was not of = great=20 scientific value, as he was greatly handicapped in his observations by = the death=20 of his astronomer, who slipped through thin ice into the sea, and froze = to death=20 in his water-soaked garments.

A most extraordinary record of daring and suffering in Arctic = exploration was=20 made by Charles F. Hall, to whom I have already referred. Beginning life = as an=20 engraver in Cincinnati, he became engrossed in the study of Arctic = problems, as=20 the result of reading the stories of the early navigators. Every book = bearing on=20 the subject Page=20 203in the library of his native city, was eagerly read, and his=20 enthusiasm infected some of the wealthy citizens, who gathered for his = use a=20 very considerable collection of volumes. Mastering all the literature of = the=20 Arctic, he determined to undertake himself the arduous work of the = explorer.=20 Taking passage on a whaler, he spent several years among the Esquimaux, = living=20 in their crowded and fetid igloos, devouring the blubber and = uncooked=20 fish that form their staple articles of diet, wearing their garb of = furs,=20 learning to navigate the treacherous kayak in tossing seas, to direct = the=20 yelping, quarreling team of dogs over fields of ice as rugged as the = edge of=20 some monstrous saw, studying the geography so far as known of the Arctic = regions, perfecting himself in all the arts by which man has contested = the=20 supremacy of that land with the ice-king. In 1870, with the assistance = of the=20 American Geographical Society, Hall induced the United States Government = to fit=20 him out an expedition to seek the North Pole=97the first exploring party = ever sent=20 out with that definite purpose. The steamer "Polaris," a converted navy = tug,=20 which General Greely says was wholly unfit for Arctic service, was given = him,=20 and a scientific staff supplied by the Government, for though Hall had = by=20 painstaking endeavor qualified himself to lead an expedition, he had not = enjoyed=20 a scientific education. Neither was he a sailor like DeLong, nor a man = trained=20 to the command of men like Greely. Enthusiasm and natural fitness Page 204with him took = the place of=20 systematic training. But with him, as with so many others in this world, = the=20 attainment of the threshold of his ambition proved to be but opening the = door to=20 death. By a sledge journey from his ship he reached Cape Brevoort, above = latitude 82, at that time the farthest north yet attained, but the = exertion=20 proved too much for him, and he had scarcely regained his ship when he = died. His=20 name will live, however, in the annals of the Arctic, for his = contributions to=20 geographical knowledge were many and precious.

The men who survived him determined to continue his work, and the = next summer=20 two fought their way northward a few miles beyond the point attained by = Hall.=20 But after this achievement the ship was caught in the ice-pack, and for = two=20 months drifted about, helpless in that unrelenting grasp. Out of this=20 imprisonment the explorers escaped through a disaster, which for a time = put all=20 their lives in the gravest jeopardy, and the details of which seem = almost=20 incredible. In October, when the long twilight which precedes the polar = night,=20 had already set in, there came a fierce gale, accompanied by a tossing, = roaring=20 sea. The pack, racked by the surges, which now raised it with a mighty = force,=20 and then rolling on, left it to fall unsupported, began to go to pieces. = The=20 whistling wind accelerated its destruction, driving the floes far apart, = heaping=20 them up against the hull of the ship until the grinding and the = prodigious=20 pressure opened her seams and the water rushed in. The cry that the ship = was=20 sinking rung along the decks, and all hands turned with desperate energy = to=20 throwing out on the ice-floe to windward, sledges, provisions, arms,=20 records=97everything that could be saved against the sinking of the = ship, which=20 all thought was at hand. Nineteen of the ship's company were landed on = the floe=20 to carry the material away from Page 205its edge to a place of comparative = safety. The=20 peril seemed so imminent that the men in their panic performed = prodigious feats=20 of strength=97lifting and handling alone huge boxes, which at ordinary = times,=20 would stagger two men. A driving, whirling snowstorm added to the gloom, = confusion, and terror of the scene, shutting out almost completely those = on the=20 ice from the view of those still on the ship. In the midst of the work = the cry=20 was raised that the floes were parting, and with incredible rapidity the = ice=20 broke away from the ship on every side, so that communication between = those on=20 deck and those on the floe was instantly cut off by a broad interval of = black=20 and tossing water, while the dark and snow-laden air cut off vision on = every=20 side. The cries of those on the ice mingled with those from the fast = vanishing=20 ship, for each party thought itself in the more desperate case. The ice = was fast=20 going to pieces, and boats were plying in the lanes of water thus = opened,=20 picking up those clinging to smaller cakes of ice and transporting them = to the=20 main floe. On the ship the captain's call had summoned all hands to = muster, and=20 they gazed on each other in dumb despair as they saw how few of the = ship's=20 company remained. All were sent to the pumps, for the water in the hold = was=20 rising with ominous rapidity. The cry rang out that the steam-pumps must = be=20 started if the ship was to be saved, but long months had passed since = any fire=20 had blazed under those boilers, and to get up steam was a work of hours. = With=20 tar-soaked oakum and with dripping whale blubber the engineer strove to = get the=20 fires roaring, the while the men on deck toiled with desperate energy at = the=20 hand-pumps. But the water gained on them. The ship sunk lower and lower = in the=20 black ocean, until a glance over the side could tell all too plainly = that she=20 was going to her fate. Now the water begins to Page 206ooze through = the cracks in=20 the engine-room floor, and break in gentle ripples about the feet of the = firemen. If it rises much higher it will flood the fire-boxes, and then = all will=20 be over, for there is not one boat left on the ship=97all were landed on = the now=20 invisible floe. But just as all hope was lost there came a faint hissing = of=20 steam, the pumps began slowly moving, and then settled down into their=20 monotonous "chug-chug," the sweetest sound, that day, those desperate = mariners=20 had ever heard. They were saved by the narrowest of chances.

We must pass hastily to the sequel of this seemingly irreparable = disaster.=20 The "Polaris" was beached, winter quarters established, and those who = had clung=20 to the ship spent the winter building boats, in which, the following = spring,=20 they made their way southward until picked up by a whaler. Those on the = floe=20 drifted at the mercy of the wind and tide 195 days, making over 1300 = miles to=20 the southward. As the more temperate latitudes were reached, and the = warmer days=20 of spring came on, the floe began going to pieces, and they were = continually=20 confronted Page=20 207with the probability of being forced to their boat for = safety=97one=20 boat, built to hold eight, and now the sole reliance of nineteen people. = It is=20 hard to picture through the imagination the awful strain that day and = night=20 rested upon the minds of these hapless castaways. Never could they drop = off to=20 sleep except in dread that during the night the ice on which they slept, = might=20 split, even under their very pallets, and they be awakened by the = deathly plunge=20 into the icy water. Day and night they were startled and affrighted by = the=20 thunderous rumblings and cracking of the breaking floe=97a sound that an = experienced Arctic explorer says is the most terrifying ever heard by = man,=20 having in it something of the hoarse rumble of heavy artillery, the = sharp and=20 murderous crackle of machine guns, and a kind of titanic grinding, for = which=20 there is no counterpart in the world of tumult. Living thus in constant = dread of=20 death, the little company drifted on, seemingly miraculously preserved. = Their=20 floe was at last reduced from a great sheet of ice, perhaps a mile or = more=20 square, to a scant ten yards by seventy-five, and this rapidly breaking = up. In=20 two days four whalers passed near enough for them to see, yet failed to = see=20 them, but finally their frantic signals attracted attention, and they = were=20 picked up=97not only the original nineteen who had begun the drift six = months=20 earlier, but one new and helpless passenger, for one of the Esquimau = women had=20 given birth to a child while on the ice.

The next notable Arctic expedition from the United States had its = beginning=20 in journalistic enterprise. Mr. James Gordon Bennett, owner of the = New York=20 Herald, who had already manifested his interest in geographical work = by=20 sending Henry M. Stanley to find Livingston in the heart of the Dark = Continent,=20 fitted out the steam yacht "Pandora," which had already been used in = Arctic=20 service, and Page=20 208placed her at the disposal of Lieutenant DeLong, U.S.N., for = an Arctic=20 voyage. The name of the ship was changed to "Jeannette," and control of = the=20 expedition was vested in the United States Government, though Mr. = Bennett's=20 generosity defrayed all charges. The vessel was manned from the navy, = and=20 Engineer Melville, destined to bear a name great among Arctic men, = together with=20 two navy lieutenants, were assigned to her. The voyage planned was then = unique=20 among American Arctic expeditions, for instead of following the = conventional=20 route north through Baffin's Bay and Smith Sound, the "Jeannette" sailed = from=20 San Francisco and pushed northward through Bering Sea. In July, 1879, = she=20 weighed anchor. Two years after, no word having been heard of her = meanwhile, the=20 inevitable relief expedition was sent out=97the steamer "Rodgers," which = after=20 making a gallant dash to a most northerly point, was caught in the = ice-pack and=20 there burned to the water's edge, her crew, with greatest difficulty, = escaping,=20 and reaching home without one ray of intelligence of DeLong's fate.

That fate was bitter indeed, a trial by cold, starvation, and death, = fit to=20 stand for awesomeness beside Greely's later sorrowful story. From the = very=20 outset evil fortune had attended the "Jeannette." Planning to winter on = Wrangle=20 Land=97then thought to be a continent=97DeLong caught in the ice-pack, = was carried=20 past its northern end, thus proving it to be an island, indeed, but = making the=20 discovery at heavy cost. Winter in the pack was attended with severe = hardships=20 and grave perils. Under the influence of the ocean currents and the = tides, the=20 ice was continually breaking up and shifting, and each time the ship was = in=20 imminent danger of being crushed. In his journal DeLong tries to = describe the=20 terrifying clamor of Page=20 209a shifting pack. "I know of no sound on shore that can be = compared=20 with it," he writes. "A rumble, a shriek, a groan, and the crash of a = falling=20 house all combined, might serve to convey an idea of the noise with = which this=20 motion of the ice-floe is accompanied. Great masses from fifteen to = twenty-five=20 feet in height, when up-ended, are sliding along at various angles of = elevation=20 and jam, and between and among them are large and confused masses of = d=E9bris,=20 like a marble yard adrift. Occasionally a stoppage occurs; some piece = has caught=20 against or under our floe; there follows a groaning and crackling, our = floe=20 bends and humps up in places like domes. Crash! The dome splits, another = yard of=20 floe edge breaks off, the pressure is relieved, and on goes again the = flowing=20 mass of rumbles, shrieks, groans, etc., for another spell."

Time and again this nerve-racking experience was encountered. More = than once=20 serious leaks were started in the ship, which had to be met by working = the pumps=20 and building false bulwarks in the hold; but by the exercise of every = art known=20 to sailors, she was kept afloat and tenable until June 11, 1881, when a = fierce=20 and unexpected nip broke her fairly in two, and she speedily sunk. There = followed weeks and months of incessant and desperate struggling with = sledge and=20 boat against the forces of polar nature. The ship had sunk about 150 = miles from=20 what are known as the New Siberian Islands, for which DeLong then laid = his=20 course. The ice was rugged, covered with soft snow, which masked = treacherous=20 pitfalls, and full of chasms which had to be bridged. Five sleds and = three boats=20 were dragged by almost superhuman exertions, the sick feebly aiding the = sturdy=20 in the work. Imagine the disappointment, and despair of the leader, = when, after=20 a full week of this cruel labor, with provisions ever growing more = scanty, an=20 observation showed Page=20 210him they were actually twenty-eight miles further away from = their=20 destination than when they started! While they were toiling south, the = ice-floe=20 over which they were plodding was drifting more rapidly north. Nil=20 desperandum must ever be the watchword of Arctic expeditions, and = DeLong,=20 saying nothing to the others of his discovery, changed slightly the = course of=20 his march and labored on. July 19 they reached an island hitherto = unknown, which=20 was thereupon named Bennett Island. A curious feature of the toilsome = march=20 across the ice, was Page=20 211that, though the temperature seldom rose to the freezing = point, the=20 men complained bitterly of the heat and suffered severely from = sun-burn.

At Bennett Island they took to the boats, for now open water was = everywhere=20 visible. DeLong was making for the Lena River in Siberia, where there = were known=20 to be several settlements, but few of his party were destined to reach = it. In a=20 furious storm, on the 12th of September, the three boats were separated. = One,=20 commanded by Lieutenant Chipp, with eight men, must have foundered, for = it was=20 never again heard of. A second, commanded by George W. Melville, = afterward chief=20 engineer of the United States Navy, found one of the mouths of the Lena = River,=20 and ascending it reached a small Siberian village. Happy would it have = been had=20 DeLong and his men discovered the same pathway to safety, but the Lena = is like=20 our own Mississippi, a river with a broad delta and a multiplicity of = mouths.=20 Into an estuary, the banks of which were untrodden by man, and which = itself was=20 too shallow for navigation for any great distance, remorseless fate led = DeLong.=20 Forced soon to take to their sleds again, his companions toiled = painfully along=20 the river bank, with no known destination, but bearing ever to the = south=97the=20 only way in which hope could possibly lie. Deserted huts and other signs = of=20 former human habitation were plenty, but nothing living crossed their = path. At=20 last, the food being at the point of exhaustion, and the men too weary = and weak=20 for rapid travel, DeLong chose two of the sturdiest, Nindemann and = Noros, and=20 sent them ahead in the hope that they might find and return with succor. = The=20 rest stumbled on behind, well pleased if they could advance three miles = daily.=20 Food gave out, then strength. Resignation took the place of = determination.=20 DeLong's journal for the last week of life is inexpressibly pitiful:Page = 212

"Sunday, October 23=97133d Day: Everybody pretty weak. Slept or = rested all day,=20 and then managed to get in enough wood before dark. Read part of divine = service.=20 Suffering in our feet. No foot-gear.

"Sunday, October 30=97140th Day: Boyd and Cortz died during the = night. Mr.=20 Collins dying."

This is the last entry. The hand that penned it, as the manuscript = shows, was=20 as firm and steady as though the writer were sitting in his library at = home.=20 Words are spelled out in full, punctuation carefully observed. How long = after=20 these words were set down DeLong too died, none may ever know; but when=20 Melville, whom Nindemann and Noros had found after sore privations, = reached the=20 spot of the death camp, he came upon a sorrowful scene. "I came upon the = bodies=20 of three men partly buried in the snow," he writes, "one hand reaching = out, with=20 the left arm of the man reaching way above the surface of the snow=97his = whole=20 left arm. I immediately recognized them as Captain DeLong, Dr. Ambler, = and Ah=20 Sam, the cook.... I found the journal about three or four feet in the = rear of=20 DeLong=97that is, it looked as though he had been lying down, and with = his left=20 hand tossed the book over his shoulder to the rear, or to the eastward = of=20 him."

How these few words bring the whole scene up before Page 213us! Last, = perhaps, of all=20 to die, lying by the smoldering fire, the ashes of which were in the = middle of=20 the group of bodies when found, DeLong puts down the final words which = tell of=20 the obliteration of his party, tosses the book wearily over his = shoulder, and=20 turns on his side to die. And then the snow, falling gently, pitifully = covers=20 the rigid forms and holds them in its pure embrace until loyal friends = seek them=20 out, and tell to the world that again brave lives have been sacrificed = to the=20 ogre of the Arctic.

While DeLong and his gallant comrades of the United States Navy were = dying=20 slowly in the bleak desert of the Lena delta, another party of brave = Americans=20 were pushing their way into the Arctic circle on the Atlantic side of = the North=20 American continent. The story of that starvation camp in desolate = Siberia was to=20 be swiftly repeated on the shores of Smith Sound, and told this time = with more=20 pathetic detail, for of Greely's expedition, numbering twenty-five, = seven were=20 rescued after three years of Arctic suffering and starving, helpless, = and within=20 one day of death. They had seen their comrades die, destroyed by = starvation and=20 cold, and passing away in delirium, babbling of green fields and = plenteous=20 tables. From the doorway of the almost collapsed tent, in which the = seven=20 survivors were found, they could see the row of shallow graves in which = their=20 less fortunate comrades lay interred=97all save two, whom they had been = too weak=20 to bury. No story of the Arctic which has come to us from the lips of = survivors,=20 has half the pathos, or a tithe of the pitiful interest, possessed by = this story=20 of Greely.

Studying to-day the history of the Greely expedition, it seems almost = as if a=20 malign fate had determined to bring disaster upon him. His task was not = so=20 arduous as a determined search for the Pole, or the Northwest Passage. = He was=20 ordered by the United States Government Page 214to establish an observation station on = Lady=20 Franklin Bay, and remain there two years, conducting, meanwhile, = scientific=20 observations, and pressing exploratory work with all possible zeal. The=20 enterprise was part of a great international plan, by which each of the = great=20 nations was to establish and maintain such an observation station within = the=20 Arctic circle, while observations were to be carried on in all at once. = The=20 United States agreed to maintain two such stations, and the one at Point = Barrow,=20 north of Alaska, was established, maintained, and its tenants brought = home at=20 the end of the allotted time without disaster.

Greely was a lieutenant in the United States Army, and his expedition = was=20 under the immediate direction of the Secretary of War=97at that time = Robert=20 Lincoln, son of the great war President. Some criticism was expressed at = the=20 time and, indeed, still lingers in the books of writers on the subject,=20 concerning the fitness of an army officer to direct an Arctic voyage. = But the=20 purpose of the expedition was largely to collect scientific facts = bear-on=20 weather, currents of air and sea, the duration and extent of magnetic = and=20 electrical disturbances=97in brief, data quite parallel to those which = the United=20 States signal service collects at home. So the Greely expedition was = made an=20 adjunct to the signal service, which in its turn is one of the bureaus = of the=20 War Department. Two army lieutenants, Lockwood and Klingsbury, and = twenty men=20 from the rank and file of the army and signal corps, were selected to = form the=20 party. An astronomer was needed, and Edward Israel, a young graduate of = the=20 University of Michigan, volunteered. George W. Rice volunteered as = photographer.=20 Both were enlisted in the army and given the rank of sergeant.

It is doubtful if any polar expedition was ever more Page = 215circumstantially=20 planned=97none has resulted more disastrously, save Sir John Franklin's = last=20 voyage. The instructions of the War Department were as explicit as human = foresight and a genius for detail could make them. Greely was to proceed = to some=20 point on Lady Franklin Bay, which enters the mainland of North America = at about=20 81=B0 44' north latitude, build his station, and prepare for a = two-years' stay.=20 Provisions for three years were supplied him. At the end of one year it = was=20 promised, a relief ship should be sent him, which failing for any cause = to reach=20 the station, would cache supplies and dispatches at specified points. A = year=20 later a second relief ship would be sent to bring the party home, and if = for any=20 reason this ship should fail to make the station, then Greely was to = break camp=20 and sledge to the southward, following the east coast of the mainland, = until he=20 met the vessel, or reached the point at which fresh supplies were to be = cached.=20 No plan could have been better devised=97none ever failed more = utterly.

Arctic travel is an enigma, and it is an enigma never to be solved = twice in=20 the same way. Whalers, with the experience of a lifetime in the frozen = waters,=20 agree that the lessons of one voyage seldom prove infallible guides for = the=20 conduct of the next. Lieutenant Schwatka, a veteran Arctic explorer, = said in an=20 official document that the teachings of experience were often worse than = useless=20 in polar work. And so, though the Washington authorities planned for the = safety=20 of Greely according to the best guidance that the past could give them, = their=20 plans failed completely. The first relief ship did, indeed, land some=20 stores=97never, as the issue showed, to be reached by Greely=97but the = second=20 expedition, composed of two ships, the "Proteus" and the "Yantic," = accomplished=20 nothing. The station was not reached, practically no supplies were Page = 216landed, the=20 "Proteus" was nipped by the ice and sunk, and the remnant of the = expedition came=20 supinely home, reporting utter failure. It is impossible to acquit the=20 commanders of the two ships engaged in this abortive relief expedition = of a lack=20 of determination, a paucity of courage, complete incompetence. They = simply left=20 Greely to his fate while time still remained for his rescue, or at least = for the=20 convenient deposit of the vast store of provisions they brought home, = leaving=20 the abandoned explorers to starve.

The history of the Greely expedition and its achievements may well be = sketched hastily, before the story of the catastrophe which overwhelmed = it is=20 told. As it was the most tragic of expeditions save one, Sir John = Franklin's,=20 so, too, it was the most fruitful in results, of any American expedition = to the=20 time of the writing of this book. Proceeding by the whaler "Proteus" in = August,=20 1881, to the waters of the Arctic zone, Greely reached his destination = with but=20 little trouble, and built a commodious and comfortable station on the = shores of=20 Discovery Bay, which he called Fort Conger after a United States Senator = from=20 Michigan. A month remained before the Arctic night would set in, but the = labor=20 of building the house left little time for explorations, which were = deferred=20 until the following summer. Life at the station was not disagreeable. = The house,=20 stoutly built, withstood the bitter cold. Within there were books and = games, and=20 through the long winter night the officers beguiled the time with = lectures and=20 reading. Music was there, too, in impressive quantity, if not quality. = "An=20 organette with about fifty yards of music," writes Lieutenant Greely, = "afforded=20 much amusement, being particularly fascinating to our Esquimau, who = never=20 wearied grinding out one tune after another." The rigid routine of = Arctic winter=20 life was Page = 217followed day by day, and the returning sun, after five months' = absence, found the party in perfect health and buoyant spirits. The work = of=20 exploration on all sides began, the explorers being somewhat handicapped = by the=20 death of many of the sledge dogs from disease. Lieutenant Greely, Dr. = Pavy, and=20 Lieutenant Lockwood each led a party, but to the last named belong the = honors,=20 for he, with Sergeant Brainard and an Esquimau, made his way northward = over ice=20 that looked like a choppy sea suddenly frozen into the rigidity of = granite,=20 until he reached latitude 83=B0 24' north=97the most northerly point = then attained=20 by any man=97and still the record marking Arctic journey for an American = explorer.

Winter came again under depressing circumstances. The first relief = ship=20 promised had not arrived, and the disappointment of the men deepened = into=20 apprehension lest the second, also, should fail them. Yet they went = through the=20 second winter in good health and unshaken morale, though one can not = read such=20 portions of Greely's diary as he has published, without seeing that the=20 irritability and jealousy that seem to be the inevitable accompaniments = of long=20 imprisonment in an Arctic station, began to make their appearance. With = the=20 advent of spring the commander began to make his preparations for a = retreat to=20 the southward. If he had not then felt entire confidence in the promise = of the=20 War Department to relieve him without fail that summer, he would have = begun his=20 retreat early, and beyond doubt have brought all his men to safety = before=20 another winter set in or his provisions fell low. But as it was, he put = off the=20 start to the last moment, keeping up meanwhile the scientific work of = the=20 expedition, and sending out one party to cache supplies along the route = of=20 retreat. August 9, 1883, the march began=97just two years after they had = entered=20 the frozen Page=20 218deep=97Greely hoping to meet the relief ship oh the way. He = did not know=20 that three weeks before she had been nipped in the ice-pack, and sunk, = and that=20 her consort, the "Yantic," had gone impotently home, without even = leaving food=20 for the abandoned explorers. Over ice-fields and across icy and = turbulent water,=20 the party made its way for five hundred miles=97four hundred miles of = boating and=20 one hundred of sledging=97fifty-one days of heroic exertion that might = well take=20 the courage out of the stoutest heart. Sledging in the Arctic over = "hummock" ice=20 is, perhaps, the most wearing form of toil known to man, and with such = heavy=20 loads as Greely carried, every mile had to be gone over twice, and = sometimes=20 three times, as the men would be compelled to leave part of the load = behind and=20 go back after it. Yet the party was cheerful, singing and joking at = their work,=20 as one of the sergeants records. Finally they reached the vicinity of = Cape=20 Sabine, all in good health, with instruments and records saved, and with = arms=20 and ammunition enough to procure ample food in a land well stocked with = game.=20 But they did not worry very much about food, though their supply was by = this=20 time growing low. Was not Cape Sabine the spot at which the relief = expeditions=20 were to cache food, and could it be possible that the great United = States=20 Government would fail twice in an enterprise which any Yankee whaler = would=20 gladly take a contract to fulfill? And so the men looked upon the = wilderness,=20 and noted the coming on of the Arctic night again without fear, if with = some=20 disappointment. Less than forty days' rations remained. Eight months = must elapse=20 before any relief expedition could reach their camp, and far away in the = United=20 States the people were crying out in hot indignation that the = authorities were=20 basely leaving Greely and his devoted companions to their fate.Page 219

Pluckily the men set about preparing for the long winter. Three huts = of stone=20 and snow were planned, and while they were building, the hunters of the = party=20 scoured the neighboring ice-floes and pools for game=97foxes, ptarmigan, = and=20 seals. There were no mistaken ideas concerning their deadly peril. Every = man=20 knew that if game failed, or if the provisions they hoped had been = cached by the=20 relief expeditions somewhere in the vicinity, could not be found, they = might=20 never leave that spot alive. Day by day the size of the rations was = reduced.=20 October 2 enough for thirty-five days remained, and at the request of = the men,=20 Greely so changed the ration as to provide for forty-five days. October = 5=20 Lieutenant Lockwood noted in his diary:

"We have now three chances for our lives: First, finding American = cache=20 sufficient at Sabine or at Isabella; second, of crossing the straits = when our=20 present ration is gone; third, of shooting sufficient seal and walrus = near by=20 here to last during the winter."

How delusive the first chance proved we shall see later. The second = was=20 impractical, for the current carried the ice through the strait so fast, = that=20 any party trying to cross the floe, would have been carried south to = where the=20 strait widened out into Baffin's Bay before they could possibly pass the = twenty-five miles which separated Cape Sabine from Littleton Island. = Moreover,=20 there was no considerable cache at the latter point, as Greely thought. = As for=20 the hunting, it proved a desperate chance, though it did save the lives = of such=20 of the party as were rescued. All feathered game took flight for the = milder=20 regions of the south when the night set in. The walrus which the hunters = shot=97two, Greely said, would have supplied food for all winter=97and = the seal sunk=20 in almost every instance before the game could be secured.Page 220

The first, and most hopeful chance, was the discovery of cached = provisions at=20 Cape Sabine. To put this to the test, Rice, the photographer, who, = though a=20 civilian, proved to be one of the most determined and efficient men in = the=20 party, had already started for Sabine with Jens, the Esquimau. October 9 = they=20 returned, bringing the record of the sinking of the "Proteus," and the=20 intelligence that there were about 1300 rations at, or near Cape Sabine. = The=20 record left at Cape Sabine by Garlington, the commander of the "Proteus" = expedition, and which Rice brought back to the camp, read in part: = "Depot landed=20 ... 500 rations of bread, tea, and a lot of canned goods. Cache of 250 = rations=20 left by the English expedition of 1882 visited by me and found in good=20 condition. Cache on Littleton Island. Boat at Isabella. U.S.S. 'Yantic' = on way=20 to Littleton Island with orders not to enter the ice. I will endeavor to = communicate with these vessels at once.... Everything in the power of = man will=20 be done to rescue the (Greely's) brave men."

This discovery changed Greely's plans again. It was hopeless to = attempt=20 hauling the ten or twelve thousand pounds of material believed to be at = Cape=20 Sabine, to the site of the winter camp, now almost done, so Greely = determined to=20 desert that station and make for Cape Sabine, taking with him all the = provisions=20 and material he could drag. In a few days his party was again on the = march=20 across the frozen sea.

How inscrutable and imperative are the ways of fate! Looking backward = now on=20 the pitiful story of the Greely party, we see that the second relief = expedition,=20 intended to succor and to rescue these gallant men, was in fact the = cause of=20 their overwhelming disaster=97and this not wholly because of errors = committed in=20 its direction, though they were many. When Greely abandoned the station = Page = 221at Fort Conger,=20 he could have pressed straight to the southward without halt, and = perhaps=20 escaped with all his party=97he could, indeed, have started earlier in = the summer,=20 and made escape for all certain. But he relied on the relief expedition, = and=20 held his ground until the last possible moment. Even after reaching Cape = Sabine=20 he might have taken to the boats and made his way southward to safety, = for he=20 says himself that open water was in sight; but the cheering news brought = by Rice=20 of a supply of provisions, and the promise left by Garlington, that all = that men=20 could do would be done for his rescue, led him to halt his journey at = Cape=20 Sabine, and go into winter quarters in the firm conviction that already = another=20 vessel was on the way to aid him. He did not know that Garlington had = left but=20 few provisions out of his great store, that the "Yantic" had fled = without=20 landing an ounce of food, and that the authorities at Washington had = concluded=20 that nothing more could be done that season=97although whalers = frequently entered=20 the waters where Greely lay trapped, at a later date than that which saw = the=20 "Yantic's" precipitate retreat. Had he known these things, he says = himself, "I=20 should certainly have turned my back to Cape Sabine and starvation, to = face a=20 possible death on the perilous voyage along shore to the southward."

But not knowing them, he built a hut, and prepared to face the = winter. It is=20 worth noting, as evidence that Arctic hardships themselves, when not = accompanied=20 by a lack of food, are not unbearable, that at this time, after two = years in the=20 region of perpetual ice, the whole twenty-five men were well, and even = cheerful.=20 Depression and death came only when the food gave out.

The permanent camp, which for many of the party was to be a tomb, was = fixed a=20 few miles from Cape Sabine, by Page 222the side of a pool of fresh = water=97frozen, of=20 course. Here a hut was built with stone walls three feet high, rafters = made of=20 oars with the blades cut off, and a canvas roof, except in the center, = where an=20 upturned whaleboat made a sort of a dome. Only under the whaleboat could = a man=20 get on his knees and hold himself erect; elsewhere the heads of the tall = men=20 touched the roof when they sat up in their sleeping bags on the dirt = floor. With=20 twenty-five men in sleeping bags, which they seldom left, two in each = bag,=20 packed around the sides of the hut, a stove fed with stearine burning in = the=20 center for the cooking of the insufficient food to which they were = reduced, and=20 all air from without excluded, the hut became a place as much of torture = as of=20 refuge.

The problem of food and the grim certainty of starvation were forced = upon=20 them with the very first examination of the caches of which Garlington = had left=20 such encouraging reports. At Cape Isabella only 144 pounds of meat was = found, in=20 Garlington's cache only 100 rations instead of 500 as he had promised. = Moldy=20 bread and dog biscuits fairly green with mold, though condemned by = Greely, were=20 seized by the famished men, and devoured ravenously without a thought of = their=20 unwholesomeness. When November 1 came, the daily ration for each man was = fixed=20 at six ounces of bread, four ounces of meat, and four ounces of = vegetables=97about=20 a quarter of what would be moderate sustenance for a healthy man. By = keeping the=20 daily issue of food down to this pitiful amount Greely calculated that = he would=20 have enough to sustain life until the first of March, when with ten = days' double=20 rations still remaining, he would make an effort to cross the strait to=20 Littleton Island, where he thought=97mistakenly=97that Lieutenant = Garlington awaited=20 him with ample stores. Of course all game shot added to the size of the = rations,=20 and Page = 223that the=20 necessary work of hunting might be prosecuted, the hunters were from the = first=20 given extra rations to maintain, their strength. Fuel, too, offered a = serious=20 problem. Alcohol, stearine, and broken wood from a whaleboat and = barrels, were=20 all employed. In order to get the greatest heat from the wood it was = broken up=20 into pieces not much larger than matches.

And yet packed into that noisome hovel, ill-fed and ill-clothed, with = the=20 Arctic wind roaring outside, the temperature within barely above = freezing, and a=20 wretched death staring each man in the face, these men were not without=20 cheerfulness. Lying almost continually in their sleeping bags, they = listened to=20 one of their number reading aloud; such books as "Pickwick Papers," "A = History=20 of Our Own Times," and "Two on a Tower." Greely gave daily a lecture on=20 geography of an hour or more; each man related, as best he could, the = striking=20 facts about his own State and city and, indeed, every device that = ingenuity=20 could suggest, was employed to divert their minds and wile away the = lagging=20 hours. Birthdays were celebrated by a little extra food=97though toward = the end a=20 half a gill of rum for the celebrant, constituted the whole recognition = of the=20 day. The story of Christmas Day is inexpressibly touching as told in the = simple=20 language of Greely's diary:

"Our breakfast was a thin pea-soup, with seal blubber, and a small = quantity=20 of preserved potatoes. Later two cans of cloudberries were served to = each mess,=20 and at half-past one o'clock Long and Frederick commenced cooking = dinner, which=20 consisted of a seal stew, containing seal blubber, preserved potatoes = and bread,=20 flavored with pickled onions; then came a kind of rice pudding, with = raisins,=20 seal blubber, and condensed milk. Afterward we had chocolate, followed = later by=20 a kind of punch made of Page 224a gill of rum and a quarter of a lemon to = each=20 man.... Everybody was required to sing a song or tell a story, and = pleasant=20 conversation with the expression of kindly feelings, was kept up until=20 midnight."

But that comparative plenty and good cheer did not last long. In a = few weeks=20 the unhappy men, or such as still clung to life, were living on a few = shrimps,=20 pieces of sealskin boots, lichens, and even more offensive food. The = shortening=20 of the ration, and the resulting hunger, broke down the moral sense of = some, and=20 by one device or another, food was stolen. Only two or three were guilty = of this=20 crime=97an execrable one in such an emergency=97and one of these, = Private Henry, was=20 shot by order of Lieutenant Greely toward the end of the winter. Even = before=20 Christmas, casualties which would have been avoided, had the party been=20 well-nourished and strong, began. Ellison, in making a gallant dash for = the=20 cache at Isabella, was overcome by cold and fatigue, and froze both his = hands=20 and feet so that in time they dropped off. Only the tender care of = Frederick,=20 who was with him, and the Page 225swift rush of Lockwood and Brainard to = his aid,=20 saved him from death. It tells a fine story of the unselfish devotion of = the=20 men, that this poor wreck, maimed and helpless, so that he had to be = fed, and=20 incapable of performing one act in his own service, should have been = nursed=20 throughout the winter, fed with double portions, and actually saved = living until=20 the rescue party arrived, while many of those who cared for him yielded = up their=20 lives. The first to die was Cross, of scurvy and starvation, and he was = buried=20 in a shallow grave near the hut, all hands save Ellison turning out to = honor his=20 memory. Though the others clung to life with amazing tenacity, illness = began to=20 make inroads upon them, the gallant Lockwood, for example, spending = weeks in=20 Greely's sleeping bag, his mind wandering, his body utterly exhausted. = But it=20 was April before the second death occurred=97one of the Esquimaux. = "Action of=20 water on the heart caused by insufficient nutrition," was the doctor's=20 verdict=97in a word, but a word all dreaded to hear, starvation.

Thereafter the men went fast. In a day or two Christiansen, an = Esquimau,=20 died. Rice, the sharer of his sleeping bag, was forced to spend a night=20 enveloped in a bag with the dead body. The next day he started on a = sledging=20 trip to seek some beef cached by the English years earlier. Before the = errand=20 was completed, he, too, died, freezing to death in the arms of his = companion,=20 Frederick, who held him tenderly until the last, and stripped himself to = the=20 shirtsleeves in the icy blast, to warm his dying comrade. Then Lockwood = died=97the=20 hero of the Farthest North; then Jewell. Jens, the untiring Esquimau = hunter, was=20 drowned, his kayak being cut by the sharp edge of a piece of ice. Ellis, = Whisler, Israel, the astronomer, and Dr. Pavy, the surgeon, one by one, = passed=20 away.

But why continue the pitiful chronicle? To tell the Page 226story in detail = is=20 impossible here=97to tell it baldly and hurriedly, means to omit from it = all that=20 makes the narrative of the last days of the Greely expedition worth = reading; the=20 unflagging courage of most of the men, the high sense of honor that=20 characterized them, the tenderness shown to the sick and helpless, the = pluck and=20 endurance of Long and Brainard, the fierce determination of Greely, that = come=20 what might, the records of his expedition should be saved, and its honor = bequeathed unblemished to the world. And so through suffering and death, = despairing perhaps, but never neglecting through cowardice or lethargy, = any=20 expedient for winning the fight against death, the party, daily growing = smaller,=20 fought its way on through winter and spring, until that memorable day in = June,=20 when Colwell cut open the tent and saw, as the first act of the rescued=20 sufferers, two haggard, weak, and starving men pouring all that was left = of the=20 brandy, down the throat of one a shade more haggard and weak than = they.

Men of English lineage are fond of telling the story of the meeting = of=20 Stanley and Dr. Livingston in the depths of the African jungle. For = years=20 Livingston had disappeared from the civilized world. Everywhere = apprehension was=20 felt lest he had fallen a victim to the ferocity of the savages, or to = the=20 pestilential climate. The world rung with speculations concerning his = fate.=20 Stanley, commissioned to solve the mystery, by the same America = journalist who=20 sent DeLong into the Arctic, had cut his path through the savages and = the=20 jungle, until at the door of a hut in a clearing, he saw a white man who = could=20 be none but him whom he sought, for in all that dark and gloomy forest = there was=20 none other of white skin. Then Anglo-Saxon stolidity asserted itself. = Men of=20 Latin race would have rushed into each others' arms with loud = rejoicings. Not so=20 these twain.Page=20 227

"Dr. Livingston, I believe," said the newcomer, with the air of = greeting an=20 acquaintance on Fifth Avenue. "I am Mr. Stanley."

"I am glad to see you," was the response, and it might have taken = place in a=20 drawing-room for all the emotion shown by either man.

That was a dramatic meeting in the tropical jungles, but history will = not=20 give second place to the encounter of the advance guard of the Greely = relief=20 expedition with the men they sought. The story is told with dramatic = directness=20 in Commander (now Admiral) Schley's book, "The Rescue of Greely."

"It was half-past eight in the evening as the cutter steamed around = the rocky=20 bluff of Cape Sabine, and made her way to the cove, four miles further = on, which=20 Colwell remembered so well.... The storm which had been raging with only = slight=20 intervals since early the day Page 228before, still kept up, and the wind was = driving in=20 bitter gusts through the opening in the ridge that followed the coast to = the=20 westward. Although the sky was overcast it was broad daylight=97the = daylight of a=20 dull winter afternoon.... At last the boat arrived at the site of the = wreck=20 cache, and the shore was eagerly scanned, but nothing could be seen. = Rounding=20 the next point, the cutter opened out the cove beyond. There on the top = of a=20 little ridge, fifty or sixty yards above the ice-foot, was plainly = outlined the=20 figure of a man. Instantly the coxswain caught up his boathook and waved = his=20 flag. The man on the ridge had seen them, for he stooped, picked up a = signal=20 flag, and waved it in reply. Then he was seen coming slowly and = cautiously down=20 the steep rocky slope. Twice he fell down before he reached the foot. As = he=20 approached, still walking slowly and with difficulty, Colwell hailed him = from=20 the bow of the boat.

"As the cutter struck the ice Colwell jumped off, and went up to him. = He was=20 a ghastly sight. His cheeks were hollow, his eyes wild, his hair and = beard long=20 and matted. His army blouse, covering several thicknesses of shirts and = jackets,=20 was ragged and dirty. He wore a little fur cap and rough moccasins of = untanned=20 leather tied around the leg. As he spoke his utterance was thick and = mumbling,=20 and in his agitation his jaws worked in convulsive twitches. As the two = met, the=20 man, with a sudden impulse, took off his gloves and shook Colwell's = hand.

"'In the tent,' said the man, pointing over his shoulder, 'over the = hill=97the=20 tent's down.'

"Before this colloquy was over Lowe and Norman had started up the = hill.=20 Hastily filling his pockets with bread, and taking the two cans of = pemmican,=20 Colwell told the coxswain to take Long into the cutter, and started = after the=20 others with Ash. Reaching the crest of the ridge and looking southward, = they saw=20 spread out before them a desolate expanse of rocky ground, sloping = gradually=20 from a ridge on the east to the ice-bound shore, which on the west made = in and=20 formed a cove. Back of the level space was a range of hills rising up = eight=20 hundred feet with a precipitous face, broken in two by a gorge, through = which=20 the wind was blowing furiously. On a little elevation directly in front = was the=20 tent. Hurrying on across the intervening hollow, Colwell came up with = Lowe and=20 Norman just as they were greeting a soldierly-looking man who had come = out of=20 the tent.

"As Colwell approached, Norman was saying to the man: 'There is the=20 Lieutenant.'

"Brainard immediately drew himself up to the position of the soldier, = and was=20 about to salute, when Colwell took his hand.

"At this moment there was a confused murmur within the tent, and a = voice=20 said: 'Who's there?'

"This was followed by cries of 'Oh, it's Norman,' and a sound like a = feeble=20 cheer.

"Meanwhile one of the relief party, who in his agitation Page 230and excitement = was crying=20 like a child, was down on his knees trying to roll away the stones that = held the=20 flapping tent-cloth.... Colwell called for a knife, cut a slit in the=20 tent-cover, and looked in. It was a sight horror. On one side, close to = the=20 opening, with his face toward the opening, lay what was apparently a = dead man.=20 His jaw had dropped, his eyes were open, but fixed and glassy, his limbs = were=20 motionless. On the opposite side was a poor fellow, alive to be sure, = but=20 without hands or feet, and with a spoon tied to the stump of his right = arm. Two=20 others, seated on the ground in the middle, had just got down a rubber = bottle=20 that hung on the tent pole, and were pouring from it into a tin can. = Directly=20 opposite, on his hands and knees, was a dark man, with a long matted = beard, in a=20 dirty and tattered dressing-gown, with a little red tattered skull-cap = on his=20 head, and brilliant, staring eyes. As Colwell appeared he raised himself = a=20 little and put on a pair of eye-glasses.

"Colwell crawled in and took him by the hand, saying: 'Greely, is = this=20 you?'

"'Yes,' said Greely in a faint voice, hesitating and shuffling with = his=20 words, 'yes=97seven of us left=97here we are=97dying=97like men. Did = what I came to=20 do=97beat the best record.'

Slowly and cautiously the men were nursed back to life and = health=97all save=20 poor Ellison, whose enfeebled constitution could not stand the shock of = the=20 necessary amputation of his mutilated limbs. The nine bodies Page 231buried in the = shallow=20 graves were exhumed and taken to the ship, Private Henry's body being = found=20 lying where it fell at the moment of his execution. At that time the = castaways=20 were too feeble to give even hasty sepulture to their dead. A horrible=20 circumstance, reported by Commander Schley himself, was that the flesh = of many=20 of the bodies was cut from the bones=97by whom, and for what end of = cannibalism,=20 can only be conjectured.

Following the disaster to the Greely expedition, came a period of = lethargy in=20 polar exploration, and when the work was taken up again, it was in ways = foreign=20 to the purpose of this book. Foreigners for a time led in activity, and = in 1895=20 Fridjof Nansen in his drifting ship, the "Fram," attained the then = farthest=20 North, latitude 86=B0 14', while Rudolph Andree, in 1897, put to the = test the=20 desperate expedient of setting out for the Pole in a balloon from Dane's = Island,=20 Spitzbergen; but the wind that bore him swiftly out of sight, has never = brought=20 back again tidings of his achievement or his fate. Nansen's laurels were = wrested=20 from him in 1900 by the Duke of Abruzzi, who reached 86=B0 33' north. = The stories=20 of these brave men are fascinating and instructive, but they are no part = of the=20 story of the American sailor. Indeed, the sailor is losing his = importance as an=20 explorer in the Arctic. It has become clear enough to all that it is not = to be a=20 struggle between stout ships and crushing ice, but rather a test of the=20 endurance of men and dogs, pushing forward over solid floes of heaped = and=20 corrugated ice, toward the long-sought goal. Two Americans in late years = have=20 made substantial progress toward the conquest of the polar regions. Mr. = Walter=20 Wellman, an eminent journalist, has made two efforts to reach the Pole, = but met=20 with ill-luck and disaster in each, though in the first he attained to = latitude=20 81=B0 to the northeast of Spitzbergen, and in the second Page 232he discovered = and named=20 many new islands about Franz Josef Land. Most pertinacious of all the = American=20 explorers, however, has been Lieutenant Robert E. Peary, U.S.N., who = since 1886,=20 has been going into the frozen regions whenever the opportunity = offered=97and when=20 none offered he made one. His services in exploration and in mapping out = the=20 land and seas to the north of Greenland have been of the greatest value = to=20 geographical science, and at the moment of writing this book he is = wintering at=20 Cape Sabine, where the Greely survivors were found, awaiting the coming = of=20 summer to make a desperate dash for the goal, sought for a century, but = still=20 secure in its wintry fortifications, the geographical Pole. Nor is he = wholly=20 alone, either in his ambition or his patience. Evelyn B. Baldwin, a = native of=20 Illinois, with an expedition equipped by William Zeigler, of New York, = and made=20 up of Americans, is wintering at Alger Island, near Franz Josef Land, = awaiting=20 the return of the sun to press on to the northward. It is within the = bounds of=20 possibility that before this volume is fairly in the hands of its = readers, the=20 fight may be won and the Stars and Stripes wave over that mysterious = spot that=20 has awakened the imagination and stimulated the daring of brave men of = all=20 nations.Page = 233

CHAPTER VII.

A decade more than two centuries ago a band of Iroquois Indians made = their=20 way in bark canoes from Lake Ontario up Lake Erie to the Detroit River, = across=20 Lake St. Clair, and thence through Lake Huron to Point Iroquois. They = were the=20 first navigators of the Great Lakes, and that they were not peace-loving = boatmen, is certain from the fact that they traveled all these miles of = primeval=20 waterway for the express purpose of battle. History records that they = had no=20 difficulty in bringing on a combat with the Illinois tribes, and in an = attempt=20 to displace the latter from Point Iroquois, the invaders were destroyed = after a=20 six-days' battle.

It is still a matter of debate among philosophical historians, = whether war,=20 trade, or missionary effort has done the more toward opening the = strange, wild=20 places of the world. Each, doubtless, has done its part, but we shall = find in=20 the story of the Great Lakes, that the war canoes of the savages were = followed=20 by the Jesuit missionaries, and these in turn by the bateaux of the = voyageurs=20 employed by the Hudson Bay Company.Page 235

After the Iroquois had learned the way, trips of war canoes up and = down the=20 lakes, were annual occurrences, and warfare was almost perpetual. In = 1680 the=20 Iroquois, 700 strong, invaded Illinois, killed 1200 of the tribe there=20 established, and drove the rest beyond the Mississippi. For years after = the=20 Iroquois nation were the rulers of the water-front between Lake Erie and = Lake=20 Huron. While this tribe was in undisputed possession, commerce had = little to do=20 with the navigation of the Great Lakes. The Indians went up and down the = shores=20 on long hunting trips, but war was the principal business, and every = canoe was=20 equipped for a fray at any time.

A story is told of a great naval battle that was fought on Lake Erie, = nearly=20 two centuries before the first steamer made its appearance on that = placid water.=20 A Wyandot prince, so the tale goes, fell in love with a beautiful = princess of=20 the Seneca tribe, who was the promised bride of a chief of her own = nation. The=20 warrior failed to win the heart of the dusky maiden, and goaded to = desperation,=20 entered the Senecas country by night, and carried off the lady. War = immediately=20 followed, and was prosecuted with great cruelty and slaughter for a long = time.=20 At last a final battle was fought, in which the Wyandots were worsted = and forced=20 to flee in great haste. The fugitives planned to cross the ice of the = Straits=20 (Detroit) River, but found it broken up and floating down stream. Their = only=20 alternative was to throw themselves on the floating ice and leap from = cake to=20 cake; they thus made their escape to the Canadian shore, and joined the = tribes=20 of the Pottawatomies, Ottawas, and Chippewas. A year later the Wyandots, = equipped with light birch canoes, set out to defeat the Senecas, and = succeeded=20 in inducing them to give combat on the water. The Senecas made a fatal = mistake=20 and came out to meet the enemy in their clumsily-constructed Page 236boats hollowed = out of the=20 trunks of trees. After much maneuvering the birch canoe fleet proceeded = down=20 Lake Erie to the head of Long Point, with the Senecas in hot pursuit. In = the=20 center of the lake the Wyandots turned and gave the Senecas so hot a = reception=20 that they were forced to flee, but could not make good their escape in = their=20 clumsy craft, and were all slain but one man, who was allowed to return = and=20 report the catastrophe to his own nation. This closed the war.

Legends are preserved that lead to the belief that there may have = been=20 navigators of the Great Lakes before the Indians, and it is generally = believed=20 that the latter were not the first occupants of the Lake Superior = region. It is=20 said that the Lake Superior country was frequently visited by a barbaric = race,=20 for the purpose of obtaining copper, and it is quite possible that these = people=20 may have been skilled navigators.

Commercial navigation of the Great Lakes, curiously enough, first = assumed=20 importance in the least accessible portion. The Hudson Bay Company, = always=20 extending its territory toward the northwest, sent its bateaux and = canoes into=20 Lake Superior early in the seventeenth century. To accommodate this = traffic the=20 company dug a canal around the falls of the St. Marie River, at the = point we now=20 call "the Soo." In time this pigmy progenitor of the busiest canal in = the world,=20 became filled with d=E9bris, and its very existence forgotten; but some = years ago=20 a student in the thriving town of Sault Ste. Marie, poring over some old = books=20 of the Hudson Bay Company, noticed several references to the company's = canal.=20 What canal could it be? His curiosity was aroused, and with the aid of = the=20 United States engineers in charge of the new improvements, he began a=20 painstaking investigation. In time the line of the old ditch was = discovered,=20 and, indeed, Page=20 237it was no more than a ditch, two and a half feet deep, by = eight or=20 nine wide. One lock was built, thirty-eight feet long, with a lift of = nine feet.=20 The floor and sills of this lock were discovered, and the United States=20 Government has since rebuilt it in stone, that visitors to the Soo may = turn from=20 the massive new locks, through which steel steamships of eight thousand = tons=20 pass all day long through the summer months, to gaze on the strait and = narrow=20 gate which once opened the way for all the commerce of Lake Superior. = But=20 through that gate there passed a picturesque and historic procession. = Canoes=20 spurred along by tufted Indians with black-robed Jesuit missionaries for = passengers; the wooden bateaux of the fur traders, built of wood and = propelled=20 by oars, and carrying gangs of turbulent trappers and voyageurs; the = company's=20 chief factors in swift private craft, making for the west to extend the=20 influence of the great corporation still further into the wilderness, = all passed=20 through the little canal and avoided the roaring waters of the Ste. = Marie. It=20 was but a narrow gate, but it played its part in the opening of the = West.

War, which is responsible for most of the checks to civilization, = whether or=20 not it may in some instances advance the skirmish line of civilized = peoples,=20 destroyed the pioneer canal. For in 1812 some Americans being in that = part of=20 the country, thought it would be a helpful contribution to their = national=20 defense if they blew up the lock and shattered the canal, as it was on = Canadian=20 soil. Accordingly this was done, of course without the slightest effect = on the=20 conflict then raging, but much to the discomfort and loss of the honest=20 voyageurs and trappers of the Lake Superior region, whose interest in = the war=20 could hardly have been very serious.

So far as history records the first sailing vessel to Page 238spread its = wings on the=20 Great Lakes beyond Niagara Falls, was the "Griffin," built by the = Chevalier de=20 la Salle in 1679, near the point where Buffalo now stands. La Salle had = brought=20 to this point French ship-builders and carpenters, together with = sailors, to=20 navigate the craft when completed. It was his purpose to proceed in this = vessel=20 to the farthest corners of the Great Lakes, establish trading and = trapping=20 stations, and take possession of the country in the name of France. He = was=20 himself conciliatory with the Indians and liked by them, but jealousies = among=20 the French themselves, stirred up savage antagonism to him, and his ship = narrowly escaped burning while still on the stocks. In August of 1679, = however,=20 she was launched, a brigantine of sixty tons burden, mounting five small = cannon=20 and three arquebuses. Her model is said to have been not unlike that of = the=20 caravels in which Columbus made his famous voyage, and copies of which = were=20 exhibited at the Columbian Exposition. Bow and stern were high and = almost alike.=20 Yet in this clumsy craft La Salle voyaged the whole length of Lake Erie, = passed=20 through the Detroit River, and St. Clair River and lake; proceeded north = to=20 Mackinaw, and thence south in Lake Michigan and into Green Bay. It was = the first=20 time any vessel under sail had entered those waters. Maps and charts = there were=20 none. The swift rushing waters of the Detroit River flowed smoothly over = limestone reefs, which the steamers of to-day pass cautiously, despite = the=20 Government channels, cut deep and plainly lighted. The flats, that broad = expanse=20 of marsh permeated by a maze of false channels above Detroit, had to be = threaded=20 with no chart or guide. Yet the "Griffin" made St. Ignace in twenty days = from=20 having set sail, a record which is often not equaled by lumber schooners = of the=20 present time. From Green Bay, La Salle sent the vessel back with a Page = 239cargo of furs=20 that would have made him rich for life, had it ever reached a market. = But the=20 vessel disappeared, and for years nothing was heard of her. Finally La = Salle=20 learned that a half-breed pilot, who had shown signs of treachery on the = outward=20 trip, had persuaded the crew to run her ashore in the Detroit River, and = themselves to take the valuable cargo. But the traitors had reckoned = without the=20 savage Indians of the neighborhood, who also coveted the furs and pelts. = While=20 the crew were trying to dispose of these the red men set upon them and = slew them=20 all. The "Griffin" never again floated on the lakes.

It is difficult to determine the time when sailing vessels next = appeared upon=20 the lakes, but it was certainly not for nearly seventy-five years. = Captain=20 Jonathan Carver reported a French schooner on Lake Superior about 1766, = and in=20 1772 Alexander Harvey built a forty-ton sloop on the same lake, in which = he=20 sought the site of a famous copper mine. But it was long before Lake = Superior=20 showed more than an infrequent sail, though on Lake Erie small vessels = soon=20 became common. Even in 1820 the furs of Lake Superior were sent down to = Chicago=20 in bateaux.

Two small sailing vessels, the "Beaver" and the "Gladwin," which = proved very=20 valuable to the besieged garrison at Detroit in 1763, were the next = sailing=20 vessels on the lakes, and are supposed to have been built by the English = the=20 year previous. It is said, that through the refusal of her captain to = take=20 ballast aboard, the "Gladwin" was capsized on Lake Erie and lost, and = the entire=20 crew drowned. The "Royal Charlotte," the "Boston," and the "Victory" = appeared on=20 the lakes a few years later, and went into commission between Fort Erie=20 (Buffalo) and Detroit, carrying the first year 1,464 bales of fur to = Fort Erie,=20 and practically establishing commercial navigation.Page 240

It is hard to look clearly into the future. If the recommendations of = one J.=20 Collins, deputy surveyor-general of the British Government, had governed = the=20 destiny of the Great Lakes, the traffic between Buffalo and the Soo by = water,=20 would to-day be in boats of fifteen tons or less. Under orders of the = English=20 Government, Collins in 1788 made a survey of all the lakes and harbors = from=20 Kingston to Mackinac, and in his report, expressing his views as to the = size of=20 vessels that should be built for service on the lakes, he said he = thought that=20 for service on Lake Ontario vessels should be seventy-five or eighty = tons=20 burden, and on Lake Erie, if expected to run to Lake Huron, they should = be not=20 more than fifteen tons. What a stretch of imagination is necessary to = conceive=20 of the great volume of traffic of the present time, passing Detroit in = little=20 schooners not much larger than catboats that skim around the lakes! = Imagine such=20 a corporation as the Northern Steamship Company, with its big fleet of = steel=20 steamers, attempting to handle its freight business in sailing vessels = of a size=20 that the average wharf-rat of the present time would disdain to pilot. = What a=20 rush of business there would be at the Marine Post-Office in Detroit, if = some=20 day this company would decide to cut off three of its large steamers and = send=20 out enough schooners of the size recommended by the English officer, to = take=20 their place! The fleet would comprise at least 318 vessels, and would = require=20 not fewer than 1500 seamen to navigate. It is sometimes said that there = is a=20 continual panorama of vessels passing up and down the rivers of the = Great Lakes,=20 but what if the Englishman had guessed right? Happily he did not, and = vessels of=20 1500 tons can navigate the connecting waters of Lake Huron and Lake Erie = much=20 better than those of fifteen tons could in his time. That the early=20 ship-builders did not pay much attention Page 241to = J. Collins, is=20 evident from the fact that, when the Detroit was surrendered to the = Americans in=20 1796, twelve merchant vessels were owned there of from fifty to one = hundred tons=20 each.

At the close of the eighteenth century the American sailor had hardly = superseded the red men as a navigator, and lake vessels were not much = more=20 plentiful than airships are nowadays. Indeed, the entire fleet in 1799, = so far=20 as can be learned, was as follows: The schooners "Nancy," "Swan," and = "Naegel;"=20 the sloops "Sagina," "Detroit," "Beaver," "Industry," "Speedwell," and=20 "Arabaska." This was the fleet, complete, of Lakes Huron, Erie, and=20 Michigan.

"A wild-looking set were the first white sailors of the lakes," says = Hubbard=20 in his "Memorials of Half a Century." "Their weirdness was often = enhanced by the=20 dash of Indian blood, and they are better described as rangers of the = woods and=20 waters. Picturesque, too, they were in their red flannel or leather = shirts and=20 cloth caps of some gay color, finished to a point which hung over on one = side=20 with a depending tassel. They had a genuine love for their occupation, = and=20 muscles that never seemed to tire at the paddle and oar. These were not = the men=20 who wanted steamboats and fast sailing vessels. These men had a real = love for=20 canoeing, and from dawn to sunset, with only a short interval, and = sometimes no=20 midday rest, they would ply the oars, causing the canoe or barge to = shoot=20 through the water like a thing of life, but often contending against = head winds=20 and gaining little progress in a day's rowing."

One of the earliest American sailors on a lake ship bigger than a = bateau, was=20 "Uncle Dacy" Johnson, of Cleveland, who sailed for fifty years, = beginning about=20 1850. "When I was a chunk of a boy," says the old Captain in a Page 243letter to a New = York paper,=20 "I put a thirty-two pound bundle on my back and started on foot to = Buffalo. I=20 made the journey to Albany, N.Y., from Bridgeport, Conn., in sixteen = days, which=20 was nothing remarkable, as I had $3 in money, and a bundle of food. Many = a poor=20 fellow I knew started on the same journey with nothing but an axe. When = I=20 arrived at Buffalo I found a very small town=97Cleveland, Sandusky, and = Erie, were=20 all larger. There were only two lighthouses on the lakes, one at = Buffalo, which=20 was the first one built, and the Page 244other one at Erie. Buffalo was then = called Fort=20 Erie, and was a struggling little town. My first trip as a sailor was = made from=20 Buffalo to Erie, which was then considered quite a voyage. From Buffalo = to=20 Detroit was looked upon as a long voyage, and a vessel of thirty-two = tons was=20 the largest ship on the lakes. In 1813 I was one of a crew of four who = left=20 Buffalo on the sloop 'Commencement' with a cargo of whisky for Erie. = While=20 beating along shore the English frigate 'Charlotte' captured us and two=20 boatloads of red-coats boarded our vessel and took us prisoners. We were = paroled=20 on shipboard the same day, and before night concocted a scheme to get = the=20 Englishmen drunk on our whisky. One of our fellows got drunk first, and = told of=20 our intentions, the plot was frustrated, and we narrowly escaped being=20 hung."

Once begun, the conquest of the lakes as a highway for trade was = rapid. We=20 who live in the days of railroads can hardly appreciate how tremendous = was the=20 impetus given to the upbuilding of a region if it possessed practicable=20 waterways. The whole history of the settlement of the Middle West is = told in the=20 story of its rivers and lakes. The tide of immigration, avoiding the = dense=20 forests haunted by Indians, the rugged mountains, and the broad prairies = into=20 which the wheel of the heavy-laden wagon cut deep, followed the course = of the=20 Potomac and the Ohio, the Hudson, Mohawk, and the Great Lakes. Streams = that have=20 long since ceased to be thought navigable for a boy's canoe were made to = carry=20 the settlers' few household goods heaped on a flatboat. The flood of = families=20 going West created a demand that soon covered the lakes with schooners = and=20 brigs. Landed on the lake shore near some little stream, the immigrants = would=20 build flatboats, and painfully pole their way into the interior to some = spot=20 that took their fancy. Ohio, Indiana,Page 245 = Michigan, and=20 Illinois thus filled up, towns growing by the side of streams now used = only to=20 turn mill-wheels, but which in their day determined where the prosperous = settlement should be.

The steamboat was not slow in making its appearance on the lakes. In = 1818,=20 while it was still an experiment on the seaboard, one of these craft = appeared on=20 Lake Erie. The "Walk-in-the-Water" was her name, suggestive of Indian=20 nomenclature and, withal, exceedingly descriptive. She made the trip = from=20 Buffalo to Detroit, not infrequently taking thirteen days. She was a=20 side-wheeler, a model which still holds favor on the lower lakes, though = virtually abandoned on the ocean and on Lake Superior. An oil painting = of this=20 little craft, still preserved, shows her without a pilot-house, steered = by a=20 curious tiller at the stern, with a smokestack like six lengths of = stovepipe,=20 and huge unboxed wheels. She is said to have been a profitable craft, = often=20 carrying as many as fifty passengers on the voyage, for which eighteen = dollars=20 was charged. For four years she held a monopoly of the business. = Probably the=20 efforts of Fulton and Livingstone to protect the monopoly which had been = granted=20 them by the State of New York, and the determination of James Roosevelt = to=20 maintain what he claimed to be his exclusive right to the vertical = paddle-wheel,=20 delayed the extension of steam navigation on the lakes as it did on the = great=20 rivers. After four years of solitary service on Lake Erie, the=20 "Walk-in-the-Water" was wrecked in an October storm. Crowded with = passengers,=20 she rode out a heavy gale through a long night. At daybreak the cables = parted=20 and she went ashore, but no lives were lost. Her loss was considered an=20 irreparable calamity by the settlers at the western end of the lake. = "This=20 accident," wrote an eminent citizen of Detroit, "may Page 247be considered = one of the=20 greatest misfortunes which has ever befallen Michigan, for, in addition = to its=20 having deprived us of all certain and speedy communication with the = civilized=20 world, I am fearful it will greatly check the progress of immigration = and=20 improvement."

It is scarcely necessary to note now that the apprehensions of the = worthy=20 citizen of Michigan were unfounded. Steam navigation on the lakes was no = more=20 killed by the loss of the pioneer craft than was transatlantic steam = navigation=20 ended by the disapproving verdict of the scientists. Nowhere in the = world is=20 there such a spectacle of maritime activity, nowhere such a continuous=20 procession of busy cargo-ships as in the Detroit River, and through the = colossal=20 locks of the "Soo" canals. In 1827 the first steamboat reached the Sault = Ste.=20 Marie, bearing among her passengers General Winfield Scott, on a visit = of=20 inspection to the military post there, but she made no effort to enter = the great=20 lake. About five years later, the first "smoke boat," as the Indians = called the=20 steamers, reached Chicago, the pigmy forerunner of the fleet of huge = leviathans=20 that all the summer long, nowadays, blacken Chicago's sky with their = torrents of=20 smoke, and keep the hurrying citizens fuming at the open draw of a = bridge. All=20 side-wheelers were these pioneers, wooden of course, and but sorry = specimens of=20 marine architecture, but they opened the way for great things. For some = years=20 longer the rushing torrent of the Ste. Marie's kept Lake Superior = tightly closed=20 to steamboats, but about 1840 the richness of the copper mines bordering = upon=20 that lake began to attract capital, and the need of steam navigation = became=20 crying. In 1845 men determined to put some sort of a craft upon the lake = that=20 would not be dependent upon the whims of wind and sails for propulsion.=20 Accordingly, the sloop "Ocean," a little craft of fifteen tons, was = fitted Page = 248out with an=20 engine and wheels at Detroit and towed to the "Soo." There she was = dragged out=20 of the water and made the passage between the two lakes on rollers. The=20 "Independence," a boat of about the same size, was treated in the same = way later=20 in the year. Scarcely anything in the history of navigation, unless it = be the=20 first successful application of steam to the propulsion of boats is of = equal=20 importance with the first appearance of steamboats in Lake Superior. It = may be=20 worth while to abandon for a moment the orderly historical sequence of = this=20 narrative, to emphasize the wonderful contrast between the commerce of = Lake=20 Superior in the days of the "Independence" and now=97periods separated = by scarcely=20 sixty years. To-day the commerce of that lake is more than half of all = the great=20 lakes combined. It is conducted in steel vessels, ranging from 1500 to = 8500=20 tons, and every year sees an increase in their size. In 1901 more than=20 27,000,000 tons of freight were carried in Lake Superior vessels, a gain = of=20 nearly 3,000,000 over the year before. The locks in the "Soo" canal, of = which=20 more later, have twice had to be enlarged, while the Canadian Government = has=20 built a canal of its own on the other side of the river. The discovery = and=20 development of the wonderful deposits of iron ore at the head of the = lake have=20 proved the greatest factors in the upbuilding of its commerce, and the = necessity=20 for getting this ore to the mills in Illinois, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, = has=20 resulted in the creation of a class of colossal cargo-carriers on the = lake that=20 for efficiency and results, though not for beauty, outdo any vessel = known to=20 maritime circles.

At the present time, when the project of a canal to connect the = Atlantic and=20 Pacific oceans at the Central American Isthmus has almost passed out of = the=20 sphere of discussion and into that of action, there is suggestiveness Page = 249in the part=20 that the canal at the "Soo" played in stimulating lake commerce. Until = it was=20 dug, the lake fleets grew but slowly, and the steamers were but few and = far=20 between. Freight rates were high, and the schooners and sloops made but = slow=20 passages. From an old bill, of about 1835, we learn that freight rates = between=20 Detroit and Cleveland, or Lake Erie points and Buffalo, were about as = follows:=20 Flour, thirty cents a barrel; all grain, ten cents Page 250a bushel; beef, = pork,=20 ashes, and whisky, thirteen cents a hundred pounds; skins and furs, = thirty-one=20 cents a hundred weight; staves, from Detroit to Buffalo, $6.25 a = thousand. In=20 1831 there were but 111 vessels of all sorts on the lakes. In five = years, the=20 fleet had grown to 262, and in 1845, the year when the first steamer = entered=20 Lake Superior, to 493. In 1855, the year the "Soo" canal was opened, = there were=20 in commission 1196 vessels, steam and sail, on the unsalted seas. Then = began the=20 era of prodigious development, due chiefly to that canal which Henry = Clay, great=20 apostle as he was of internal improvements, said would be beyond the = remotest=20 range of settlements in the United States or in the moon.

At the head of Lake Superior are almost illimitable beds of iron ore = which=20 looks like rich red earth, and is scooped up by the carload with steam = shovels.=20 Tens of thousands of men are employed in digging this ore and = transporting it to=20 the nearest lake port=97Duluth and West Superior being the largest = shipping=20 points. Railroads built and equipped for the single purpose of carrying = the ore=20 are crowded with rumbling cars day and night, and at the wharves during = the=20 eight or nine months of the year when navigation is open lie great steel = ships,=20 five hundred feet long, with a capacity of from six thousand to nine = thousand=20 tons of ore. Perhaps in no branch of marine architecture has the type = best=20 fitted to the need been so scientifically determined as in planning = these ore=20 boats. They are cargo carriers only, and all considerations of grace or = beauty=20 are rigidly eliminated from their design. The bows are high to meet and = part the=20 heavy billows of the tempestuous lakes, for they are run as late into = the stormy=20 fall and early winter season as the ice will permit. From the forward = quarter=20 the bulwarks are cut away, the high bow sheltering the forecastle with = the Page = 251crews, while=20 back of it rises a deck-house of steel, containing the officers' rooms, = and=20 bearing aloft the bridge and wheel-house. Three hundred feet further aft = rises=20 another steel deck-house, above the engine, and between extends the = long, flat=20 deck, broken only by hatches every few feet, battened down almost level = with the=20 deck floor. During the summer, all too short for the work the busy iron = carriers=20 have to do, these boats are run at the top of their speed, and on = schedules that=20 make the economy of each minute essential. So they are built in such = fashion as=20 to make loading as easy and as rapid as possible. Sometimes there are as = many as=20 fourteen or sixteen hatches in one of these great ships, into each of = which=20 while loading the ore chutes will be pouring their red flood, and out of = each of=20 which the automatic unloaders at Cleveland or Erie will take ten-ton = bites of=20 the cargo, until six or seven thousand tons of iron ore may be unloaded = in eight=20 hours. The hold is all one great store-room, no deck above the vessel's = floor=20 except the main deck. No water-tight compartments or bulkheads divide it = as in=20 ocean ships, and all the machinery is placed far in the stern. The = vessel is=20 simply a great steel packing-box, with rounded ends, made strong to = resist the=20 shock of waves and the impact of thousands of tons of iron poured in = from a bin=20 as high above the floor as the roof of a three-story building. With = vessels such=20 as these, the cost of carrying ore has been reduced below the level of = freight=20 charges in any part of the world.

Yet comfort and speed are by no means overlooked. The quarters of the = officers and men are superior to those provided on most of the ocean = liners, and=20 vastly better than anything offered by the "ocean tramps." Many of the = ships=20 have special guest-cabins fitted up for their owners, rivalling the = cabins de=20 luxe of the ocean greyhounds.Page 252 The speed of the newer ships will = average from=20 fourteen to sixteen knots, and one of them in a season will make as many = as=20 twenty round trips between Duluth and Cleveland. Often one will tow two = great=20 steel barges almost as large as herself, great ore tanks without = machinery of=20 any kind and mounting two slender masts chiefly for signaling purposes, = but also=20 for use in case of being cut adrift. For a time, the use of these = barges, with=20 their great stowage capacity in proportion to their total displacement, = was=20 thought to offer the cheapest way of carrying ore. One mining company = went very=20 heavily into building these craft, figuring that every steamer could tow = two or=20 three of them, giving thus for each engine and crew a load of perhaps=20 twenty-four thousand tons. But, seemingly, this expectation has been=20 disappointed, for while the barges already constructed are in active = use, most=20 of the companies have discontinued building them. Indeed, at the moment = of the=20 preparation of this book, there were but two steel barges building in = all the=20 shipyards of the great lakes.

Another form of lake vessel of which great things were expected, but = which=20 disappointed its promotors, is the "whaleback," commonly called by the = sailors=20 "pigs." These are cigar-shaped craft, built of steel, their decks, from = the=20 bridge aft to the engine-house, rounded like the back of a whale, and = carried=20 only a few feet above the water. In a sea, the greater part of the deck = is all=20 awash, and a trip from the bridge to the engine-house means not only = repeated=20 duckings, but a fair chance of being swept overboard. The first of these = boats,=20 called the "101," was built in sections, the plates being forged at = Cleveland,=20 and the bow and stern built at Wilmington, Del. The completed structure = was=20 launched at Duluth. In after years she was taken to the ocean, went = round Cape=20 Horn, and Page=20 253was finally wrecked on the north Pacific coast. At the time of = the=20 Columbian Exposition, a large passenger-carrying whaleback, the = "Christopher=20 Columbus," was built, which still plies on Lake Michigan, though there = is=20 nothing discernible in the way of practical advantage in this design for = passenger vessels. For cargo carrying there would seem to be much in the = claims=20 of their inventor, Alexander McDougall, for their superior capacity and=20 stability, yet they have not been generally adopted. The largest = whaleback now=20 on the lakes is named after Mr. McDougall, is four hundred and thirty = feet over=20 all, fifty feet beam, and of eight thousand tons capacity. She differs = from the=20 older models in having a straight stem instead of the "pig's nose."

The iron traffic which has grown to such monster proportions, and = created so=20 noble a fleet of ships, began in 1856, when the steamer "Ontonagon" = shipped two=20 hundred and ninety-six tons of ore at Duluth. To-day, one Page 254ship of a fleet = numbering=20 hundreds will carry nine thousand tons, and make twenty trips a season. = Mr.=20 Waldon Fawcett, who has published in the "Century Magazine" a careful = study of=20 this industry, estimates the total ore cargoes for a year at about = 20,000,000=20 tons. The ships of the ore fleet will range from three hundred and fifty = to five=20 hundred feet in length, with a draft of about eighteen feet=97at which = figure it=20 must stop until harbors and channels are deepened. Their cost will = average=20 $350,000. The cargoes are worth upward of $100,000,000 annually, and the = cost of=20 transportation has been so reduced that in some instances a ton is = carried=20 twenty miles for one cent. The seamen, both on quarterdeck and = forecastle, will=20 bear comparison with their salt-water brethren for all qualities of = manhood.=20 Indeed, the lot of the sailor on the lakes naturally tends more to the=20 development of his better qualities than does that of the salt-water = jack, for=20 he is engaged by the month, or season, rather than by the trip; he is = never in=20 danger of being turned adrift in a foreign port, nor of being = "shanghaied" in a=20 home one. He has at least three months in winter to fit himself for = shore work=20 if he desires to leave the water, and during the season he is reasonably = sure of=20 seeing his family every fortnight. A strong trades-union among the lake = seamen=20 keeps wages up and regulates conditions of employment. At the best, = however,=20 seafaring on either lake or ocean is but an ill-paid calling, and the = earnings=20 of the men who command and man the great ore-carriers are sorely out of=20 proportion to the profits of the employing corporations. Mr. Fawcett = asserts=20 that $11,250 net earnings for a single trip was not unusual in one = season, and=20 that this sum might have been increased by $4500 had the owners taken a = return=20 cargo of coal instead of rushing back light for more ore. As the vessels = of the=20 ore fleet are owned in the Page 255main by the steel trust, their earnings

The Project Gutenberg eBook, American Merchant Ships and Sailors, by = Willis=20 J. Abbot, Illustrated by Ray Brown

E-text prepared by Jason Isbell, Emmy,
and the Project Gutenberg = Online=20 Distributed Proofreading Team
(www.pgdp.net)

American Merchant

Ships and Sailors

By

Willis J. Abbot

Illustrated by Ray Brown

1902

BOOKS BY WILLIS J. ABBOT

Preface

List of Illustrations

Contents

American Merchant Ships and Sailors

CHAPTER I.

CHAPTER II.

CHAPTER III

CHAPTER IV

CHAPTER V

CHAPTER VI.

CHAPTER VII.

The Project Gutenberg eBook, American Merchant Ships and Sailors, by = Willis=20 J. Abbot, Illustrated by Ray Brown

E-text prepared by Jason Isbell, Emmy,and the Project Gutenberg = Online=20 Distributed Proofreading Team(www.pgdp.net)

American Merchant

Ships and Sailors

By

Willis J. Abbot

Illustrated by Ray Brown

1902

BOOKS BY WILLIS J. ABBOT

Preface

List of Illustrations

Contents

American Merchant Ships and Sailors

CHAPTER I.

CHAPTER II.

CHAPTER III

CHAPTER IV

CHAPTER V

CHAPTER VI.

CHAPTER VII.

E-text prepared by Jason Isbell, Emmy,
and the Project Gutenberg = Online=20 Distributed Proofreading Team
(www.pgdp.net)