Notes By the Way in a Sailor's Life Part 1

Notes by the Way in A Sailor's Life.

by Arthur E. Knights.

Introduction.

In 1898 I was in Hongkong on a business affair which gave me much leisure, when Murray Bain, editor of the China Mail, whom I had long known, asked why I did not send him a letter occasionally. This led to my venturing to give him "Some Notes by the Way in A Sailor's Life."

These Notes, I considered, could only be of interest locally. But some of my friends have urged me to overcome my diffidence and put them in pamphlet form, which I now do for distribution among my friends, trusting that they will treat leniently the literary efforts of one who is a sailor and not a cleric.

A.E.K.

A Quick Pa.s.sage.

To the editor of the "China Mail."

Dear Sir:--I have just read with much pleasure the report of the quick pa.s.sage made by the sailing-ship "Muskoka" from Cardiff to this port in ninety-two days. This is really a good trip and the captain and his officers may be complimented on having done so well, for, as you know, the ship is of large tonnage and the complement of men is small. I congratulate the captain and his officers, and wish they may be as successful in all their future voyages.

Mr. Editor, no doubt you remember the ship "Northfleet." I was second officer of her, as you know, in the year 1857. In the spring of that year, we loaded government stores, guns, mortars, and general war materials, with two companies of Royal Artillery, for the war at Canton, in which the French and the British were allies. We sailed from Woolwich on the river Thames, and stopped at Gravesend twelve hours, then made our final start for Hongkong, in which port we anch.o.r.ed in the wonderfully short time of eighty-eight days from Woolwich, which is at least three days' sail farther than Cardiff.

On the following voyage we did the same in eighty-eight days and a half.

These two were record voyages made in the glorious days of "teaclippers."

A. E. Knights.

Hong Kong, June, 1898.

A Record Long Pa.s.sage.

First Cotton From China to America.

During the palmy days after the opening of the River Yangtse--when freights were taels 22 per ton from Hankow to Shanghai, a distance of six hundred miles--I was in command of the "Neimen," an auxiliary ship-rigged vessel, engaged in this trade until near the end of 1863, and saw some of the exciting times of the Taiping Rebellion in that part of China. By the end of 1862 the steamers "Huquang" and "Firecracker"

had come from New York round the Cape of Good Hope, and later the "Chekiang," "Kiu-kiang," and other paddle steamers were put on the river, and the freights were reduced to taels 4 1/2 per ton. Then we had to clear out.

My employers ordered me to Hongkong to meet new boilers for the "Neimen." Later I received instructions to sell the "Jedda," belonging to the same owners, which was done. Then I had an offer from Mr. Paul Forbes to buy the "Neimen." This arrangement was completed, and I agreed with the new owners (Russell & Co.) to take the engines out of the vessel, and to change the rig from ship to barque, with the object of loading cotton for New York--the first from China to America. After completing our alterations, and after painting the ship in Whampoa, we came to Hongkong to load at the beginning of May, 1864. The weather and water being warm and the paint new gave a favorable opportunity for the barnacles to attach themselves to the vessel, and by the time we started the barnacles were like coa.r.s.e gravel on her sides.

On the 24th of May, 1864, we sailed from Hongkong, and when we got out into the China Sea we had no monsoon, but met with a continuance of calms and squalls. The ship was unable to stand up under her canvas, having no ballast, and being, as it were, stuffed with cotton. Well, at last we reached Anjer, eighty-four days from Hongkong. The ship was one ma.s.s of barnacles as large as "egg-cups." I sent overland to Batavia to buy some garden spades, to be fitted on to long poles, so as to try to chop off some of the sh.e.l.ls, which we did, and after five days' delay we sailed again. From Sunda Straits we had a good run till near the Cape.

Here we had calms again, and the gra.s.s and barnacles grew very fast.

Indeed, the ship's bottom was like a half-tide rock, and when the water washed up the sides, as she rolled, the noise made by the barnacles was like the surf on a sea-beach. We were followed for several days by a shoal of dolphins, which we caught in great numbers night and morning.

Finally we got round the Cape, and to St. Helena, where we stayed four days, and employed men to a.s.sist us in chopping off gra.s.s and barnacles as far as we could reach. Then we proceeded on our way once more.

We had a wearisome time in the "doldrums" about the equator, only enlivened by catching dolphins and watching crabs, which would leave the gra.s.s for a swim and then return to the ship. After getting clear of the calm belt, we had a very good run to Bermuda, where we encountered a heavy gale, with tremendous heavy seas.

When the weather moderated we found to our dismay that the rudder was adrift, the pintles having been broken by the heavy seas. I was now compelled to put before the wind and run for St. Thomas, in the West Indies, and when near the entrance of the port a pa.s.senger, Captain George Adams, "went off his head," and thus gave no little addition to my anxieties. Finally we arrived safely in port. Here more troubles began. I was advised to do many things, some of which would have been much to the benefit of some of my advisers. One thing was to land and store the cargo.[*] This I positively refused to do. But after all I found that there was only one European blacksmith in the place, and he had but a small shop. This man contracted to do the repairs, and after I had got the rudder to his shop he coolly asked me if I had a good carpenter or other handy man to help him, as the job was too heavy for his negro a.s.sistant to weld. I proposed to him another plan. So at last the work was done satisfactorily, and we went on our way with partly a new negro crew, some of the old crew having left. We made very good progress and were nearly off New York when we got into a violent snowstorm, which greatly amused the negro sailors, who had never seen "white rain" before, but unfortunately for three of them, they got frostbitten and lost their legs. We got into New York at last on the 25th of January, 1865, eight months from Hongkong!

Although the voyage was so long, I believe the venture turned out to be a good one financially. Gold was at a very high premium,--about two dollars and eighty cents at this time,--and our cotton sold for one dollar and fifty cents per pound. The "Neimen" went into dock, and people came in hundreds to see the strange sight. She was covered with sh.e.l.ls like a rook. Some of these sh.e.l.ls were sent out to China, and Messrs. Russell & Co. (the owners) had them mounted in silver as inkstands.

28th June, 1898.

[*] To land and store cargo should never be done by a shipmaster without authority from the owners.

A Voyage of Misfortune.

After the last voyage which I gave you an account of I accepted an offer made me by my late employers, and became superintendent of a business under their management in New York. Unfortunately, at the close of the war, this business was temporarily suspended and my contract was annulled. I then tried two or three different things on my own account, and finally settled as agent for a paper-mill; and all things were going on fairly well until in an unguarded moment I read an advertis.e.m.e.nt in the New York Herald. It ran as follows: "A gentleman with experience requires a partner with capital, in a safe business, with no risks." The bait took, and I had an interview with "the gentleman," and saw the persons to whom he referred me, and we joined, with the result that in less than seven months we had changed places. I had the experience and he had the capital, as well as the stock, and had vanished to where the woodbine twineth. His friends told me that this was his usual way of doing business. This was pretty cool. In a short time the same gentleman was seeking another victim in Chicago. My advice to sailors is to "stick to the ship."

Well, sir, the next thing I thought of was to get a ship before the landsharks took all I had from me; and, with the a.s.sistance of Mr. Paul Forbes, I was soon in command of the ship "Royal Saxon," owned jointly by R. W. Cameron, of New York, and R. Towns, of Sydney. We sailed from New York for Melbourne, and arrived there safely, though in running down our easting about 42 south lat.i.tude we had continuous fogs.

Now, sir, to the point. The above firm despatched from New York each alternate week one vessel for Melbourne and one for Sydney. The week before I left, the ship "Eastward Ho," Captain Byrne, was despatched for Sydney, and apparently all went well until she got into lat.i.tude 37 or 38 south, and a little to the eastward of the Cape of Good Hope, when suddenly one night, when running before a strong gale, she came crushing into ice. The shock was so severe that her fore and main topmasts and mizzen-topgallant masts went by the board, and the foremast-head sprung.

The hull was considerably shattered, and the main covering-board split up from forward as far aft as the main gangway.

After this, the captain thought he had better try to reach Simon's Bay or the Cape. For some days they were working through field-ice, getting a little to the north. Patching the vessel with canvas, and rigging jury-masts and sails, finally they got clear of ice, and with fine weather it was decided to stand to the eastward, with the hope of being overtaken by some other vessel (which never came). After many vicissitudes,--taking to the boats, then returning to the ship twice,--it was decided that the ship was the safest place, and she ultimately reached Sydney.

In pa.s.sing through Ba.s.s's Straits, the "Eastward Ho" had been pa.s.sed at a short distance by a steamer from New Zealand, and reported in Melbourne, but could give no name. This gave great offence to the people of Melbourne for pa.s.sing a vessel in such a state and not finding her name or her wants, if any.

The "Eastward Ho" was repaired and loaded coals in Sydney for Hongkong, and misfortune again overtook her. In coming through the Eastern seas, her crew mutinied, and the vessel narrowly escaped wreck on one of the islands. Then, later, she got into a typhoon, and was very badly strained, but escaped for what might have been a worse fate--fire. Her cargo of coals caught fire, and after some days of hard work, the fire was extinguished; but when the vessel reached Hongkong and her cargo was discharged, it was found that the hull was a mere sh.e.l.l. Her frames and planking in many places were burnt nearly through.

The vessel was condemned, the crew were paid off, and the captain left Hongkong for New York and Syracuse, where was his home. When he had nearly reached his house he met an old friend who conveyed to him the sad news of his wife's death and of the funeral from which he was just returning. A sailor's life is not always a happy one. Is there a fatality attaching to certain men or things?

Beginning of the German Navy.

In the beginning of the year 1862 I was chief officer of the ship "Ballaarat," with Captain Henry Jones, of Far East fame. We loaded in the East India Docks, London, a full cargo of piece goods for Shanghai and for Taku Bar. We arrived at Shanghai, and, as the war was finished, we were ordered to proceed to Taku to discharge our cargo for Tientsin.

In due time we reached Taku Bar, where we found several of the British warships anch.o.r.ed, and the South Forts occupied by British troops.

We anch.o.r.ed in the forenoon very near to a vessel flying the Prussian flag, and when we had furled sails and cleared up decks it was tiffin-time. To our surprise, a boat came from the Prussian, bringing the captain. I met him at the gangway, and reported him to our captain, with the result that he stayed to tiffin with us. And then he stated his business on board our ship. He said he wanted to buy provisions and stores of any kind, sailors' clothing, boots, or anything we could sell, which our captain laughingly agreed to do.

The following conversation then took place: "What is the name of the vessel you command?"

"She is now the 'Hertha,' and was the British sailing-sloop 'Thetis.'

The British Government had her converted into a screw vessel, and presented her to us to bring our Minister, Count von Eulenberg, to negotiate a treaty with China as soon as the war should be ended, and that is why we are here; and the barque with the American flag flying near to us carries extra coals for our use."

"But," said our captain, "you are not a German. How is it that you are in command of that ship?"