this officer was to be one of the poorest in point of scholarship, yet the jolliest of all the “Jolly Blades.”  At the time designated, he broke the seal of a package which had been given him by his predecessor in office, the contents of which were known only to himself; but these were supposed to be the insignia of his office, and the instructions pertaining to the admiralty.  He then appointed his assistant officers, a vice-admiral, rear-admiral, captain, sailing-master, boatswain, &c.  To the boatswain a whistle was given, transmitted, like the admiral’s package, from class to class.

The Flag-ship for the year 1815 was a large marquee, called “The Good Ship Harvard,” which was moored in the woods, near the place where the residence of the Hon. John G. Palfrey now stands.  The floor was arranged like the deck of a man-of-war, being divided into the main and quarter decks.  The latter was occupied by the admiral, and no one was allowed to be there with him without special order or permission.  In his sway he was very despotic, and on board ship might often have been seen reclining on his couch, attended by two of his subordinates (classmates), who made his slumbers pleasant by guarding his sacred person from the visits of any stray mosquito, and kept him cool by the vibrations of a fan.  The marquee stood for several weeks, during which time meetings were frequently held in it.  At the command of the admiral, the boatswain would sound his whistle in front of Holworthy Hall, the building where the Seniors then, as now, resided, and the student sailors, issuing forth, would form in procession, and march to the place of meeting, there to await further orders.  If the members of the Navy remained on board ship over night, those who had received appointments at Commencement, then called the “Marines,” were obliged to keep guard while the members slept or caroused.

The operations of the Navy were usually closed with an excursion down the harbor.  A vessel well stocked with certain kinds of provisions afforded, with some assistance from the stores of old Ocean, the requisites for a grand clam-bake or a mammoth chowder.  The spot usually selected for this entertainment was the shores of Cape Cod.  On the third day the party usually returned from their voyage, and their entry into Cambridge was generally accompanied with no little noise and disorder.  The Admiral then appointed privately his successor, and the Navy was disbanded for the year.

The exercises of the association varied from year to year.  Many of the old customs gradually went out of fashion, until finally but little of the original Navy remained.  The officers were, as usual, appointed yearly, but the power of appointing them was transferred to the class, and a public parade was substituted for the forms and ceremonies once peculiar to the society.  The excursion down the harbor was omitted for the first time the present year,[57] and the last procession made its appearance in the year 1846.