CHAPTER IX

BRUTALITY AT SEA

In those days the deep-sea shipmaster looked upon the collier skipper as his inferior in everything, and regarded himself in the light of an important personage.  His bearing was that of a man who believed that he was sent into the world so that great deeds might be accomplished.  He lavishly patronised everybody, and never disguised his desire to repudiate all connection with his less imposing fellow-worker in a different sphere.  He would pace the poop or quarter-deck of his vessel with the air of a monarch.  Sometimes a slight omission of deference to his monarchy would take place on the part of officers or crew.  That was an infringement of dignity which had to be promptly reproved by stern disciplinary measures.

There were various methods open to him of inflicting chastisement.  An offending officer was usually ordered to his berth for twenty-four hours—­that is put off duty.  The seamen’s offences were rigorously atoned for by their being what is called “worked up,” i.e., kept on duty during their watch below; or, what was more provoking still, they might be ordered to “sweat up” sails that they knew did not require touching.  This idle aggravation was frequently carried out with the object of getting the men to revolt; they were then logged for refusing duty and their pay stopped at the end of the voyage.  It was not an infrequent occurrence for grown men to be handcuffed for some minor offence that should never have been noticed.  The sight of human suffering and degradation was an agreeable excitement to this class of officer or captain.  If some of the villainy committed in the name of the law at sea were to be written, it would be a revolting revelation of wickedness, of unheard-of cruelty.  Small cabin-boys who had not seen more than twelve summers were good sport for frosty-blooded scoundrels to rope’s-end or otherwise brutally use, because they failed to do their part in stowing a royal or in some other way showed indications of limited strength or lack of knowledge.  The barbarous creed of the whole class was to lash their subjects to their duties.  A little fellow, well known to myself, who had not reached his thirteenth year, had his eyes blacked and his little body scandalously maltreated because he had been made nervous by continuous bullying, and did not steer so well as he might have done had he been left alone.  It is almost incredible, but it is true, some of these rascals would at times have men hung up by their thumbs in the mizen rigging for having committed what would be considered nowadays a most trivial offence.