SEPTEMBER 1972 THE PROGRAM OF THE INSTITUTE Singing The Seamen's Church Institute of New York, an agency of the Episcopal Church in the Diocese of New York, is a unique ( organization devoted to the well-being and special interests of active merchant seamen. More than 753,000 such seamen of all nationalities, races Down I and creeds come into the Port of New York every year. To many of them the Institute is their shore center in port and I!!lii remains their polestar while they transit the distant oceans [aRia of the earth. First established in 1834 as a floating chapel in New York harbor, the Institute offers a wide range of recreational and educational services for the mariner, including counseling by Cecil Kent and the help of five chaplains in emergency situations. Each year 2,300 ships with 96,600 men aboard put in at Port Newark, where time ashore is extremely limited. From earliest times a hard, labori­ cidental to their work. Here in the very middle of huge, sprawl- ...... ous task has been eased by th€ use of The origin of "shanty", also known ing P ort Newark pulsing with activity of music or a song made or sung in con­ as "chanty" or "chantey", is supposedly container-shipping, SCI has provided an junction with physical work. from the French word "chanter", mean­ oasis known as the Mariners Internation­ It is pretty safe to say the first sail­ ing "to sing", "to chant", which became al Center which offers seamen a recrea­ urs aboard their vessels used the same corrupted with use by sailors' tongues tional center especially constructed and means of lightening their jobs above from the English hard "ch" to the designed, operated in a special way for French soft "ch", which was spelled as the very special needs of the men. An out- decks. Mariners International Center (SCI) But it is perhaps rather surprising, "sh". standing feature is a soccer field (lighted Export and Calcutta Streets Sea shanties had two uses and pur­ at night) for games between ship teams. Port Newark, N.J. because of the thousands of years dur­ poses. They were sung to ease a hard Although 55 % of the overall Institute budget is met by ing which men have sailed the seas, task, turning a windlass, hauling sails, income from seamen and the public, the cost of the special that the true sea shanty was only sung manning the pumps, turning the cap­ services comes from endowment and contributions. Contri­ first in the 18th century, and reached stan to haul up the anchor, working butions are tax deductible. its heyday in the 19th century, during the peak of sailing ships total voyaging with a halyard, and other mundane around the world, before the steamship tasks. These were the sea shanties for finally ousted them. working. Prior to this, of course, there were The second type were sea shanties The Rev. John M. Mulligan, D.D. LOOKOUT Director sailors' songs, these usually being folk sung for leisure and relaxation. After Vol. 63 No.7 September 1972 Harold G. Petersen songs brought aboard from the original work on deck was done for the day the Editor homes of the crews and many of these men in their quarters, or sometimes Copyright 1972 Published monthly with exception of July-August and still survive in the seaports of the on deck, would gather for a sing-song February.March when bi-monthly. Contributions to the to pass the time. SEAMEN'S CHURCH Seamen's Church Institute of New York of $5 .00 or more world. INSTITUTE OF NEW YORK include a yea r' s subscription to Th e lookout. Single sub­ Also there are whalers', sealers' and The shanties were humorous and 15 State Street, New York, N. Y. 10004 scriptions are $2 .00 annually. Single copies 50¢. Addi­ Telephone : 269-2710 tional postage for Canada , latin America, Spain , $1.00; fishermen's songs and ballads, some comical, sometimes mocking unpopular The Right Reverend other foreign , $3 .00. Second class postage paid at New still popular, which were confined to officers, or sentimental, to fit the mood Paul Moore, Jr.. S.T.D., D.D. York, N. V. and sung by their own particular com­ of the occasion, covering a very wide R onorary President range of subjects associated with the John G. Winslow munity, but have not become universal President among the world's seamen and were sea and the sailors' life. not classed as shanties. It has been said that none could be The dictionary definition of a sea classed as beautiful, but there I beg to sh~nty is a rhythmical song, sung by differ in opinion. Perhaps not aboard saIlors in time with the motions in- ship in a cramped forecastle by the 1, 3 - gruff, perhaps harsh voices of seamen available on the major Atlantic and, rendering them, but "Shenandoah", later, Pacific routes. The efficiency of sung by a trained and well-conducted this new mode of shipping was demon­ male voice choir, can be a most moving strated dramatically in the very fast experience to listen to. turn 'round of the ships - tonnage John Masefield, the famous British FtCape Horn and across the Atlantic and ~ Furthermore the operation of the Pacific Oceans and describes such URE ships themselves was so automated that I shanties in his book Temple Bar, pub­ crew size in relation to deadweight ton­ lished in 1906: byG. B. Hollas nage was cut in half. "The sea songs in general use in mer­ This is a change that has been com­ chant ships are of two kinds. There is Th e Rev. G. B. Hollas is chaplain-in­ pared in importance to that of steam ch arge for SCI's Mariner's Interna­ the working song or shanty, which is ti onal Center of Port Newark; he came replacing sail, and it is still continuing. sung as an aid to labor during the per­ to the New Jersey post in 1962 from a The long line of cranes beside Eliza­ formance of certain tasks. And there sim ilar experience in Port-of-Spain, beth Channel are now being joined by is the sea-ballad or sailors' folk song, Tri nidad. Recently he addressed the a comparable number of the big hoists which at sea is sung in the second dog­ Institute's Board of Managers on the wo rk of the Center. Portions of his on the east and south sides of this watch and in port at night after supper. in these sea sing-songs very few were observations are given here. mammoth terminal and will be com­ "The songs sung in the sing-songs or beautiful. - editor pleted next year - two full years ahead sailors' concerts have lost much of their "The old (British) naval ballad of of the original schedule. distinction. The old sea songs, proper "Spanish Ladies" was sometimes sung During my ten years with the SCI The ships linking these facilities to the sea, have given place to a great and this old song was certainly the best at Port Newark there have been many with similar installations around the extent, to the peculiar lyrical mechan­ of all I heard. There are several ver­ important changes and developments, world will be headed by jet-turbined ics of the music-hall. The old songs may sions of the ballad . . . They may be notably, the rapid increase in the size vessels, making in excess of 30 knots, still be heard but they are dying out heard in ships of every nationality, but of the Newark-Elizabeth Port itself and of mammoth proportions - Sea­ for the sailor has lost much of his in­ it is thought that they are most com­ and also the unbelievably swift change train's Euroliner is a prototype of this dividuality. mon on American and rarest in Fr ench to containerization of cargo. new breed of ships. Sea-Land wiII soon "The English sailor is generally to be ships. It is this last factor which has had take delivery of the first of her new found in steamships making short pas­ "The most beautiful chanty I ever the greatest impact on the lives of the fleet - a containership that is a scant sages. He is no longer cut off from his heard was sung by a Norwegian crew. merchant seamen we seek to serve. 17 feet shorter than the Q.E. 2. fellow men for many months at a time. I have heard two Greek chanties of The distinctive silhouette of the So this is the situation with which Music is the one enjoyment of the great beauty, too, and I am told that mammoth container vessel has become we are faced - fewer ships with sailor at sea. the Russians have at least one as beau­ an increasingly familiar sight. Through smaller crews staying in port for a "In the second dog-watch, in sunny tiful as any of our own." 1968 and 1969 more and more compan­ much shorter time, or, more correctly, latitudes, after supper, when the work Originally the shanty was begun and ies were investing in fl eets of contain­ that is the situation with which the about decks has ceased, the sailing­ led by a crew member playing a fi ddle, erships. Leading domestic and foreign seaman is faced. ship's forecastle hands hold a concert, but if there was no · crewman so t al­ lines formed consortiums and shared There is no doubt that one of the or sing-song. ented aboard, a wind pipe instrument, container-handling facilities in the compensations during the lonely days "Sometimes they gather together on such as a wooden whistle, perhaps even Elizabeth Terminal. at sea was the prospect of a few days the forecastle-head, but more generally a flute or hornpipe, could usually be The change to intermodal shipping in a foreign port - a welcome break they sit about just forward of the fore­ pressed into reasonable use by one of was so rapid that by the end of 1969 from the endless routine of shipboard rigging, on the fore-hatch, to sing their the crew. almost half the cargo ar riving in the life. longing songs of home. Later this beginning of the shanties ewark-Elizabeth port was container­ It is true, of course, that the ac­ "Their repertoires are limited but changed and a member of the crew, ized - and the containerized cargo comodation of seamen in these new they never tire of the songs they have. known as the "shantyman" with a rea­ was carried by one-third the number vessels is vastly superior to that which They prefer a song with a chorus, so sonable, loud, strong voice, led with of vessels required by the break-bulk obtained in the older ships - many of operations. that all can take part in it. If the songs the solo of the shanty, the others fol­ the foreign ships have a crew's bar have no chorus, they generally repeat lowing in chorus and working in time Employment for conventional break­ r ecreation lounges, comfortable berths' the solo part. Of the songs I have heard to the refrain. (Continued on page l') bulk freighters became steadily less sometimes a swimming pool. But eve~ 5 under these improved conditions, when Increasingly I see the dominant role a man sails for months on end with a of the Center as a "meeting place" pro­ handful of other men of different ages, viding for friendly encounters between interests and outlook, he needs the re­ seafarers of different nations and be­ freshment of body and spirit which tween seamen and sympathetic lands­ can only come by getting ashore and men who are prepared and willing to meeting a wider community. This has understand and sometimes assist them. brought a change for us - not in what In the immediate future we see the we seek to do - that remains the possibility of offering our services to same: to provide for the legitimate so­ the crews of the container-ships which cial and spiritual needs of the visiting will be using the new piers in Jersey City. Jersey Port will harbor ships of seafarer. But we have had to change or modify several different flags and as they will some aspects of our program. Take be only 20 minutes drive from our Cen­ ship-visiting for example. Because of ter we hope to attract many of these its brief stay in port a ship can only be men to us. visited once, so a greater concentration In the reorganization which took of effort had to be made. place in Vancouver, Washington, a sur­ When the seaman does come ashore vey was conducted to ascertain what we have to be very sensitive to his seafarers were looking for when they needs and his own inclinations. Too came ashore, and the indication was often in this work have we thought that that the majority of them regard the we knew what was best for our visitor provision of a shore center with a chap­ but the truth is that their interests are lain as essential to their welfare. as varied as they would be with any This is not surprising; whenever other group of individuals. possible a seaman wants to have a Quite a lot of men when they come to break from shipboard life and, some­ the Center want most of all to be left times, from his shipmates. The chap­ alone - to sit and read or to write lain is regarded by most seamen, par­ :1 by H. R. Berridge their families and friends. Others en­ ticularly foreign seamen, as one of a I ' • ~ joy the entertainment we offer in com­ vast company of such people in ports Mr Berridge writes with manifest knowledge and petitive games of darts, ping-pong and around the world who have, or should authority on weather phenomena for very good have, the best interests of the seaman billiards. "eason he was once a U.S Navy weatherman and Our film shows continue to be very at heart and one to whom they can worked for a t me at the National Weather Analysis popular with many of the seamen and, turn if the need arises. Center n Suitland, Mary ard . provided we have the ships, we gen­ I would like to say a word about to­ erally get a very good response to our day's foreign seamen who constitute Nobody was more observant of Take wind, for instance. To a sail invitation to the Tuesday and Thursday over 90% of the visitors to the Mari­ weather than the old-time seaman. No dances at the SCI International Club ner's International Center. He is a ship, of course, wind was life. But it young man of 20 to 28 years and un­ wind - no movement. Too much wind was more than this - it served as a in New York. - dangerous work aloft. Too many In the arrangement of soccer games like his predecessors he is more and good weather indicator. clouds or too much fog - hazardous we enjoy the fullest cooperation and more a technician rather than just a One old saying states that a "veer­ navigation. ing" wind is a s,ign of fair weather assistance of the Norwegian Govern­ working hand. It's little wonder then, that he has whereas a "backing" wind means foul: mentSeamen's Service who brings teams He is career conscious but does not le~t us many bits of proverbial weathel' from ships in Brooklyn and Staten intend to spend the whole of his work­ Veering here means that the wind is WIsdom. What is a wonder, at least to changing direction in a clockwise man­ Island to compete at the Center with ing life at sea and because of his new s o~e scientific cynics, is that investi­ ner; just the opposite. In oth­ men from ships in New Jersey. Be­ skills the transition from ship to shore Backing, ~atlOn often proves these old sailor say­ er words, a veering wind is one that has cause of smaller crews and fewer men jobs is far less difficult t oday. ~ng s to be truthful. In more than a few changed direction from southwest to able to come ashore, the soccer teams He has a girl back home or he is Instances the old salt's "weather eye" northwest, while a backing wind are often a composite of men from two married with a young family. He re­ was sharp indeed. changes from west to south and then or more vessels. (Colltmlled 011 pagl 1 ) 7 (j (Continued from July-August Lookout) possibly to southeast or east. the ship. Conversely, a squall off the Scientifically, this is sound advice. lee rail (evidenced by the rainbow over Any meteorology text will state that there) will only get blown further one of the most infallible phenomena away. associated with the coming of a high There is, in addition, another similar pressure area and a subsequent spell saying involving the location of light­ of brisk, clear, dry weather is a wind ning in relation to a ship. The exact shift from southwest to northwest. explanation of this is essentially the Likewise, wind blowing out of the south same as for the rainbow. Lightning to or southeast is a good indicator of an windward - squall; to leeward - no impending low pressure system often squall. associated with rain and wind. Another natural phenomenon used Another old sailor's sign involved by sailors to foretell weather is, quite with wind direction also concerns itself simply stated, the quality of the air. with a rainbow. It goes something like A number of sayings are connected this: a rainbow to windward brings with air characteristics. squally rain; rainbow to leeward, rain The first of these could have been ends. This, too, is true. Rainbows, of started by some weather-conscious course, occur in showery weather and ship's cooks keeping an eye on the are the result of the sun's rays shining smoke from his galley stove because it through water droplets which act as has to do with the action of smoke ris­ prisms in the sky. ing from a stack. Smoke t hat rises and If then, a rainbow appears off the disperses in the air means fair weath­ windward rail (the side of the ship er; smoke curling downward and re­ by Raymond Schuesslm' toward which the wind is blowing) , maining in a layer near the surface t hose water droplets, t he rain squall, means a storm. This one is another The celebration at Buffalo to mark and processions that were given to will soon be blown in the direction of scientific bull's-eye. rContd on page19) the completion of the canal was a gay some of the Roman Emperors." one attended by Governor Clinton and Another writer exclaimed in awe: many other dignitaries. Then a string "After Alexander of Macedon had car­ of cannons about 8 to 12 miles apart ried his arms into India he did not de­ were fired in relay along the route un­ scend the Indus with greater triumph til the noise traveled all the way from or make a prouder display." Buffalo to Albany and down to New The printers' guild had a float in York City in 55 minutes. It was proba­ which it printed and distributed po­ bly the longest salute in history. etic cards that prompted many mothers A fleet of ships carrying the gov­ to tear them out of their blushing ernor and others traveled the entire daughters' hands. One read: route from Buffalo eastward as it was "The monarch of the briny tide saluted by bands playing along the Whose giant arm encircles earth route and a cheering populace at every To virgin Erie is allied village. A bright-eyed nymph of mountain At Albany there was a great cele­ birth bration and in New York City the en­ .. . She meets the sceptred father of tire city plus thousands of visitors the main gathered to cheer the boat parade. And in his heaving bosom hides her Water from Lake Erie was poured into virgin face." the Atlantic, truly a wedding of the lakes and the sea. The Erie Canal might not have been One writer said: "The completion of much in terms of the gigantic Panama the Erie Canal has been celebrated with Canal, but it was something in its day. greater eclat, pompous show and par­ Financially, it was a complete success. ade, not unlike those triumphal games Even before it had been completed it 8 9 began to make money. In fact, its tolls Cities boomed on its arteries. Buffalo prove the land. and neglect. were more than the interest charges now became the greatest grain holding But it wasn't long before the rail­ In 1903 the State decided to get some before it was completed.* center in the nation. New England roads intruded and slowly took away use out of it by turning it into a "barge And in 12 years its capital costs, shipped its lumber West,and manufac­ some of its cargo until by 1869 it car­ canaL" It was widened to 75 feet and which included improvement and the tured goods flowed back and forth. ried as much as the canal. In 1882 the deepened to 12 feet so tugs now could construction of branch canals, had been Towns like Lockport, Middleport and canal was made a free canal but even so replace the mule and push the huge paid off. Albany had increased its busi­ Shelby Basin and others grew into ex­ its days were now numbered as the barges through. Many parts of t he old ness four times in two years - freight istence. Wherever the canal t urned trains usurped more and more cargo. canal were relocated. rates between New York and Buffalo or had branches, civilization came to In the 1880's a large barge colony Historians and canal enthusiasts dropped from $100 per ton by land to life like a fertilized beanstalk. It con­ formed on South Street and Coenties have tried to preserve relics of the old $10 a ton through the canal. tributed not only to the growth of the Slip, nearby to the SCI headquarters canal and have succeeded at times in In 1835 business was so good that the region through which it passed but to station,particularly in the winter when turning some old locks into picnic areas. Ditch was ordered enlarged for bigger the growth of such states as Ohio, Illi­ ice prevented use of the Canal; the In­ But mostly the relics - a broken aque­ boats. It was then widened to 70 feet nois, Michigan and Indiana. stitute found itself drawn into minis­ duct, a grass covered ravine - are and deepened to 7 feet and the locks Lake freighters now hauled supplies tering to many of the family groups being bulldozed and run over with high­ doubled to handle two way traffic. for settlers, machinery and other goods which lived aboard - some 200 fami­ ways and shopping centers. Probably no one has really assessed for European markets. For everyone it lies, it was estimated. Yet you can still find remnants of the the tremendous influence of the canal. meant better, more comfortable living. Some of the bargees attended reli­ old Erie Canal if you care to drive the People flocking West spurred indus­ gious services in the chapel. And there backroads of central New York. Many 'Tolls were profitable. In 1836 the toll on wheat was try and farming and opened the heart were the emergencies when the Insti­ are visible in corn fields, meadows and 4';' mills per 1000 pounds per mile and double that of America clear to the Mississippi and tute supplied blankets and other ar­ orchards or abandoned near the edges for merchandise. Passengers paid two mills apiece. The boat Venice that year carried 38,000 pounds of even California when the Gold fever ticles to the distressed barge families of small towns. So sturdily was the old merchandise between Troy and Buffalo and paid during bitter weather. ditch built that many locks and inlets $12.50 for the boat and $124 for the cargo. Some struck. Many New England towns were larger ships could carry as much as 120,000 pounds. nearly emptied by this easy access route By 1898 traffic was so lean and the still stand solid and straight after al­ It may be surprising to modern readers to discover that way back in 1825 hydrostatic weight locks that to the West. Moreover, it spurred other railroad's political power so great in most 150 years - a monument of an­ could weigh the boat and cargo were in use. But communities to build canals and in­ opposing any improvement to the canal other era. they were and they worked night and day some­ times and had a line of 50 boats waiting . crease their capacity to work and im- that it became rundown from disuse

10 11 ~illgillg Dowli to Rio (Continued from page 4 ) A good shantyman often invented his the "shanty" as a means of making own shanties. He would hear a phrase lighter work among the crew, but they ~rr'E of speech, covering a wide range of could still be heard in surviving sailing subjects, but usually appropriate to the ships well into our own century. And OVERLOOKED seamen's life or past, and to this added they did not die out. more new lines. Fortunately, before they could be Also he sometimes took the first line forgotten and lost forever, a number ·fRJ.\GEDY or theme of a folk song or hymn from of people interested in this type of song, his homeland or a country visited by such as Cecil Sharp in England, either him and adapted this as a shanty for a wrote down the words or music, or particular task or mood, but the words through the medium of records, have by Joseph C. Salak and tune had to be such that they could recorded the shanties being sung by old be heard above a raging sea or roaring sailormen. The entire wo rld was stunned on wind. The BBC frequently broadcasts pro­ April 15, 1912 when the Titanic went down with a loss of 1,517. But when the The shanties' uses also varied. On grams of folk songs which include sea German liner, Wilhelm Gustloff, sank one ship a particular shanty may be shanties and the latter, such as "What sung while hauling sails, but among on J anuary 30, 1945 , and carried be­ Shall We Do With the Drunken Sail­ another crew would be used for turning tween 4,000 and 9,000 people to watery or?", "Blow The Man Down", "Shen­ a windlass. Such shanties were most graves, it received only token attention. andoah", "Bound for the Rio Grande", numerous in their heyday, in the mid- Ru ssian sold iers entered Warsaw, "The Liverpool Girls", "Johnny Come 19th century, among American and Poland, on January 11, 1945, this re­ Down to Hilo", "Lowlands Away", British sailing vessels. lentless Russian invasion threatening below the surface, taking to the bottom Eventually the introduction and dom­ "Whisky Johnny", "Sally Brown" , are the large number s of German mechani­ nearly three times as many victims as inance of the steamship and the chang­ very often still among the repertoire of cal and engineering talent building sub­ the Titanic. No other ship in history ing types of jobs aboard them killed male voice choirs in Britain. marines in Poli sh ports. had ever carried so many people to their Unless the technicians were evacu­ death. ated at once by sea they would be cap­ This the outside world did not learn ]F&§il ~tvr Gr FUTURE (Continued from page 6 ) tured. And so it was agreed, on January until February 18 when the Finnish 22, 1945, that all naval vessels not radio in routine reporting announced to our merchant seamen must always be gards his job on a containership as a needed for vital strategic operations the sinking. No details were given oth­ an outward manifestation of a deeper good opportunity to save money, like be assigned to carry refugees out of the er than an estimate of "about 7,700 his tankerman counterpart, but he has reality and concern. threatened ports. casualties." little enthusiasm for the seafaring life This fact was summed up by t he late One of those chosen for the mass The N ew Y ork Times published one as such. Archbishop Temple in the following exodus was the relatively new 25,484- day later a short piece - want-ad He continues to be a tolerant and words: "Noone can dispute the claim ton Wilhelm Gustloff. Built for the pas­ size - of the catastrophe. On Febru­ good-natured individual, still a con­ of our seamen to the best we have to senger trade, launched in 1938, it was ary 20, the Stockholm paper, Svenska servative wary of change or innova­ give them. And if we are Christian converted into a troop carrier. Dagviadet, briefly commented that the tion, but he feels the deprivations of people then the best we have to give It was from Gdynia, on that frigid Wilhelm Gustloff had been stuffed with the seafaring life more than in the past them is fellowship in the Spirit of January morning that the Wilhelm about 10,000 persons - of whom about because his voyage of several weeks or Christ; a fellowship that will express G 1~s tl off steamed away with a head­ 950 survived. months will afford him just a few itself, no doubt, through a great many count of 3,700 highly skilled U-boat Not a single news magazine of the hours in each port of call to get away material forms - canteens, beds, pleas­ personnel and several thousand refu­ time gave so much as a line to the from shipboard life and routine. ant sitting-rooms, club-rooms, and the gees from eastern Ge rmany. Though world's worst sea tragedy. The news The loneliness and boredom of the wire services were not the least sensi­ like - but which will all the time be jam-packed, all felt confident that their seaman's life can be even worse today tive to what had happened. inspired by that Spirit, alike in its escape would be successfully accom­ than in the past. Because of his brief pli shed. Much later, the Guinness Book of depth of true charity and love, and in shore leave he is more dependent than Two hours later, in the icy waters of World R ecords viewed the sea tragedy its desire to share with them the t hing ever on the services we offer. His need the Gulf of Danzig, the ship took a di­ as if it didn't quite believe it, and which we know to be the best t hing in for quick and dependable information rect hit by a torpedo fired from a lurk­ sharply downed the casualty list to a and assistance is more acute than ever. the world - the Gospel of Christ and ing Russian submarine and plunged death toll of 4,120. The material services which we offer the love of God which it proclaims." 13 12 ADULT STUDY COURSES BEGIN

The Institute announced its schedule seminars is taught through the Inter­ of fall adult study courses, most of national Executive Association, New which began September 18. York Regional Export Expansion Coun­ Announced, also, was that these adult cil and the United States Department courses would now become known as of Commerce. the Franklin D. Roosevelt Institute of Another series of seminars termed Maritime and General Studies in honor Business Partners Around the Globe, of President Roosevelt who was a mem­ is conducted under the joint auspices of ber of the SCI Board of Managers from the New York State Department of ] 908 to 1925 and a vice president from Commerce - International Division, 1929 to 1945. United Nations Association and the All courses are open to the general Roosevelt Institute. public as well as seamen. A laboratory course in the techniques Subjects include painting and draw­ of personnel supervision will begin Oc­ ing, creative writing, understanding tober 3l. opera and instruction in the musical Two subjects, Maritime Law, and instrument, the recorder. Human Factors in Marine Engineer­ Other subjects offered are: Begin­ ing, are taught under the auspices of ning Spanish, the sea as an inspiration the State University of New York. Eve­ for literary expression, rapid reading, ning courses at SCI plus some Saturday societology of western man and a series classes at Fort Schuyler, New York, of films depicting the literature and lead to the academic degree of Master performing arts of six countries. of Science in Transportation and Man­ A condensed course in International agement. by Ken Canterbury Marketing Management in the form of The notion fostered by many a movie considerably less. If he did not die 'in fi lm of life at sea in the 16th century battle or a brawl, disease or starvation Elizabethan period being a carefree killed the seaman, and it was normal f or New Resident Chaplain existence of plundering and raiding only one-third of a ship's crew to sur­ Ocean and Land enemy treasure galleons and ports is vive a long vbyage. The Rev. Douglas Wolfe became the In storm the lo'ng sea weed, but fiction. There were no proper accomodations resident chaplain for the Institute July Having. been torn from the ocean floor, It is equally untrue that the brave in most of the men-of-war or merchant 6. Is green whips, crews feasted and drank the best food ships simply because the vessels were He was formerly a chaplain for the Cracked above the rolling tops, and barrels of brandy or rum, sleeping of 1000 tons or less and were so small Cook County Jail in Chicago and at St. The wh ite, flying manes off their excesses in their sumptuous every inch of space was needed for Leonard's House there. Born at Port Of the Wildly-pl unging waves - quarters aboard a clean, well-run ship. stores, guns and equipment. Jervis, New York, Chaplain Wolfe was The untamed stallions of the sea. Life as a ship's crew in Queen Eliza­ A few of the seamen may have had educated at Hobart College and Berk­ beth 1's reign, whether on an "official" hammocks; those who did not slept on ley Divinity School. He has two chil­ In calm this kelp is arms, vessel or on a privateer, free to gain the bare boards or' any reasonably flat dren, a girl and a boy. Long stretched-out arms spoils where they could be obtained, surface where they could find it. Chaplain Wolfe succeeds the Rev. Trying to bind the ocean, was rough and tough. Here the men also ate and lived, when Henry H. Crisler who has joined the The waves, the tides, The same applied to the crews aboard not on duty, with the rats, lice, bugs, staff of Trinity School in New York. And all the mystery of water other countries' vessels, such as the cockroaches, beetles and smell from the Calling on ships in port will be among To the stolid, unimaginative land. Spaniards, French, P ortuguese and bilges. The crew received a pound of the new chaplain's assignments. Enola Chamberlin Dutch. A landlubber's life-span was bread or ships' biscuits each day. With about forty years; on board ship it was this went a gallon of beer. J/E19TUJlES No, I never saw a live mermaid, but But the biscuits If a crew man drew a weapon on JJIlUGJfTER once a most beautiful one came into view in the Panama Canal, of all places. c were often drilled by board ship against another man,or even by George R. Berens weevil beetles and worse, an officer, his left hand was am­ She was a carved daughter of Neptune o the beer so sour it putated by the ship's surgeon in front Ever since men started to venture on gracing the bows of the ship Burrard. gave the men dysen­ of the assembled crew. long ocean voyages some three thou­ The owner of the Danish fleet of tery. Salt meat was Those who complained against order s sand years ago there have been reports Fred Olsen and Company has a taste o a meal on four days or swore about an officer, or who took of mysterious creatures sighted at sea. for art, and for old traditions of the a week and salt fish the Lord's name in vain, had t heir Most of them were horrible monsters. sea. His smart ships are all adorned with several ounces tongues scrubbed with sand and canvas, They will be found embellishing the with fine figureheads; and surely the of oil or butter and or some other nasty tasting, foul sub­ crude marine charts of past centuries. ravishing beauty of the Burrard was fourteen ounces of stance; so they remembered their of­ The actual existence of any of them has the finest of them all. Our crew surely cheese was provided fense for several days afterwards every never been proven. Nor has that of an thought so. They lined the rail and on Saturdays and time they tried to eat. entirely different denizen of the deep, stared at that lifelike mermaid until Wednesdays. If caught asleep while on duty t he that ravishing female, half human, half the ships had passed each other, and If any man had money to spend he offender was hung up by his wrists or fi sh - t he mermaid. she was no longer visible. could buy extra food of better quality, thumbs with a bag of lead shot hung These beautiful creatures with. a hu­ But I do recall a IQvely tropic night from the "petty tally", which was or­ around his neck to add to the agony. man female torso and a scaled fishes' when I was on lookout on the forecastle­ ganized by the captain, the profits sup­ Any man who told a lie and this dis­ tail have been sighted by hundreds of head. That is a beautiful place to be in posedly going to benefit the crew and covered was given the worst tasks in seamen, and supposedly reliable reports good weather, with nothing to do but ship, but usually lining the captain's the ship. Those who did not keep a of such sightings are in existence. survey the sea aglitter under a silver During many years at sea I have al­ moon moving slowly across the star­ pocket. proper lookout were tied to the bow­ o The seamen could buy bacon, the sprit and food placed just beyond their ways had an eye open for mermaids. studded dome of the sky. We were best cheese, rice, prunes, even wine - reach. Here they stayed until thought Never did I see one, but scanning the bound from Balboa to Manila, and that but on an ordinary seaman's pay of to have had their wits sharpened. But ruffled sea surface assiduously I have is a long haul across the Pacific. We o about three shillings and four pence a many died before then. seen many interesting and weird ma­ were already almost a month at sea. A month, these luxuries were beyond him. Superstition also caused some "of­ rine creatures in their natural environ­ few more days should see us docked in So it was understandable that when fenses" aboard ship. If a man whistled, ment. Manila. an enemy ship was seized or port plun­ or accidentally left a bucket upturned, " ," dered, the obtaining of f ood and drink mentioned pigs in conversation, or did was equally as important to the half­ other things to provoke bad luck on the starved crew as treasure or goods. vessel, he was flogged. Alternatively he Even though the food was poor the may have been towed behind the ship crew used to gamble with dice for each on a rope, until, half-drowned, he was other's rations. This was not condoned hauled on board. and if caught the offender was flogged, Curiously, if the ship did become be­ the number of lashes depending on calmed there were several ways to en­ whether a first or frequent offence. courage the wind to rise again; one of Other offenses against the law of the these was to tie one of the "grummets" ship also had severe punishments. Mu­ or ship's boys over a cannon to be beat­ tiny or defying an officer meant the of­ en by the boatswain with his cane. Or fender could be hanged or flogged to the ship's boys were all tied together within an inch of his life. in a circle on deck and made to strike The stubborn or lazy man was keel­ each other with knotted ropes until the hauled, dragged under the keel from winds rose again. one side to the other, his body often If the boys and men survived all this, being gashed and torn by the barnacles and when too aged to sail the seas, they on the ship's hull. If the offense was probably spent their last days in the more severe a cannon was also fired world's port taverns regaling any who over the man's head as he was hauled would listen with tales of life aboard from the sea. ship in the "good old days." 16 A gentle breeze drifted over the ship. real origin of the sailor's girls of the The only sound that broke the stillness sea. These theories advanced by the sci­ rHE IMEJlI'IIEII EVE of the star-crowned night was the soft entists that big, ugly sea animals, like (Contillued from page ?f ) "shush-shush" of the bow wave, as the the manatee, or the dugong, or even froth-topped sea rose up the ship's bow, the fairer-looking seal were reported as and fell away again. mermaids were all humbug. The small triangular space of the The beautiful mermaid is merely a f orecastle-head rose and fell gently in product of imagination, despite all Dry, unstable air, or with upward tion is a pretty sure indicator of an ap­ the swells. Up there in the very front the sightings r eported, even those of movement which would disperse smoke, proaching warm front and attendant of the ship it seemed t o be r emote from recent times. is associated with fair weather. Humid, rain and wind. everything, a quiet, isolated spot just Glancing over such reports one will stable air, or air that sits in horizontal The same condition is also easily ob­ right for dreaming. notice that all these ocean sirens were layers, invariably leads t o a weather served at night and its appearance then Leaning on the apron, lulled to an al­ sighted by men! disturbance. is one of the best-known of the folk most semi-conscious state by the ser­ Think, if you will, of the old wind­ Two old sailor signs are sound in­ weather signs. When the moon shines enity of this perfect ocean night, my jammer sailors. They led a hard life. A dicators of the phenomenon of "thin­ through this type of overcast, it pro­ thoughts flew ahead t o Manila. There sailing ship is propelled through the ning" air just before a storm. Low duces a halo or the ring ar ound the was a favorite rendezvous of seaf arers waters by her sails, but the sails re­ pressure or thin air is one of the weath­ moon that seafaring men have long there known as the 'Mermaid Bar'. quire the constant energy of her crew erman's most reliable bits of evidence associated with a forthcoming storm. for forthcoming bad weather. Behind the bar, above stacks of liquid to keep them functioning. It is very All other signs and sayings notwith­ The old sailor "saw" his thin air in refreshment, atop the long mirror there r igorous work continued for long peri­ standing, probably the most widely two ways. The first had t o do with was a lifelike mermaid. She r eclined in ods, and often performed under severe known one is this - Red sky at night, birds, particularly coastal birds. They a provocative position, and smiled down weather conditions, too. sailor 's delight ; red sky in the morn­ tend to roost just before a storm - on the patrons. Living conditions aboard those ships ing, sailor take warning. Staring over the seas as the bow were primitive, comfort non-existent. probably because they find it harder to The food was poor. Voyages often took fl y in the rapidly lowering pressure And like the others, this, too, is sci­ plunged rhythmically into the gentle entifically sound. The reasons lie in waves, that seductive mermaid became months. Companionship was strictly and hence take a rest r ather than ex­ male, and seamen were, in general, pend more energy in staying aloft in weather movement. In most areas real befor e my eyes. Not only real, but weather moves from west to east. And alive. She clung to the stem, her hair crude and unsympathetic. They had to the thin air. be so to exist under the harsh condi­ The second sign of thinning air is a if a sailor sees a red sky at night, what str eaming in the breeze, and smiled up he's observing is dry, dust-laden air to at me. For some time I was lost in the tions of sea life. vi sual phenomenon. The sailor states So it is readily conceivable that the that distant shores seem nearer just the west of him through which the set­ soft beauty of the night, all my thoughts t ing sun glows red. If that air (which centered on this enticing sea nymph. seaman's thoughts often wandered prior to a rain. What actually happens when he had the opportunity to relax, is this: The usual salt haze which tends is moving his way) were wet, the sun Then, suddenly, the telephone bell would appear as grey or yellowish. rang, jarring me back to the world of as, for instance, when his ship was sail­ to obscure horizons, even in good The second part of the saying is, of the ship. Opening the watertight box ing smoothly along in the trade-wind weather, disappears when turbulence course, the reverse. Red sky in the under the apron I put the receiver to regions, at night when all was quiet and mixes it just before a storm, thus giv­ peaceful. ing the mariner a short spell of good morning or the sun rising in the east my ear. and shining through the dry air out "What are y'doing up there ­ Perhaps on lookout, away from his visibility or nearer shores. there means that dry air, moving east­ asleep ?" I heard the angry voice of the shipmates, or a tyrant officer, his Still another category of old weather ward, will only be further away as the watch officer on the bridge say. "Why thoughts would turn to affection, fe­ signs is that of cloud and sky observa­ tions. day progresses. And as it moves, it will don't you answer the bells ?" male companionship, the lur es of the probably be displaced by humid air That is one of the lookout's duties, to shoreside world. A widely-known saying concerns it­ from the west, bringing the strong pos­ repeat the strokes of the bell on the Then, if he had a good imagination, self with a particular cloud form. It sibility of foul weather. bridge as it marks the passing half­ he would probably conjure up visions goes - Mackerel sky and mare's tails hours. I wondered what bells had been of exquisite mermaids, for, of course, make tall ships wear short sails. So, by the simple (but often re­ struck - what time it was. no other females of the human type This saying describes what the peated) expedient of close observation "Report on the bridge as soon as could exist out there on the open sea. weatherman calls a cirrus overcast oc­ of winds, air and clouds, the old salt you're relieved," came over the phone. But, despite this conviction, when­ curring atop a thickening layer of has left us moderns a body of pretty That meant I was due for at least a ever I am at sea, I'll still keep up the altocumulus clouds. Cirrus clouds are sound weather advice. In this case, as salty reprimand. And all on account of search. The mysteries of the ocean are high, wispy and hairlike (mare's biils) ; in many others, old ways, when in­ altocumulus look like the ribbed side of that mermaid! far from being all exposed. Perhaps vestigated, very often turn out t o be This incident convinced me of the there r eally are mermaids ! a fi sh (mackerel sky). This sky condi- good ways. ~~ ~ 18 19 Seal11.en's Church Institute o£ N. Y. 15 State Street Ne1lV York. N. Y. 10004

Address CorrectIOn Requested

PEBBLES

On the great beach When once you spot The pebble of your TAIL OF THE HURRICANE Choice, don't turn Aside to watch a gull Who runs like blowing Pitching in the swirling storm Sand, for in the instant then lulled by its eerie eye, Some gaudy little wave in gusts of feral force May snatch your prize. we come majestically home steady on course ... D. J. HoI/and Ahead, the Palisades, freighters at anchor off the Jersey shore, ferries churning as before. REQUEST Small boats bare their hulls, ships from Netherlands, Bombay slow their harbor pace. Turn my face to the sea. Immigration stops us - Let me know now the peace of a calm not so, the wind-blown gulls. sailing. Give me one last gl impse of the far Louise Scott horizon, Of sea and sky and ship. Turn my face to the sea. It has been my life, my beloved. The lonely silence of its darkness Has been even as still as this ... Turn my face to the sea. The tide, I know. has been ebbing .. .

Edith Roberts Langenau