chronometers. London owners paid higher wages to their
captains, but less in proportion to their crews. These
commanders were on the whole a very intelligent,
well-conducted lot of men. They had high notions, perhaps,
of their importance, but they did no ill to anybody by this.
There were occasional squabbles between their mates and
themselves, and sometimes bickerings with the crew, but
these were never of a very serious or lasting character; in
fact, I have known men sail for years with one captain, and
it was delightful to witness the treatment and mutual
respect shown to each other. The men were frequently far
more jealous of their captain's dignity than he was himself.
There were others whose dignity became a slavish occupation
to sustain. It sometimes happened if the master and mate
differed on some minor matter that their relations became
childishly strained, and each asserted his rights until the
feeling softened. The captain always claimed the starboard
side of the quarter-deck as his special parading ground, the
mate the port. It often happened when these disagreements
occurred the master, to show his authority more drastically,
would ask the carpenter for a piece of chalk and draw a line
down the centre of the deck. When this was done the
aggrieved commander would address his chief officer in a
deep, hollow voice that was obviously artificial. "Sir," or
"Mr.," he would begin, "I wish to impart to you that your
conduct has been such as to cause me to draw this line so
that our intercourse may not be so close as it has been.
Please do not presume to attempt any familiarity with me
again; stick to your own side!" This piece of grotesque
quarterdeck-ism was made all the more comical by the serious
way it was taken by the mate and enforced by the master! It
did not occur to _them_ that there was something extremely
humorous in it. Another ludicrous custom was this: if the
master and mate were on deck together, though there was
ample room for both to walk on the weather side, the mate
was always supposed to give way to the captain, and walk on
the lee side, no matter what tack the vessel was on. If the
officer in charge was smoking, and either standing or
walking on the weather side, and the captain came on deck,
immediately the short cutty pipe was taken out of his mouth,
and, as a mark of respect, he passed to leeward! It was
considered the height of ill-manners for a mate or second
mate to smoke a churchwar