A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
FIRING A THREE-INCH GUN AT TARGET PRACTICE 
 
 Copyriglit, 1911, by R. IV. AVv.wr 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 BY 
 ROBERT W. NEESER 
 
 WITH AN INTRODUCTION 
 
 BY REAR ADMIRAL CHARLES J. BADGER, U. S. N. 
 
 COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE 
 
 ATLANTIC FLEET 
 
 NEW HAVEN: YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS 
 
 LONDON: HENRY FROWDE 
 
 OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 
 
 MCMXIII 
 
COPYRIGHT, 1913, 
 BY YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS 
 
 First printed February, 1913, one thousand copies 
 
TO THE 
 CREW OF THE KANSAS 
 
 259909 
 
PREFACE 
 
 To the average citizen, the life on board ship 
 is, unfortunately, a closed book. Only when 
 the fleet is in port has he the opportunity of 
 treading the deck of a man-o'-war, and then his 
 visits result only in a confused impression of 
 guns, machinery, and cramped spaces. Of the 
 ways of the service he has seen nothing. 
 
 It has seemed worth while, therefore, to 
 publish the account which follows, not because 
 it describes any unusual or important events, 
 but because it sets forth the daily life and the 
 day's work for the thousands of bluejackets 
 who to-day man the fighting vessels of our 
 Navy. 
 
 This book records the observations and im- 
 pressions formed by a civilian during a winter's 
 cruise with the Atlantic Fleet. It is a journal 
 of what the fleet does in times of peace to main- 
 tain its efficiency, a record of what it accom- 
 plishes when off parade. 
 
 Most gratefully do I here acknowledge the 
 courtesies with which I was fairly overwhelmed 
 during those four months with the fleet. In 
 publicly acknowledging my indebtedness to the 
 
viii PREFACE 
 
 many who have been so kind to me, I desire to 
 express my obligations in particular to the 
 Secretary of the Navy and to Rear Admiral 
 Seaton Schroeder, U. S. N., who was then 
 Commander-in-Chief of the Atlantic Fleet, for 
 the authority to make this cruise; to Rear 
 Admiral Charles J. Badger, U. S. N., the 
 commanding officer of the Kansas, the ship to 
 which I was assigned, and to my shipmates and 
 to others in the Service for their hospitality 
 and many acts of kindness. 
 
 January, 1913. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 Introduction 1 
 
 Wednesday, January 5th. Joining the Kansas. 
 My quarters on board. Getting acquainted. 
 Dinner 5 
 
 Thursday, January 6th. Detained by fog. 
 "Colors." The "Mast." Discipline in the 
 Navy 7 
 
 Friday, January 7th. Getting under way. The 
 fleet in a sea. Squadron evolutions and order 
 of steaming. On the bridge 10 
 
 Saturday, January 8th. The Mississippi and 
 Idaho join the fleet. Routine drills and exer- 
 cises. Fleet manoeuvres. Changes of speed. 
 The ship's library. Cruising at night . . 13 
 
 Sunday, January 9th. Steam tactics. The 
 
 ship's officers and their duties .... 16 
 
 Monday, January 10th. The tropical day. 
 Physical exercises. Fire-control drill. Tac- 
 tical exercises resumed 18 
 
 Tuesday, January llth. Off San Salvador 
 Island. Passing Castle Island. Drills. Fleet 
 evolutions and exercises 19 
 
 Wednesday, January 12th. Off the Cuban 
 shore. Guantanamo Bay and the naval sta- 
 tion. Traditions of the naval uniform. 
 Choosing the athletic fields 21 
 
x CONTENTS 
 
 Thursday, January 13th. General Quarters. 
 
 Coaling ship 26 
 
 Friday, January 14th. "Field Day" ... 27 
 
 Saturday, January 15th. The Lucky Bag . 28 
 
 Sunday, January 16th. Explorations on shore. 
 
 The Cuzco Hills 29 
 
 Monday, January 17th. Standardization 
 Trials ; their value and importance. Man- 
 overboard drill 32 
 
 Tuesday, January 18th. Mail day. The daily 
 routine. Life on board ship. The bugle calls. 
 Rivalry between ships. Etiquette on board . 35 
 
 Friday, January 21st. The Full Power Trials. 
 In the engine- and fire-rooms. Efficiency of 
 the ships' engineer forces 40 
 
 Saturday, January 22nd. Entertainment on 
 the Kansas 43 
 
 Sunday, January 23rd. Excursion to Guanta- 
 namo City. The old Spanish fort on Toro 
 Cay. The Plaza. The cemetery ... 44 
 
 Monday, January 24th. Seamanship exercises. 
 
 Anchor drill 48 
 
 Tuesday, January 25th. Fire-drill. Searching 
 
 for the lost anchor 49 
 
 Wednesday, January 26th. Coaling ship . . 50 
 
 Thursday, January 27th. "Field day." 
 
 Smoker on the Mississippi 53 
 
 Friday, January 28th. "Abandon ship" drill . 55 
 
CONTENTS xi 
 
 Saturday, January 29th. Trip to Santiago in 
 the Uncas. Daiquiri. Siboney. Santiago 
 harbor. The city 56 
 
 Sunday, January 30th. A visit to Morro Cas- 
 tle. The return voyage 61 
 
 Monday, January 31st. Admiral's Inspection 
 
 Day A 63 
 
 Tuesday, February 1st. Field-gun target prac- 
 tice. Reconnoissance on shore .... 64 
 
 Wednesday, February 2nd. General quarters. 
 Brigade drill on shore. "Movies" on the 
 quarter-deck 65 
 
 Thursday, February 3rd. Turning trials. Ad- 
 miral's Inspection Day C. Battle Plan exer- 
 cises 67 
 
 Friday, February 4th. Admiral's Inspection 
 Day C. The ship cleared for action. A blue- 
 jacket's presence of mind. Battle plan exer- 
 cises resumed 68 
 
 Saturday, February 5th. "Field day." The 
 sailor guard. The bluejackets' aversion to 
 "soldiering." A Naval Academy yarn . . 71 
 
 Monday, February 7th. To Caimanera in the 
 market-boat. Torpedo and mine laying 
 drills 74 
 
 Tuesday, February 8th. Naval gunnery and 
 target practice. The "dotter." Loading 
 drill 75 
 
xii CONTENTS 
 
 Wednesday, February 9th. "Landing force, 
 Away!" The Navy on shore. Searchlight 
 drill 77 
 
 Thursday, February 10th. Turning trials; 
 their importance. Battle-plan exercises. 
 Loading drill in the 12-inch turret ... 80 
 
 Friday, February llth. Turning trials. The 
 
 Executive Officer's weekly inspection . . 83 
 
 Monday, February 14th. Collision quarters . 84 
 
 Wednesday, February 16th. Admiral's Inspec- 
 tion Day D. The fleet's landing force on 
 shore 86 
 
 Thursday, February 17th. Turning trials. 
 
 Towing exercises 88 
 
 Saturday, February 19th. Painting ship. 
 
 Preparations for going into camp on shore . 89 
 
 Sunday, February 20th. Ashore on Deer Point. 
 The enlisted men's tents. The battalion mess. 
 Our ideal camping site 90 
 
 Monday, February 21st. Routine in camp. 
 
 A morning on the small-arms range ... 92 
 
 Tuesday, February 22nd. Washington's Birth- 
 day. Shooting trip with the Surgeon. 
 Baseball games and athletic sports ... 93 
 
 Wednesday, February 23rd. On the range. 
 
 Admiral's Inspection Day E 95 
 
 Friday, February 25th. Small-arms target 
 
 practice. A change in plans .... 97 
 
CONTENTS xiii 
 
 Sunday, February 27th. A tropical wind-storm 99 
 
 Monday, February 28th. The Navy's "clean- 
 liness" 100 
 
 Tuesday, March 1st. Collective firing and 
 
 ships' competitions 101 
 
 Wednesday, March 2nd. The last day of camp 101 
 
 Thursday, March 3rd. Boat race with the 
 
 Connecticut. Breaking camp . . . .102 
 
 Friday, March 4th. Sports week begun. The 
 "Gilded Rooster" Trophy. The tradition of 
 the "Rooster." Boat pulling races. Swim- 
 ming and sailing competitions . . . . 103 
 
 Saturday, March 5th. Pulling races for the 
 Pensacola Cup. Match between officers' rifle 
 teams. Smoker on the Idaho . . . .107 
 
 Sunday, March 6th. Baseball and boat races. 
 Officers' race. The Belmont and Drexel Chal- 
 lenge Cup Races. The Battenberg Squadron 
 Cup 108 
 
 Tuesday, March 8th. Coaling ship. My first 
 
 climb up the foremast 110 
 
 Friday, March llth. Mail day. More gun- 
 nery training Ill 
 
 Saturday, March 12th. The Wisconsin's tar- 
 get practice. Old and new methods of gun- 
 nery training 112 
 
 Sunday, March 13th. Ladies' day ! The visit 
 of the Avon 113 
 
xiv CONTENTS 
 
 Saturday, March 19th. Boat race between the 
 Minnesota and the Georgia. The Nebraska- 
 New Hampshire baseball game for the cham- 
 pionship of the fleet 114 
 
 Sunday, March 20th. Shooting trip to Lake 
 
 Manati. The Kermess at Guantanamo City 116 
 
 Monday, March 21st. Gunnery training . . 118 
 
 Tuesday, March 22nd. Social life on a man-o'- 
 war. . The relations between the enlisted men 
 and their officers. The messes. How organ- 
 ized. The wardroom mess. Life in the mess 119 
 
 Wednesday, March 23rd. At sea correcting 
 
 compasses. Fire-control drills . . . .126 
 
 Thursday, March 24th. The departure from 
 
 Guantanamo Bay 127 
 
 Friday, March 25th. The beauties of the 
 
 Caribbean. The bow wave. Cinders . . 128 
 
 Sunday, March 27th. Easter Sunday . . . 129 
 
 Monday, March 28th. Cold weather. Steel 
 ships not meant for zero temperatures. 
 Standing in by Cape Henry. Punctuality in 
 the Navy. Arrival in Hampton Roads . . 130 
 
 Saturday, April 2nd. Superstition in the Navy. 
 Good omens. "Movies." Diversions in the 
 wardroom 132 
 
 Monday, April 4th. Mooring ship. Under way 
 for the Southern Drill Grounds. Fleet steam- 
 ing in a fog. The fog-buoy 135 
 
CONTENTS xv 
 
 Tuesday, April 5th. On the Southern Drill 
 Grounds. The magazines and shell-rooms. 
 The fleet's mail service 137 
 
 Wednesday, April 6th. Gunnery exercises with 
 
 the Louisiana. In the foretop . . . .139 
 
 Monday, April llth. Competition in the Navy. 
 The bluejackets' sporting spirit. Rivalry 
 between the two after 8-inch turret crews . 140 
 
 Wednesday, April 13th. Dreams and night- 
 mares 141 
 
 Monday, April 18th. Ready for target prac- 
 tice 142 
 
 Tuesday, April 19th. Cleared for action. The 
 Louisiana on the range. Target practice 
 with the 7-inch batteries. A wonderful rec- 
 ord. In the maintop. The importance of 
 co-operation in battle. Between-decks . . 143 
 
 Wednesday, April 20th. Smokeless powder. 
 Target practice continued. Examining the 
 target-screens. Jack's shamrocks . . . 148 
 
 Thursday, April 21st. The thunder of the 12- 
 inch turret-guns. Inside the turret. On 
 deck. The "blast." The sub-station . . 151 
 
 Saturday, April 23rd. The value of target 
 
 practice. Its lessons 156 
 
 Sunday, April 24th. Night practice with the 
 torpedo defense batteries. The glory of the 
 tracers and of the searchlights. The "hu- 
 man" side of target practice, on the target- 
 raft 157 
 
xvi CONTENTS 
 
 Wednesday, April 27th. "Cease firing !" Com- 
 fortable once more. Off the Delaware Capes 161 
 
 Thursday, April 28th. In the Delaware. Ar- 
 rival at the Navy Yard. Good-bye . . . 162 
 
 Appendix : 
 
 U. S. S. Kansas 167 
 
 U. S. Atlantic Fleet 167 
 
 Daily Sea Routine 169 
 
 Personnel of the Navy 173 
 
 Requirements for enlistment in the Navy . 174 
 
 Statistics of enlistment in the Navy, 1911 . 175 
 
 Citizenship of the enlisted force, 1911 . . 175 
 Pay, promotion and rewards in the Navy and 
 
 Marine Corps 176 
 
 Average cost of maintenance of vessels of the 
 
 Navy 193 
 
 Guns and projectiles 194 
 
 Consumption of coal 194 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 FIRING A THREE-INCH GUN AT TARGET 
 
 PRACTICE Frontispiece 
 
 Facing 
 page 
 
 THE KANSAS'S WARDROOM 7 
 
 THE BATTLESHIP VERMONT 12 
 
 THE FLEET ENTERING GUANTANAMO BAY ... 22 
 "SHEP" ANSWERING SWIMMING CALL THE 
 KANSAS'S MASCOT DIVING FROM THE LEADS- 
 MAN'S PLATFORM TWENTY-FIVE FEET ABOVE THE 
 
 WATER LINE 26 
 
 GUANTANAMO BAY VIEWED FROM THE Cuzco HILLS 28 
 
 SUNDAY MORNING QUARTERS 30 
 
 A BIRD'S-EYE VIEW OF THE KANSAS, FROM THE 
 
 FORETOP 34 
 
 SCRUBBING CLOTHES 38 
 
 THE FULL POWER TRIALS, THE CONNECTICUT AND 
 
 THE VERMONT 40 
 
 THE FLEET AT ANCHOR IN GUANTANAMO BAY . . 44 
 
 A SEVEN-INCH GUN CREW AT LOADING DRILL . . 48 
 
 LIGHTHOUSE POINT, GUANTANAMO BAY ... 52 
 
 A BOAT PULLING RACE 56 
 
 SEEN FROM ALOFT: THE QUARTER-DECK OF THE 
 
 KANSAS 60 
 
 THE KANSAS'S BATTALION ENCAMPING ON DEER 
 
 POINT 64 
 
 RETURNING TO CAMP 66 
 
xviii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 Facing 
 page 
 
 THE SMALL-ARMS RANGE AT GUANTANAMO BAY . 70 
 
 ON THE FIRING LINE 74 
 
 ON THE MARCH 78 
 
 "DICK" ENJOYING His BREAKFAST 84 
 
 LOOKING AFT FROM THE FORECASTLE .... 88 
 COALING SHIP As SEEN FROM THE FORETOP. 
 
 THE COLLIER HECTOR ALONGSIDE THE KANSAS 92 
 
 THE BASEBALL DIAMOND AT GUANTANAMO BAY . 94 
 
 LIBERTY PARTY ASHORE ! 98 
 
 THE FORECASTLE ON A MID-WEEK MORNING . . 100 
 
 SQUADRON EVOLUTIONS 106 
 
 "DOTTER" PRACTICE ON AN EIGHT-INCH TURRET 110 
 
 THE KANSAS'S MAINMAST 114 
 
 AN EXCITING FINISH 116 
 
 THE ATLANTIC FLEET ON THE SOUTHERN DRILL 
 
 GROUNDS 120 
 
 THE KANSAS'S BROADSIDE 124 
 
 THE KANSAS IN ACTION 128 
 
 "STAND BY ! FIRE !" A SEVEN-INCH GUN CREW IN 
 
 ACTION ON BOARD THE U. S. S. KANSAS . . . 132 
 
 UMPIRES COUNTING THE HITS ON A TARGET-SCREEN 136 
 
 FIRING THE TWELVE-INCH GUNS 140 
 
 THE REPAIR PARTY AT WORK ON THE TARGET-RAFT 144 
 
 OFFICERS WATCHING A RIVAL SHIP FIRING . . 150 
 
 A TWELVE-INCH SALVO LANDING 154 
 
 A TWELVE-INCH TARGET-SCREEN AFTER ONE 
 
 ROUND . 158 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 Washington, 
 November, 
 
 The practical disappearance of sail propul- 
 sion for deep water ships, with their pictur- 
 esque array of spars and sail and intricate rig- 
 ging, the long passages, the dangers of the 
 deadly lee shore, the struggle with hurricane 
 winds and mountainous seas, requiring all the 
 skill and fortitude of the seamen to win 
 through in safety, has frequently led to the 
 declaration that the romance of the sea is gone, 
 but that enthusiastic interest in modern ships 
 and the men who go down to the sea in them 
 still exists "A Landsman's Log" abundantly 
 proves. 
 
 Externally, the massive, warlike appearance 
 of the battleship of the present day at once 
 impresses with a species of awe even the most 
 casual observer, but it is only when viewed 
 from within that a realization of the enormous 
 power for offense and defense lodged behind 
 the walls of steel becomes possible, and never 
 fails to excite the wonder and admiration of 
 the novice who views it for the first time. 
 
2 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 Indeed, so rapid are the changes in size and 
 equipment that even the expert is taxed to 
 keep abreast of the improvements as each new 
 ship comes from the hands of the builders. 
 Ten years sees the crack ship of her day rele- 
 gated to the second line of defense, and twenty 
 years puts her into the hopelessly obsolete class. 
 This is the reason why the cost of maintaining 
 a modern Navy is so great. It is not mere 
 numbers that count; the ships must be up-to- 
 date in all respects or they cannot hold their 
 own when the day of trial in actual war arrives 
 with a nation which has followed a consistently 
 progressive policy in its naval construction. 
 
 It was to a ship still of the first line, forming 
 one of an active fleet of similar vessels, that our 
 author brought his powers of observation and 
 description. It is possible that a longer expe- 
 rience on board might have led to a modifica- 
 tion of some of his early impressions, but the 
 "Log" presents, as it stands, an interesting 
 and remarkably accurate description of the life 
 and work on board a modern battleship. 
 
 It was, of course, inevitable that interest 
 should soon center upon the personnel, the 
 officers and enlisted men who give life, energy 
 and purpose to the ship. To organize, subsist, 
 discipline and drill such a large number of 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 3 
 
 men in confined quarters ; to provide for some 
 play as well as a great deal of work; to main- 
 tain contentment under adverse conditions 
 for all sea conditions are abnormal to the aver- 
 age man; to systematize whatever may have a 
 bearing upon the health, comfort and efficiency 
 of the entire personnel, requires unceasing 
 effort and long experience on the part of those 
 in authority. 
 
 All these things have been touched upon 
 most happily in this book and those who are 
 curious as to the details of life in the Navy 
 of to-day, and the means taken to promote and 
 insure the battle efficiency of the individual 
 ships as well as of the fleet, will find in the 
 following pages much to interest, instruct and 
 amuse. 
 
 CHAS. J. BADGER, 
 
 Rear Admiral, U. S. Navy. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5TH. 
 
 A new world it was that I stepped into when 
 I came aboard the Kansas about three bells 
 this afternoon and reported my arrival to the 
 Officer-of-the-Deck. I had long had a dim 
 knowledge of the interior of a man-o'-war and 
 some inkling of the service itself, but the many 
 hours I had just spent in the pilot-house of the 
 Pawnee, a navy tug of imposing insignifi- 
 cance which had conveyed me and my luggage 
 from the Navy Yard to where the fleet rode at 
 anchor in the North River, had convinced me 
 that I knew "durned little" after all. At least, 
 that much I gathered from my friend, the 
 Boatswain, who in that short space of time had 
 managed to find out all the whys and where- 
 fores of my present being, and overwhelmed 
 me with advice which he considered essential 
 to my welfare while sailing the ocean waves. 
 
 Once on board it did not take me long to get 
 settled. My room is on the gun-deck, abaft the 
 after twelve-inch barbette, and just off a kind 
 
6 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 of passage called the wardroom country, sur- 
 rounding which are the quarters of the com- 
 missioned officers and the Captain's cabin, the 
 sanctum sanctorum. And the reason for my 
 having such luxurious quarters is, I am told, 
 because this ship is one of the few in the fleet 
 that has not been favored with a sky-pilot, 
 as the chaplain is familiarly known, and 
 hence I have been assigned to room "A," which 
 that dignitary of the church always claims by 
 divine right. And I must say that he is 
 usually pretty well off. The room is very snug 
 and cosy, with a comfortable berth, a chest of 
 drawers, wardrobe, desk, wash-basin and arm- 
 chair. In the daytime it is lighted by a small, 
 round port, which in good weather may be 
 enlarged into a large, square one; while at 
 night innumerable large and small incandes- 
 cent electric lights satisfy the demands of the 
 most exacting. 
 
 My first difficulty has naturally been that 
 of becoming acquainted with my hosts, and 
 especially those whose mess I am to share on 
 this cruise. A few I had already met, but all 
 have been so amiable, so anxious to make me 
 feel at home, that I am overwhelmed with 
 kindnesses, and our friendship of only a few 
 hours has already shown that our life as ship- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 7 
 
 mates is going to be something to look forward 
 to. At seven we gathered in the wardroom for 
 dinner, and what a function it was! As a 
 matter of precaution I had donned a dinner 
 coat, but I was not half "dressed" compared 
 with the distinguished company that graced 
 the mess that evening. All were in their best 
 evening clothes uniforms, I should say. But 
 this, I was informed, was always the rule when 
 in port. For the Navy Regulations have it all 
 down in black and white ; the stiff white shirts, 
 black bow ties, white waistcoats, and uniform 
 dress coats, are all prescribed in detail, and 
 woe to the unfortunate one who attempts to 
 have his own way. 
 
 THURSDAY, JANUARY GTH. 
 
 There was little prospect of sailing to-day. 
 The river was full of ice, the weather most dis- 
 agreeable, "dirty weather," as the log-books 
 of old would say, and rain most of the time, 
 so that on deck it was very wet under-foot. 
 Later in the morning a heavy fog came up 
 the river and shrouded us in a veil so thick 
 that even our immediate neighbors could not 
 be seen. This precluded any possibility of 
 getting under way, though orders had already 
 been issued by the Commander-in- Chief to do 
 
8 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 so at two o'clock. The leaves of all the officers 
 had expired in the morning and all were on 
 board by nine. But even though the sailing 
 was postponed, none was allowed to return 
 on shore without special permission from the 
 Admiral, a favor which even the most 
 venturesome hesitated to ask. 
 
 The boy called me at seven, in time to enjoy 
 a good and hearty breakfast before colors, a 
 ceremony incidental to the daily routine about 
 which I had always heard so much. Eight 
 bells! The band burst into the national 
 anthem, "The Star Spangled Banner," while 
 the Stars and Stripes were hoisted slowly by 
 the Quartermaster, and every man, whatever 
 his rank or rate, faced aft at attention till the 
 conclusion of the strain. How simple that 
 ceremony, yet how impressive! Not one to be 
 talked about, but felt; and I could not help 
 thinking that wherever an American man-of- 
 war is in commission that solemn function is 
 always performed. 
 
 The inclement weather soon interrupted my 
 thoughts, and I sought refuge below, where I 
 had little difficulty in whiling away the time. 
 At eleven-thirty, however, I was up on deck 
 again, just in time, as it proved, to witness 
 that time-honored custom of the "tasting" of 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 9 
 
 the crew's dinner by the Officer-of-the-Deck. 
 Apparently the meal was to his liking, for he 
 ate it all, and when later he came below on 
 his relief and joined us in the wardroom he 
 had no appetite left for the luncheon that was 
 being served to his own mess. 
 
 About four I attended the "mast," or police 
 court of the ship, at which the Captain, as 
 supreme magistrate of his vessel, daily judged 
 all those who had been guilty of minor offenses. 
 For the serious breaches of discipline the cases 
 have to be referred to a deck court consisting 
 of an officer of the ship; if more serious, a 
 Summary Court Martial tries the case, while 
 in certain cases a supreme tribunal ( a General 
 Court) is convened by the Admiral of the 
 fleet. To-day, however, the offenders were 
 mostly charged with having overstayed their 
 leave; many, whose excuses seemed plausible, 
 were discharged; but the rest had to bow to 
 the inevitable and receive their punishment in 
 the form of confinement or extra duty. 
 
 What greatly impressed me in this simple 
 and efficacious manner of dispensing justice 
 was that, while the infractions of discipline 
 are followed by punishment, swift and sure, 
 the discipline of the Navy is not harsh or 
 unbearable to the normal man. The rights of 
 
10 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 the bluejacket are as safely guarded as the 
 privileges of the highest in rank, and the cases 
 are few where a man may feel that he has been 
 unjustly dealt with. The principle by which 
 discipline is now maintained is no longer to 
 punish as severely as possible, but to offer to 
 the men every inducement to do right, so that 
 they cannot possibly fail to see the advantages 
 to be gained by good behavior. 
 
 FRIDAY, JANUARY TTH. 
 
 The day dawned cold and gray, but clear, 
 and I was early awakened by the preparations 
 on deck for getting under way. Steam was up, 
 the boats were hoisted in, and the gangways 
 were unrigged, so that by half past eight, when 
 the Admiral made the signal to leave our moor- 
 ings, nothing had been left undone. The way 
 the men stepped around, and the way that 
 anchor engine tugged and strained to get the 
 "mud-hook" out of the river-bed, were things 
 to be seen, not read about. And the leads- 
 men in the chains added to the fascination of 
 the scene as they began their song, an old 
 song that, alas, has ceased to charm and has 
 gone into disuse with the ships in which it was 
 formerly used, for with our swift moving 
 craft the Captain must know the soundings 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 11 
 
 quicker than he did when they came to him 
 only at the end of a stave of the old song. 
 Then the engines began to throb and we were 
 under way. The Connecticut led the column, 
 then came the Vermont, and third the Kansas. 
 The other ships, five in number, followed in 
 our wake. It was an impressive manoeuvre 
 in the crowded river channel, and I was 
 filled with admiration as I beheld that swift 
 yet unhurried departure. 
 
 Rounding Sandy Hook we ran into a 
 sou'wester; nothing really worth mentioning, 
 but enough to cause the ships to dance the 
 hornpipe and give us a little practice limber- 
 ing up our sea legs. What a glorious sight 
 those ships astern presented, as they slugged 
 their bluff-noses into the surge and rose 
 dripping like half-tide rocks. Slowly they 
 would rise to the very summit of the waves, 
 then majestically sink into the hollow beyond, 
 ready to tower again above the next height. 
 No one can deny their graceful motion, the 
 enormous rush of water, the inherent power 
 felt in every push or bend or curve of them, 
 which command not only respect but admira- 
 tion. We may regret the picturesqueness of 
 the sailing frigate and the majesty of the ship- 
 of-the-line, but in years to come, when the 
 
12 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 present time shall have become the "good old 
 times," no poetry will be lacking about the 
 present-day thunderers of the seas. 
 
 I was lost in the perception of the various 
 evolutions. The battleships looked so massive, 
 they glided round each other so closely, yet 
 preserved their relative positions with such 
 precision that I was thrilled with admiration. 
 Two hundred and fifty yards ahead of us the 
 propellers of the Vermont were churning up 
 a foamy wake, while the same distance astern 
 of our quarter-deck the ram of the Minnesota 
 was cleaving the water; and this distance was 
 maintained with an evenness that might have 
 suggested their being tied together. 
 
 We were now strung out in a two-mile 
 column, eight ships, heading southward. As 
 soon as we were outside, the flagship began to 
 wreathe herself in vari-colored flags, and then 
 all was bustle on the other ships. Up on our 
 bridge, the small army of signal boys appeared 
 to have their work cut out for them ; here, too, 
 was the Officer-of-the-Deck, signal-book in 
 hand, with the Quartermaster close by, the 
 Captain, the Navigator, and men innumerable 
 for every mechanical device needed to handle 
 the massive engine of war; while on one side 
 stood a young officer, a midshipman, looking 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 13 
 
 through a curious instrument of bars and 
 wheels and glasses, engrossed in the all-impor- 
 tant task of keeping note of the distance 
 between this ship and the next ahead, all- 
 important, for should he not know it, the 
 Admiral would, and this was not the best 
 way of attracting the Commander-in- Chief's 
 attention. 
 
 SATURDAY,, JANUARY STH. 
 
 During the night the sea moderated con- 
 siderably; at daybreak there remained but an 
 easy ground-swell. The sky, however, has 
 been overcast all day. Last evening the 
 Mississippi and Idaho joined the fleet, having 
 come down the Delaware from Philadelphia, 
 and took up their position astern of us. The 
 morning was devoted to routine work, quarters 
 were at half past ten, and the crew paraded 
 the quarter-deck while the band played its best. 
 
 Then in the afternoon the Admiral signalled 
 for manoeuvres and the way the ships played 
 round each other, like dolphins, was a pleasure 
 to the eye of even the most trained observer. 
 But what impressed me more than anything 
 else was the number of times the ships were 
 called upon to alter their speeds. The ocean 
 liner, once clear of the land, usually strikes 
 
14 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 her pace and holds it to the end of her voyage, 
 but her sister, the ship of war, must ever 
 change her gait under the will of the Admiral 
 and be able, at a moment's notice, to make 
 a spurt or drop several knots as the occasion 
 demands. In the course of the afternoon I 
 counted as many as six different speeds, rang- 
 ing from eight to fifteen knots, which latter 
 was our point of maximum vibration. Yet 
 even then you could feel she was being held 
 back, and that the restive twin screws were 
 only longing for an opportunity of showing 
 what they really could do. 
 
 At noon we were off Hatteras, but as we 
 were ninety miles out at sea, we naturally did 
 not catch a glimpse of the dreaded spot, though 
 I must confess that the junior marine officer 
 (on his first cruise) and I both rushed up on 
 deck, letters in hand, under the mistaken 
 impression that we might post them as we 
 passed the mail buoy, to the great glee of 
 those who had so easily fooled us. 
 
 Every hour has been so surcharged with 
 interest that my brain has become filled to 
 overflowing with new impressions, a host of 
 details, no one of which could be willingly 
 missed. But in the afternoon I had a gentle 
 breathing spell when the Navigator led me 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 15 
 
 into his office on the berth-deck, and initiated 
 me into the mysteries of some of his special 
 duties. What he attempted to cram into my 
 bewildered brain, I do not recall. It had to 
 do with the navigation of the ship, electrical 
 apparatus, log-books, and log-lines. But one 
 thing that I do remember, perhaps because it 
 was the easiest thing to comprehend, was that 
 part of his special duties that related to his 
 position as librarian of the ship. And then I 
 found out what a splendid collection of books, 
 works on geography, history, professional sub- 
 jects, travel, fiction and general literature, is at 
 the disposal of every officer and enlisted man 
 on board Uncle Sam's ships wherever they 
 may be. And it is only one of the many 
 luxuries the present-day sailor enjoys. The 
 American Navy was the first to institute the 
 custom, and the first ship's library was placed 
 on the old ship-of-the-line Franklin in the 
 early twenties. Few agencies in recent years 
 have done more to raise the tone of the enlisted 
 men in the service, to improve their standards 
 of character and efficiency, and to add to their 
 contentment, than these well-selected libraries 
 which are now placed on board our ships. 
 Scores of men may daily be seen, scattered 
 about the decks during the idle hours that 
 
16 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 necessarily do occur even in the busy life 
 of a modern man-of-war, reading, or with 
 pencil and paper working on some problem. 
 Books are read and re-read until their covers 
 are worn from constant use, and this clean and 
 wholesome reading fills up the hours that 
 otherwise would have been spent in idleness or 
 worse. 
 
 After dinner the beauties of the brilliant 
 night lured us on deck. About us frolicked 
 our ten companions, the silence of the night 
 broken only by the dull thud of their engines 
 as they glided through the glassy sea, each with 
 her ardois signals winking unceasingly and 
 semaphores frantically waving their spectral 
 arms. 
 
 SUNDAY, JANUARY OTH. 
 
 Steam tactics again were the order of the 
 day, but I was too engrossed in the life of my 
 own ship to be intelligently interested in evo- 
 lutions. Hour by hour the complex organiza- 
 tion of this engine of war has been unfolding 
 before me until every detail has become fixed 
 in my mind. 
 
 At the head of this community of almost a 
 thousand souls is the Captain, who is vested 
 with the supreme control of the ship, and is 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 17 
 
 responsible to the Department for her in every 
 way. Next in rank comes the Executive Offi- 
 cer, who, as the representative and right-hand 
 man of the Captain, sees that his orders are 
 properly executed and aids in maintaining the 
 general efficiency of the ship. He runs almost 
 everything on board; he is the general manager 
 and housekeeper. At one time he is overlook- 
 ing the hoisting in of a cutter, at another 
 talking over the next music programme with 
 the Bandmaster, or conferring with the Pay- 
 master about the crew's dinner, or planning a 
 new ash dump with the carpenter. His work 
 has no end, and seldom does he even find time 
 to have a quiet smoke or uninterrupted nap 
 in his own room. Then comes the First 
 Lieutenant, or "fust luff," who, as "assistant 
 housekeeper," is responsible for the general 
 cleanliness of the ship. The Navigator navi-, 
 gates the ship when at sea and oversees all the 
 electrical apparatus, which alone is no small 
 task. On the Ordnance Officer devolves the 
 charge of the guns and ammunition; he con- 
 ducts target practice, and to his efforts and 
 supervision are mainly due the results which 
 the ship obtains when the final test of hitting 
 the bull's-eye comes. Then there is the Chief 
 Engineer, who rules over a small world all by 
 
18 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 himself, while the Paymaster overlooks the offi- 
 cial financial affairs of the community, feeds 
 the men, pays them their wages, and provides 
 them with clothing. In addition to these com- 
 missioned officers, and next in rank, are the 
 watch and division officers, those who stand 
 watch on the bridge at sea and on the quarter- 
 deck in port as the representatives of the Cap- 
 tain, and have general charge of the ship while 
 they have "the deck." Each has command of 
 one of the various divisions into which the crew 
 is split up, and generally has a junior officer to 
 assist him in this important and responsible 
 duty. 
 
 And so it goes on. Every man, officer and 
 bluejacket has his place. Not a thing has been 
 overlooked. Yet I could not help marvelling 
 how simple it all was, and how smoothly the 
 intricate and complex machinery performed 
 every one of its varied tasks after it had been 
 properly adjusted. 
 
 MONDAY, JANUARY IOTH. 
 
 Speaking of tropical weather, to-day is a 
 good sample. To say the least, it is decidedly 
 warm on deck, the crew are all in "whites," 
 and the scene presents quite a contrast to what 
 it was in New York four days ago. At six 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 19 
 
 the huge sun rose out of the molten sea, with 
 a suddenness and blazing heat known only to 
 these latitudes, climbed to the zenith with a 
 haste that made its progress almost visible to 
 the naked eye, then with equal haste hurried 
 down below the horizon at the same hour in the 
 evening, leaving that curious flash of green 
 light in the sea. Then night fell, the stars 
 began to twinkle merrily, and the signal and 
 running lights on the ships burst into a blaze 
 of glory. 
 
 At 9 : 45 the crew were given physical exer- 
 cises, with and without arms, after which Fire- 
 Control Drill was held. Just to try the prepar- 
 edness of the engineer forces, the Admiral 
 suddenly ordered sixteen knots, perhaps in the 
 hope of finding somebody napping. But that 
 was not to be, and the engines all responded 
 with a willingness that aroused in you some of 
 the affection that the engineer force already 
 felt for them. 
 
 TUESDAY, JANUARY HTH. 
 
 Last night about 9 : 30 we were abreast of 
 Watling Island (San Salvador) light. The 
 fleet was at the time steaming in column; ten 
 ships were astern of us, the Wisconsin having 
 joined since dinner, which makes our total 
 
20 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 number now thirteen. At 7 : 45 this morning 
 we passed Crooked Island, and at ten ran 
 between Castle Island and Miraporvos Bay. 
 From 9 : 30 until 10 : 30 the crew went through 
 the usual drills, after which the officers received 
 gunnery and target practice instructions from 
 the Ordnance Officer. Then after dinner the 
 drills were resumed, and afterwards the fleet 
 engaged in various evolutions in obedience to 
 the signals from the flagship. We passed and 
 repassed each other, turned circles, ran back, 
 and what not. Before we knew it we were 
 heading north again, and then everybody won- 
 dered what it was all about. The only way we 
 could account for these antics, and the sudden 
 change in the course of the fleet towards home, 
 was that the Admiral did not wish to reach 
 Guantanamo Bay before daylight. He had 
 announced his arrival for then, and at that 
 hour he would therefore be there, and no 
 sooner. It would never do to get there ahead 
 of time, so I was told; that was not the way 
 they did things in the Navy. 
 
 But the mischief wrought by this innocent 
 manoeuvre no one at the moment realized. 
 The trade wind, common to this region, was 
 blowing rather freshly, enough to kick up a 
 bit of a sea, and make us gather our sea legs. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 21 
 
 It was all on the port side, however, so we of 
 the lee (or starboard) side had left our ports 
 wide open to enjoy what little breeze might 
 find its way into our rooms. But the minute 
 the ship changed her course, our positions were 
 reversed and before we could make a move in 
 self-defense an awkward sea came aboard the 
 quarter-deck just abaft the turret. I rushed 
 below in expectation of finding my quarters 
 deluged, and the stream of water I waded into 
 at the foot of the ladder led me to believe that 
 my worst fears had been realized. But it was 
 the Navigator, not I, that had been drowned 
 out. The thoughtful mess-boy had already 
 closed the port of my room and was in the act 
 of shutting his when the flood came. Not a 
 thing escaped the drenching. And it was his 
 second experience in a week! 
 
 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12TH. 
 
 My ideas of Cuban scenery prior to my 
 arrival off the Coast were based on my youth- 
 ful recollections of maps of the West Indies 
 in the geographies. On these the land appears 
 flat and uninteresting, and wholly unworthy 
 of the slightest consideration. And when yes- 
 terday we sighted the low-lying islands of 
 the Bahamas my impressions seemed to have 
 
22 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 received unquestionable confirmation. But 
 this morning when I came on deck, to my 
 amazement I beheld hills and even mountains 
 rising as it were out of the sea, some even to a 
 height of thousands of feet. Truly it was a 
 revelation. We were steaming in single col- 
 umn along the shore, and at the appointed 
 hour made the broad entrance of Guantanamo 
 Bay, which was to be our base of operations 
 and our home during the next few months. 
 Once inside we came to anchor in line of squad- 
 rons, off the naval station, where were already 
 the station-ship Newark, the scout cruiser 
 Salem, two colliers and an auxiliary. 
 
 Guantanamo Bay is indeed a splendid sheet 
 of water. Miles long and miles wide, it fur- 
 nishes a commodious harbor, capable of accom- 
 modating the present fleet with ease, and with 
 plenty of room for thirty more if necessary. 
 For beautiful scenery (at a distance) it is un- 
 surpassed. Imposing bluish mountains in the 
 background on all sides, smaller promontories 
 in the middle ground, and low shores, cov- 
 ered with such uninviting growths as long 
 grass and cactus, in the foreground, sur- 
 round the large land-locked bay. The coloring 
 is gorgeous under the clear tropical sky; the 
 water a rich ultramarine blue, a greenish-yel- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 23 
 
 low, bright green or even dull brown. What 
 more ideal spot could be imagined! Truly it 
 shows the hand of a divinity, only, alas, after 
 its creation no divinity would dwell in it, as an 
 officer sorrowfully remarked. 
 
 Casting aside the mere beauties of the scene, 
 and coming down to more practical considera- 
 tions, you find little to commend it. The 
 place is barren and desolate ; the nearest settle- 
 ment is Caimanera, at the head of the bay, 
 outside the reservation, with its lazy, dirty and 
 worthless crowd of mulattoes. The city of 
 Guantanamo, about seventeen miles inland, is 
 practically inaccessible owing to the poor rail- 
 road communications. Around the outer bay 
 is scattered the naval station, comprising the 
 station-ship Newark, a shore office for the 
 Commandant, one general store, a coaling sta- 
 tion, and a few frame structures for the accom- 
 modation of the officers and men on duty 
 there. A redeeming feature of the place is the 
 officers' club and the men's building, with their 
 large verandas, where the cool trade winds may 
 be enjoyed to advantage. But the principal 
 drawback, they say, is that the officers and men 
 have no time to spend at them, so that only 
 the most sanguine entertain the hope that some 
 day they will be real clubs. 
 
24 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 All the ships' companies are now in "whites." 
 Even the bands have forsaken their gorgeous 
 uniforms. And right here I have learned how 
 so many of our naval customs came down to us 
 by natural inheritance from those in force on 
 board the ships of the Mother Country. Yet 
 how few people know this! The black collar 
 with its three white stripes around the border 
 was meant to commemorate the three great 
 victories of Nelson, Trafalgar, the Nile, and 
 Copenhagen; the collar was black because in 
 those days sailors tarred their hair and wore it 
 in cues, which soiled their white collars until 
 they became black; and the black neckerchief 
 was added about the same time as a sign of 
 mourning for Nelson's death. Even the epau- 
 lets and sleeve stripes worn by the officers had 
 their origin in the brass shields formerly worn 
 to protect the shoulders and forearms from 
 cutlass cuts. And as for the scarlet uniforms 
 of our naval bands, that is the most interesting 
 story of all. For it seems that during the 
 fighting around Baltimore and Washington in 
 1814 a detachment of bluejackets captured 
 four British musicians, and on renewing the 
 battle the following day, and having no band 
 of their own, they compelled the four British- 
 ers to play them into action. Since which 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 25 
 
 date the color of the uniform has ever been 
 scarlet. 
 
 These are only a few of the associations con- 
 nected with the naval uniform of to-day, but 
 they convey a meaning which cannot be mis- 
 understood, and account for the sentiment that 
 has so often withstood the agitations against 
 the flat cap, the wide bottomed trousers, and 
 other so-called objectionable features of the 
 sailor's clothing. But the sailors themselves 
 have strongly opposed any change, and when 
 several years ago a complete canvass of the 
 wishes of both officers and men in this respect 
 was made on board one of the battleships, the 
 vote was almost unanimous for the retention 
 of the present picturesque uniform. 
 
 In the afternoon the Fleet Athletic Officer 
 and several others went ashore to select 
 grounds for the location of baseball diamonds 
 and athletic fields, as well as places along the 
 beach near the anchorages where the swim- 
 ming parties from the ships might best be 
 sent, and when I was asked to accompany them 
 I did not hesitate to take advantage of this 
 opportunity of once more walking on dry land. 
 But it was warm work under the broiling sun, 
 and we all were heartily glad to get back to 
 our ships and go in for a refreshing swim in 
 
26 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 the cool waters of the bay. As a matter of 
 fact, everybody that could went over the side, 
 for as we returned on board swimming call 
 sounded. Even Shep, one of our mascots, 
 lived up to his reputation of being a great 
 water dog, and followed the first man into the 
 water. 
 
 THURSDAY, JANUARY 13TH. 
 
 One thing that certainly impresses you on 
 board a man-o'-war is the remarkable preci- 
 sion and lack of confusion that attends every 
 important drill and exercise. At no time is 
 this more evident than when "General Quar- 
 ters" are sounded, that drill which above all 
 others is the most important held on board 
 ship, for it involves all the final preparations 
 for battle. The vessel was cleared as for 
 action. All the batteries were manned, ammu- 
 nition hoists began to rumble as they brought 
 up charge after charge for the guns, and 
 before long the pieces were being trained on 
 some distant object, loaded and ready for the 
 word of command. Everything was done as 
 if an enemy were actually coming within range. 
 
 Then in the afternoon we coaled ship quite 
 unexpectedly. Orders had been received to do 
 so on the morrow, but the surprise was sprung 
 
! 
 
 
 a" 
 B 
 
 Z 
 
 s 
 
 ? sg 
 * 
 
 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 27 
 
 on us instead at four p.m., and coal we did 
 until long after supper. It certainly was a 
 dirty piece of work, but the men did not seem 
 to consider it so. Every officer and man did 
 his share of the work, and more besides. It 
 was a question which division would get the 
 most coal aboard, and the rivalry to be the 
 best was keen indeed and a pleasure to behold. 
 About three hundred and fifty tons were taken 
 on in a little over two hours, which was poor 
 time indeed when compared to previous rec- 
 ords. But then it was difficult to make speed 
 with such an old collier as the Hannibal^ which 
 had been inflicted upon us, a relic of the last 
 war and not adapted to present-day records. 
 "Wait until we get one of those new colliers, 
 then you'll see what we can do !" So they said. 
 
 FRIDAY,, JANUARY 14TH. 
 
 The crew were up till after midnight clean- 
 ing the ship after yesterday's profanation, and 
 washing themselves and their clothes, and to- 
 day they are still at the same task. As all the 
 regular routine is suspended during and after 
 coaling, there was nothing to do or see on ship- 
 board, so I went ashore to seek what diversion 
 I could on the "beach." But I went alone, 
 and after wandering about disconsolately for 
 
28 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 the good part of an hour, I was only too glad 
 to be able to return once more to my "home" 
 and escape a drenching shower that had been 
 gathering in the west. 
 
 SATURDAY, JANUARY 15TH. 
 
 The "Lucky Bag," and then began the fun. 
 For weeks the watchful eye of the Master-at- 
 Arms, the ship's chief-of-police, had been at 
 work seeking "articles adrift," as he called 
 them, and now all the contents were to be sold 
 at auction to the highest bidder. For extreme 
 tidiness is a pronounced characteristic in Uncle 
 Sam's Navy. "A place for everything and 
 everything in its place," is the way they put 
 it, and woe to the forgetful or careless blue- 
 jacket who leaves anything belonging to him 
 where it ought not to be. Into the lucky bag 
 it goes, and to redeem it the culprit must either 
 acknowledge his ownership at once and incur 
 a light fine for his offense, or else await the 
 quarterly sale and then hope to be able to bid 
 high enough to get his own once more. It is a 
 time-honored institution, as old as the navy 
 itself, and indeed one of the most effective 
 ways ever devised of maintaining that state of 
 order which has come to be a by-word in the 
 service. 
 

 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 29 
 
 SUNDAY, JANUARY 16TH. 
 
 Beware of the Siren ! That is indeed good ad- 
 vice, but who would ever have imagined those 
 bleak, low lying hills about Guantanamo Bay 
 to have possessed the charm of luring unsus- 
 pecting admirers of nature? On the chart 
 which we had been studying all week they 
 appeared innocent enough, and when we had 
 talked the matter over we felt sure that we 
 knew the lay of the land by heart, and that the 
 "hike" which we had promised ourselves would 
 be but a short jaunt, lasting at most a few 
 hours. At least that is the way we had figured 
 it out beforehand. 
 
 We had proposed going over the trail from 
 Fisherman's Point to the target range, but as 
 we could get no steamer to land us at the first 
 place, we concluded to "bear up" and make our 
 expedition backwards from the range to the 
 point. That was easy enough, we thought, as 
 we simply had to follow the trail from east to 
 west instead of from west to east. We started 
 in the best of spirits, leaving the ship soon 
 after dinner, with our canteens full of fresh 
 water and a supply of sandwiches which some- 
 one had thrust into our hands at the last 
 moment. Little did we dream that we would 
 
30 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 ever actually want them. The ascent began 
 shortly after we left the range, where small 
 hillocks led up gradually to the higher hills. 
 We started out at a bold pace, following the 
 trail, which ran along an old army telegraph 
 line. Up and down we went, leaving behind 
 us several hillocks, which I must say were 
 rather hard climbing in spite of their low alti- 
 tude. But it was nothing to what was in store 
 for us later. The beginning of our walk was 
 hot and difficult, but by three o'clock the heat 
 was intense. We were screened by the very 
 hills we were climbing from the refreshing 
 trade wind that never fails, and as there was 
 no shade we toiled in the broiling sun. We 
 soon realized that we were not on the right 
 track. The old telegraph line was still leading 
 us on, but the trail certainly was no longer 
 there. How long before we had missed it we 
 knew not. At any rate, there was little ques- 
 tion as to what we should do. But one of my 
 companions spied a small mountain right 
 ahead, higher than the rest, which he "knew" 
 was where we wanted to go and where he 
 assured us we would be rewarded by the most 
 beautiful panorama mortal ever saw in these 
 regions. Unfortunately we took him at his 
 word, and began that awful climb. The tall 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 31 
 
 grass completely hid us from view and from 
 each other as we struggled on. But that was 
 nothing compared to the cactus, of whose con- 
 cealed presence we were aware only after we 
 had come into personal contact with it. How 
 far we walked I know not. In "mountain 
 travel" distances are never calculated in miles. 
 Hours are the standard, and when we con- 
 sulted our watches we found that the after- 
 noon was well advanced. But I will say this 
 much for my friend, though I must say that 
 many times during that walk I considered 
 him anything but a friend, that the view which 
 rewarded our efforts when we finally did reach 
 the top was one of the most beautiful that I 
 have ever seen. In the distance were the 
 mountains that on every side surround the 
 land-locked bay, while in the foreground lay 
 that sheet of water with its fleet of fighting 
 ships; then there was the naval station, the 
 target range, the hills we had just left, 
 and inlets and peninsulas innumerable, all 
 stretched out below us in an imposing pano- 
 rama. Facing the ocean we could see an invit- 
 ing cove, where lay a sandy beach surrounded 
 by precipitous cliffs. How cool that water 
 looked. Oh, how we longed for a dip in that 
 refreshing surf. The temptation proved irre- 
 
32 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 sistible. In a moment we were heading in the 
 direction of that roaring surf, and once more 
 plunged into the jungle with its maze of 
 cactus. At last we found it, had our dip, ate 
 our sandwiches, which we appreciated more 
 than I could say, and then started for home. 
 Of the return voyage, the less said the better. 
 It was a repetition of what we had been 
 through on the outward passage, only our 
 imaginations made it worse. And when we 
 finally reached the boat landing, hungry and 
 tired after our prolonged expedition, we had 
 only one thought, that of leaving all future 
 expeditions for others to indulge in. 
 
 MONDAY, JANUARY 17TH. 
 
 To-day the First Division held its Stand- 
 ardization Trials. We steamed out of the 
 harbor at 6 : 30 with the Connecticut and Ver- 
 mont. The trials were held over a measured 
 course off the coast, which the ships covered 
 at various speeds, and three times for each 
 speed in order to correct any errors due to 
 tide and wind. On each run the time con- 
 sumed, the number of revolutions of the 
 screws, and the horse-power developed were 
 noted, and the results, when worked out, 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 33 
 
 showed how many revolutions were needed 
 for each speed. For example, when the fleet 
 is steaming together, if the flagship signals to 
 the fleet that the ships are to steam 18 knots, 
 the officers on the Kansas know that to make 
 this speed the engines must drive the screws 
 at 121 revolutions per minute. This is the 
 result reached in the Standardization Trials, 
 and makes the officers familiar with the steam- 
 ing capabilities of their ships. The tests were 
 made at full speed, 18, 17, 16, 15, 14, 12, 10 
 and 8 knots. The highest speed attained by 
 this ship to-day was 18.54 knots, or .45 faster 
 than she made on her trial trip in 1907 (18.09 
 knots) , which speaks volumes for the efficiency 
 of the engineer force and the care with which 
 the engines have been looked after. The 
 trials lasted from 6 : 30 a.m. until 3 : 30 p.m. 
 Everyone on board, from the Captain on the 
 bridge to the firemen in the fire-room, showed 
 the greatest interest in every detail. 
 
 The necessity of holding the steaming trials 
 becomes evident when the ships cruise in 
 squadrons or fleets. Distances between them 
 must be kept fairly well, otherwise comes a 
 reprimand from the Admiral, or, in case of 
 carelessness, a collision. When you consider 
 that each ship, displacing from 14,000 to 
 
34 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 20,000 tons, has to maintain a uniform rate 
 of speed (say 12 knots), and keep her ram 
 within 250 yards of the stern of the ship next 
 ahead, that some of the ships move a little 
 faster than others, or that both propellers may 
 not accomplish the same amount of work, then 
 you can realize how important it is to know 
 your ship. If you have not standardized you 
 will have to guess at the number of revolu- 
 tions (say 63 for 10 knots), which may be too 
 much or too little, and then comes trouble. 
 
 Suddenly, at the close of the trials, the flag- 
 ship displayed the signal of "man-overboard." 
 Before I had a chance to come up on deck (I 
 was below at the moment), boats had been 
 manned from the Vermont, Connecticut and 
 this ship. Everyone was on the lookout for 
 the man who had so carelessly fallen over- 
 board; but the "man" proved to be only a 
 buoy which had been dropped from the flag- 
 ship. It was meant only as a practice drill, 
 yet it turned out to be a real one, for the 
 Vermont's port boat, on the weather side, was 
 swamped in lowering and all but five of the 
 crew thrown into the water. It was exciting 
 for a moment, but in a few minutes the boat 
 was safely hoisted in and the men got aboard 
 none the worse for their unexpected ducking. 
 
A BIllD'S-EYE VIEW 
 OF THE KANSAS, 
 FROM THE FORETOr 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 35 
 
 TUESDAY, JANUARY 18TH. 
 
 Mail day at last, and with it the first news 
 since we left home. If you have not actually 
 witnessed this occasion you cannot really 
 appreciate what it means on a warship. The 
 whole ship's company had been talking of it 
 for a week. Would we get mail Tuesday or 
 Wednesday? How recent the news? And 
 this morning our surmises were quieted by a 
 signal from the flagship that the mail would 
 arrive at noon. Every ship had a steamer 
 alongside the Panther to get their share of the 
 eighty bags that had come, and then these 
 raced back to their ships as fast as their little 
 engines could push them. Everyone that got 
 a letter, if only a bill, was happy, but the 
 unlucky ones well, let's forget them. 
 
 Very little took place to-day, except the 
 actual regular routine and drills. But these 
 are daily occurrences, of great importance to 
 the health and efficiency of the crews. At 
 those times, between the hours of 9 : 30 and 
 11:30, and again from 1:30 to 2:30 in the 
 afternoon, everybody works, and there is no 
 leisure for impressions except for the idlers 
 the Surgeon, Paymaster, and Chaplain. And I 
 might as a matter of fact add myself to that 
 
86 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 select number, for I, too, am practically ostra- 
 cized during those hours of work and obliged 
 to confine myself to my own meditations. 
 There is no place on deck to sit, the novelty of 
 looking on at setting up exercise wears off to 
 some extent as the same thing is gone through 
 week after week. I cannot go up to the Cap- 
 tain to chat with him whenever I see him; I 
 cannot address the officers when they are drill- 
 ing with their divisions, and still less ask ques- 
 tions of the men on the bridge when they are 
 watching the other ships for signals. This 
 work, practiced daily, is what keeps the men 
 in such splendid condition and makes the ships 
 the efficient fighting machines that they really 
 are, and, consequently, when the drills are 
 being held outsiders are requested to keep out 
 of the way. 
 
 But though cruising on a man-o'-war may 
 have its drawbacks, it surely has advantages 
 that more than compensate for the trifling 
 inconveniences you may be put to. For the 
 seeker after knowledge, the ship's library is 
 as complete in every detail as could be 
 demanded; reading matter of every descrip- 
 tion is at your disposal for the asking; then 
 there are the comfortable chairs in the ward- 
 room, as genial a set of companions a thou- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 37 
 
 sand of them about as could be found any- 
 where, and innumerable diversions which cause 
 the hours to glide by unnoticed. The band 
 plays three times a day, the piano or Victrola 
 in the wardroom, steerage, or in the men's 
 quarters may be called upon for entertain- 
 ment at any time of day when drills or other 
 duties are not interfered with, or an occasional 
 game of cards may be indulged in. Then 
 there are the mascots, dogs and cats and what 
 not, to make friends with, while the men are 
 ever ready, when the smoking lamp is lighted, 
 to add to your pleasure and entertainment 
 with yarns innumerable of the four seas. So 
 there is some play after all in this busy life 
 on board a man-o'-war. 
 
 The list of duties which fill the ship's routine 
 would fill a page. Something is going on 
 every half hour of the day from 5 a.m. till 
 9 p.m., and every drill and order is made known 
 to the crew by bugle calls. Bugles are ever- 
 lastingly blown, many at the same time; of 
 course they are all sounding the same call, 
 but not in the same time or in the same key. 
 The result is especially offensive. One bugler 
 will sound some jumble of notes, another 
 below decks will take up the refrain with varia- 
 tions of his own, of course, and two or three 
 
38 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 others try to copy the first two for a while 
 longer. Then every man, in many cases hav- 
 ing no ear for music, runs to his proper post 
 and does what he is supposed to do. How 
 they differentiate between the 101 calls that 
 are heard at one time or another is astonishing. 
 I tried to master them, finally learned one or 
 two and then gave it up, until someone taught 
 me the trick of getting hold of the refrain 
 associated with each one. Then it was plain 
 sailing. For instance, at the "sick bay call" 
 I say to myself: 
 
 "Come and get your quinine, quinine," 
 
 and instinctively make for the sick bay under 
 the impression that I am ill. Or the officers' 
 call: 
 
 "Get your sword on, 
 Get your sword on," 
 
 and the mess call: 
 
 "Soupy, soupy, soup, 
 Without a single bean, 
 Porky, porky, pork, 
 Without a streak of lean, 
 Coffee, coffee, cofF, 
 The worst 'twas ever seen." 
 
 The way the men rush to the side when the 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 39 
 
 swimming call sounds makes you sing to 
 yourself: 
 
 "Bought a chicken for fifty cents, 
 The son of a gun jumped over the fence," 
 
 and over you go. 
 
 But nothing could be more appropriate than 
 the closing ceremonies of the day, when, after 
 tattoo has sounded, taps comes, and you are 
 lulled to sleep to the music of that beautiful 
 melody, 
 
 "Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep !" 
 
 Speaking of rivalry between ships at speed 
 trials and target practice, you little realize 
 how keenly interested all are even in all small 
 matters. So far the competition has been 
 restricted to proper distances, making turns 
 accurately, making and answering signals. 
 Every morning at 10 o'clock, the flags hoisted 
 on each ship tell the number of sick and 
 absentees, and at noon they give you the posi- 
 tion of the ship and the amount of coal con- 
 sumed in the last twenty-four hours. Every- 
 one is on the lookout for such signals, and 
 immediately does the news spread when your 
 ship has beaten her consorts. 
 
 So the routine goes on, and even I have 
 somewhat become a part of it. At certain 
 
40 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 times I am expected to fall in at a designated 
 station, and have a place where I must report 
 when the Abandon- Ship drill or the general 
 quarters are held. Otherwise I am pretty free 
 to do much as I please. 
 
 Everyone on board has his own particular 
 place. The Captain owns the starboard side 
 of the quarter-deck, where none dare go unless 
 he indicates that he would like to have some- 
 one join him. The port side belongs to the 
 other officers, and the Captain never goes 
 there, although, being the Captain, he has a 
 right to go where he pleases. The Captain 
 has his own particular hatchway to come up 
 on deck or go below, the wardroom officers 
 theirs, and the junior officers theirs. One day, 
 while still an ignoramus, I started down the 
 Captain's hatchway; half way down I met 
 him coming up, so I "backwatered" and 
 waited on deck. When he came up, he looked 
 up rather surprised and said, "Oh, I beg your 
 pardon, I did not see you," as if he meant, 
 "Well, don't you know any better?" At any 
 rate, I never forgot that lesson. 
 
 FRIDAY, JANUARY 21sx. 
 
 To-day all the ships of this class held their 
 four-hour Full Power Trials under forced 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 41 
 
 draft. The Connecticut, followed by the Ver- 
 mont, Kansas, Minnesota and New Hamp- 
 shire, left the bay at 6 a.m. for the eighty-mile 
 race which was to determine which of them was 
 to have the glory of being reputed the fastest. 
 The ships lined up ready for a racing start. 
 The signals from the flagship ordered 16 
 knots, then 17 knots, then 18, and then "all 
 you can." With clouds of smoke pouring 
 from all their funnels and huge white masses 
 of foam at the bows, the ships went at it in 
 real earnest. The line wavered as first one, 
 then another ship led. After an hour the 
 Vermont gradually dropped astern owing to 
 the failure of her boiler feed pumps, but the 
 others kept on even terms for over three hours. 
 On they sped! At 9:30 we were off Santiago 
 harbor and a short while later opposite wrecks 
 of the Spanish fleet. About this time the 
 Connecticut forged ahead, while the Kansas 
 left the New Hampshire behind. Even at the 
 end of the race it was a question as to who had 
 actually won, but the final returns showed 
 that the Connecticut had outdistanced us, while 
 we were 200 yards ahead of the New Hamp- 
 shire. Exciting! To appreciate fully what it 
 meant you had to be there. Everyone not 
 occupied elsewhere was on the quarter-deck, in 
 
42 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 spite of the smoke and cinders, to watch this 
 trial of speed and endurance. And to those 
 whom duty kept below word was continually 
 sent regarding the position of the ships. }t 
 was on them that all depended, and heroically 
 did they do their part that day. In the engine 
 room, a modern inferno, oil-bespattered 
 men, stripped to the waist, moved about silently 
 amidst the great piston rods and crankpins, 
 revolving at the rate of 125 turns per minute, 
 alert and awake to every sound of the engines, 
 while in the fire rooms the men toiled untir- 
 ingly, shovelling coal and working with 
 renewed enthusiasm whenever an encouraging 
 bit of news came down from the bridge. 
 
 Figures mean very little, but those which we 
 had before us at the end of the day's work 
 spelled the history of years of continuous 
 watchfulness and care. That three ships 
 should, after three years' continuous hard 
 service, including the trip around the world, 
 exceed their original builders' trial speeds by 
 almost a whole knot, is a record never before 
 chronicled. 
 
 Of course we celebrated that event with due 
 ceremony that evening. Champagne for the 
 first time this cruise, on the Engineer natur- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 43 
 
 ally, good cigars, a delicious dinner, songs 
 a-plenty, and the Victrola. We were a happy 
 crowd. 
 
 SATURDAY,, JANUARY 22ND. 
 
 We had showers, quite heavy at times, all 
 day, so all parties for shore were discouraged 
 from trying to "hit the beach." Saturday 
 being a half-holiday on board ship, nothing 
 occurred out of the ordinary. In the evening, 
 however, we had a treat. A large raised 
 platform was rigged up under the awning 
 on the quarter-deck, and here after supper 
 we enjoyed a number of good boxing bouts 
 which the men had arranged for the general 
 entertainment. The entire crew and all the 
 officers were grouped on deck, in the mast, 
 and on the turrets, to see it. It was not high- 
 class boxing in every case, but there was no 
 fake about it. The men went at each other in 
 dead earnest, and fun ! we had the time of our 
 lives. The greatest enthusiasm prevailed. 
 People may cry against boxing in the Navy. 
 But these bouts, with well-padded gloves, were 
 all for sport, there was no money in it, and 
 you could not imagine a cleaner form of 
 amusement for all concerned. 
 
44 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 SUNDAY, JANUARY 23RD. 
 
 Guantanamo Bay, some six miles inland 
 from its entrance, narrows down to a small 
 channel of moderate depth before it once more 
 spreads out in an enormous expanse of water, 
 which usually passes under the picturesque 
 name of Joa Bay. Here it is that the visitor 
 may see the ruins of an old Spanish fort, con- 
 structed years before on Toro Cay to guard 
 this inner harbor against the intrusion of a 
 hostile force. During the late war it figured 
 somewhat prominently as the scene of a bom- 
 bardment by some American ships-of-war. 
 But its chief claim to fame lies in the fact that 
 long ago, about the middle of the eighteenth 
 century, it was made use of by the British fleet 
 under Admiral Vernon as a base of supplies 
 during its operations against Havana, which 
 shows that even in the days of old the advan- 
 tages and strategic location of this admirable 
 bay were fully appreciated. 
 
 The country all around is generally flat and 
 swampy, but uninhabited except in two places, 
 where docks have been erected for the accom- 
 modation of the few steamers that ply between 
 this and other ports of call on the coast, and 
 groups of hamlets have sprung up, to which 
 

A LANDSMAN'S LOG 45 
 
 the names of Caimanera and Boqueron have 
 been given. Until I saw Caimanera on the 
 chart as the nearest settlement I had never 
 heard of it, and I must say that I was amazed 
 to find what a bustling terminal it was, 
 whenever a ship tied up to the dock. 
 
 It was eight o'clock when we came along- 
 side the landing, having made the trip up the 
 bay in one of the ship's steamers. Our destina- 
 tion was Guantanamo City, which the chart 
 locates some seventeen miles inland on the 
 single track railway which runs from Caima- 
 nera. We were still early, for the train, as 
 usual, had not yet come in, and the few inhabi- 
 tants that were stirring could give us no infor- 
 mation as to the probable time of its departure. 
 At least, that was what we gathered from the 
 Navigator, who was the only one of the party 
 who knew any Spanish and had therefore 
 assumed the responsibility of personally con- 
 ducting the expedition. And it was fortunate 
 that he did, for otherwise we should never have 
 known that that morning the train for Guan- 
 tanamo did not start from the regular station 
 but from some temporary structure some dis- 
 tance inland. This we finally found, by dint 
 of judicious questioning, and before long were 
 on our way to the metropolis of which we had 
 
46 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 heard so much. It takes thirty minutes, 
 schedule but not actual time, to cover the 
 seventeen miles between these two points, at 
 a fare of seventy-five cents for the round trip. 
 We were interested to note that all the rolling 
 stock of this railway was of American manu- 
 facture, some of the locomotives being acquired 
 as recently as 1905, but the cars were old and 
 dilapidated, and the roadbed shaky, to say the 
 least. The system apparently suffered greatly 
 during the insurrections which at one time 
 were so frequent on the island, for there are 
 evidences everywhere of wanton destruction 
 and resulting neglect. 
 
 Guantanamo is a decided disappointment. 
 We had heard much of what a large "city" it 
 was, with its 25,000 inhabitants. But its 
 size, we thought, had been greatly exag- 
 gerated, for the place did not seem large 
 enough to accommodate half that number, and 
 besides we "saw" it all in less than a few hours. 
 The streets are unpaved and never swept or 
 cleaned, the sidewalks very high above the 
 level of the street and narrow. The houses 
 are, as a general rule, but one story high, built 
 of wood, and painted in vivid shades of light 
 blue, pink, yellow, and lavender. The major- 
 ity of them have tin roofs, but now tiles are 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 47 
 
 becoming the fashion. But what impresses 
 the visitor is that the houses apparently are 
 never closed; the windows are left wide open, 
 and as you pass along the street you can hear 
 the chatter of voices, or the music of a guitar 
 and catch glimpses of the barren and ill-fur- 
 nished rooms. 
 
 Guantanamo is an easy town to go about in, 
 so we had no difficulty in finding our way to 
 the Plaza, which, with its church, bandstand, 
 promenades and rows of benches, occupies a 
 prominent place not far from the station. 
 Here it is that the people congregate in the 
 evening, during the cool of the day, and on 
 Sundays, after dinner, listen to the music. 
 But at the hour of our visit, the streets were 
 deserted, and it was difficult to discover anyone 
 in the act of doing anything in particular. A 
 cemetery not far off attracted our attention, 
 and it proved to be a landmark of no little 
 interest. In fact, it was the only thing worth 
 while which we discovered the entire day. 
 Monuments, vaults, and tombs innumerable 
 covered the enclosed space. Some dated back 
 to the earliest years of the Spanish occupation, 
 while many more were of real architectural 
 beauty, but all showed plainly the ravages of 
 
48 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 time and gave evidence of the terror that in 
 the last century existed in the island. 
 
 At one we met in the Hotel Venus, another 
 prominent landmark, and enjoyed a refresh- 
 ing and excellent meal, which was served for 
 the moderate price of one dollar. Then we 
 whiled away the time as best we could, and 
 about the middle of the afternoon boarded for 
 the return trip, the same train which had 
 brought us up in the morning. 
 
 MONDAY, JANUARY 24TH. 
 
 Seamanship exercises were the order of the 
 day. Everywhere about the decks the men 
 were formed in groups receiving instruction in 
 that all-important branch of their profession. 
 The day was a busy one. But in the after- 
 noon we had a thrill of excitement not adver- 
 tised beforehand, which for a time had us all 
 thoroughly aroused. It was nothing less than 
 an anchor drill, during which a division 
 manned one of the sailing launches and took 
 out a five-thousand pound anchor, which had 
 been lowered into it by means of the crane. 
 The exercise consisted in taking it out about 
 a hundred yards from the ship, dropping it 
 overboard, and then getting it up again. Of 
 course it was easy enough to let it go, but 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 49 
 
 getting it up was another matter. Every 
 means known to seamanship was tried, but 
 to no avail. The anchor refused to budge. 
 First they tried to haul it up over the stern of 
 the launch, but that was smashed and the boat 
 in danger of sinking; then an attempt was 
 made to hoist it up through a well in the boat's 
 bottom, but this proved futile, as the water 
 came up over the top of the well and the launch 
 filled with water. Finally, as a last resort, the 
 hawser was passed up to the ship's deck and a 
 winch was pressed into service to bring our 
 stubborn customer to terms, but the cable only 
 parted, and now our anchor rests on the bot- 
 tom. A buoy marks its approximate resting 
 place, and we can only hope that it is not 
 buried in futuram oblivionem. 
 
 TUESDAY,, JANUARY 25TH. 
 
 Last night about half past ten, when the 
 crew were asleep and I was about to turn in, 
 the call to Fire Quarters sounded. I had just 
 time to reach the quarter-deck, to find the men 
 already closing hatches, removing ventilators, 
 and running out lines of hose. How they did 
 it so quickly, I know not. But in two minutes 
 and forty- seven seconds after the alarm had 
 been given they had everything ready, and 
 
50 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 every division had been reported to the Cap- 
 tain. It proved to be only a drill, however, 
 and many a curse must have smitten the stars 
 at this rude interruption of sweet dreams. Yet 
 such tests of preparedness are of prime impor- 
 tance at sea, and it is only by holding such 
 tests of the ship's discipline at most unexpected 
 times that the Captain can know whether his 
 crew is ready for emergencies or not. 
 
 Most of the day was spent searching for 
 our lost anchor. Divers were sent down, and 
 the bottom was dragged, but for a long time 
 unsuccessfully. The soft bottom rendered the 
 work of the divers extremely difficult; they 
 could get no foothold, and it was only for 
 short intervals they could flounder about in 
 the slime before they had to come up to the 
 surface again to rest. Perseverance, however, 
 won the day. After a long search the anchor 
 was at last located, a hawser made fast to the 
 ring, and then the rest was easy enough. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 26TH. 
 
 Again coaling day, with about twelve hun- 
 dred tons to take aboard. The Hector, one of 
 the new fleet colliers with a capacity for eight 
 thousand tons, came alongside last evening. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 51 
 
 This is the first time the Kansas has coaled 
 from one of the new colliers, and the speed 
 with which coal was taken aboard was conse- 
 quently a great improvement over past per- 
 formances. Over six hundred tons were taken 
 on during the first three hours, starting at 5 :30 
 a.m. Last November when this ship coaled at 
 Hampton Roads, from the Marcellus, one of 
 the relics of the Spanish War, it took fifteen 
 hours to get twelve hundred tons on board! 
 With the Hector this amount of work could 
 be accomplished in four hours, which even then 
 is not a record when we consider the four hun- 
 dred tons an hour that some ships have taken 
 aboard. 
 
 Well, coaling is about the dirtiest, if not the 
 dirtiest work a warship can do. It seems 
 almost a profanation of the exemplary neat- 
 ness of the man-o'-war. Nevertheless, it is a 
 job that is almost invariably performed with 
 expedition and "neatness." When the collier 
 comes alongside, everything is ready for the 
 fray. Tackle and coal bags (capable of hold- 
 ing 800 pounds of coal), shovels, running 
 trucks, etc., are brought up on the deck. Sec- 
 tions of men from each division are sent down 
 into the collier's hold. (All the work of 
 coaling is done by the warship's crew; the 
 
52 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 collier men lounge about, smoke, and watch 
 the other fellows work. ) Every opening, port, 
 hatch, ventilator, has meanwhile been tightly 
 closed and covered, that as little dust as possi- 
 ble may enter places other than the bunkers. 
 Chutes to the latter are rigged up from the 
 upper deck down through the main and berth 
 decks. The marines, stewards and messmen 
 are on turrets, decks, and at the chute openings 
 to keep the ball rolling, while in the coal 
 bunkers the engineer force are at work stow- 
 ing away the coal evenly and smoothly. 
 
 The bags of coal are filled in the collier's 
 hold, attached to the whips, and swung up on 
 the deck, where waiting hands grab them, and 
 place them on running trucks to be carted 
 across the deck or dumped down the chutes on 
 this side. Every man goes at the work cheer- 
 fully and in a happy mood. The work is no 
 bugbear. Far from it. The clothes worn by 
 some of the men would lead you to believe a 
 fancy dress party was on. The band plays 
 gay marches and popular songs in the fore- 
 mast, giving the whole a most cheerful atmos- 
 phere. Meanwhile the men go at it with a 
 vim, black from head to foot, playing like 
 children in snow piles, excepting that the 
 piles are black instead of white. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 53 
 
 After the coaling is over, the gear is first 
 stowed away; then the dirt cleared away, the 
 men wash themselves and take a plunge over 
 the side, the sides and decks of the ship are 
 washed, holystoned and sandstoned, and in two 
 or three hours you would never suspect what 
 had been going on not long before. 
 
 THURSDAY,, JANUARY 27TH. 
 
 To-day was "field day," which means clean- 
 ing day; the usual proceeding after coaling, 
 and what an awful performance! Some think 
 it worse than coaling itself. You cannot go 
 anywhere. Water streams drench you wher- 
 ever you may step, everyone is washing and 
 cleaning, the decks are slimy with wet sand 
 and ankle deep in water, while below all is 
 soaking; the rooms are being scrubbed, the 
 wardroom cleaned out, while the passageways 
 get their share of attention. Being driven out 
 of my quarters, I first sought refuge on deck, 
 but in a short time found myself dodging 
 streams of water; so I went up on the bridge, 
 thinking that that at least would be a dry spot. 
 But it was the worst of all. As a last resort I 
 sought refuge in the mast, and there I stayed 
 for at least an hour before I could descend 
 with any degree of safety. 
 
54 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 In the evening a party from this ship went 
 to an Entertainment and Smoker on board the 
 Mississippi, and we were quite surprised to 
 find what an elaborate performance had been 
 prepared for us. A large stage had been 
 erected on the after part of the quarter-deck, 
 with all the regulation flies and wings and 
 upper and lower entrances. Even the drop- 
 curtains had not been overlooked. The deck 
 was decorated with numerous palms and green 
 plants, and was so well disguised that you 
 could easily have imagined yourself in a mod- 
 ern theatre. And the crowd! Everyone was 
 there; the Admirals, Captains, Staff Officers, 
 and delegations of men from each of the bat- 
 tleships. Several thousand must have been 
 present. The officers sat in front, and the men 
 behind, on the turrets, bridge, superstructure, 
 and in the mast, which had temporarily taken 
 the place of "nigger heaven." The boxing was 
 very good, especially the last bout, in which 
 the contestants were the two best lightweights 
 in the fleet. Then followed a concert by the 
 ship's band, that was a credit to their art, and 
 last came the old-fashioned minstrel show, with 
 its songs and dances, and jokes and sketches. 
 Supper between the two halves of the pro- 
 gramme was an elaborate affair, everything 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 55 
 
 in the way of "eats and drinks." Each mess 
 had its own supper; the wardroom officers 
 went to the wardroom, the steerage in the 
 steerage, while the crew had an elaborate 
 spread prepared for their guests forward on 
 the berth-deck. 
 
 FRIDAY,, JANUARY 28TH. 
 
 Our peaceful slumbers were rudely inter- 
 rupted at an early hour by a bugle call that 
 sent every one scurrying up on deck. It was 
 the signal to abandon ship. Officers and men 
 seemed to be rushing about, and the greatest 
 confusion appeared to reign. But to the 
 trained eye it was only an orderly confusion, 
 for each man was doing exactly what he was 
 supposed to do and no one was in anyone 
 else's way. Some were bearing water-casks, 
 others boxes of provisions, while a great num- 
 ber brought quantities of arms and ammuni- 
 tion, which they placed in the proper place, 
 and then again disappeared in search of what 
 else it was their duty to provide for that partic- 
 ular boat. The minute I reached the deck I 
 had gone forward of the port gangway, where 
 the crew of the second cutter were assembling, 
 for that was the boat to which I had been 
 assigned for such an emergency. And then, 
 
56 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 for the first time, I fully realized how I, too, 
 had become a part of the ship's company, and 
 had like the others instinctively sought my 
 station without any "whys and wherefores." 
 Then at the command all the boats were low- 
 ered, shoved off from the ship's side, and 
 rowed to some distance until the general recall 
 once more brought them alongside. 
 
 SATURDAY, JANUARY 29TH. 
 
 There are many beautiful places in the 
 world, and there are still more that are strange 
 and picturesque to the foreigner who visits 
 them for the first time, but few, I was told, 
 would I find as interesting as Santiago de 
 Cuba. So when the invitation was extended 
 to me to join a party of officers on a short trip 
 to that city, I did not long hesitate to take 
 advantage of the opportunity of seeing that 
 historic spot. 
 
 We started at eight-thirty in the morning in 
 a pelting rain which almost dampened my 
 enthusiasm, for the prospect of a six-hour trip 
 on a small navy tug in such weather was not 
 especially inviting. But the Paymaster only 
 laughed at me and told me I would never 
 be a real sailor if I minded the weather, with 
 the result that when the good old Uncos got 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 57 
 
 under way, shortly after breakfast, I was one 
 of the jolly party of twenty that had embarked 
 on the expedition. We huddled ourselves in 
 the small chart house up forward; we were in 
 crowded quarters, however, and it was only 
 by admitting five chairs and no more that we 
 all were able to find shelter from the wind and 
 rain. 
 
 The passage down the bay was smooth 
 enough, it never is anything else, but once 
 outside we pitched and rolled as if it was a 
 question of making a new record. The worst 
 of it was that we had the sea and wind astern; 
 only an ordinary ground- swell and gentle trade 
 wind. But as the wind here never blows 
 except from the east, we had forebodings 
 regarding our return trip against both wind 
 and wave, which were anything but pleasant. 
 Six mortal hours was the time necessary to 
 get us there; yet the distance from Guanta- 
 namo Bay to Santiago is only forty miles, 
 or fifty-two miles, if you should happen to ask 
 the same question of two people. 
 
 For the first quarter of the distance, the 
 coast line is low, dull, and uninteresting, but 
 as you go farther westward the land appears 
 more rugged, the promontories become more 
 abrupt, until in the neighborhood of Daiquiri 
 
58 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 the mountains are imposing in their height. 
 Turquino to the westward of Santiago rises 
 eight thousand four hundred feet out of the 
 sea, while another peak to the eastward is over 
 five thousand feet in height. Yet there is a 
 barren bleakness about them which, even from 
 a distance, gives the whole a dismal setting. 
 
 Daiquiri is sixteen miles east of Morro Cas- 
 tle, and owes its prominence in history to the 
 fact that it was the point where most of 
 the American troops under General Shafter 
 landed in 1898 for their operations against 
 Santiago. Looking from the sea you almost 
 wonder that they ever attempted a landing 
 there at all. The approach to Santiago 
 appears impossible. But they say that once 
 on shore trails by the dozen are to be found 
 that will lead you to the promised land. That 
 may be so, but I was not the least tempted 
 to verify my informant's statements after my 
 recent experiences on Cuban soil. 
 
 Then as we sped on, at the remarkable speed 
 of eight knots, we sighted the entrance to 
 Santiago harbor, where only twelve years be- 
 fore history had been made. Viewed from the 
 sea the entrance is a distinct disappointment, 
 for the simple reason that you can hardly see 
 it. It is almost hidden in the outline of the 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 59 
 
 shore. Yet its position is revealed to the 
 mariner from a distance by the remarkable 
 valley that lies between the lofty peaks of the 
 Cobre Mountains I have just mentioned, one 
 of which, Turquino, may on a clear day be seen 
 even from Jamaica. Entering the harbor, we 
 passed into the narrow and tortuous channel. 
 Above us on the right towered historic Morro, 
 with its terraced fortifications, while to the 
 left were scattered the many batteries that had 
 at one time or another been erected by the 
 Spaniards when invasion threatened. The 
 harbor indeed does make an ideal strategic 
 base, with every advantage for defense that 
 nature can provide, but of questionable value 
 owing to the facility with which it could be 
 "bottled up" by the same means that Hobson 
 once tried. Farther up the harbor widens out 
 into a large bay, at the end of which lies the 
 city, resting on the side of the gentle slope. 
 
 I had naturally expected to find Santiago 
 an interesting place, replete with the history 
 of that heroic defense, the marks of which are 
 still to be seen on the bleak hills surrounding 
 the city. Once on shore we made the best of 
 our way, in a carriage, of course, as it was 
 very hot and the street led up a steep hill, 
 to the Hotel Casa Grande, which is considered 
 
60 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 by many the best native hotel in Cuba. First 
 we enjoyed a hearty luncheon, which I must 
 say was greatly appreciated, our last meal 
 having been some seven hours before. Then 
 we sat around, and watched other people do 
 the same. For in the daytime the Plaza is 
 deserted. In vain we looked for the prome- 
 naders. Their hour had not yet come. "But if 
 the gentlemen would only be patient, and wait 
 until the evening, then they would see a won- 
 derful sight," our affable proprietor informed 
 us. So we sat a while longer on the veranda, 
 and contemplated that Plaza, which in so few 
 hours would reveal to us the charms of the 
 out-of-door evening life which is such a feature 
 of existence in these tropical countries. At the 
 north lay the cathedral, with its ancient towers, 
 while on either side of the Plaza were the two 
 prominent hotels and a number of the more 
 beautiful private residences. The garden was 
 crowded with palms and flowering shrubs, 
 while the walks and benches filled the inter- 
 vening space under the shade of the trees. 
 
 Santiago indeed proved more of an evening 
 city than any I had heretofore seen. At seven 
 the entire scene had changed. There was 
 music, and the Plaza had been transformed 
 into a veritable place of assembly for the entire 
 
SEEN FROM ALOFT: THE QUARTER-DECK OF THE KANSAS 
 
 Copyright, 1911, by R. W. Neeser 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 61 
 
 population. The walks were thronged with 
 Santiago's fair ones, while all along the prom- 
 enades were rows of chairs, where the people 
 sat laughing and talking. 
 
 SUNDAY, JANUARY 30TH. 
 
 To have left Santiago without seeing Morro 
 Castle would have been to miss the most pic- 
 turesque sight in southern Cuba. So at an 
 early hour we hired a carriage and took the 
 road which leads out to that historic fortress. 
 The first part of the journey lay across a very 
 wild country, thick with underbrush, which 
 ascends gradually to the summit of the range of 
 hills that surround the harbor and connect the 
 city with the castle. The scenery is very 
 beautiful, and when once you reach the object 
 of your visit a most impressive panorama 
 unfolds before your eyes. High above the sea, 
 overlooking the narrow channel and only a 
 stone's throw from the opposing shore, stands 
 Morro. On either side the tortuous channel 
 is flanked by batteries built centuries ago, 
 in 1664, while in the far background are 
 those same lofty mountains which are to be 
 seen from everywhere. It is really superb. 
 The castle itself is fascinating. Built on the 
 edge of a cliff, its lower chambers and dun- 
 
62 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 geons hollowed out of the rock, and above these 
 its intricate passages, courtyard, moat, bridge 
 and high battlements, it impresses you most 
 deeply. 
 
 Thanks to our guide, one of the Rurales on 
 garrison duty, nothing passed unnoticed. But 
 as he knew only Spanish, and we none at all, 
 we experienced some difficulty in understand- 
 ing him until he had the happy inspiration of 
 resorting to some sort of sign language. We 
 saw the room where Hobson was imprisoned, 
 the marks on the walls where the shells from 
 the American blockading fleet struck, the 
 ancient guns and old wooden carriages, and 
 the cell with its trapdoor in the floor through 
 which Cuban political prisoners were wont to 
 "disappear" into the sea below. 
 
 At noon we were back in the city again, and 
 at one-thirty on board the Uncos, ready for the 
 return trip. But for some reason we never 
 got under way until three o'clock. Just before 
 casting off the Paymaster and I decided it 
 would be wise to lay in a store of provisions in 
 case we should become hungry before the tug 
 arrived at Guantanamo Bay. We ran to a 
 nearby buvette in search of a bite, and to our 
 delight found a fine ham and some bread, which 
 would be just the thing for the whole party. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 63 
 
 But the Cubano wanted four dollars, oro amer- 
 icano, for the ham alone, so we told him he 
 could keep his ham, and go to the devil, too, 
 for all we cared. 
 
 We did care, however, before we reached 
 home, and many a time wished we had spent 
 our coin for that ham. The trip was anything 
 but pleasant. Long! Six mortal hours (we 
 got in only after nine), with nothing to eat 
 since noon, no comfortable place to sit or stand, 
 the tug rocking and tossing about like a cork 
 and shipping green seas over her chubby bow. 
 She made such heavy weather that the Boat- 
 swain had to slow her down. Everyone was 
 tired, hungry and grumpy, and when we 
 finally stepped on board our respective ships, 
 we vowed we would never again leave them for 
 any excursion trips on navy tugs. 
 
 MONDAY, JANUARY 31sx. 
 
 "Blue Monday!" For at eight began the 
 first of the dreaded Admiral's Inspections. 
 Not that we feared the results, but because 
 they interrupted our peaceful "home life." It 
 was "Day A," devoted to "materiel, personnel, 
 organization and drills (fire, collision, aban- 
 don ship, and divisional)." The inspection 
 began at nine and was divided into seven 
 
64 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 periods. The Admiral and his Board, consist- 
 ing of about sixteen officers from the other 
 ships, came aboard in royal style. Not a nook 
 or corner, from truck to double-bottoms, 
 escaped their eagle eyes. Everything under- 
 went a searching examination, and I am sure 
 that I too was an object for inspection, though 
 I did my level best to keep out of sight. Then 
 divisional drills of every kind were held, and 
 other drills followed until I thought the end 
 would never come. But they say that we 
 weathered the storm in a most seamanlike man- 
 ner, and that the examining officers were seen 
 to mark "excellent" opposite the names of a 
 majority of the "events," so that we are doubly 
 grateful now that it is all over. 
 
 TUESDAY, FEBRUARY IST. 
 
 Having successfully passed the searching 
 inspection, we settled down to our regular 
 schedule again. At seven, two of the divisions 
 went ashore with one of the three-inch field 
 pieces for target practice among the hills, 
 where they unlimbered, and it seems had a 
 most busy time obliterating an obstinate tar- 
 get on a distant hillock. I had intended 
 to accompany them, but when the Major 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 65 
 
 asked me to go ashore with him to recon- 
 noitre some country over which it was pro- 
 posed to hold manoeuvres and brigade drills 
 during the next few weeks, I gladly assented 
 and postponed my other plan to some future 
 day. Our "hike" proved of great educational 
 value. We learned the lay of the land, and 
 when we returned on board some hours later 
 felt that we really understood what the charts 
 were about and could talk intelligently on the 
 subject. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 2ND. 
 
 At an early hour we had General Quarters, 
 and this time more extensively than on any 
 other occasion during this cruise. The guns 
 were manned, magazines opened, ammunition 
 hoists brought into service, and ranges trans- 
 mitted to the sight-setters, as on the day of 
 battle. It was a most interesting exercise to 
 watch, and later when they gathered in the 
 wardroom to talk it over everyone appeared 
 pleased at the excellent showing. 
 
 In the afternoon the First Squadron 
 indulged in a Brigade Drill on shore. This 
 meant the disembarking of the entire landing 
 forces of six ships both bluejackets and 
 
66 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 marines at the signal from the flagship. It 
 was the first time this year this exercise had 
 been gone through, but as every man evidently 
 knew exactly what he was supposed to do, 
 things went pretty smoothly. The object of 
 the expedition was to occupy the range of hills 
 in the rear of the target range and fortify 
 them against a hostile force, which was sup- 
 posed to be attempting a landing on the sea 
 side. The several divisions of the regiment 
 went their way by different trails, and within 
 an hour had entrenched themselves among the 
 hills, whence they completely covered the 
 landing places. We could see the Admiral 
 off the shore in the Yankton, impersonating 
 the enemy, and trying to discover its defend- 
 ers. But I doubt whether his eagle eye dis- 
 cerned anyone, for we were pretty well 
 screened by every bit of cover we could find. 
 Then, having accomplished the object of this 
 exercise, we headed towards home and as usual 
 retraced our steps in record-breaking time. 
 Everyone seemed to be in the best of spirits. 
 All had enjoyed the "hike" and as we crowded 
 the deck after dinner to laugh at a new set of 
 "movies" that had just come aboard, it was 
 evident that our constitutional had done us a 
 lot of good. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 67 
 
 THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD. 
 
 Long before the breakfast hour, the fleet put 
 to sea in order to obtain tactical data for the 
 intelligent direction of the ships as units of the 
 fighting fleet. The First Squadron steamed to 
 the eastward, while the second and this ship 
 went in the opposite direction. Turning trials 
 were held by all the ships in pairs, one acting as 
 pivot while the other went through the exer- 
 cises. We did ours with the Idaho, and about 
 noon, when it was all over and we were no 
 longer needed, we gladly took leave of the 
 "strangers" and went in search of the flagship, 
 on board of which such of our officers as could 
 be spared were holding "Admiral's Inspection 
 Day C" (Cleared for Action Underway). 
 We finally found her some twenty miles up 
 the coast, and then began the tedious task of 
 getting our officers back to this ship. A 
 heavy ground-swell made the exercise all the 
 more thrilling, but everyone seemed to have a 
 good eye, and excellent judgment in making 
 the leap for the whaleboat, so that no one got 
 a bath, and we were soon under way in single 
 column with the rest of the Squadron in search 
 of the other ships that were playing the role 
 of the enemy's fleet. About two we sighted 
 
68 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 them, cleared for action, trained our guns on 
 them, and carried out every exercise as in 
 actual battle, except that no shots were fired. 
 The two squadrons manoeuvred for position, 
 while the umpires kept a careful watch of all 
 movements, and ordered such ships as in their 
 opinion had been disabled by gunfire to drop 
 out of the line of battle. 
 
 FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 4TH. 
 
 All of last night we were at sea cruising in 
 the Windward Passage. Why I do not know ; 
 the Admiral never told us his reason for the 
 change of front. Perhaps he thought we would 
 like the change, and I must say that if that was 
 his idea he read our thoughts rather success- 
 fully. As if to make sure that he had judged 
 us correctly at the time of our last inspection, 
 he once more came aboard this morning to con- 
 firm his opinion as to the preparedness of this 
 ship for war, and we consequently had to go 
 through the ordeal of clearing the ship for 
 action. At five the men began the thorough 
 task; I know the hour because the noise they 
 made unshipping things was enough to wake 
 even the soundest sleeper, which means me. 
 On deck everything movable was taken down 
 and stowed below; davits, boats, railings, flag- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 69 
 
 staffs, and ventilators, all disappeared down 
 the hatches, while below decks such objects as 
 could be dispensed with in battle were labeled 
 "Overboard in Action," which, by the way, was 
 a tag that the practical jokers had great fun 
 affixing on the backs of their unsuspecting 
 victims. When the inspection commenced, at 
 nine o'clock, the crew were at their quarters, 
 and all was in readiness. Then the drill began ; 
 everything was done under as near battle con- 
 ditions as possible; the ship was steered from 
 the conning tower, and officers were all at 
 their battle stations. Of course I, too, had to 
 have a post, so the Executive Officer desig- 
 nated me as his aide in the Central Station, 
 and here I had the opportunity of seeing this 
 important part of the ship's equipment for 
 battle, the central for all the telephones and 
 voice-tube systems in action, as also the loca- 
 tion of the emergency hand steering-gear. We 
 were under the shelter of the protective deck, 
 far below the water line, where few shells 
 would find their way in time of battle. Three 
 hours was I there, not daring to show myself 
 elsewhere for fear of meeting one of the 
 inspecting officers, but the time passed quickly 
 enough, and we soon were on deck listening 
 to all the amusing things that had happened, 
 
70 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 for the bluejacket always has a keen sense of 
 humor and something to say that will make 
 the worst gloom forget his thoughts. 
 
 It seems that while the inspection was going 
 on, it occurred to one of the inspecting officers 
 to look into the engineers' washroom to see 
 that no one was lurking. Of course he had 
 to find a victim, a coal-passer, whose real sta- 
 tion during this particular drill was certainly 
 not there. In answer to the natural question, 
 the unfortunate man said he did not know, but 
 he had the presence of mind to add that he had 
 been told to stay there, in the washroom, to 
 keep others from coming in, and so he was 
 just there. But the best of all happened up 
 on the berth- deck, where the 7-inch guns were 
 being worked during the General Quarters 
 drill. They say that in the course of the 
 "battle" one of the gun pointers was suddenly 
 informed by the inspecting officer that all his 
 gun-crew, except himself, had been killed, and 
 that he was asked what he would do to con- 
 tinue his piece in action. Without a word he 
 rushed to the ammunition hoist, grabbed the 
 shell and powder-bags, rammed them into the 
 breech, closed the latter, trained the gun from 
 the trainer's platform, ran around to his own 
 station, pointed the gun and then fired it, 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 71 
 
 all to the astonishment of the officer, who was 
 utterly unprepared for such an exhibition of 
 presence of mind. It goes without saying that 
 he gave the man full credit for what he had 
 done, and complimented him highly; only he 
 took the liberty of suggesting to him that it 
 would perhaps have been somewhat less stren- 
 uous and exhausting, as well as much more 
 advisable, to have sought a relief gun-crew! 
 
 After dinner "Battle Plan No. 1" was 
 resumed, except that the positions of the 
 squadrons were reversed, and the same prob- 
 lems worked over as yesterday. Only the sim- 
 plest manoeuvres were indulged in, designed 
 especially to give practice to the fire-control 
 party, the range finder operators, and those 
 working the telephone systems, and when the 
 engagement had been brought to a successful 
 close, we all returned to our anchorage in the 
 bay, where we found the Virginia, which had 
 just come from the States. 
 
 SATURDAY,, FEBRUARY 5TH. 
 
 Another "field day," and all morning the 
 men paddled about barefooted in the streams 
 of water that flooded the decks. Cleanliness 
 is indeed a sort of fetish in the Navy. 
 
72 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 Then at ten-thirty came the usual "Quar- 
 ters," after which guard mount took place and 
 the "sailor guard" turned this duty over to the 
 marines. In former years this duty of sentries 
 and orderlies, and parading the guard was 
 always performed by the marines, who were 
 looked upon somewhat in the light of the old 
 Swiss guards, a sort of protection to the throne, 
 but not long ago the Secretary of the Navy 
 decided that it would not hurt the bluejackets 
 to try their hand at it, so an order appeared 
 which upset all traditions in the service and 
 which directed that henceforth a detachment 
 of bluejackets should perform the duty for at 
 least a month in every quarter of the year. 
 Of course no one liked the idea. It was out- 
 rageous. And the wonder is that it succeeded 
 at all, for if anything is an impossibility it is 
 trying to make a soldier out of a sailor. But 
 the quarterly duty is over now, at least for the 
 next three months; so everyone on board is 
 happy again, the sailors because they are 
 through with it, and the marines because they 
 are once more doing what they always have 
 considered their duty and privilege on ship- 
 board. 
 
 Of course this dislike and aversion of Navy 
 men to doing anything which they considered 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 73 
 
 the lot of the soldier came in for a warm dis- 
 cussion in the mess at dinner time. Everyone 
 had something to say on the subject. But by 
 far the most entertaining of the many tales we 
 listened to was the one of how the middies 
 of 1850 received the order that for the first 
 time subjected them to "soldiering." For 
 them it was a clean break with the past. 
 Never before had they been called upon to 
 do such work. But the Department seemed 
 to consider the matter in another light, and in 
 due time decreed that the new system should 
 be introduced at the Academy. Their drill- 
 master was a former West Pointer, a gifted 
 and able man, but unfortunately handicapped 
 in that he was a bad stutterer. The poor 
 midshipmen hated the menial duty and longed 
 for an opportunity of showing their displeas- 
 ure in some effective manner. Finally the 
 long looked for chance came. For one fine 
 day, as the battalion was parading along the 
 Severn River, they executed a movement 
 which brought them face to face with the 
 water; they were rapidly nearing it, when 
 lo! the poor Professor's voice failed him, and 
 before he could utter a command the entire 
 detachment plunged into the water and buried 
 their muskets in the muddy bottom. 
 
74 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 MONDAY, FEBRUARY TTH. 
 
 There is nothing like taking advantage of 
 opportunities, for experience in the past has 
 already only too well taught me that when I 
 refuse to do so, I usually have good cause for 
 regret. So when I was awakened this morn- 
 ing at the cheerful hour of five o'clock (two 
 bells, I should have said), I tried to forget the 
 fact that it was a most unusual hour for me 
 to be getting up, and dressed as quickly as 
 possible, as a steamer from the Connecticut 
 was already alongside ready to begin the daily 
 morning duty of going to market at Caima- 
 nera. For this is a most important event in the 
 daily life of the mess, one on the success of 
 which much depends, simply because it means 
 fresh fruits and vegetables. One of our mid- 
 shipmen has become possessed with the idea 
 that to make this tour of duty is the greatest 
 joy in life, so all who in the past have had to do 
 it much against their will, have hailed him as a 
 deliverer and he never yet has had to fight 
 for his place. Apparently he tired of making 
 the trip with just mess stewards as com- 
 panions, for he asked me if I would not join 
 him. It was wonderful, he said. The most 
 beautiful time of day! And then to think of 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 75 
 
 that breakfast which Sung-Lee daily prepared 
 for him on the veranda of the small restaurant 
 at Caimanera! How could I resist? Well, 
 to be frank, I didn't. I simply went, enjoyed 
 the experience, and wasted the good part of 
 an hour doing nothing, and then returned to 
 the fleet. It was all very nice, and I would 
 have been glad that I had gone, if by doing so 
 I had not missed a most interesting phase of 
 the ship's drills. For it seems that while we 
 were at our ease on Sung-Lee's charming 
 veranda the torpedo and several other divi- 
 sions had left for Granadillo Bay to lay a 
 mine-field. But it didn't do any good to make 
 myself unhappy about it, so I sought solace 
 in the steerage, where one of the midshipmen 
 comforted me by explaining all I had not seen. 
 
 TUESDAY, FEBRUARY STH. 
 
 One subject that has for some time engaged 
 everyone's attention is gunnery and target 
 practice. In about two months the fleet will 
 be engaged in record practice, each gun-crew 
 doing its best before the eyes of the entire 
 Navy and each ship out to win the trophy. 
 People may cry against the annual expendi- 
 ture of such large sums of money for this 
 expensive pastime, as some are pleased to call 
 
76 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 it, but it is an absolute necessity. What is not 
 generally known, however, is that the train- 
 ing which leads up to target practice and 
 enables the pointers to make the records does 
 not cost the Government one cent in ammu- 
 nition. Instead a most ingenious device has 
 been invented, which, applied to the gun, 
 simulates the action of the ship, steaming at 
 high speed in a heavy sea, and the pointer is 
 thus enabled to have practice in keeping his 
 piece on a moving target. A small card, 
 pierced by an electrically operated needle 
 every time he presses the trigger, registers 
 the accuracy of his aim, and thus gives an 
 indication to the officer in charge whether the 
 man has fired when he was "on" or not. This 
 is what is called "dotter practice." It is the 
 real secret of the new system of naval gunnery 
 and of the remarkable records recently made. 
 But it is nothing new. The English and 
 French navies used such a device as early as 
 1863, but it apparently went into disuse and 
 for years remained forgotten. 
 
 Yet however valuable this method of train- 
 ing is, it can never wholly supersede target 
 practice under actual service conditions. The 
 pointers' nerves are in no way affected when 
 they press the noiseless trigger of the dotter. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 77 
 
 But when the pressing of that same trigger 
 will cause the explosion of hundreds of pounds 
 of powder and a violent recoil of the pieces at 
 their sides, their nerves will be so highly strung 
 that all previous "noiseless" training will have 
 been in vain. 
 
 But this is only one side of this important 
 training. For no sooner is this drill over than 
 the rest of the gun-crew are exercised at load- 
 ing with dummy projectiles and powder-bags. 
 Daily they become more proficient, avoiding 
 false moves and making every step with a 
 precision that in the end becomes machine- 
 like. It is as pretty a sight as you can wish for 
 to see those crews at work, while to the men it 
 becomes a sport in which competition between 
 several gun-crews is something to be seen, not 
 read about. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY OTH. 
 
 There are many drills that fill the daily 
 routine of the battleship from one end of the 
 year to the other, but none is more interesting 
 than that which follows the order, "Landing 
 force, Away!" Such an order was flown from 
 the Admiral's signal halyards this noon, and 
 before any perceptible interval of time had 
 elapsed, a dozen or more boats had left the 
 
78 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 ship's side, all crowded with men, fully 
 equipped, with emergency-rations for two 
 days, armed with boat-guns and Colt automat- 
 ics, ammunition in plenty, medicine-chests, 
 everything, in fact, that the regulations had 
 provided to render them capable of independ- 
 ent action. Then began their swift onrush 
 towards the beach, the momentary check at the 
 water's edge, the torrent of men in white pour- 
 ing over the bows, and the sudden disappear- 
 ance from view of the loose-knit line of skir- 
 mishers into the jungle beyond. So perfectly 
 had it all been done that the detail involved 
 was in the instant forgotten, and it was only 
 later when I saw the manuscript books that 
 each officer had in his possession, giving the 
 name, station, and duties of every man of the 
 thousand on board under all conceivable con- 
 tingencies, that I began to realize how beauti- 
 fully the machinery of the ship's organization 
 had been adjusted and how admirably it 
 worked to the ordered, effortless end. 
 
 This is the second time our landing force 
 has been ashore within the past month. How 
 strange it seems to use bluejackets on terra 
 firma. Yet it is nothing new. Often, in the 
 past, have our sailors been called upon to take 
 the part of and act with soldiers in fighting 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 79 
 
 ashore. Even where the Navy has had no 
 actual hand in the operations, it still has been 
 back of the Army and co-operating with it. 
 The enemy may not have had a single ship, yet 
 the Navy has acted in the field against him. In 
 China, Mexico, South America, Samoa, Egypt, 
 the Philippines, and Corea, such was the case. 
 And it has always been the Navy that has first 
 been called upon in emergencies. 
 
 In the evening we had our first Searchlight 
 Drill. And a very strict affair it was, too. At 
 the word of command the switches of the 
 lighting circuit were thrown out; the ship was 
 in utter darkness, and even the battle ports 
 had to be closed lest a ray of light from the 
 inside should show to the watchful enemy. 
 Only battle-lanterns were allowed and these 
 glimmered like glow-worms in the inky black- 
 ness. Below, the water-tight doors were tightly 
 shut, completely isolating the several com- 
 partments of the ship's hull, while everyone 
 moved about stealthily, talking in whispers, as 
 if the crucial moment were actually at hand. 
 Then the ardois on the flagship began to 
 twinkle the message of command. Simulta- 
 neously every searchlight on each of the sixteen 
 ships was turned on, and ninety-six rays of 
 light began to sweep the horizon in an 
 
80 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 endeavor to pick up the enemy. The strictest 
 rules governed the entire drill, for should any 
 beam of light traverse its neighbor, the effec- 
 tiveness of both would be momentarily yet 
 seriously impaired. For half an hour the 
 thrilling exhibition continued, and just as I 
 was really beginning to appreciate the beauty 
 of it, the lights suddenly went out, and there 
 remained only the ships of the fleet lying 
 quietly at anchor with only the regulation 
 lights showing and nothing at all to indicate 
 that anything out of the ordinary had recently 
 happened. 
 
 THURSDAY, FEBRUARY IOTH. 
 
 In the morning, we again went to sea, and 
 till noon idled away the hours acting as stake- 
 boat for the Vermont, which had decided to 
 have her turn at holding turning trials. We 
 remained stationary, like a log on the water, 
 while she circled round and round us, tooting 
 her whistle every half minute, and running 
 signal flags up and down. To many this may 
 have seemed a wasteful performance. From 
 many parts of the deck it did, but you had 
 only to go up on the bridge, where the officers 
 and signal division had taken their places, to 
 realize that it was not a mere pastime that 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 81 
 
 was being indulged in. It was more than 
 that. The observations that were there being 
 made and the data that were being compiled 
 were some day to be of vital importance to 
 the officers of the Vermont to enable them to 
 know their ship and to appreciate her capabili- 
 ties. For in time of action much would depend 
 on whether the Officer-of-the-Deck knew what 
 was her tactical diameter, what her advance, 
 what it would be with the inner screw backed, 
 or whether another vessel or a shoal could be 
 better avoided by backing or turning or both, 
 or in what time or what way a man overboard 
 could be picked up most quickly. Ships, like 
 human beings, have their peculiarities, and it 
 is only by going through such exercises, how- 
 ever monotonous and trivial, that those in 
 charge can learn their ways, study their effects, 
 and know how to make proper use of both 
 when the emergency arises. 
 
 This exercise completed, we formed in order 
 of battle and at two bells resumed our battle 
 plan exercises where we had left off last week. 
 When the novelty of watching these manoeu- 
 vres had worn off, I crawled into the after 12- 
 inch turret, where the crews were having their 
 loading drills. There is just room for the men 
 to work the huge piece, but I managed to 
 
82 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 squeeze myself in a corner where I would not 
 be in the way. Then I was able to contemplate 
 the wonders of this steel-walled pen by the 
 dim light of the battle lanterns. Before me 
 were the breech-mechanism and recoil-cylin- 
 ders of one of the great guns, the other 
 being hidden by a steel bulkhead, while 
 immediately in the rear of the breech was the 
 ammunition hoist that brought the great shells 
 and powder-bags up from the depths below 
 and the rammer that shoved them into the 
 breech. Every man was at his station, and the 
 way each performed his particular duty was a 
 revelation. At the word of command, the trap 
 door to the handling room opened its steel 
 jaws, up rushed the ammunition car into place 
 before the breech, which had meanwhile been 
 opened, in went the 860-pound shell and the 
 heavy powder-bags. Before I realized what 
 had happened the breech was closed, the car 
 had disappeared, the shutter below had again 
 been shut, the plugman had inserted the 
 primer, and the piece was ready. The trainer 
 and pointers were at their places in the sight- 
 ing hoods, their eyes glued to the telescope- 
 sights, while behind them stood the sight-set- 
 ters, their heads lost in telephone head-pieces, 
 ready at a moment's notice to make the all- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 83 
 
 important changes in the range and deflection. 
 Time after time the gun was loaded, without 
 the slightest misstep or false move, and then 
 you realized the real significance of that magic 
 word, "Drill," and appreciated the importance 
 of those few hours that are each day set aside 
 for it in the routine of every ship in the Navy. 
 
 FRIDAY, FEBRUARY HTH. 
 
 As usual, turning trials and battle exercises 
 were again the order of the day. But the 
 novelty has somewhat worn off by now. How- 
 ever, my opportunity to learn something more 
 about my ship came later in the day, when the 
 Executive Officer invited me to accompany 
 him on his weekly round of inspection. Need- 
 less to say I jumped at the chance and precisely 
 at the stroke of eight bells started with the 
 little procession, consisting of the Executive, 
 the Surgeon, two junior officers, the Chief 
 Master-at-Arms, and others of less note. 
 From the officers' quarters we went down to 
 the berth-deck, thence into the storerooms, the 
 torpedo-rooms, up and down ladders, through 
 narrow passageways closed by water-tight 
 doors, which seemed to open and shut like 
 the secret panels of old. Then came the 
 
84 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 steering engine and dynamo-rooms, the ammu- 
 nition handling rooms, chain and paint lockers, 
 crew's washrooms, pantries and galleys, not 
 to mention the ship's hospital, operating room 
 and "brig." Nothing seemed to escape the 
 officers' keen glances. "What was the matter 
 with that condenser yesterday morning?" the 
 Commander ejaculated as we turned a corner 
 and descended to the next deck. I hadn't 
 noticed the man at all. 
 
 Indeed, I was more appalled than ever at the 
 complexity of the huge machine. And yet in 
 the short time that the inspection lasted we had 
 visited only a few of the essential parts of the 
 ship's hold. The huge spaces devoted to boiler- 
 rooms, engine-rooms, double-bottoms, had re- 
 mained unexplored, but these did not come 
 within the scope of that afternoon's inspection. 
 Nevertheless, when I returned again to the offi- 
 cers' quarters, whence we had started, I felt 
 that it would be many days before I should be 
 able to fully appreciate the significance of that 
 long series of instantaneous impressions of 
 internal naval life. 
 
 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 14TH. 
 
 "Collision Quarters!" The shriek of the 
 siren called every man to his station on the 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 85 
 
 run. For no other command demands such 
 instant and implicit obedience as the call of 
 this moaning signal. It was only a drill, yet 
 the superb discipline that ever characterizes 
 the service sent officers and men to their posts 
 with a rapidity that bore witness to months of 
 practice. Between decks the "general alarm" 
 gong was clanging, buglers were sounding the 
 command, "To collision quarters," and hun- 
 dreds of men were hurrying about, some up on 
 the forecastle to help check the inrushing 
 water, others below to close the water-tight 
 doors that separate the several compartments 
 of the vessel's hold below the water line. The 
 whole ship was alive from the very double- 
 bottoms to the upper deck. Deep down in 
 her bowels the engineers, firemen, and coal- 
 passers were at their posts, ready to do their 
 duty; forward in the "sick bay" the hospital 
 corps were caring for the helpless unfortunates, 
 who unaided could not escape ; while amidships 
 the Master- at- Arms hurried to the "brig" and 
 released the prisoners from their cells of con- 
 finement. On the main deck the men of the 
 fourth division, one of the seven "gun divi- 
 sions" into which the ship's company is 
 divided, dragged the heavy collision mat to 
 the rail and lowered it over the side where the 
 
86 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 lower end was hauled into place over the sup- 
 posed hole in the hull by a reeving line 
 passed beneath the keel. In extreme cases the 
 "diving party" are called upon to assist the 
 men on deck, but usually the mat can be 
 adjusted without the diver's help, and with it 
 in place, the inrush of water is sufficiently 
 checked to allow the rent to be repaired from 
 within. The whole work had been performed in 
 less than ten minutes. There had been no con- 
 fusion; each man knew exactly what to do, and 
 not one had failed to perform his duty the 
 minute the shrill siren had shrieked its warn- 
 ing. 
 
 WEDNESDAY,, FEBRUARY 16TH. 
 
 "Admiral's Inspection Day D" was on the 
 schedule this morning, so all the ship's boats 
 were called away early and spent the entire 
 forenoon drilling under sail and oars, in obe- 
 dience to signals from the flagship. It was 
 indeed a pretty sight to see those many sails 
 in the bay, and one that reminded you more 
 of regatta days at Marblehead than of the 
 warlike training that called us here. 
 
 Then later on the landing forces went ashore 
 for the third time this week for Brigade Drill. 
 They landed at Hicical Beach, formed on the 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 87 
 
 flats near the shore, and disappeared from 
 view in the underbrush beyond. For once I 
 did not accompany them, and as it turned out 
 I had a rather fortunate escape. The officer 
 commanding the brigade, it seems, apparently 
 had neglected to study the indispensable chart, 
 or else was inspired with some devilish scheme, 
 for they say that he marched his command 
 right through a maze of mangroves in mud 
 into which the men sank up to their knees, and 
 often much deeper. For over an hour they 
 struggled on, only to find themselves face to 
 face with an unfordable lake. Several of the 
 men were lost and had to be saved from a 
 muddy grave by rescue parties. "It was a 
 fine party, it was!" exclaimed the corporal of 
 marines. Yet it is only by experience that one 
 learns, and perhaps this was the experience our 
 leader needed to impress upon him the impor- 
 tance of reconnoitering beforehand and the 
 inadvisability of attempting any such explor- 
 ing expeditions in the future. Still the men 
 all appeared to have enjoyed their "hike," even 
 though they had had a hard time of it, and the 
 tales they poured into the listening ears of those 
 who had not gone apparently had no discour- 
 aging effects upon the latter, except to make 
 them wish that they had been able to go too. 
 
88 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17TH. 
 
 Again we went to sea for turning trials in 
 the forenoon and the all-important "Battle 
 Plan" exercises in the afternoon. And they 
 say that since these manoeuvres have been held 
 the fighting value of the fleet has been increased 
 50 per cent. For the gun-fire of a ship in 
 action is far more dependent upon her proper 
 handling than is usually supposed, and the 
 handling of these mighty battleships in a 
 tumbling sea is no easy matter, especially when 
 fifteen or more others are about you wheeling, 
 shooting ahead, backing, and stopping. It is 
 then that you realize what the failure properly 
 to read a signal, or a slight mishap to the 
 steering gear, may mean. Yet confidence 
 comes only from experience, and hence the 
 necessity for the constant exercises which 
 familiarize the officers with the danger, and fit 
 them to meet emergencies when everything 
 will depend on the prompt execution of an 
 order. 
 
 It seemed like old times to have the Vermont 
 turning circles about us once more, but it was 
 not for long. Something more important was 
 on the programme of the day. What, I had 
 not the time to ask. The Kansas's sister-ship 
 

A LANDSMAN'S LOG 89 
 
 had come up alongside, so close that we thought 
 only of how soon they would come together. 
 But it was no hostile intent that brought her 
 so near, only a friendly spirit of charity. For 
 we were supposed to be helpless, our engines 
 broken down, and utterly unable to escape 
 from the windward coast. By us she slipped, 
 and as she crossed our bows she trailed a buoy 
 over our ram where waiting hands could grap- 
 ple it. A cable was passed to her through our 
 hawse-hole, forty-five fathoms of chain were 
 paid out, and then the tow-line was ready. 
 Slowly then she started ahead. The strain on 
 the cable was tremendous; many expected to 
 see it part, but it held, and before long we 
 were being towed about at various speeds and 
 on varying courses. The exercise was a com- 
 plete success, and also of surpassing interest 
 as a novelty. 
 
 SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19TH. 
 
 Painting day, so it has not been a pleasant 
 time to be on board. You could not go any- 
 where without besmearing yourself with "war- 
 paint," or "nearpaint," as they call it in the 
 Navy. And besides, everyone has been busied 
 with the preparations for going into camp. 
 Arms, ammunition, tents, mess-gear, and what 
 
90 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 not, have all been collected for the early start 
 on the morrow, when the entire division is to 
 go on shore for a fortnight's "soldiering." 
 
 SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 20TH. 
 
 At ten we were off for Deer Point. The 
 ship's battalion, consisting of four companies of 
 bluejackets and one of marines, left in our flo- 
 tilla of small boats and made for the shore, 
 where the landing forces of the Connecticut, 
 Virginia and Missouri joined us. Then the real 
 work of the day began. Boats had to be un- 
 loaded, camping sites chosen, tents pitched, 
 ammunition stored, provisions landed, and, last 
 but not least, dinner cooked. In an hour every- 
 thing was about as shipshape as could possibly 
 have been desired. The several ships' bat- 
 talions occupied the sites allotted them, and 
 each laid out its encampment in a model way. 
 On the right were the officers' and company 
 commanders' tents, to the left those of their 
 men. The companies had their own streets, 
 the kitchens their particular locations to lee- 
 ward, while at a distance incinerators were 
 erected. 
 
 The men seemed to take a certain pride in 
 making their tents look attractive and comfort- 
 able. A large pile of lumber and empty boxes 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 91 
 
 near at hand quickly vanished before the 
 onslaught of a self-appointed foraging party. 
 Closets, shelves, racks, tables, benches, sprang 
 up with amazing rapidity, while from the 
 jungle in the distance came others bearing 
 palms, trees, coral stones, and rocks, with which 
 they laid out miniature gardens in front of 
 their dilatory domiciles. 
 
 Then at two o'clock dinner was announced, 
 and we needed no urging to make us eat. For- 
 tunately our mess caterer had anticipated the 
 unusual demand of the occasion, so we were 
 fully provided for. And as on shipboard we 
 all had our separate mess. The men of each 
 battalion messed together, the marines kept to 
 themselves in solitary grandeur, and the offi- 
 cers had their own little mess tent. Our 
 "Battalion Mess" comprises sixteen members, 
 which to some may be a small number, but it 
 seems that the first meal has already served to 
 convince the caterer that this is not so. 
 
 On the whole, we are very comfortable. Our 
 camping site is ideal, situated on a high bluff, 
 twenty feet above the water line, and with 
 inlets on three sides, we get the full benefit of 
 the fresh trades that are ever with us. Guard 
 mount entertained us at five. The massed 
 bands of all the ships in camp furnished the 
 
92 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 music, while the marines and a section of sail- 
 ors from each battalion went through the usual 
 routine. 
 
 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 21 ST. 
 
 In the tropics the days may be hot, fiercely 
 hot, but our first night on shore proved to us 
 conclusively that between sundown and sun- 
 rise the temperature undergoes a marked 
 change. A sudden breeze seemed to spring up 
 from the sea, the coolness of the night air 
 almost chilled us and we thanked our stars 
 that we had listened to the advice of our elders 
 when they urged double blankets for the 
 sojourn on shore. 
 
 My dreams were interrupted by the unwel- 
 come sound of reveille. Five buglers were 
 sounding the imperative command. And alas, it 
 had to be obeyed. So I jumped up, and joined 
 the crowd that was making towards the boat- 
 landing for the morning swim in the refreshing 
 waters of the bay. It was still night. The 
 heavens were filled with stars, the moon was 
 shining brightly. It was only five o'clock! 
 There was a certain fascination about this 
 early rising in the darkness of the night, and 
 seeing the gradual awakening and stir of the 
 camp. Breakfast was eaten by lamplight. 
 
SEEN FROM 
 FORETOP. THE 
 COLLIER HECTOR 
 ALONGSIDE THE 
 KANSAS 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 93 
 
 But by the time the start was made for the 
 range the sun was up, and it had begun to get 
 warm. All day long, from seven in the morn- 
 ing until sunset, we were on the rifle- and 
 pistol-ranges. About five hundred were shoot- 
 ing at one time, while as many more were doing 
 duty as markers and scorers. The firing was 
 incessant; you might almost have imagined a 
 battle in progress. Over the hills, not half a 
 mile away, the New Jersey's field guns were 
 booming on the artillery range, while near by a 
 detachment from one of the other divisions 
 was being run on the skirmish range. It was 
 realistic, to say the least. 
 
 TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 22ND. 
 
 Washington's Birthday entitled us to a holi- 
 day, so we rose an hour later than usual and 
 omitted all routine work. It was a real day 
 off. The ships were dressed shortly after 
 colors, while at noon a national salute was 
 fired to commemorate the occasion. As there 
 was nothing to keep us in camp, the Surgeon 
 and I shouldered our shotguns and went out in 
 search of some game. Unfortunately, however, 
 we did not get started until well after seven, 
 thanks to the late breakfast, so that by the time 
 
94 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 we struck the trail back of the range most of 
 the birds had already left it. Our route lay 
 through thickly grown country, with the usual 
 tall grass and small trees. For three miles 
 the way was comparatively easy. But once 
 beyond the reservation boundary fence, the 
 trail became indistinguishable and we found 
 ourselves lost in the midst of a jungle of grass 
 and cactus. Yet we pushed on. A salt water 
 lake, some miles further, where guinea hens 
 were said to abound, was too great a temptation 
 to resist. But we arrived on the scene too late ; 
 the sun was already high in the heavens, the 
 birds had retired for the midday siesta, and 
 although we tried our best to scare them up, 
 they refused to come out of their hiding-places, 
 and we were forced to swallow our disappoint- 
 ment and retrace our steps down the trail. It 
 was a weary plod back to camp, but once there 
 a good swim in the cool waters of the bay and 
 a hearty meal revived our drooping spirits, and 
 inspired us with tales that would have made 
 our listeners gaze in wonder, had we but had 
 the evidence to prove our veracity. 
 
 In the afternoon the weather changed mark- 
 edly from what it had been in the morn. A 
 gale of wind sprang up, the air became cold 
 and chilly, and winter seemed at hand. But 
 
"mm 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 95 
 
 undaunted by the elements, marines and blue- 
 jackets made their best of the memorable day. 
 Sports of all kinds were indulged in. There 
 were track games, boat races, swimming con- 
 tests, and ball games. Hundreds took part 
 in the contests, while those who had not entered 
 cheered them on to better efforts and lent a 
 picturesqueness to the scene that was indeed 
 unique. The hillocks about the diamonds were 
 white with officers and men, while the base- 
 lines were crowded with the sympathizers of 
 the two teams. Everyone was there. And the 
 interest never flagged. The greatest attrac- 
 tion, however, proved to be the ball game 
 between the teams of the Nebraska and New 
 Hampshire, which at present lead their respec- 
 tive squadron leagues. And what a bully 
 game they played. Brilliant plays followed in 
 such rapid succession that the spectators were 
 kept on their feet and cheering to the echo. 
 It was wonderful ball, of league caliber, and 
 anyone's game until the last man had been 
 thrown out. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 23RD. 
 
 Work started again in real earnest, and 
 after an early rising and hearty breakfast 
 
96 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 everyone proceeded to the range for the day's 
 firing. The person who discovered this place 
 and decided upon its merits certainly deserves 
 much credit. It is the natural site for a 
 small-arms target range, and even if a select- 
 tion had been considered, none better could 
 have been chosen. There are approximately 
 three hundred targets, for all ranges, from two 
 hundred to a thousand yards for rifle firing, 
 and fifteen to fifty yards for pistol practice. 
 Then there are skirmish ranges and artillery 
 ranges, which cost only the expense of con- 
 structing the butts, targets and pits. And the 
 result has been the finest small-arms target 
 range in the world. 
 
 It is to use this range to its utmost capacity 
 that the fleet makes such a prolonged stay in 
 these waters. All day long, hundreds of offi- 
 cers and men may be seen practicing under the 
 broiling sun, bent on bettering their score and 
 apparently oblivious to the heat. In this way 
 the men are given the finest training they pos- 
 sibly could have, and it has been a pleasure 
 to observe the spirit which characterizes their 
 work. 
 
 Then in the afternoon the Admiral came 
 ashore, and the range was converted into a 
 parade ground and battlefield. For hours the 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 97 
 
 inspection continued. First a review, in the 
 most approved style; then drills and exercises 
 innumerable, and finally a thrilling sham bat- 
 tle, which proved anything but tame. It was 
 truly inspiring, and I must say that I fully 
 agreed with the inspecting officer who ex- 
 pressed the opinion that the men had "batted 
 the eye out of the inspection." 
 
 FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 25TH. 
 
 On the firing line all was serious to-day, as 
 record firing was being held. The instruction 
 period has now passed, and henceforth every 
 score counts. Of course this means increased 
 interest. And no wonder, for it means addi- 
 tional credit to the ship, and besides a chance 
 for good prize money for those making the 
 best scores. "Bull's-eyes" became more fre- 
 quent, "fours" and "threes" also increased in 
 number, but the "swabos" (as the men have 
 termed the misses, because the waving of the 
 disks by the markers reminded them of swab- 
 bing the decks), alas, still come in for their 
 share of curses. 
 
 The latest "dope" regarding the future 
 movements of the fleet is that we go north 
 on March 25th for target practice on the 
 
98 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 Southern Drill Grounds. And this because 
 those obstinate target-rafts refuse to allow 
 themselves to be towed into tropical waters. 
 It seems an impossible task. Several have 
 already been lost in transit and it appears that 
 were we to persist in waiting for the full num- 
 ber to appear we should have to sit here kick- 
 ing our heels for the next few seasons at least. 
 And then the Admiral has just made the 
 remarkable discovery that the sea in these 
 waters is entirely too smooth for our purposes. 
 Several of the ships have searched the Wind- 
 ward Passage in vain attempts to get enough 
 roll and pitch, until the Ordnance Officers have 
 become disgusted. So the upshot of it all is 
 that we will leave these warm climes for the 
 stormy capes of North Carolina and Virginia. 
 No one seems particularly enthusiastic over 
 the programme as amended. We had quite a 
 heated discussion about it at dinner to-day, 
 during the course of which much was said on 
 both sides. As far as I can make out no one 
 wants to leave this place, yet none want to 
 have to remain here longer, with the result that 
 no one is satisfied and all are grumbling. Yet 
 was there ever a sailor that did not grumble? 
 Just ask a bluejacket what he thinks of the 
 Navy, and he'll start a yarn that will make you 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 99 
 
 think it's the worst place in the world; but the 
 minute he's out of the service he will have 
 nothing but praise for it and won't be happy 
 again until he has re- enlisted. And I can 
 frankly say, that grumble as they may, I have 
 not yet met a single one who regretted his 
 enlistment or would give up the experience. 
 
 SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 27TH. 
 
 Wind and dust have been our two chief 
 entertainers to-day. A thirty-mile gale suc- 
 ceeded the peace and quiet of the night. The 
 bay is covered with whitecaps, a most un- 
 usual sight, and here on shore! Before the 
 blow had developed its full force I went with 
 several officers to the Club for some tennis, but 
 the first game discouraged all further attempts. 
 We stayed indoors after that; the building 
 fairly shook before the force of the agitated 
 zephyrs, and when we finally made up our 
 minds to return to camp we were quite pre- 
 pared to find everything there blown out of 
 sight. And that was literally true. For 
 though not a tent had gone down, all our pre- 
 cious possessions within were buried beneath 
 inches of dust. 
 
100 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 28TH. 
 
 Perhaps the one thing that impresses the 
 average visitor the most on first treading the 
 deck of an American man-o'-war is the atmos- 
 phere of cleanliness and comfort that charac- 
 terizes every part of the ship. The men all 
 seem to have a taste for cleanliness; nor has 
 any effort been spared for giving them an 
 opportunity of satisfying their desires in this 
 matter. Forward on the gun-deck are spacious 
 baths and showers, which leave nothing to be 
 desired in simplicity and usefulness. And by 
 the time the men have been at sea a month the 
 lesson has been so well learned that it is never 
 forgotten. But I must say that I never sus- 
 pected how very particular they were about it 
 until we went into camp on shore. How they 
 manage to keep so immaculately clean amidst 
 the dust and dirt or find time during the busy 
 hours of the day no one knows. Yet they 
 always seemed to find a spare moment to scrub 
 their "whites" with soap and water, until you 
 almost believed it to be their favorite pastime. 
 In fact, the only ground for complaint on their 
 part while we have been here was that one day 
 they were not permitted to scrub their clothes, 
 and it was amusing to see how uneasy they 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 101 
 
 were, even though they had been assured that 
 due allowance would be made for soiled clothes. 
 
 TUESDAY, MARCH IST. 
 
 This morning the companies of the regiment 
 held collective firing, which made an awful 
 racket and used up more ammunition. In all 
 each ship will have used up in the neighbor- 
 hood of two hundred and fifty thousand 
 rounds, or a total of three and a half million 
 rounds for the entire fleet! I suppose that 
 future generations will discover a lead mine 
 in the hills back of the range. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2ND. 
 
 This has been our last day of camp, for to- 
 morrow we return on board once more. Sorry? 
 Well, I should say so, though the wind and 
 dust will not be much missed. As usual we 
 were on the range trying to improve our 
 scores of the past week. Everyone was on the 
 firing line, and it was a pleasure to see the keen 
 interest shown on all sides. The men appar- 
 ently have appreciated the wonderful oppor- 
 tunity at hand ; few have failed to take advan- 
 tage of the excellent instruction which the 
 officers have been only too willing to give them, 
 
102 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 so that the results have been more than satis- 
 factory, and the number of qualifications 
 greater than ever before. 
 
 THURSDAY, MARCH 3RD. 
 
 This has been a sad day for the Kansas. 
 The flagship beat us in a boat race this morn- 
 ing and took all our money away from us. 
 This is a severe blow to our financial aspira- 
 tions, as only last week we suffered a severe 
 defeat at the hands of the Mississippi's base- 
 ball team; but it was a beautiful race, and 
 though we did lose we had the satisfaction of 
 knowing that our crew had put up a good 
 fight. The race started at the stroke of seven 
 bells, and was held over the regular three-mile 
 course between the lines of squadrons with the 
 finish near the two flagships. Both boats got 
 a good start, with ours slightly in the lead for 
 the first two miles. As they neared this ship 
 they were greeted with enthusiasm, the steam 
 launches following tooted the ship's distin- 
 guishing letters with their whistles, while our 
 signal boys on the bridge hoisted the flags "S 
 Affirmative" and "F Negative," meaning that 
 we were ahead while the Connecticut trailed 
 behind. To this the flagship replied by revers- 
 ing the message, and as it turned out in the 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 103 
 
 end, her prediction proved the better, for at 
 the last spurt her boat nosed out ours. It was 
 a hard race to lose. But the losers lost well, 
 and there is nothing that Jack admires more 
 than a good sport. 
 
 At two we broke camp. Of course we were 
 sorry, but it was nice to get on board once more 
 and settled in our old home. The cheerfulness 
 with which the men worked after their return 
 was truly remarkable. The hard morning on 
 the range, followed by all the trouble of break- 
 ing camp, took away none of the will with which 
 they usually performed their work. They 
 passed up the hammocks in a style that would 
 have made the most accomplished medicine-ball 
 player green with envy, and when everything 
 was stowed away, set to washing their clothes 
 as if the day's work had only just begun. 
 
 FRIDAY, MARCH 4TH. 
 
 Sports, sports, nothing but sports. Four 
 days of uninterrupted pleasure is to be our 
 reward for the two months of faithful work 
 that have just ended. An exhaustive pro- 
 gramme has been prepared by the Admiral, 
 and we now shall have an opportunity of 
 squaring old scores with our rivals on the 
 other ships. But of all the sports, boat racing 
 
104 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 is the one that, as usual, will arouse the greatest 
 interest. It is the time-honored sport of the 
 Navy, and, as such, a never-ending theme of 
 discussion and rivalry. For months the ships 
 have been preparing for the events. Each 
 afternoon, after the day's work was done, the 
 race-boat crews, under the vigorous direction 
 of the coxswains, have been going through 
 courses of gymnastics which to the ordinary 
 man would be an exhausting day's work, after 
 which they would leave the ship for a few 
 hours' pull around the fleet. And now the true 
 test of those hours of preparation was at hand. 
 The entire morning was devoted to the first 
 of the pulling races in competition for the 
 "Gilded Rooster" trophy, which the Navy 
 Department annually awards to the ship mak- 
 ing the best record in that branch of athletics 
 during Sports Week. "The Gilded Rooster!" 
 What a strange emblem! And well may the 
 layman wonder at its significance, for its true 
 meaning lies hidden in one of those traditions 
 of the service that are dear to every officer and 
 bluejacket. When the custom began, I know 
 not, but an English officer, writing in the early 
 part of the last century, mentioned it in con- 
 nection with squadron competitions, and from 
 that account I gathered how the great ambi- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 105 
 
 tion of every ship of the Old Navy had always 
 been to be the one to hoist the cock to the fore- 
 truck as an emblem of victory. Each vessel 
 carried a real live one in a hen-coop on the 
 spar-deck, ready to be hoisted at a moment's 
 notice ; and when any evolution was performed, 
 the first to complete successfully the exercise 
 was sure to have the unhappy fowl at the fore, 
 where its furious flutterings would announce 
 to the world her proud distinction and vaunt 
 her claim of being a "smart" ship. 
 
 But to come back to modern times, this 
 trophy now rewards the ship which at the 
 annual sports scores the greatest number of 
 points in the pulling races, the points being 
 awarded to the first three boats in each of 
 the following contests: (1) Sailing launches, 
 (2) cutters, twelve-oared, deck- force, (3) cut- 
 ters, twelve-oared, engineers, (4) cutters, 
 twelve-oared, marines, ( 5 ) whaleboats, twelve- 
 oared, selected crews, and (6) racing cutters, 
 selected crews, all the boats being rowed 
 under service conditions. 
 
 Hardly had the sun risen, when prepara- 
 tions for the great day were under way, and at 
 the appointed time all the boats were gathered 
 near the starting line off Fisherman's Point. 
 The course lay up the bay; one mile from the 
 
106 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 start were the first stakeboats, anchored be- 
 tween the Vermont and Virginia, while one 
 mile further, at the head of the line of squad- 
 rons, was the finish. The cheering and excite- 
 ment were intense as the boats passed between 
 the ships. At times it was impossible to tell 
 which was in the lead. As each ship was 
 passed, signal flags were run up the yards 
 giving the order of the first three boats, and 
 never were the same three displayed twice in 
 the same order by any ship in the fleet. It was 
 a question of "anyone's race" till the line had 
 been crossed. 
 
 I cannot say that we won many races. In 
 fact, we came in second but once, and third 
 twice. But, though victory did not come our 
 way, we had the great satisfaction of effec- 
 tively beating our old and hated rival, the 
 Connecticut, each and every time, which has 
 been a great solace in our disappointment. 
 The Minnesota had no difficulty in winning the 
 trophy; she led the fleet the whole morning; 
 and now she boasts her prowess before the 
 assembled ships-of-war and is the proud pos- 
 sessor of that coveted trophy, the "Gilded 
 Rooster!" 
 
 The afternoon was devoted to swimming 
 races and sailing contests. The bay was full 
 
I 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 107 
 
 of sailing craft and boats of all kinds and 
 sizes; launches, cutters, whaleboats and din- 
 ghies. The strictest rules governed the after- 
 noon's sports and every formality was observed 
 as in Ocean Cup Races. For Navy men still 
 talk of the times when they raced under less 
 stringent regulations, when the boats were 
 required to carry "regulation rig" up to the 
 starting line only, and how the Kentucky's 
 launch, one fine day, suddenly hoisted sails of 
 all sorts, including a pitch black coaling awn- 
 ing, and walked away from the rest of the con- 
 testants. And of course she could not be 
 disqualified, as she had carried the "regulation 
 rig" up to the starting line, and nothing in 
 the rules prevented her adopting other tactics 
 once she had entered the course. 
 
 SATURDAY, MARCH 5TH. 
 
 The morning was again given over to pull- 
 ing races, this time for the Pensacola Cup, 
 which was presented to the fleet in 1904 by the 
 citizens of Pensacola, Florida. There were 
 four contests, in cutters, whaleboats, gigs, and 
 dinghies, and we won the third to our great 
 surprise. It was a walk-a-way. But none the 
 less the winners were rousingly cheered by all 
 
108 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 the ships, and enthusiastically greeted on their 
 return to the Kansas. 
 
 Then in the afternoon we were treated to the 
 usual baseball games, while on the target 
 range a fleet match between officers' teams was 
 being held for the championship of the Navy, 
 and in the evening the successful day was 
 brought to a brilliant close by a splendid 
 Entertainment and Smoker on board the Idaho. 
 
 SUNDAY, MARCH GTH. 
 
 This was our gala day for sports. Five 
 important races in the morning and six base- 
 ball games in the afternoon filled every hour 
 of daylight with excitement for both partici- 
 pants and onlookers. The first event was a 
 one-mile boat race between officers' crews in 
 cutters. We turned out a worthy aggrega- 
 tion, representative of every rank on board. 
 The Executive rowed the bow-oar, then came 
 the Navigator, then the ensigns, and warrant 
 officers, and lastly the midshipmen. Of course 
 no one had made any preparation for the con- 
 test ; many had not handled an oar in months ; 
 some were good and others poor; but all went 
 into it for the fun of it, and once the race had 
 begun, pulled for all they were worth, and 
 when it was over, declared that they felt years 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 109 
 
 younger for it. The crews rowed a splendid 
 race, and at the finish rushed across the line in 
 such rapid succession that all claimed the vic- 
 tory. In fact, even among the spectators few 
 were certain who had really won, until the 
 judges announced their verdict. Then we 
 knew that our boat had come in third. That 
 was not very good, in our opinion, yet there 
 was some consolation in store for us in the fact 
 that we had once more beaten the flagship. 
 
 After this the men resumed their struggles 
 for supremacy, and nobly did they try to bring 
 victory to their respective ships. First of all 
 came the contest for the Belmont Challenge 
 Cup, in which the crews were composed of first 
 enlistment men of the deck forces; then fol- 
 lowed the Drexel Challenge Cup races for 
 enlisted men in the regulation racing cutters; 
 next came the Dunlap Challenge Cup race 
 between crews of marines from twelve of the 
 ships; while last, and most important, came 
 the race for the Battenberg Squadron Chal- 
 lenge Cup, which the men of the British Sec- 
 ond Cruiser Squadron under Rear Admiral 
 H. S. H. Prince Louis of Battenberg, R. N., 
 presented to the Atlantic Fleet in May, 1906, 
 on the occasion of their visit to American 
 waters. 
 
110 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 All day long the races continued, and all 
 day long the men crowded ships' sides in their 
 eagerness to see the sports. Signal flags flut- 
 tered from every signal-yard, indicating the 
 position of the boats as each ship was passed; 
 whistles tooted encouragement to the strug- 
 gling crews; and when, after the races, the 
 boats returned to their ships, cheers greeted 
 them that expressed better than words how 
 much their efforts had been appreciated. 
 
 TUESDAY, MARCH STH. 
 
 This has been another coaling day for us, but 
 we had had due warning of the collier's arrival, 
 so the crew started early and by noon had the 
 necessary 1140 tons of black dust aboard. 
 Then followed that awful session of cleaning 
 ship, which I had already learned to dread. 
 So I took advantage of the opportunity, when 
 no one was looking, of going up the foremast, 
 where I at last found a dry spot, safe from the 
 streams of water that played below. And I 
 chose the moment when none observed me for 
 the reason that one's first ascension is always 
 a trying experience; for they say that a boat- 
 swain's mate usually follows the unsuspecting 
 novice aloft, lashes him to the ladder ere he 
 has reached the top, and releases him only 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 111 
 
 when he has served his time and has promised 
 to pay the customary toll of a case of beer for 
 the watch below. But this was coaling day; 
 everyone had to work, and I felt reasonably 
 safe in attempting the perilous ascent. It was 
 a stiff climb up the wet and slippery rungs of 
 the swinging chain ladders; the hot murkiness 
 issuing from the mouths of the three great 
 funnels almost choked me as I reached the 
 second netting; but I was almost there, and in 
 a few moments I clambered, breathless and a 
 little dizzy, into the small platform that crowns 
 the eminence of this fire-control station. Then, 
 in a moment, the beauty of that panorama 
 spreading out in every direction of the compass 
 dawned upon me. I fain would have remained 
 there for the rest of the day. But mess-call 
 sounded, and, as usual, it became a question of 
 "duty" before pleasure. 
 
 FRIDAY, MARCH HTH. 
 
 Mail day, but oh ! no mail yet. It must have 
 taken a side trip on the island. Still we have 
 hopes for the morrow. As usual, gunnery 
 drills were the order of the day, and loading 
 drills and "dotter" practice occupied every- 
 one's time. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 SATURDAY, MARCH 12TH. 
 
 For two days the Wisconsin has been at sea 
 in search of waters in which she might find 
 the required roll and pitch in order to hold 
 her spring target practice, before returning 
 home to go out of commission. But not a rip- 
 ple would disturb the glassy surface of the 
 Caribbean, and after cruising for forty-eight 
 hours in the Windward Passage without being 
 able to fire a shot, she returned here to await a 
 change in the weather, which the obliging 
 weather prophets seem inclined to promise. 
 
 How different this is from the methods pur- 
 sued in the good old times ! And what a tran- 
 sition from the gunnery of only a few years 
 ago! In those days it was practically all 
 smooth-sea firing; target practice was looked 
 upon as mere drudgery ; no one took any inter- 
 est in it; and besides it only dirtied the decks, 
 blackened the paint-work, and was a general 
 nuisance, which the men were heartily glad to 
 be rid of. But now all that has changed. 
 Criticisms that had long been unheeded at last 
 were listened to; every attention was given to 
 even the slightest suggestion; and the result 
 was the present system, which has done so 
 much to improve the marksmanship of the gun- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 113 
 
 ners of our Navy and stimulate their enthu- 
 siasm and interest in their work. 
 
 SUNDAY, MARCH 13TH. 
 
 To-day was Ladies' Day. We had had the 
 news ahead of time, so when the members of 
 the fair sex arrived on the scene we were ready 
 for them. They were on board the Royal 
 Mail Line Steamer Avon, which takes some 
 three hundred tourists annually on a cruise in 
 the West Indies. But their visit to this place 
 was a most unusual occurrence, for as a rule 
 none may enter these waters except by special 
 permission of the Navy Department. Only 
 the evening before last a steam yacht flying a 
 New York Yacht Club signal anchored in the 
 bay for the night, but she was allowed to 
 remain only until dawn, and at the break of 
 day made haste to get under way in obedience 
 to the Admiral's mandate. But to return to 
 the main theme, at ten the Avon appeared 
 off the entrance of the bay, and within a short 
 time was on her way to the anchorage which 
 had been assigned to her for this fleeting visit. 
 Hardly had she dropped her mud-hook, when 
 we had our steamers alongside and eager mid- 
 shipmen clambered up the gangways to bring 
 our guests off to us. Then, as they came 
 
114 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 aboard, the Captain met them and extended 
 a friendly greeting; the officers showed them 
 about the ship, while the sailors vied with each 
 other in helping to make their visit as agree- 
 able as possible. One damsel started up the 
 mast; another got a piece of pie fresh from 
 the bakery; no place was too difficult of access 
 for them to find their way into it. But what 
 they evidently appreciated more than anything 
 else were the files of newspapers we presented 
 to them, for since early February they had had 
 no mail or news of home. Their ship had been 
 ahead of her regular schedule all the time, and, 
 of course, just missed the courier at every port. 
 Our welcome visitors stayed with us only about 
 two hours. Shortly after one, the Avon sig- 
 nalled her impatience to be off, and the impera- 
 tive summons was not of a nature to be 
 disregarded. 
 
 SATURDAY, MARCH 19TH. 
 
 To-day the Wisconsin, Yankton, and two 
 colliers left us, the first to go out of commis- 
 sion, as her officers and men are needed to man 
 the new Delaware, while the colliers are bound 
 for Hampton Roads in search of more coal 
 for the fleet's coming manoeuvres. 
 
THE KANSAS'S MAINMAST 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 115 
 
 In the morning the Minnesota and Georgia 
 held a three-mile race between their race-boat 
 crews. The rivalry between the two has always 
 been keen, especially since the latter's boat 
 won the laurels in the last regatta, and the 
 Minnesota's men have been awaiting their 
 chance to win back their lost prestige. So to 
 prove their confidence they last week chal- 
 lenged their rival to another test over the 
 three-mile course, and offered to back their 
 boat with all the cash they could lay their hands 
 on. It was a beautiful race ; both crews rowed 
 superbly; but after the first two miles it was 
 a foregone conclusion that the Georgia would 
 win, and once more did the unfortunate Minne- 
 sota's crew taste the bitterness of defeat. 
 
 Then in the afternoon the Nebraska and 
 New Hampshire crossed bats on the baseball 
 diamond for the championship of the fleet. 
 Everyone that could get ashore was there to 
 see the exciting contest, and none certainly had 
 reason to feel disappointed. The field was 
 filled to overflowing. And as for the game, 
 it was a corker. Eleven innings long, truly 
 exhausting for the spectator, as we were con- 
 tinually brought to our feet by some brilliant 
 play. In the end the Nebraska won, just as 
 the sun was setting, on a home run, after two 
 
116 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 men were out! Then pandemonium broke 
 loose. You might have imagined yourself on 
 Franklin Field after a Navy victory. The 
 Nebraska's band headed the procession back 
 to the boats, and to bring the day to a fitting 
 and successful close we reached our ships just 
 in time to escape a drenching thunder shower 
 that had been threatening in the west. 
 
 SUNDAY,, MARCH 20TH. 
 
 The call of the wild once more lured us to 
 the Cuban jungle, so we made an early start 
 and in the course of the mid watch left the ship 
 on our quest just as the ship's bells struck 
 eight. There were four of us, the Navigator, 
 the Ordnance Officer, the Paymaster, and I, 
 and our objective was Lake Manati, at the 
 head of Joa Bay, where many officers and men 
 from the fleet had already been in search of the 
 happy hunting ground. They usually went up 
 about four and hunted until sunset, camped for 
 the night, and then wound up the twenty-four 
 hours' outing with a forenoon session. But 
 we, unfortunately, could not absent ourselves 
 that long. Half a day was all the leave we 
 could get at this time, so we decided to make 
 the best of our poor bargain, and started out 
 some two hours before sunrise, which brought 
 
I 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 117 
 
 us to the lake in plenty of time for the sport. 
 Once on shore, we promptly lost our way, for 
 which we naturally blamed inaccurate charts; 
 but as luck would have it, we were not long left 
 in doubt as to the proper place to find game, for 
 no sooner had we wandered ten yards from 
 the water's edge than we scared up a dozen 
 marsh hens. Four fell before the well-aimed 
 volley that followed their attempt at escape. 
 That was encouraging enough for a beginning. 
 Only we were not destined to retrieve all that 
 had fallen. The entire region seemed inter- 
 sected by deep water channels which barred 
 all progress, while the treacherous footing 
 afforded by the saltwater marshes confined our 
 operations to a restricted territory which was 
 not at all within the bounds of our ardor. 
 However, we pressed on, and at last found the 
 coveted stands of which we had heard so much. 
 Then came sunrise, and with it birds by 
 the hundred. Shot after shot rang out until 
 our supply of shells was almost exhausted. By 
 this time, also, the morning was well advanced, 
 our watches indicated eight o'clock, and we had 
 to call a halt. But we had secured a good share 
 of the spoils, and for the next few days the 
 mess menus included such delicacies as goose, 
 marsh hens, snipe and duck. 
 
118 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 The men, too, had their share of fun during 
 the day, for shortly before our return on board 
 countless liberty parties had left for the inland 
 city to attend the Kermess that annually 
 enlivens Guantanamo about this time. They 
 apparently had a glorious time. Everyone 
 returned in the happiest mood; not a few 
 brought souvenirs and mementos of the occa- 
 sion; and some even came back with dogs and 
 cats and goats, which the Captain was "gra- 
 ciously pleased" to allow to be enrolled as 
 members of the ship's official mascot family. 
 
 MONDAY, MARCH 21sT. 
 
 More gunnery training was the order of the 
 day. The men seem to do better as they be- 
 come more experienced, and more keen to 
 improve and get ahead of the other fellow. 
 Consequently, there has been much rivalry 
 between the several gun-crews, and a spirit of 
 competition has sprung up that is bound to 
 stand out pre-eminently as a secret of success. 
 The life of all games, competition has proved 
 the life of gunnery, which has been so justly 
 termed the "greatest of all games." It is a 
 question of pointer against pointer, gun-crew 
 against gun-crew, ship against ship, and fleet 
 against fleet. And when we read an extract 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 119 
 
 like the following, we cannot help admiring 
 the Navy and Navy men for the admirable 
 "sporting spirit" which exists in this compe- 
 tition : 
 
 "Our pennant hopes were dashed when the 
 report of the Vermont's score was received. 
 Eighty-one and one-quarter per cent of hits at 
 9,000 yards with her 12-inch is the score that 
 did the work. Though we are beaten, yet 
 there is not a man aboard who is not proud to 
 know that the real fighting ships, the line-of- 
 battle-ships, upon which a Navy's strength 
 depends, can shoot like this. Since we did not 
 win the pennant ourselves, we are glad to see 
 it go to such a splendid ship. There is a great 
 deal of satisfaction in knowing that we pushed 
 her so closely. As a ship we take off our hats 
 to the winner and extend her our heartiest 
 congratulations . " * 
 
 TUESDAY, MARCH 22ND. 
 
 The time is now drawing near when we 
 shall have to leave this place. Thursday at 
 four is the day and time set for our departure, 
 and I doubt very much whether there are many 
 in the fleet who will not sincerely regret the 
 
 *From the "Grand Canyon," published by the enlisted men on 
 board the U. S. S. Colorado. 
 
120 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 change, even though the prospect is that of 
 being homeward bound once more. There may 
 be some truth in the saying that this place is 
 God-forsaken, yet the longer you stay the bet- 
 ter you like it. No other place in the world 
 can compare with it for the work the fleet does 
 there during the "busy season." More has 
 been accomplished in the past few months than 
 would have been possible anywhere else, and 
 this alone is a recommendation that ought to 
 stamp it as the most valuable of our naval 
 stations on the Atlantic coast. 
 
 Socially, the cruise has been all that we 
 could have desired. Guantanamo Bay cer- 
 tainly formed an ideal background for the good 
 and wholesome life that characterizes our Navy 
 at the present time. No longer has the service 
 to bear the taint of the "good old days," when 
 the sailor was looked upon as scarcely human. 
 No longer is it the last refuge for the scum of 
 the earth. The bluejacket of to-day deserves 
 all the praise that can be given him. His 
 standard is courage and a loyal devotion to 
 his country, while his character and morality 
 are of the best. He is well paid, his ration is 
 generous, well cooked, and properly served, his 
 clothing is of excellent quality, and certain 
 and steady advancement is sure to follow every 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 indication on his part of energy, zeal, and good 
 behavior. And the same may be said of his 
 relations with his superior officers. What they 
 formerly were, I shall not attempt to say. 
 Now they are on a footing more human than 
 in any other service. There is a community 
 of interest between officers and men such as 
 never before existed. And well is it for the 
 service that the chief concern of the officers 
 is for their men. The discipline, though 
 apparently slack in formalities, works out 
 into a pretty severe system, in which the higher 
 training of the officers commands the natural 
 respect and obedience of the men. In my 
 three months' experience with the fleet I have 
 so far seen but one instance of a man showing 
 surliness, and but one serious case of "back 
 talk"; both offenders were summarily dealt 
 with; yet neither showed resentment, or to my 
 knowledge, expressed himself as having been 
 unjustly dealt with. 
 
 Socially, the life on board the ship is cen- 
 tered in a series of clubs, called messes. The 
 largest, the general mess, consists of the 
 entire crew, and is run by the regularly 
 appointed Paymaster, while the smaller ones 
 consist solely of officers, who take an active 
 part in their management. The officers' 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 messes are graded by rank. The Captain 
 forms one all by himself. The commissioned 
 officers comprise the wardroom mess. The 
 midshipmen, marine lieutenant, and junior 
 pay officers make up the steerage mess. The 
 warrant officers, those men of the rank and 
 file who, by faithful service, have earned pro- 
 motion, form another mess, while the largest 
 of the circles is that of the chief petty officers. 
 With the exception of the first, all are 
 obliged to provide their own food and drink 
 and supplies. Years ago the Government 
 used to grant the men afloat, no matter what 
 their rank, the generous sum of thirty cents a 
 day for rations, and allow them to form their 
 own messes. But the scheme never was a 
 success. Jack got pretty fair rations, but there 
 were times when he did not fare so well, espe- 
 cially when the mess treasurer went ashore 
 with the mess treasury and failed to return 
 with the required balance in his pockets. So 
 about the time of the Spanish- American War 
 a change for the better was devised, and the 
 general mess instituted. Of course there were 
 those who said it would never do. Objections 
 and protests poured in upon its promoters, 
 but they persisted in their determination, and 
 now the wonder is how the ships ever got 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 along without a general mess. Formerly as 
 many as forty messes existed on board a single 
 ship; no two had the same fare; no two were 
 equally satisfied. Now all that is changed. 
 One person has charge of the feeding of the 
 entire crew; every detail is carefully provided 
 for in the Navy Regulations; each man has 
 his pound and three-quarters of meat a day, 
 no matter what the cost to the Government; 
 and the result is that the crew receives as 
 wholesome food as any person could desire. 
 
 But the curtailment of those thirty cents a 
 day bore heavily on the officers above the rank 
 of midshipman. It meant that henceforth 
 each one had to purchase his own food, pay 
 for it out of his own pocket, and lose the tidy 
 sum of $110 a year, which was the sum total 
 of his previous allowance. The situation at 
 first was a serious one. But, as usual, the 
 naval officer was practical, and quickly devised 
 a solution of the problem. The communal 
 plan of paying for the food was settled upon 
 as being most economical, while the individual 
 plan of paying for drinks and cigars found 
 favor on account of its liberality. Then the 
 Government came to his aid by providing for 
 the formation of the messes, regulating their 
 management, and furnishing such necessities 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 as furniture, crockery, and linen, while to 
 enable him to obtain supplies for long cruises, 
 without violating the law against the con- 
 tracting of debts, a clause was inserted in the 
 Regulations, 297 ( 6 ) , by which the command- 
 ing officer could sanction supplies for the offi- 
 cers' messes being received on board at the 
 risk of the dealers, to be paid for as consumed, 
 provided the dealer assented to such an agree- 
 ment in writing. So the difficulty was solved, 
 and everyone was satisfied. 
 
 The officers' messes are organized with a 
 caterer, or treasurer, elected monthly by the 
 members from among their own number; 
 serve he must, but he cannot be forced to run 
 for a second term against his will. All sup- 
 plies are purchased by him from the dealers 
 on condition that payments for the same are 
 to be made at certain stated intervals, and he 
 usually experiences little difficulty in finding 
 bidders, for it is a lucrative trade and the deal- 
 ers know that they will never have to complain 
 of unsettled debts. Each member of the mess 
 is assessed so much every month, according to 
 the standard of living decided upon at the 
 time of the last election, and the result is that 
 the food in its prepared state costs the naval 
 officer in the neighborhood of a dollar a day. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 And then there is also the wine mess, composed 
 of such officers as may wish to join it. A 
 dealer provides the supplies, which are sold 
 to the members at cost price, or usually at an 
 advance of ten per cent to cover breakage. No 
 distilled spirits, however, are to be had in the 
 mess. 
 
 Thus the mess lives in a small circle, the 
 members seeing each other three times a day 
 and being thrown together in a way that can- 
 not fail to make them know each other inti- 
 mately. At the head of the wardroom table 
 presides the Executive Officer, or Commander, 
 with "the power to preserve order," while 
 about him are seated the other officers in 
 assigned seats alternately in the order of their 
 rank. At times this is the cause of delicate 
 situations. It may happen that the very man 
 who causes you to be disciplined sits at your 
 elbow; still, in the membership of the mess, 
 there is that spirit of good-fellowship that read- 
 ily enables you to overlook your petty annoy- 
 ances, and touch elbows with your erstwhile 
 senior in the most cheerful of moods. I 
 have never seen such continual good humor 
 and cheerfulness. Nor is this the exception. 
 Grumpiness and grouchiness, of course, hap- 
 pen at times, but they are always laughed off 
 
126 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 before any damage has been done, and light 
 chaffing once more reigns supreme. But, at 
 the same time, there is also a good deal of seri- 
 ous conversation, especially as regards naval 
 matters. The personnel bill is everlastingly 
 under discussion; Naval Academy days are 
 recalled by the younger as well as the older 
 graduates; the latest gunnery improvements 
 are carefully considered; while all the time 
 there is an undercurrent of tales of the six 
 continents that find interested and willing 
 listeners. 
 
 And thus the life of the messes goes on. No 
 matter in what part of the ship they may be, 
 the same good-fellowship abounds, and the 
 same situation of enforced intimacy of months, 
 and even years, exists in a way that excites 
 your admiration. It is a manly, free, and 
 entertaining life; a society run in the most 
 wholesome manner. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23RD. 
 
 At half past six we went to sea, and for five 
 hours engaged in correcting our compasses, 
 after which the usual gunnery exercises were 
 resumed. But more important still, to-day, 
 were the fire-control drills held by the ship's 
 "spotters" in preparation for next month's 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 127 
 
 shooting competitions. It is a duty that re- 
 quires a steady nerve, good eyesight, and calm, 
 accurate judgment, for upon these "chosen 
 few" depends the all-important task of trans- 
 mitting the correct ranges to the batteries dur- 
 ing the decisive moments of battle. Errors of 
 range and deflection have to be corrected the 
 moment the shells are seen to strike the water, 
 for without this co-operation the gun-pointers 
 would never be able to maintain a well-directed 
 fire or bring their guns to bear on the desired 
 center of impact. So you can understand the 
 importance of these hours spent in estimating 
 distances and at least begin to appreciate the 
 meaning of that magic by-word, fire-con- 
 trol. 
 
 THURSDAY, MARCH 24TH. 
 
 All morning long we were busied with the 
 final preparations for getting under way. For 
 the day of departure, alas, was at hand, and 
 within a few hours we were to bid a final fare- 
 well to the sunny waters of Guantanamo Bay. 
 Gangways were unshipped, boats hoisted in, 
 air ports tightly shut, and everything made 
 snug. Then at three-thirty sirens and steam 
 whistles were tested, anchor engines began to 
 tug at the anchor chains, "blue peters" flut- 
 
128 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 tered impatiently at the fore, and we were 
 under way. 
 
 Again we passed along the eastern coast, 
 which we had first sighted ten weeks ago when 
 on our way to our winter base. The moun- 
 tains and hills were more beautiful than ever 
 in the light of the setting sun, while the gentle 
 swells of the Caribbean reflected the glory of 
 that evening sky in a manner that made the 
 leave-taking all the harder. 
 
 FRIDAY, MARCH 25TH. 
 
 Another beautiful day! The sea was like 
 the proverbial mill pond, and of a most gor- 
 geous, rich, ultramarine hue. Strange as it 
 may seem, I note this. While in Cuban 
 waters it was the rule, almost monotonously 
 so, but now that we are no longer in the Carib- 
 bean, it may prove the exception. About 
 nine-thirty we passed close to Castle Island, 
 and while still within view of the shore were 
 put through our paces, which must have made 
 a lasting impression upon the inhabitants that 
 crowded the beach. But as no real "work" 
 was indulged in to-day, my favorite pastime 
 has been to go up on the forecastle, and look 
 down upon the ram as it cleaves its way 
 through the rolling sea. There is a strange 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 129 
 
 fascination about it that makes it almost inde- 
 scribable. The water curls up the bow, and 
 then rolls over, forming a kind of cushion of 
 foam about the prow, while far ahead of the 
 wave, and below the surface, you can see the 
 ram leading the way, irresistible, undeniable. 
 
 But, alas ! I was not to indulge in my inno- 
 cent pastime without unwelcome interruption. 
 My eyes suddenly filled with cinders, and my 
 only thoughts then were of the Surgeon and 
 sick bay. Still this has not been my first expe- 
 rience, and I suppose I should by now be used 
 to it. On the quarter-deck, when the wind is 
 dead ahead, I have never yet been able to 
 escape them, while on the forecastle you get 
 them by the million from the ship ahead, which 
 always seems to delight in using the basest 
 coal she can find. 
 
 EASTER SUNDAY, MARCH 27TH. 
 
 Last evening a bank of clouds to the south- 
 'ard caused the weather prophets to shake 
 their heads knowingly, but they had appar- 
 ently forgotten the signs during their pro- 
 tracted sojourn in Cuban climes, for the day 
 dawned clear and beautiful, with a glassy sea. 
 Never was there a more lovely Easter day! 
 
130 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 We celebrated it in a fitting manner. It 
 was a day of rest. Everyone was in holiday 
 attire, and after quarters the day's work was 
 done. Then at noon we had our dinner, a 
 dinner that would have been a credit to the 
 world's greatest chef. The Paymaster must 
 have labored weeks in preparation, and 
 months in storing up the varicolored eggs that 
 graced each plate at table. 
 
 MONDAY, MAKCH 28TH. 
 
 Dreaded Hatteras was passed without mis- 
 hap. In fact, I never saw a smoother sea. 
 But how cold it has suddenly become! At 
 nine the temperature was 55 degrees, or 30 
 degrees less than what we have been used to all 
 winter, and last night we slept under blankets 
 for the first time since our return on board 
 from our soldiering on Deer Point. The 
 officers are again in blues, but the men still 
 wear whites, as better adapted to their work 
 during these gunnery exercises. But I must 
 say, these steel ships are not what you would 
 term cozy on a cold winter's or spring's day, 
 especially when you have been used to the hot 
 climes of the Caribbean, when ventilators and 
 electric fans buzzed unceasingly. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 131 
 
 All morning long the fleet strolled along at 
 less than half speed. The Admiral, before 
 leaving Guantanamo, announced our arrival 
 for a certain hour, and as the Navigators have 
 unfortunately brought us within sight of the 
 Virginia capes before the appointed time, we 
 are idling outside until the stroke of the hour. 
 How different from the merchant marine, 
 where everyone always is in such a hurry to 
 get into port! 
 
 At eleven the pilot finally mustered enough 
 courage to clamber up the flagship's side, and 
 we consequently proceeded once more in the 
 direction of Hampton Roads. Eighteen miles 
 of water still separated us from that historic 
 battlefield, where, in the middle of the last 
 century, ironclads met for the first time in the 
 annals of the sea. But how uninviting the 
 day for my first visit to this roadstead! The 
 air was cold and damp; a veil of chilly mist 
 obscured the horizon, while the water was a 
 muddy, dirty green. What a contrast to 
 Guantanamo ! 
 
 Once off Old Point, the fleet came to anchor 
 in the midst of countless naval vessels that have 
 been assembling here for the past week. But 
 what was far more welcome than all the com- 
 pany was the mail that greeted us. Over a 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 hundred bags! And not a one that was not 
 filled to the top. 
 
 SATURDAY, APRIL 2ND. 
 
 There was the greatest excitement up for- 
 ward all morning. A little yellow and black 
 bird came aboard just after quarters and 
 alighted on the training hood of the forward 
 12-inch turret. In a moment the turret-crew 
 were in a panic. The men rushed about as if 
 the greatest calamity were impending, and, 
 grabbing swabs and squeegee-handles, endeav- 
 ored to shoo the unfortunate bird away. For, 
 as they explained between gasps and yells, the 
 bird was a sign of evil, and something was sure 
 to happen if it was not immediately driven 
 away. But the unwelcome intruder only flew 
 beyond reach of its persecutors, and sought 
 refuge on top of the starboard 8-inch turret. 
 Then it was the turn of that division to tear 
 their hair. "Last year, and on a Saturday, 
 too," groaned the trainer, "a little yellow and 
 black bird came aboard, and a powder-bag got 
 turned around. Guess this year the ammuni- 
 tion car will drop !" 
 
 I can well appreciate the feelings of those 
 men. For weeks they have not allowed them- 
 selves out of sight of their guns lest some- 
 
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A LANDSMAN'S LOG 133 
 
 thing happen to them; for weeks they have 
 patted them with the greatest affection, and 
 told them all sorts of nice things, calling them 
 pet names, and promising to put ribbons on 
 them if they do their best and win navy prizes 
 for their crews. Now all has been undone. 
 The sign of evil has visited the ship, and every- 
 one is talking about what the consequences 
 may be. However, the officer in charge of one 
 of the guns has not yet shaved his whiskers, 
 so I feel that we have some good luck coming 
 to us even though the "signs" may be against 
 us. 
 
 Fortunately we had "movies" on deck after 
 dinner, so the men had something to cheer them 
 up and help them get their minds off their 
 work. Never was a diversion more welcome. 
 Everyone has become grouchy over the unfore- 
 seen delays that have interrupted the Admi- 
 ral's well-laid plans. There has been an absence 
 of levity about the ship that to a stranger 
 would give the impression of an impending 
 mutiny. The strain of preparation has begun 
 to tell, and I doubt very much whether anyone 
 will be normal again until the shooting is all 
 over. 
 
 It was beastly cold up on deck ; but we only 
 turned up our coat collars, and enjoyed the 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 fun to our heart's content. After a while, 
 however, it became too chilly for comfort, so I 
 went below and started a cut-out picture puz- 
 zle on the wardroom table. It was one of a 
 dozen that I had just received from home, and 
 I rejoiced at the opportunity of again indulg- 
 ing in this shocking pastime. But no one else 
 seemed enthusiastic. The Commander, espe- 
 cially, scorned my invitation to make himself 
 useful, while the "Fourth Ward," as the jun- 
 ior officers of the wardroom mess are known, 
 laughed at my childish amusement and said 
 they thought they could find something better 
 to do. But within an hour, the magic spell had 
 spread its net, and one and all were crowded 
 about the long table trying to fit the right 
 pieces together. "Where's that baby foot? I 
 know you had it. Oh, here it is." "No, that 
 isn't a baby's foot, it's part of my lamp." And 
 so they went on. Every time the bluejackets on 
 deck laughed at the movies there would be a 
 rush for the ladder, and then as sudden a 
 return to continue the interrupted task. Well, 
 about eight of us finally got the baby and the 
 lamp assembled, only the lamp turned out 
 to be a fruit basket; and then the rest of the 
 mess and the steerage were sent for to admire 
 our achievement before it was broken up. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 135 
 
 MONDAY, APRIL 4TH. 
 
 A dense fog greeted us when we awakened 
 this morning; but by nine it had sufficiently 
 cleared to warrant our beginning preparations 
 for weighing anchor, so that we had several 
 hours' notice to perform satisfactorily the 
 interesting operation of unmooring ship. To 
 me it was something new. We had never 
 found it necessary to moor in the roomy and 
 still waters of Guantanamo Bay. But here, 
 in the limited anchorage allotted the fleet, and 
 with a racing tide, it was always customary, 
 the advantages of that method of anchoring 
 vessels being that they take up comparatively 
 little space in swinging and cannot foul their 
 anchors by dragging the bight of the chain 
 over them. A ship, when moored, has both 
 bower anchors down, at a considerable dis- 
 tance apart, and such scope of chain on each 
 that she is held with her bow stationary on 
 the line between them; she may thus head in 
 any direction, and swing about her own stem 
 as a pivot. 
 
 Promptly at one we were under way, but no 
 sooner had we rounded the second buoy than 
 wreaths of fog came gliding across the fleet, 
 hiding the ships from one another, and com- 
 
136 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 pelling them to use their unmelodious whistles 
 to converse with the Admiral. The dismal 
 wails of the sirens sounded one after another, 
 down the line, counting out their distinguish- 
 ing letters, and answering the orders, blown 
 from the flagship, through the misty veil. The 
 Connecticut would toot her call, the letter 
 
 "F" ( ), then the Vermont would 
 
 answer with hers, "R" ( ), we next, 
 
 "S" ( ), the Louisiana would then be 
 heard astern sounding "W" (- -), 
 
 and so on to the end of the four-mile-long 
 line of ships. You could not see a cable's 
 length. Yet the vessels maintained their 
 positions perfectly, thanks to the practical 
 "fog buoy," an irregular shaped spar, which 
 each vessel usually trails astern at the end of 
 a long line as an indication to the next follow- 
 ing of where the latter's ram should be; thus 
 the usual distances between ships can be cor- 
 rectly maintained even in the thickest weather, 
 and the danger of collisions reduced to a 
 minimum. 
 
 All went swimmingly for awhile. Then 
 suddenly things were doing. A fleet of sail- 
 ing craft suddenly loomed up out of the haze. 
 They were anchored right in the channel, and 
 we had run into the midst of them. It was a 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 137 
 
 question of expert dodging, and dodge we cer- 
 tainly did. But in the confusion we lost our 
 formation, and the Second Squadron astern 
 got badly mixed up. Sirens shrieked their ter- 
 rible warning; crews were sent to collision 
 quarters ; but it was only a precautionary meas- 
 ure, and the emergency fortunately did not 
 arise. We finally found so many vessels about 
 us that the Admiral deemed it best to anchor 
 where we were, and this we did to the accom- 
 paniment of a bombardment of six-pounders, 
 two shots from each ship at five second inter- 
 vals, as called for by the Regulations. 
 
 When the fog lifted some hours later, we 
 realized that we had dropped our mud-hooks 
 none too soon. All about us were dozens of 
 sailing vessels, ringing their bells madly and 
 wondering what all this sudden racket meant. 
 They must have had a bad scare, and I don't 
 blame them in the least. Only they had no 
 business in obstructing the channel the way 
 they did. 
 
 TUESDAY, APRIL 5TH. 
 
 At last we are on the Southern Drill 
 Grounds, that forty-mile-square patch of 
 ocean water, twelve miles off the Virginia 
 coast, which stretches from latitude 36 45' to 
 
138 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 latitude 36 55'. Here we are to remain the 
 rest of the week, continuing our gunnery train- 
 ing in preparation for target practice, which is 
 to come some time in the future. That much, 
 at least, of the Admiral's plans we know. 
 
 There was an examination of the magazines 
 during the forenoon, so I took advantage of 
 the opportunity to slip into the forward 12- 
 inch handling room with the officer in charge. 
 We stood on the double-bottoms, far below 
 the water line, in a compartment measuring 
 about twenty feet square. From the center 
 rose the "hoists" with their powder and shell 
 cars, by means of which the guns in the turret 
 above were supplied with the necessary ammu- 
 nition. Water-tight doors led to the several 
 compartments on all sides, where were located 
 the powder magazines and shell rooms, in 
 which were stored tier after tier of copper 
 cases containing full charges of smokeless 
 powder and massive shells weighing more than 
 850 pounds apiece. Here was the station of 
 the powder division in battle, and here they 
 toiled while the guns above thundered and sent 
 forth their death-dealing messengers. 
 
 In the afternoon the general drills contin- 
 ued. Then came the fog again, and once 
 more were we obliged to anchor. But there 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 139 
 
 was cheer in store for us when, about six, the 
 Culgoa appeared in our midst from Hampton 
 Roads with a large mail for each ship, and the 
 Admiral announced that henceforth a regular 
 daily mail service would be maintained with 
 the shore. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, APRIL GTH. 
 
 All morning the Kansas held gunnery drills 
 in company with her sister-ship, the Louisiana. 
 Each acted in turn as firing ship or as target 
 for the other. The batteries were manned, the 
 guns loaded with dummy charges, and every 
 detail of the scientific training carefully per- 
 formed. 
 
 As usual I was in the foretop, with the fire- 
 control party, where by far the most interest- 
 ing work was being done. In fact, ever since my 
 first experience last month, I have reveled in 
 going aloft, and from the top gazing down 
 135 feet upon the vast expanse of sea that 
 surrounded us on all sides. There is a fascina- 
 tion about it that is indescribable ; a charm that 
 bears no comparison. Up there I saw all, 
 heard all, unseen by those below. The pano- 
 rama of the ship spread out under me. The 
 imposing array of guns; the mass of ship's 
 boats clustered on the upper deck; the men 
 
140 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 engaged at their several duties ; the three great 
 smokestacks vomiting sable clouds; the cush- 
 ion of foam around the bow; and the long, 
 broad ribbon of the boiling wake. All this, 
 and more, unfolded before my enraptured 
 gaze. 
 
 MONDAY, APRIL HTH. 
 
 At no other time during this cruise has there 
 developed so intense a sporting interest among 
 the men as recently sprang up between the sev- 
 eral gun-crews on this ship. For days they 
 have been comparing each other's records. 
 Gun has been matched against gun; turret 
 against turret; gun-crew against gun-crew; 
 until finally the interest became so great, that 
 the men begged to be allowed to fight it out 
 in actual competition. So at three this after- 
 noon the test was held between the two after 
 8-inch turrets. Each gun-crew loaded its 
 own piece five times against the men from the 
 other side, and then went through the same 
 test in their opponent's turret. Be first! was 
 the thought of each and every man of them. 
 They were wrought up over this game of 
 theirs, and determined to expend every ounce 
 of energy they had in proving their superior- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 141 
 
 ity over the men from the other side of the 
 ship. Of the details of those minutes inside 
 the turrets, I know little. No outsiders were 
 admitted; not for secrecy's sake, but because 
 there was no room for them within the limited 
 and cramped spaces. Suffice it to say, that the 
 port turret won, and defeated its rival from 
 the starboard side by the fraction of a minute. 
 It was a hard fight to lose. "I'll never get 
 over it," cried the unhappy turret-captain of 
 the losing side. "Why, we had them on the 
 run; I don't see how we ever missed it!" 
 
 WEDNESDAY,, APRIL 13TH. 
 
 A nightmare must have struck this ship last 
 night. Everyone had a dream, and such 
 dreams! The breakfast hour was filled with 
 weird tales. All had to do with target prac- 
 tice or battle. One of the ensigns had an 
 awful one, and then woke to find that he had 
 been trying to drive his head through the bulk- 
 head. The Lieutenant saw visions of his turret 
 in action ; one side of the armor shot away and 
 the gun-crew killed ; the pointer's hood carried 
 away and himself seated beside the gun trying 
 to train it with a monkey-wrench! But 
 enough. Scuppers running with blood are not 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 pleasant to contemplate. Yet I must say that 
 I listened with interest to all that was said, 
 and regretted that I, too, could not contribute 
 to the general store of information. For, 
 strange as it may seem, I never dream. Un- 
 fortunately I uttered some remark to this 
 effect, whereupon they turned upon me and 
 told me that no one had ever been on this ship 
 a month without coming under the spell. I 
 ought to dream, that is all there was to it, and 
 if I stayed on board only a while longer, I, too, 
 would have all the dreams I wanted. 
 
 MONDAY, APRIL 18TH. 
 
 Well! Of all unexpected things! Here we 
 are on the shooting grounds, forty miles at sea, 
 anchored in twenty fathoms of water, ready to 
 begin firing to-morrow at dawn! The unex- 
 pected happened at three o'clock, when the 
 entire fleet, battleships, tugs, colliers, target- 
 rafts, and hospital ship, left the Southern 
 Drill Grounds in obedience to sudden orders 
 from the Admiral, and now, at eight, we are 
 "on the range," awaiting the arrival of the 
 umpires and assistants from the other ships, 
 who are to observe and judge our practice for 
 the next few days. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 143 
 
 TUESDAY,, APRIL 19TH. 
 
 The Admiral evidently slept late, for there 
 was not a stir on the flagship until after eight 
 bells. But we had our hands full, fussing over 
 minor details, sending off the repair party to 
 the tugs, and our detail of umpires to the 
 other ships. Then came the final preparations, 
 and then we were ready. 
 
 To some it may seem that much time is con- 
 sumed in "preparing" for those few minutes 
 of actual shooting, and too much attention 
 given to the innumerable small details that fill 
 the days beforehand. But that, unfortunately, 
 is a necessity. And, as I found out to my sor- 
 row, a necessity that it is well to observe. For 
 before the first shot was fired I neglected some 
 of the precautions I had been cautioned to 
 take, with the result that when I returned to 
 my room, after the first "run," I found a state 
 of affairs that reminded me more of hazing in 
 my freshman year at college than anything I 
 have ever seen before or since. Not a drawer 
 of my wardrobe was in its place; everything 
 was spilled on the deck; my room was in a 
 mess. Then I realized why the days before 
 had been given over to anticipating such ill- 
 effects from the shooting. Everything on deck 
 
144 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 had been removed, stanchions, davits, and 
 railings; boats hoisted in on the upper deck; 
 deadlights boarded over; and ventilators taken 
 down; while battle ports were tightly shut, 
 and every movable object below decks care- 
 fully stowed away, electric fans, plate glass, 
 looking glasses, china, silverware, and electric- 
 light globes, and laid out in a storeroom out 
 of harm's way. 
 
 But it was time to shoot. The Culgoa had 
 left her anchorage with a target in tow, and 
 was proceeding in the direction of "Target 
 Range No. 2," which had been assigned to this 
 Division for the day. Then the Michigan got 
 under way, the Connecticut followed her move- 
 ments, and the rest of the Division dropped in 
 behind. Further and further we steamed 
 from the Culgoa, until we could scarcely see the 
 target-screens. With powerful telescopes they 
 were visible enough, but to our naked eyes they 
 seemed but mere specks on the hazy horizon. 
 No wonder that the civilian commuter, who 
 lives in a little cottage seven miles from town 
 and spends half-an-hour on the trolley, hardly 
 realizes what target practice means, or what 
 our bluejackets are doing, when he is told that 
 they are covering that same distance with 
 projectiles in less than fifteen seconds, and 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 145 
 
 shattering a target smaller than his suburban 
 villa! And this, too, while steaming at full 
 speed, with a moving target, in a choppy sea, 
 and with a fair proportion of hits. 
 
 The first roar of a gun sent a thrill through 
 me. A ruddy flash, a cloud of yellow gas, a 
 splitting crash, and target practice had be- 
 gun. Bang, bang, bang! came the echoes, one 
 after the other. A glance at the target, a 
 splash of water forty or fifty feet high, and 
 you knew the result. 
 
 It was the Louisiana that had come on the 
 range, and hers the honor to commence the 
 first run of the greatest game the world has 
 ever seen. And well did she deserve the com- 
 pliment. As regularly as clockwork did her 
 guns go off, and as straight as a die went their 
 shells. The first few shots just about located 
 the target; then began as murderous a fire as 
 the Navy has ever seen. Every shot told; the 
 air was filled with flying battens, parts of 
 masts and strips of canvas, until towards 
 the close of the firing, the shells were appar- 
 ently passing through the target without 
 striking anything in their flight. A clean hole 
 had been shot through the center of the screen ! 
 
 Then we had to wait while the damage was 
 repaired. But the men went at their task with 
 
146 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 a will that did credit to their indefatigable 
 energy, and within the hour we were again in 
 line, "coming on the range." 
 
 It was our turn! From my station, in the 
 main-top, 120 feet above the guns, I had a 
 splendid view. And here, at least, I felt quite 
 safe. The ship was speeding on, pitching 
 lazily as she pushed her way through the roll- 
 ing sea, while the wind whistled through the 
 masts and blew clouds of smoke beneath our 
 feet. The targets and towing-ship showed up 
 plainly, though so far, so very far away. We 
 were now coming on the range. "Stand by!" 
 "Fire !" There was a blinding flash, a roar and 
 thunder, a scorching wave of hot air from be- 
 low, and our eyes were strained to see the 
 result. With a good glass you can pick up 
 the shells about a hundred yards from the 
 muzzle and follow them in their course through 
 the air. Then you see a splash, then another, 
 another and another, as they ricochet for 
 miles. Shot after shot rang out. Then a 
 deathly silence. The run was over, and the 
 next ship was about to begin the practice in 
 her turn. 
 
 But it was on the gun-deck, where the man- 
 behind- the-gun was in action, that the best and 
 most spectacular part of the work was going 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 147 
 
 on. Here was where team work was most in 
 evidence. Yet it was not on these men alone 
 that success depended. For on the day of 
 battle everyone, from the Admiral down to the 
 youngest apprentice, has his share of respon- 
 sibility. However good the pointer may be, 
 unless he has an admiral or captain who can 
 put him in the right place at the right time, 
 good shooting will not avail much. Target 
 practice is meant, therefore, to teach not only 
 the men how to shoot, but also the officers how 
 to bring their ships into position, how to keep 
 them there, and how to help the pointers in 
 every way possible. It marks the culmination 
 of months of training and work, not only in 
 gunnery, but in engineering, navigation, and 
 fire-control. The secret of success depends not 
 on one alone, but on all equally and jointly. 
 
 As we came on the range, every man of the 
 crew was at his station, alert and ready at the 
 word of command to do his very best. Com- 
 mands were given in quiet tones, the men 
 moved about like machines ; the deathly silence 
 broken only by the voices of the pointer and 
 trainer as they coached one another: "Right, 
 Tommy. A little more. Just a hair. That's the 
 boy!" The moment for action was at hand. 
 "Stand by! Commence firing!" In an instant 
 
148 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 the tray was loaded, the breach opened, the 
 charge rammed home, the breech closed, pri- 
 mer inserted and lock cocked. "Ready!" yelled 
 the plugman, as he slapped the pointer on the 
 back. The sight-setters were busy keeping the 
 range- and deflection-scales corrected, while 
 the pointer and trainer aimed the piece until 
 the cross-wires of the telescope-lens bore on the 
 target. Then a flash, a deafening roar, a 
 powerful tremor, and the shell was on its way. 
 Almost instinctively the breech was again 
 opened, a whirring sound was heard as the 
 compressed air drove out the burning gases 
 through the muzzle, another charge was 
 inserted, the breech again closed, and 
 "Ready!" Then a third charge, and another, 
 and still another. What wonderful team 
 work! Every motion precise and accurate like 
 perfectly adjusted and well-oiled machinery. 
 And what speed! Every fraction of a second 
 saved in this is as valuable as hours ordina- 
 rily, and every moment thus saved means so 
 much more time for the pointer. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, APRIL 20TH. 
 
 One is naturally astonished, on witnessing 
 big-gun target practice for the first time, that 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 149 
 
 smokeless powder should produce such a vol- 
 ume of yellow colored gases, and photographs 
 of ships firing are apt to mislead the civilian 
 into believing that the old brown powder is 
 still used. But the powder-charge proper is 
 really smokeless. What little smoke is pro- 
 duced comes from the ignition-charge, which 
 is indispensable, because of the difficulty 
 found in the ignition of smokeless powders, 
 and also because it is found that the black 
 powder facilitates the transfer of ignition 
 through the grains of the smokeless powder. 
 Fourteen pounds of black powder are required 
 for the ignition- charge of a 13-inch gun. The 
 smoke is therefore considerable, but it is so 
 diluted with the large volume of colorless 
 gases from the consumed smokeless powder 
 that it dissipates readily enough. In the 
 course of exhaustive tests made at the Naval 
 Proving Grounds it was found that a point 
 four miles distant was visible in five seconds 
 after the firing of a 13-inch gun, whereas with 
 brown powder the time taken was twenty-five 
 seconds. This was in calm weather ; in a breeze 
 the five seconds would be considerably lessened. 
 We made an early start this morning, and 
 all day continued the cannonade. The condi- 
 tions were not exactly ideal for good records, 
 
150 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 but the "Chief" has his lucky shirt on, and we 
 consequently came through with flying colors. 
 
 Then in the evening the target-screens, each 
 rolled up on its battens, were brought on board 
 to be inspected by the umpires and officers of 
 the ship. Two of the searchlights were turned 
 down upon the quarter-deck; one by one the 
 screens were unrolled and examined and the 
 shot-holes counted. No one turned in early 
 that night. The men crowded the rail and the 
 turret-tops in their eagerness to watch the 
 count and see the jagged holes in the canvas 
 that told of the passage of the shells, and when 
 it was announced that the examination had 
 confirmed the former number of "spotted" 
 hits, the enthusiasm of the ship's company 
 knew no bounds. 
 
 Only once were the umpires in difficulty, 
 and that was when a screen was unrolled with 
 double the number of shot-holes that they had 
 previously "spotted." Two shells apparently 
 had pierced each of the holes in the canvas. 
 There was no doubt about it; there were both 
 red and green paint-marks. For to distin- 
 guish the hits made by the several sets of 
 pointers, the shells are usually painted differ- 
 ent colors, green for the first pointer and red 
 for the second pointer. The umpires were 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 151 
 
 indeed perplexed. They were certain they 
 had seen but one shell pierce each hole, yet 
 there were the marks of two. They questioned 
 the officers, and then sought information from 
 the men. But no one could account for this 
 remarkable duplication, until finally one blue- 
 jacket came forward and solved the difficulty. 
 The poor man was most embarrassed, and 
 nervously twirled his cap in his hands; he did 
 not quite know how to say what he wanted to, 
 but we soon gathered that he had been the cause 
 of all the trouble, because just before the run 
 he had painted green shamrocks on all the red 
 shells, "just for luck." 
 
 THURSDAY, APRIL 21sx. 
 
 But the 12-inch guns! It is when those 
 monsters go off that you want to fill your 
 ears with cotton, unless you have provided 
 yourself with ear-protectors. And you want 
 to stand clear, as far away and back as you 
 can. And above all, be sure that you have 
 secured everything in your stateroom and 
 closed your air port, for if you have not you 
 may find your toothbrush and shaving mug 
 and soap dish spilled on the deck with the 
 fragments of your water pitcher. 
 
152 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 As the ship nears the range, the alarm gongs 
 ring, sounding General Quarters; bugles call 
 officers and men to their battle- stations. 
 Everyone drops what he is doing, and rushes 
 to his place. All seems confusion, but it is 
 only an orderly confusion, in which each one 
 knows exactly what he is to do. Then with all 
 in readiness, you await the anxious moment. 
 You count the seconds. How long they seem! 
 But before you know it the whistle has blown, 
 and the work has begun. 
 
 For the first run I was inside that low, 
 cramped chamber, the turret, standing in 
 the narrow passage not two feet away from 
 one of the guns. It was the only place where 
 I could stand without being in the way. The 
 dim light of the battle-lanterns revealed the 
 men at their stations about the breech of the 
 piece. The heat was oppressive, streams of 
 perspiration showed on their faces; all longed 
 that it might begin soon. Presently the 
 pointers and trainer brought the guns to bear 
 on the distant target. I could feel the massive 
 turret revolving slowly and smoothly beneath 
 me; we were coming on the range! "Stand 
 by!" The visual clicked at intervals, and the 
 sight-setters as quickly checked the corrections. 
 "Load!" 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 153 
 
 At the word of command from the quiet- 
 voiced officer in charge all was action. Heat, 
 hits, misses, and records, all were forgotten. 
 Yet there was no confusion, no hurry. Metal- 
 lic rumbling sounds from the depths below 
 announced that the shells and powder-bags 
 were being loaded upon the cars ; the trapdoor 
 to the handling-room opened its steel jaws as 
 the ammunition car rushed up into its place 
 before the breech, which had meanwhile been 
 opened. In went the 860-pound shell and the 
 320 pounds of powder. Before I realized what 
 had happened the breech was shut, the car had 
 disappeared below, the shutter was again 
 closed, and the big piece was ready. A momen- 
 tary lull, then the monster leapt back in recoil, 
 I heard a muffled roar and felt a sharp jar, 
 then all was action again. So easy, I thought. 
 Mere child's play. And so it seemed, yet it 
 was perfection attained only after months of 
 hard and conscientious training. 
 
 As the gun went off, I did not feel much of 
 the tearing displacement of air outside, the 
 "blast"; the steel walls of the turret protected 
 me from the results of the explosion of all that 
 powder. But it was on deck that I later got the 
 full benefit of all that I could not see or feel 
 inside. Forewarned, I kept well back and away 
 
154 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 from the muzzles. I strained my eyes, keeping 
 them on the gun to watch for the blast. Would 
 it never come? But it did come, and at the 
 very time when I least expected it. The white 
 flame appeared brighter than anything I had 
 ever seen, a tremendous cloud of yellow gas 
 rushed out of the muzzle, and the roar shocked 
 me all over. I grasped at the winch to steady 
 myself. Then my eyes sought the projectile 
 as it sped towards the target. An enormous 
 geyser, hundreds of feet high, leapt into the 
 air. Then another, and another as the shell 
 ricochetted, each miles farther away. 
 
 With it came a peculiar roar unlike any- 
 thing I had ever heard. It sounded more like 
 the rush of an express train as it dashed in and 
 out of tunnels, up and down valleys. I could 
 plainly hear the chug, chug, chug, of the loco- 
 motive, the rumble of the train in the stillness 
 of the night. I could almost see it in my mind's 
 eye as it rushed along. And before it was lost 
 sight of, came another flame, another deafen- 
 ing roar, more geysers, and so it went on 
 until the whistle blew the "Cease firing," and 
 all was over. 
 
 Then the ship swung around that we might 
 get a good look at the target-screens, the gun- 
 crews poured out of the tops of the turrets and 
 

A LANDSMAN'S LOG 155 
 
 crowded the rail to see what they had done. 
 A mighty cheer went up when the good news 
 was known, then the ship resumed her place 
 in line, and the next one fired in her turn. 
 
 "Well, how do you like it?" "Wonderful!" 
 was all I could say. "Oh, but this is nothing 
 compared with Battle Practice; that is when 
 you should be with us." And well do I wish 
 I might. I can imagine it. Those tremen- 
 dous broadsides; fourteen guns at a time 
 instead of salvos of but two or three; and 
 fourteen geysers, bunched as one, leaping into 
 the air! "Wonderful!" hardly describes it. 
 
 For another run I took my position in the 
 12-inch sub-station, far below the armor belt 
 and protective deck. A little room, ten by 
 ten, fitted with telephones, range plotting- 
 boards, visuals, and indicators, the heart of 
 the ship in action. For it was from here that 
 the ranges and corrections were communicated 
 to the guns and turrets as fast as they could 
 be sent down by the spotters aloft. As we 
 came on the range the tension became unbear- 
 able. Not a word was spoken; hardly a 
 
 breath was drawn Two minutes more! 
 
 How long the time seemed! A few messages 
 came down from the after-twelve. One min- 
 ute more! "Initial range: eight-nine-double- 
 
156 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 O, fivety-five!" "Commence firing!" Stop- 
 watches were started everyone awaited the 
 first shot. There was a mighty quiver as the 
 ship shook from stem to stern, and a dull 
 report heard over the telephones. "No 
 change!" A hit! Another quiver! "Fire at 
 target No. 2!" The first screen had been 
 carried away "Down fivety !" The last shot was 
 high, and all the while the telephone men were 
 repeating over the wires: "Range: eight-eight- 
 five-O, fivety-five." .... Another quiver 
 another hit, and another, another, another 
 the last shot had been fired. We heard a cheer 
 from the men in the handling-room as they 
 came out. Seven hits out of eight shots! We 
 rushed up on deck to hear all about it from 
 those who had witnessed the firing, and to 
 take a look at the targets. Yes, there they 
 were. Seven big rents and gaping holes! 
 
 SATURDAY, APRIL 23RD. 
 
 After the last four days of work everyone 
 was glad of a rest. Most of the morning was 
 spent cleaning ship, scrubbing the decks with 
 sand, replacing all articles that had to be 
 removed during the firing, and rendering 
 everything shipshape again. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 157 
 
 This target practice certainly has been of 
 inestimable value to the Service. Not only 
 have different methods of training been given 
 a real test under trying conditions, but both 
 officers and men have had the best opportunity 
 imaginable of becoming thoroughly familiar 
 with their weapons in every way. Each shot 
 has had its lesson. Every breakdown has had 
 its value in that it has brought nearer the day 
 when that fault will have been corrected, and 
 a ship may go into battle without fear of its 
 recurring. Yes, target practice has its advan- 
 tages, very great advantages. 
 
 SUNDAY, APRIL 24TH. 
 
 Day-firing certainly was glorious, but yes- 
 terday came the really spectacular part of 
 target practice, night-firing with the 3-inch 
 torpedo-defence batteries. The method of 
 holding it was the same, except that the targets 
 were illuminated by searchlights from the 
 firing ships. It was a beautiful scene. The 
 beams of light, and the flight of the "tracers" 
 through the inky blackness of the night pre- 
 sented a spectacle I had never even dreamt of. 
 The idea of using tracers seems to have been 
 an American invention. As described in an 
 
158 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 English newspaper, they consist of "a small 
 metal cylinder screwed into the base of the 
 shell, containing a secret composition largely 
 formed of magnesium. As the shell leaves 
 the muzzle, it shows a light, which continues 
 burning throughout the trajectory of the shot 
 through the air. The object of this is to iden- 
 tify the shells fired by the different guns of 
 the batteries," and thus the exact flight of each 
 projectile can be watched in its course to the 
 target. 
 
 Though accustomed to the noise by this 
 time, the small caliber guns were decidedly 
 disconcerting. The flash by night was more 
 blinding than by day, the explosion far more 
 penetrating, and the guns fired so rapidly that 
 you hardly had time to recover from one before 
 the next went off. As one officer remarked: 
 "It's not the big fellows we mind; it's the 
 smaller ones that do the cracking. They make 
 you deaf, whereas the great blasts are fine, 
 because they sound like business." 
 
 You strain your eyes trying to penetrate 
 the inky blackness beyond, with a telescope or 
 pair of glasses fixed to your eyes. The flash 
 blinds you, but in a moment you see the pro- 
 jectile, revealed by its tracer, curving through 
 the air. You see it hit the target, and the 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 159 
 
 splash in the beam of the searchlight as it 
 strikes the water; up it goes several hundred 
 feet as it ricochets; a thousand yards further 
 it comes down ; then another leap, another, and 
 another, and then it disappears, miles away. 
 Often the guns are fired so rapidly that many 
 of these rockets are in the air at the same time, 
 leaping and curving like fireworks in the night. 
 And when the guns of several calibers are fired 
 at the same time you see the big fellows over- 
 haul and pass the smaller ones before they 
 reach the target. 
 
 All the officers had to be on duty during the 
 firing, but between runs they would gather in 
 the wardroom till the bugle once more sum- 
 moned them up on deck. The main subject of 
 conversation during those moments of relaxa- 
 tion naturally was what we were doing and 
 what the others had done and what we surely 
 would do on the next run. Someone, perhaps, 
 indulged in a story, but the tale was certain to 
 be rudely interrupted by the report of a shot. 
 Another ship had come on the range! And 
 then we would grab a sandwich and rush up 
 on deck or peer through the open gun-ports 
 to see what she was doing. At one o'clock the 
 caterer very considerately furnished us with 
 a cold supper, which was greatly appreciated; 
 
160 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 then we once more turned our attention to the 
 firing and continued the exciting sport until 
 the break of dawn. 
 
 In anticipation of another night of firing, 
 we took advantage of every opportunity to 
 snatch a little sleep in the course of the day. 
 But about four it began to blow, and the water, 
 which had heretofore been smooth, in a short 
 while became so rough, that it was deemed 
 wiser to postpone the practice, as the repair 
 party in the sailing launch could never have 
 lived and much less worked in such a sea. 
 
 It is in this phase of target practice that 
 you feel the human element, and experience a 
 return to the good old days of the "heave and 
 haul." The bare, cleared-for-action battle- 
 ships belching flames from their guns present 
 a sight from which the human element is 
 entirely hidden, but on the target-raft, on that 
 narrow platform of heavy timbers, tossing in 
 the trough of the sea, you can see it when the 
 men of the repair party toil to erect new masts 
 and hoist fresh screens in the place of those 
 that have been shot away. It is a work of 
 which we cannot realize the danger. Yet the 
 men never give the risks a thought, and exhibit 
 a recklessness that often is a source of worry 
 to their officers. And in this work also is that 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 161 
 
 splendid relationship between officers and men, 
 already alluded to, brought out; side by side 
 they work untiringly and cheerfully; one min- 
 ute they are under water, hanging on to the 
 timbers of the raft, and next they ride on the 
 crest of a comber; but the work goes on, and 
 no one dreams of quitting until the target once 
 more is in its place, ready to be demolished by 
 the next broadside. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27TH. 
 
 Target practice is over; the last shot has 
 been fired; and once more do we enjoy the 
 comforts of home. The wardroom looks like a 
 different place, now that the looking-glasses, 
 pictures, electric lights, silver and china have 
 been restored to their former places, and my 
 room again is habitable, though I can hardly 
 say that I am at all tempted to use my electric 
 fan. 
 
 Everyone is in a happy mood. No wonder. 
 The year's work is done, and well done. Once 
 more are we homeward bound, and within 
 twenty-four hours we shall be at the Navy 
 Yard, where shore leave awaits every member 
 of the crew. 
 
 Not until nightfall did we sight the Dela- 
 
162 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 ware Cape lights. They did not look any 
 different from other lights along the coast, but 
 I stayed up just to be able to say that I had 
 seen them. It was a wonderful night. The 
 sea was resplendent with phosphorescence, 
 especially up forward, where the bow-wave 
 appeared as if illumined by a hundred elec- 
 tric lights, and the ram shone like a beacon. 
 At eleven we finally hove to off Cape Henlo- 
 pen, and anchored to await the turn of the 
 tide. 
 
 THURSDAY, APRIL 28TH. 
 
 At seven we were under way, headed for 
 our home yard, Philadelphia. I was up 
 betimes. But the historic waters of the Dela- 
 ware proved decidedly disappointing, and it 
 was not long before I turned my eyes from 
 the flat, barren shores of the bay and went 
 below to pack my trunk. 
 
 My cruise now is ended. Four months have 
 elapsed since first I trod the deck of the Kan- 
 sas in my capacity of "passenger." All too 
 quickly has the time passed by, and as the 
 moment draws near when I shall have to take 
 my leave, I feel that I will be able to do so 
 only with feelings of genuine regret and the 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 163 
 
 warmest affection towards the Captain, under 
 whose shadow I have lived, and the officers and 
 men who have been my companions and ship- 
 mates both ashore and afloat. 
 
APPENDIX 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 U. S. S. KANSAS 
 
 First-class Battleship. 
 
 Length, 450 feet between perpendiculars ; 451 feet on 
 load water-line. 
 
 Extreme breadth, 76.10 feet; Draft, 24.6 feet. 
 
 Displacement, 16,000 tons. 
 
 Bunker capacity, 2360.5 tons of coal. 
 
 Engines, 2 inverted 4-cylinder direct acting triple- 
 expansion. 
 
 Boilers, 12 Babcock and Wilcox (2 furnaces each). 
 
 Complement: 1 Captain, 19 wardroom officers, 20 
 junior officers, 9 warrant officers, 27 chief petty 
 officers, 392 seamen, 42 artificers, 216 engineer 
 force, 125 special branch, 43 messmen, 72 
 marines. Total 853. 
 
 Armament, 4 12-inch B. L. R., 8 8-inch B. L. R., 
 12 7-inch R. F., 20 3-inch R. F. G., 12 3-pdr. 
 R. F., 2 .30-cal., 2 Colt A. 
 
 U. S. ATLANTIC FLEET 
 (January May, 1910.) 
 
 First Division: 
 
 Connecticut (flagship of Commander-in-Chief). 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 16,000 tons. 
 
168 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 Vermont. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 16,000 tons. 
 Kansas. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 16,000 tons. 
 Louisiana. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 16,000 tons. 
 
 Second Division: 
 
 Minnesota (flagship of Division Commander). 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 16,000 tons. 
 New Hampshire. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 16,000 tons. 
 Idaho. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 20 guns, 13,000 tons. 
 Mississippi. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 20 guns, 13,000 tons. 
 
 Third Division: 
 
 Georgia (flagship of Division Commander). 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 14,948 tons. 
 Nebraska. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 14,948 tons. 
 New Jersey. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 14,948 tons. 
 Rhode Island. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 14,948 tons. 
 
 Fourth Division: 
 
 Virginia (flagship of Division Commander). 
 
 First-class Battleship, 24 guns, 14,948 tons. 
 Wisconsin. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 18 guns, 11,552 tons. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 169 
 
 Missouri. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 20 guns, 12,500 tons. 
 Michigan. 
 
 First-class Battleship, 8 guns, 16,000 tons. 
 
 Armored Cruisers: 
 Montana. 
 
 Armored Cruiser, 20 guns, 14,500 tons. 
 North Carolina. 
 
 Armored Cruiser, 20 guns, 14,500 tons. 
 
 Fleet Auxiliaries: 
 Celtic. 
 
 Supply ship, 6,428 tons. 
 CuLgoa. 
 
 Supply ship, 6,300 tons. 
 Panther. 
 
 Repair ship, 8 guns, 4,260 tons. 
 Solace. 
 
 Hospital ship, 4,700 tons. 
 Yank ton. 
 
 Tender, 4 guns, 975 tons. 
 Patuxent. 
 
 Tug, 755 tons. 
 Potomac. 
 
 Tug, 785 tons. 
 
 DAILY SEA ROUTINE 
 
 3.00 a.m. Call ship's cook. 
 
 3.50 Call the watch; relieve the wheel and 
 
 lookouts. 
 
170 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 4.00 a.m. Relieve the watch ; light smoking lamp. 
 
 4.30 Turn to ; out smoking lamp ; pipe sweep- 
 
 ers ; clear up the decks ; wash clothes. 
 
 5.00 Call idlers and day men. 
 
 5.15 Trice up clotheslines; execute morning 
 
 orders ; at sunrise take in running 
 lights; station masthead lookout. 
 
 6.30 Hoist ashes. 
 
 6.50 Trice up six bell hammock cloths. 
 
 7.00 Up all hammocks; serve out washing 
 
 water. 
 
 7.20 Mess gear; watch below; light smoking 
 
 lamp. 
 
 7.30 Breakfast; watch below; clean deck 
 
 bright-work. 
 
 7.50 Mess gear; watch on deck. 
 
 8.00 Relieve the watch ; breakfast. 
 
 8.30 Turn to; out smoking lamp; clean 
 
 bright-work. 
 
 9.00 Sick call. 
 
 9.15 Clear up deck; down towel lines; stow 
 
 away ditty boxes and cleaning gear; 
 pipe sweepers. 
 
 9.25 Officers' call. Report decks ready for 
 
 quarters. 
 
 9.30 Quarters; after which drills and exer- 
 
 cises as per routine. 
 
 10.00 Relieve wheel and lookouts; signal (1) 
 
 absentees, (2) sick. 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 171 
 
 10.30a.m. Retreat from drill; "extra duty call"; 
 
 pipe sweepers ; hoist ashes. 
 11.30 Clean up decks; pipe sweepers. 
 
 11.50 Mess gear; watch below; light smoking 
 
 lamp. 
 
 Noon Dinner; watch below; signal (1) coal on 
 
 hand, (2) coal expended, (3) latitude, 
 (4) longitude. 
 
 12.20p.m. Mess gear; watch on deck. 
 12.30 Relieve the watch; dinner. 
 
 1.00 Turn to; out smoking lamp; pipe sweep- 
 
 ers ; start work about deck. 
 1.30 Serve out provisions; drill call. 
 
 2.00 Hoist ashes ; relieve the wheel and look- 
 
 out. 
 2.15 Retreat from drill; pipe sweepers; "extra 
 
 duty call." 
 
 2.30 Instruction of landsmen; hoist ashes. 
 
 3.30 Pipe sweepers. 
 
 4.00 Relieve the watch. 
 
 4.30 Pipe sweepers ; clear up decks ; knock off 
 
 all work. 
 
 4.55 Officers' call. 
 
 5.00 Evening quarters ; close water-tight 
 
 doors. 
 5.20 Mess gear ; watch below ; light smoking 
 
 lamp. 
 
 5.30 Supper ; watch below ; pipe sweepers. 
 
 5.50 Mess gear; watch on deck. 
 
172 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 6.00 p.m. Relieve the watch ; supper ; relieve wheel 
 
 and lookouts; lifeboats and life-buoys 
 
 reported ready. 
 
 6.30 Turn to ; pipe sweepers ; hoist ashes. 
 
 Sunset Set deck lookouts ; running lights ; get up 
 
 wash deck gear. 
 7.30 Hammocks ; mate of splinter-deck see 
 
 water-tight doors and hatches closed. 
 8.00 Relieve the watch, wheel and lookouts ; 
 
 out smoking lamp. 
 
PERSONNEL OF THE NAVY 
 
 OFFICERS AND MEN OF THE ACTIVE LIST, 
 NOVEMBEE, 1911 
 
 Line Officers (1,635): 
 
 Admiral of the Navy . . . ... ....... 1 
 
 Rear admirals 30 
 
 Captains , . ... - . 96 
 
 Commanders 116 
 
 Lieutenant commanders ..... 211 
 
 Lieutenants 351 
 
 Lieutenants (junior grade) .... 128 
 
 Ensigns ...... 421 
 
 Midshipmen at sea 281 
 
 Staff Officers (664) : 
 
 Medical directors . . ... . . 15 
 
 Medical inspectors . ... . . 17 
 
 Surgeons 85 
 
 Passed assistant surgeons .... 142 
 
 Assistant surgeons 42 
 
 Acting assistant surgeons . . . . : ; > 9 
 
 Pay directors . . . ... . ^ 14 
 
 Pay inspectors . * /.. :V . . , , v 15 
 
 Paymasters . . . . ... . . 76 
 
 Passed assistant paymasters . 7 . ... . 56 
 
 Assistant paymasters . .- . . , , v 40 
 
174 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 Chaplains 24 
 
 Professors of mathematics .... 15 
 
 Naval constructors 43 
 
 Assistant naval constructors .... 32 
 
 Civil engineers 29 
 
 Assistant civil engineers 10 
 
 Warrant Officers (645): 
 
 Chief boatswains 101 
 
 Boatswains 60 
 
 Chief gunners 88 
 
 Gunners 62 
 
 Chief machinists 105 
 
 Machinists 94 
 
 Chief carpenters 70 
 
 Carpenters 37 
 
 Chief sailmakers 3 
 
 Pharmacists 25 
 
 Enlisted men (47,500) : 
 
 Petty officers and enlisted force . . . 47,500 
 
 REQUIREMENTS FOR ENLISTMENT IN THE NAVY 
 
 An applicant for enlistment must be a citizen of 
 the United States, native or naturalized, between 17 
 and 35 years old, of good character and habits, able 
 to read, write, and speak English. A minor under 
 18 enlists for minority only, and must furnish sworn 
 consent of parent or guardian. Applicants over 18 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 175 
 
 enlist for four years, and minors must furnish a birth 
 certificate or verified written statement of parent or 
 guardian as to their age and height. Applicants 
 must be in good physical condition, free from any 
 disease or deformity, at least 64 inches high and 
 weighing 128 pounds for an adult, with weight 
 increasing in proportion to height. A minor must 
 be at least 62 inches tall and weigh 110 pounds, 
 increasing proportionately with age and height. 
 
 STATISTICS OF ENUSTMENT IN THE NAVY, 1911 
 
 Number in service . . . . V- . . . 47,612 
 
 Number of applicants . . . . , 79,458 
 
 Applicants enlisted 15,724 
 
 Percentage of desertions . . . . . 4.16 
 
 Discharge by purchase , . 461 
 
 CITIZENSHIP OF THE ENLISTED FORCE, 1911 
 
 Native born . . . . . . . . . 42,752 
 
 Naturalized . . : % V . - . . . . 3,050 
 
 Aliens of declared intentions . , <-, , , 192 
 
 Aliens resident in the United States * : v 170 
 
 Aliens non-resident in the United States *r. 208 
 
 Natives of Porto Rico . w^ , r v , t; f . j ,* 47 
 
 Natives of Guam . ..- ;.-.;.;. #--vv;0 >...>. *^ 70 
 
 Natives of Samoa .... ^^i,.- ,. 81 
 
 Natives of the PhiHppines . * . - * ; .^ 1,042 
 
176 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 PAY, PROMOTION AND REWARDS IN THE NAVY 
 
 Commissioned Officers of the Lme: Yearly Pay 
 
 Admirals $13,500 - $14,850 
 
 Real admirals 6,000- 8,800 
 
 Captains 4,000- 5,500 
 
 Commanders 3,500- 4,950 
 
 Lieutenant commanders . . 3,000 - 4,400 
 
 Lieutenants 2,400- 3,696 
 
 Lieutenants (junior grade) . 2,000 - 3,080 
 
 Ensigns 1,700- 2,618 
 
 Warrant Officers of the Lme: Yearly Pay 
 
 Chief boatswains .... $ 1,700-$ 1,870 
 
 Chief gunners 1,700- 1,870 
 
 Chief machinists .... 1,700- 2,618 
 
 Boatswains 875- 2,250 
 
 Gunners 875- 2,250 
 
 Machinists 875- 2,250 
 
 Mates 625- 1,500 
 
 Commissioned Officers of the Staff : Yearly Pay 
 
 Medical directors .... $ 4,000-$ 5,500 
 
 Medical inspectors . . . 3,500- 4,950 
 
 Surgeons 3,000- 4,400 
 
 Passed assistant surgeons . . 2,400 - 3,696 
 
 Assistant surgeons . . . 2,000 - 3,080 
 
 Acting assistant surgeons . 1,000- 1,700 
 
 Pay directors 4,000 - 5,500 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 177 
 
 Yearly Pay 
 
 Pay inspectors $ 3,500-$ 4,950 
 
 Paymasters 2,400- 4,400 
 
 Passed assistant paymasters . 2,400 3,696 
 
 Assistant paymasters . . . 1,700- 3,080 
 
 Chaplains ...... 2,000- 4,400 
 
 Professors of mathematics . 2,400 5,500 
 
 Naval constructors . . . 2,400- 5,500 
 
 Assistant naval constructors . 2,000 3,696 
 
 Civil engineers 2,400 - 5,500 
 
 Assistant civil engineers . . 1,700 - 3,080 
 
 Warrant Officers of the Staff: Yearly Pay 
 Chief carpenters . . . . $ 1,700-$ 1,870 
 
 Chief sailmakers .... 1,700- 1,870 
 
 Carpenters 875- 2,250 
 
 Sailmakers 875- 2,250 
 
 Pharmacists 875- 2,250 
 
 Paymasters' clerks ... 875 - 2,250 
 
 Remarks : 
 
 Rations, Officers. All officers of the Navy, except 
 commissioned officers of the line, medical and pay 
 corps, chaplains, and commissioned warrant officers, 
 are entitled to a ration or commutation therefor at 
 the rate of thirty cents per day while attached to and 
 doing duty aboard a seagoing vessel of the Navy. 
 
 Retirements. An officer of the Navy may, after 
 thirty years' service, upon his own application, in the 
 discretion of the President, be retired from active 
 
178 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 service and placed upon the retired list with three- 
 fourths of the highest grade of his grade. 
 
 Enlisted men: 
 
 CHIEF PETTY OFFICERS 
 
 Seaman Branch: M p* ly 
 
 Chief masters-at-arms $72 
 
 Chief boatswains' mates .... 55 
 
 Chief gunners' mates 55 
 
 Chief turret captains 66 
 
 Chief quartermasters 55 
 
 Artificer Branch: 
 
 Chief machinists' mates $77 
 
 Chief electricians 66 
 
 Chief carpenters' mates .... 55 
 
 Chief water tenders 55 
 
 Special Branch: 
 
 Chief yeomen $66 
 
 Hospital stewards 66 
 
 Bandmasters 57 
 
 Chief commissary steward .... 77 
 
 PETTY OFFICERS, FIRST CLASS 
 
 Seaman Branch: M | n a * ljr 
 
 Masters-at-arms, first class . . . $44 
 
 Boatswains' mates, first class ... 44 
 
 Gunners' mates, first class .... 44 
 
 Turret captains, first class .... 55 
 
 Quartermasters, first class .... 44 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 179 
 
 Artificer Branch : 
 
 Boilermakers ....... $72 
 
 Machinists' mates, first class ... 61 
 
 Coppersmiths ....... 61 
 
 Shipfitters, first class ..... 61 
 
 Electricians, first class ..... 55 
 
 Blacksmiths ........ 55 
 
 Plumbers and fitters ..... 50 
 
 Sailmakers' mates ...... 44 
 
 Carpenters' mates, first class ... 44 
 
 Water tenders ....... 44 
 
 Painters, first class ...... 44 
 
 Special Branch: 
 
 Yeomen, first class ...... $44 
 
 First musicians ....... 40 
 
 Commissary steward ..... 66 
 
 Ship's cooks, first class ..... 61 
 
 Baker, first class . ..... 50 
 
 PETTY OFFICERS, SECOND CLASS 
 
 Seaman Branch: Monthly 
 
 Masters-at-arms, second class . . . $39 
 
 Boatswains' mates, second class . . 39 
 
 Gunners' mates, second class ... 39 
 
 Quartermasters, second class ... 39 
 
 Artificer Branch : 
 
 Machinists' mates, second class . . $44 
 
 Electricians, second class .... 44 
 
 Shipfitters, second class .... 44 
 
Monthly 
 Pay 
 
 180 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 Oilers ......... 
 
 Carpenters' mates, second class . . 39 
 
 Printers ......... 39 
 
 Painters, second class ..... 39 
 
 Special Branch: 
 
 Yeomen, second class ..... $39 
 
 Ship's cook, second class .... 44 
 
 Baker, second class ...... 39 
 
 PETTY OFFICERS, THIRD CLASS 
 
 Seaman Branch: M p n a t y hly 
 
 Masters-at-arms, third class . . . $33 
 
 Coxswains ........ 33 
 
 Gunners' mates, third class .... 33 
 
 Quartermasters, third class ... 33 
 
 Artificer Branch: 
 
 Electricians, third class .... $33 
 
 Carpenters' mates, third class ... 33 
 
 Painters, third class ..... 33 
 
 Special Branch: 
 
 Yeomen, third class ..... $33 
 
 Hospital apprentices, first class . . 33 
 
 Ship's cook, third class ..... 33 
 
 SEAMEN, FIRST C:LASS 
 
 Seaman Branch: M * ly 
 
 Seamen gunners ...... $29 
 
 Seamen ......... 26 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 181 
 
 Artificer Branch : 
 
 Firemen, first class . ..... . $39 
 
 Shipwrights . . . ... . 28 
 
 Special Branch: 
 
 Musicians, first class . . . . . $35 
 
 Ship's cook, fourth class . ... 28 
 
 SEAMEN, SECOND CLASS 
 
 Seaman Branch: M f* ly 
 
 Ordinary seamen * - * .. . . $21 
 
 Artificer Branch : 
 
 Firemen, second class ..... $33 
 
 Special Branch : 
 
 Musicians, second class . . . ' . . $33 
 
 Buglers . . ' .J """"",' v . ' . . . . 33 
 
 Hospital apprentices . . . . . 22 
 
 SEAMEN, THIRD CLASS 
 
 Seaman Branch: M p" t y ly 
 
 Apprentice seamen . . '. '. . . $17.6 
 
 Artificer Branch: 
 
 Coal-passers '. ... . . . $24 
 
 Special Branch: 
 
 Landsmen . . '. . . . . . $17.6 
 
 MESSMEN BRANCH 
 
 Stewards to commanders-in-chief . . $60 
 
 Cooks to commanders-in-chief . * - :. 50 
 
 Stewards to commandants . . . '.- 60 
 
 Cooks to commandants . . . *fe 50 
 
182 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 Monthly 
 Pay 
 
 Cabin stewards $50 
 
 Cabin cooks 45 
 
 Wardroom stewards 50 
 
 Wardroom cooks 45 
 
 Steerage stewards 35 
 
 Steerage cooks 30 
 
 Warrant officers' stewards .... 35 
 
 Warrant officers' cooks 30 
 
 Mess attendants, first class .... 24 
 
 Mess attendants, second class ... 20 
 
 Mess attendants, third class ... 16 
 
 Remarks : 
 
 Seamen Gunners' Certificate, etc. Men who have 
 successfully completed a prescribed course of instruc- 
 tion for seamen gunners or petty officers may be 
 given, by the Bureau of Navigation, a certificate to 
 that effect, which shall entitle them to receive $2 per 
 month in addition to the pay of the rating in which 
 they are serving; such certificates to continue in 
 force only during the enlistments in which the men 
 were respectively graduated, unless renewed by re- 
 enlistment for four years within four months from 
 date of honorable discharge. This provision shall take 
 effect from and after July 1, 1905, but any enlisted 
 man then in the service who holds such a certificate 
 shall not be deprived of the benefits of the same dur- 
 ing the term of enlistment under which he is then 
 serving. Men holding certificates as seamen gun- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 183 
 
 ners are entitled to the pay prescribed for said rating 
 and are entitled to re-enlist at any time as such at 
 the base rate of $26 per month ; but if given any other 
 rating than that of seamen gunner, the holder of a 
 seamen gunner's certificate will not receive additional 
 pay therefor, unless in continuous service. 
 
 Good-Conduct Medals. Each enlisted man of the 
 Navy shall receive 75 cents per month, in addition to 
 the pay of his rating, for each good-conduct medal, 
 pin, or bar which he may heretofore have been, or 
 shall hereafter be, awarded. On and after September 
 5, 1904, the date of the award of a good-conduct 
 medal, pin, or bar shall be the date of the holder's 
 discharge by reason of the expiration of the enlist- 
 ment for which the medal, pin, or bar is given, the 
 allowance of 75 cents per month to be reckoned from 
 said date of award: Provided, That nothing herein 
 contained shall be construed to authorize any change 
 in the date of award of any good-conduct medal, pin, 
 or bar heretofore awarded or to grant any arrears of 
 allowances on account thereof. 
 
 Coxswains of Steam Launches, etc. Coxswains 
 detailed as coxswains of boats propelled by machin- 
 ery, or as Coxswains to Commanders-in-Chief, shall 
 receive $5 per month in addition to their pay. 
 
 Service on Submarines. All enlisted men of the 
 Navy shall receive $5 per month in addition to their 
 pay while serving on board of submarine vessels of 
 the Navy. Besides the $5 per month extra pay 
 
184 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 allowed them for submarine service, enlisted men serv- 
 ing with submarine torpedo boats, and having been 
 reported by the commanding officers to the Navy 
 Department as qualified for submarine torpedo boat 
 work, shall receive $1 additional pay for each day 
 during any part of which they shall have been sub- 
 merged in a submarine torpedo boat while underway : 
 Provided, however, That such further additional pay 
 shall not exceed $15 in any one calendar month. 
 
 Seamen in Charge of Hold. Seamen in charge of 
 holds shall receive $5 per month in addition to their 
 pay. 
 
 JacJcs-of-the-Dust, Lamplighters, etc. Ordinary 
 seamen detailed as Jacks-of-the-Dust, or as Lamp- 
 lighters, shall receive $5 per month in addition to 
 their pay. 
 
 Messmen. Enlisted men detailed as crew messmen 
 shall, while so acting, except when assigned as reliefs 
 during the temporary absence of the regular crew 
 messmen, receive extra compensation at the rate of 
 $5 per month. 
 
 (a) Mess attendants are not entitled to additional 
 compensation allowed other enlisted men detailed as 
 messmen. 
 
 (b) Enlisted men, detailed as crew messmen, are 
 not entitled to the extra pay provided for such detail 
 while on authorized leave of absence. 
 
 Detained after Expiration of Enlistment. En- 
 listed men afloat detained beyond their regular term 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 185 
 
 of enlistment until the return to the United States of 
 the vessel to which they belong, under the provisions 
 of section 1422 of the Revised Statutes, shall receive 
 for the time during which they are so detained an 
 addition of one-fourth of their former pay, "com- 
 puted on the total pay which they are entitled to 
 receive." 
 
 (a) If an enlisted man be retained in the service 
 after the expiration of his enlistment at his own 
 request, he is not entitled to the one-fourth additional 
 
 pay. 
 
 Duty in Fire Room, Seamen and Ordinary Sea- 
 men. Seamen and ordinary seamen detailed for duty 
 as firemen or coal-passers shall receive in addition to 
 the pay of their ratings extra pay at the rate of 
 33 cents per day for the time so employed. 
 
 (a) A native seaman or native ordinary seaman of 
 the Insular force who is detailed to perform duty as 
 fireman or coal-passer is entitled to extra compensa- 
 tion at the rate of 33 cents per day while so employed. 
 
 Signalmen. Enlisted men of the naval service reg- 
 ularly detailed as Signalmen shall receive the follow- 
 ing extra compensation in addition to the monthly 
 pay of their rating : Signalmen, first class, $3 ; Sig- 
 nalmen, second class, $2; Signalmen, third class, $1. 
 
 Chief Petty Officers, Permanent Appointment. 
 All chief petty officers of the Navy, including Chief 
 Water Tenders, who, on or after July 1, 1903, shall 
 receive permanent appointments after qualifying 
 
186 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 therefor, shall be paid at the rate of $70 a month; 
 those who serve under permanent appointments issued 
 prior to said date, or under acting appointments, 
 shall be paid at the rates now in force. The pay of 
 Chief Water Tenders who hold acting appointments 
 shall be $50 a month. 
 
 Gwn Pointers. After October 1, 1903, enlisted 
 men of the Navy, after having qualified as gun 
 pointers, and who are regularly detailed as gun 
 pointers by the commanding officer of the vessel, shall 
 receive monthly, in addition to the pay of their re- 
 spective ratings, extra pay as follows: Heavy gun 
 pointers (for guns of 8-inch caliber or larger), first 
 class, $10 ; second class, $6. Intermediate gun point- 
 ers (for guns from 4-inch to 7-inch, inclusive), first 
 class, $8; second class, $4. Secondary gun pointers 
 (for guns from 1-pounder to 3-inch, inclusive), first 
 class, $4 ; second class, $2. 
 
 (a) Extra pay shall be allowed a gun pointer 
 qualified prior to November 28, 1907, during not less 
 than two years from and after the date of his qualifi- 
 cation ; if qualified on or subsequent to November 28, 
 1907, during such time only as he remains qualified: 
 Provided, That extra pay shall only be allowed a 
 gun pointer while he is regularly detailed as a gun 
 pointer at a gun of the class at which he qualified. 
 
 Gun Captains. Enlisted men of the Navy regu- 
 larly detailed by the commanding officer of a vessel 
 as gun captains, except at secondary battery guns, 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 187 
 
 shall receive, in addition to the pay of their respec- 
 tive rating, $5 per month, which in the case of men 
 holding certificates as gun captains, or of graduation 
 from the gun-captain class, petty officers' school, 
 shall include the $ per month to which such certifi- 
 cates entitle them. 
 
 Ship's Tailor and Tailor's Helper. Any enlisted 
 man of the Navy detailed to perform the duties of 
 "ship's tailor" on board of a vessel having a comple- 
 ment of 600 men or more, exclusive of marines, shall 
 receive $20 per month in addition to the monthly pay 
 of his rating; on a vessel having a complement of 
 from 300 to 600 men, exclusive of marines, $15 per 
 month in addition to the monthly pay of his rating ; 
 on a vessel having a complement of less than 300 
 men, exclusive of marines, $10 per month in addition 
 to the monthly pay of his rating. Any enlisted man 
 of the Navy detailed as "tailor's helper" on board of 
 a vessel having a complement of 600 men or more, 
 exclusive of marines, shall receive $10 per month in 
 addition to the monthly pay of his rating : Provided, 
 That the total pay of an enlisted man detailed to 
 perform the duties of "ship's tailor" shall not exceed 
 $50 per month, and of "tailor's helper" shall not 
 exceed $40 per month. 
 
 (a) An enlisted man detailed as "ship's tailor" is 
 entitled to the additional pay as such while on leave 
 or on temporary duty ashore, provided that no one 
 
188 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 was detailed to perform the duties of "ship's tailor" 
 during his absence. 
 
 Re-enlistments Subsequent to November #7, 1906. 
 To provide adequate compensation for trained men, 
 the pay now prescribed by Executive Order for each 
 rating in the Navy is hereby increased $5 per month 
 during the second period of service, and a further 
 sum of $3 per month during each and every subse- 
 quent period of service : Provided, That only enlisted 
 men who are citizens of the United States, and whose 
 second and subsequent periods of service each follow 
 next after service in the Navy that was terminated 
 by reason of expiration of enlistment, shall receive 
 the benefits of the increased pay named herein: 
 Provided, -further, That in the case of the men who 
 are or were finally discharged from the Navy by rea- 
 son of expiration of enlistment, the first enlistment on 
 or after the date of this order shall be considered the 
 second period of service which shall carry with it the 
 increased pay provided by this order; except that 
 men discharged on recommendations of boards of 
 medical survey shall, if they re-enter the service, be 
 given credit for any previous periods of service in the 
 Navy which were terminated by reason of expiration 
 of enlistment. 
 
 Chief Petty Officers Detailed as Instructors of 
 Apprentice Seamen. Chief petty officers detailed as 
 instructors of apprentice seamen at naval stations 
 who qualify as instructors by examination shall re- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 189 
 
 ceive hereafter in addition to their pay the sum of 
 $10 per month while so detailed, such pay to be con- 
 sidered extra pay for special duty. 
 
 (a) Chief petty officers receiving extra compensa- 
 tion of $10 per month for duty as instructors of 
 apprentice seamen are entitled to the additional pay 
 for the time while they are on leave or absent under- 
 going examination for promotion to warrant officers : 
 Provided, Their details are unrevoked and details 
 were not made to supply their places while absent. 
 
 Apprentice Chief Petty Officers. Apprentice sea- 
 men detailed as apprentice chief petty officers, ap- 
 prentice petty officers, first, second, or third class, 
 in connection with the instruction of apprentice sea- 
 men at naval stations, shall receive hereafter in addi- 
 tion to their pay the sum of $2.50, $2, $1.50, and $1 
 each per month, respectively, while so detailed ; such 
 pay to be considered extra pay for special duty. 
 
 Hospital Corps. "The pay of enlisted men of the 
 Hospital Corps shall be the same as that provided for 
 the corresponding ratings of the seaman branch and 
 other staff corps of the Navy." 
 
 Clothing Bounty. On and after July 1, 1907, all 
 enlisted men of the Navy shall receive, on first enlist- 
 ment, outfits amounting in value as follows : Samoans 
 and such men of the messman branch as are not 
 required to possess complete outfits, not to exceed 
 $20 ; men of the Insular force, not to exceed $30 ; all 
 other enlisted men, not to exceed $60. 
 
190 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 Any man enlisting on or after December 1, 1906, 
 who is discharged during the first six months of a 
 first enlistment for any cause other than disability 
 incurred in the line of duty, shall have checked 
 against his accounts prior to discharge the cost of 
 such portion of outfit allowed on first enlistment as 
 he may have drawn. 
 
 Continuous Service Pay. Any man who has re- 
 ceived an honorable discharge from his last term of 
 enlistment, or who has received a recommendation for 
 re-enlistment upon the expiration of his last term of 
 service of not less than three years, who re-enlists for 
 a term of four years within four months from the 
 date of his discharge, shall receive an increase of 
 $1.36 per month to the pay prescribed for the rating 
 in which he serves for each consecutive re-enlistment. 
 
 Retired Pay. The pay of all commissioned, war- 
 rant, and appointed officers, and enlisted men of the 
 Navy now on the retired list shall be based on the 
 pay, as herein provided for, for the commissioned, 
 warrant, and appointed officers and enlisted men of 
 corresponding rank and service on the active list ; an 
 enlisted man on the retired list is entitled to the full 
 amount of 75 cents a month for each good-conduct 
 medal held, in addition to 75 per cent of the pay of 
 which he was in receipt at the date of retirement. 
 
 Death Gratuity. Payment of death gratuity to 
 widow or previously designated beneficiary of de- 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 191 
 
 ceased enlistment man of the active list is authorized 
 under the same conditions as in the case of officers. 
 
 Insular Force: 
 
 Authorized, not to exceed 500 Filipinos, in the 
 
 following ratings : M g ly 
 
 Native coxswains $15 
 
 Native seamen 12 
 
 Native ordinary seamen .... 10 
 
 Native machinists 28-20 
 
 Native firemen 18-5 
 
 Native coal-passers 1 
 
 Native stewards 5 
 
 Native cooks 3 
 
 Native mess attendants 8 
 
 Nurse Corps (female) : 
 Superintendents . 
 
 Nurses (female) . 
 
 Annual Pay 
 
 $1,800 
 
 Monthly Pay 
 
 $50 - 65 
 
 MARINE CORPS 
 
 Officers: Yearly Pay 
 
 Major-general commandant . . $8,000 $ 
 
 Colonels 4,000-5,000 
 
 Lieutenant colonels .... 3,500 - 4,500 
 
 Majors 3,000-4,000 
 
 Captains 2,400-3,360 
 
 First lieutenants 2,000 - 2,800 
 
 Second lieutenants . . 1,700-2,380 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 Enlisted Men: Monthly Pay 
 
 Sergeant major ...... $45-69 
 
 Quartermaster sergeant . . . . 45-69 
 
 First sergeant ....... 45-69 
 
 Drum major ....... 45 69 
 
 Gunnery sergeant ...... 35-59 
 
 Sergeant ........ 30-48 
 
 Corporal . . ...... 21-39 
 
 Drummer ........ 15-25 
 
 Trumpeter ....... 15-25 
 
 Private ........ 15-25 
 
 Musicians ........ 50-60 
 
 ADDITIONAL PAY PEE MONTH 
 
 Mess sergeant (on shore duty only) . . $ 6.00 
 
 Cooks, first class (on shore duty only) . . 10.00 
 
 Cooks, second class (on shore duty only) * 8 . 00 
 
 Cooks, third class (on shore duty only) . . 7.00 
 
 Cooks, fourth class (on shore duty only) . 5 . 00 
 
 Messmen (ashore and afloat) . . . . 5.00 
 
 Gun pointers (afloat only) : 
 Heavy gun pointers : 
 
 First class ........ 10.00 
 
 Second class ........ 6 . 00 
 
 Intermediate gun pointers: 
 
 First class ........ 8.00 
 
 Second class ....... 4.00 
 
 Secondary gun pointers : 
 
 First class ........ 4.00 
 
 Second class 2.00 
 
A LANDSMAN'S LOG 193 
 
 Signalmen, first class (ashore and afloat) . $ 3.00 
 
 Signalmen, second class (ashore and afloat) 2.00 
 
 Signalmen, third class (ashore and afloat) . 1.00 
 
 Expert riflemen (ashore and afloat) . .'-.* 5.00 
 
 Sharpshooters (ashore and afloat) . . : . 3.00 
 Marksmen (ashore and afloat) . ; . .2.00 
 
 For each conduct medal, pin or bar . . . .75 
 Members of Marine Band, for playing at 
 
 White House and public grounds . . . 4 . 00 
 
 AVERAGE COST OF MAINTENANCE OF VESSELS OF THE 
 NAVY OF EACH TYPE 
 
 Cost of commission Repairs to hull 
 
 including pay of officers and machinery and 
 
 and enlisted men equipage 
 
 Battleships . . .$596,165.02 $86,352.16 
 
 Armored cruisers . 717,646.35 116,106.37 
 
 Scout cruisers . . 300,391.17 44,649.31 
 
 Cruisers, first class . 540,808.57 29,469.71 
 
 Cruisers, second class 90,808 . 68 3,372 . 80 
 
 Cruisers, third class . 202,178 . 65 22,332 . 36 
 
 Gunboats . ! . . 155,768.64 7,411.25 
 Torpedo-boat 
 
 destroyers . . 75,800.20 23,521.42 
 
 Torpedo boats . . 49,250 . 43 6,506 . 60 
 Submarine torpedo 
 
 boats . . . 17,462.27 4,514.21 
 
 Colliers . . . . . 59,119 . 35 17,168 . 32 
 
194 A LANDSMAN'S LOG 
 
 GUNS AND PROJECTILES 
 
 12-inch 8-inch 
 
 Cost complete $65,120 $21,294 
 
 Life before relining is neces- 
 sary (rounds) .... 200 300 
 
 Range, 15 elevation (yards) . 24,900 19,000 
 
 Cost of one round ammunition $ 424 $ 120 
 
 Weight of gun (tons) . . . 56.1 18.7 
 
 Penetration of face hardened 
 
 armor, 10,000 yds. (inches) 15.6 7.2 
 
 Cost of mount $52,357 $14,417 
 
 CONSUMPTION OF COAL 
 
 The ships of the Navy consumed during the fiscal 
 year ending June 30, 1911, 744,423 tons of coal, in 
 the following proportions and for the purposes 
 named : 
 
 50.91 per cent for steaming. 
 
 1.60 per cent for galleys. 
 
 1.84 per cent for steam launches. 
 
 13.65 per cent for electric lighting and power. 
 
 32 per cent for heating, flushing, etc. 
 
INDEX 
 
 Abandon ship drill 55 
 
 Admiral's inspections 63, 67, 68, 86, 96 
 
 Anchor drill 48 
 
 Athletics. See baseball, boat racing, boxing. 
 
 Atlantic Fleet, U. S 167 
 
 Avon, visit of the , 113 
 
 Baseball 95, 108, 115 
 
 Battalion mess 91 
 
 Battenberg Squadron Cup 109 
 
 Battle plan exercises 67, 71, 80, 83, 88 
 
 Belmont Challenge Cup 109 
 
 Boat racing 95, 102, 104, 108, 115 
 
 Boarding the Kansas 5 
 
 Boqueron, Cuba 45 
 
 Bow wave 129 
 
 Boxing 43, 54 
 
 Brigade drills on shore 65, 78, 87 
 
 Bridge, on the 12 
 
 Bugle calls 37 
 
 Caimanera, Cuba 23, 45, 75 
 
 Camp on Deer Point, in 90-102 
 
 Castle Island 20, 128 
 
 Central station, the 69 
 
 Citizenship of the enlisted force 175 
 
 Civilians, status of, on board warships 36, 40, 69 
 
 Cleaning ship. (See "Field day.") 
 
 Cleanliness in the Navy 100 
 
 Coal, consumption of 194 
 
 Coaling ship 26, 51, 110 
 
 Collision drill 85 
 
 Colors 8 
 
 Compass corrections 126 
 
 Competition in the Navy 118, 140 
 
 Contentment in the Navy 120 
 
196 INDEX 
 
 Courts martial 9 
 
 Crooked Island 20 
 
 Cuban scenery 21 
 
 Daiquiri, Cuba 58 
 
 Deer Point, camp on 90 
 
 Dinner, in the wardroom, 7; the crews, 8. 
 
 Discipline in the Navy 9, 26, 49, 78, 121 
 
 "Dotter" practice 76, 111 
 
 Drexel cup races 109 
 
 Drills: abandon ship, 55; anchor, 48; brigade, 65, 78, 87; 
 collision, 85; fire, 49; fire control, 71, 126; general 
 quarters, 26, 65, 69 ; loading, 77, 82 ; man-overboard, 34 ; 
 mine laying, 75; searchlight, 79; torpedo, 75. 
 
 Dunlap cup races 109 
 
 Duties on board ship . . 17, 37 
 
 Easter Sunday 129 
 
 Enlisted force, citizenship of the 175 
 
 Enlistment, requirements for 174 
 
 Enlistments in the Navy 175 
 
 Entertainments 54 
 
 Etiquette on board 40 
 
 Evolutions, fleet 11, 12, 13, 16, 19, 20 
 
 "Field day" 53, 71 
 
 Fire control 71, 126 
 
 Fire drill 49 
 
 Fog, steaming in a 136 
 
 Foretop, in the Ill, 139 
 
 Full power trials 40 
 
 General quarters 26, 65 
 
 "Gilded Rooster" 104 
 
 Guard duty on board 72 
 
 Guantanamo Bay 22, 29, 44, 113 
 
 Guantanamo, Cuba 23, 45, 118 
 
 Gun-deck, on the 146 
 
 Gunnery training 75, 111, 118, 139 
 
 Guns, naval 194 
 
 Hampton Roads, Va 131 
 
 Heavy weather, battleships in 11 
 
INDEX 197 
 
 Inspection, Executive Officer's 84 
 
 Insular force, naval 191 
 
 Joining the fleet 5 
 
 Kansas, battleship, description of 167 
 
 Ladies' Day 113 
 
 Landing force. See Brigade drill. 
 
 Leadsman's song 10 
 
 Libraries, ships' 15 
 
 Loading drills 77, 82, 111 
 
 Lucky Bag, the 28 
 
 Magazine, 12-inch 138 
 
 Maintenance, cost of, vessels of the Navy 193 
 
 Mail day 35, 111, 139 
 
 Man-overboard drill 34 
 
 Manoeuvres, fleet. (See Battle plan.) 
 
 Marine Corps, pay of 191 
 
 Marines on shipboard 72 
 
 Market boat 74 
 
 Mascots, the ship's 118 
 
 "Mast," the 9 
 
 Messes, the: battalion, 91; on shipboard, 121; the general, 
 121; the wardroom, 7, 122; the steerage, 122; the 
 warrant officers', 122; how run, 122, 124; life in the, 
 125. 
 
 Mine laying drill 75 
 
 Mooring ship 135 
 
 Morro Castle, Santiago 61 
 
 "Movies" 133 
 
 Naval station at Guantanamo Bay 23 
 
 Navigator, the, duties of 15 
 
 New York, leaving 11 
 
 Night target practice 157 
 
 Officers, a battleship's 17 
 
 Painting ship 89 
 
 Passenger, life of a, on board 36, 40, 69 
 
 Pay in the Navy 176 
 
 Pensacola Cup 107 
 
 Personnel of the Navy 173 
 
198 INDEX 
 
 Proj ectiles, naval 194 
 
 Promotion in the Navy 176 
 
 Physical exercises 19 
 
 "Ping-pong" practice 75 
 
 Powder, smokeless 149 
 
 Pulling races. (See Boat racing.) 
 
 Rations 122, 177 
 
 Relations between officers and men 121, 161 
 
 Retirements 177 
 
 Rewards in the Navy 176 
 
 Rivalry between ships 39 
 
 Routine, in camp, 92; on board, 13, 35, 169. 
 
 Santiago, Cuba 56 
 
 San Salvador Island 19 
 
 Seamanship exercises 48 
 
 Searchlight drill 79 
 
 Shell room, 12-inch 138 
 
 Shooting match, officers' 108 
 
 Shooting parties 93, 116 
 
 Signals 12, 39 
 
 Smokeless powder 149 
 
 Smokers 54 
 
 "Soldiering," aversion to 73 
 
 Southern Drill Grounds 137 
 
 Sporting spirit in the Navy 118, 140 
 
 Sports Week 103-110 
 
 Speeds, change of 13 
 
 Standardization trials 32 
 
 Steaming, fleet's order of, 12, 33; at night, 16, 19; in a fog, 
 
 136. 
 
 Steaming trials 32, 40 
 
 Sub-station, 12-inch 155 
 
 Superstition in the Navy 132 
 
 Swimming 26, 95 
 
 Target practice, elementary, 75, 98, 142-162; small arms, 
 
 93, 96, 101; field gun, 64; old and new, 112. 
 
 Target-raft, repair party on 160 
 
 Target range, small arms, at Guantanamo Bay 93, 96 
 
INDEX 199 
 
 Toro Cay 44 
 
 Torpedo drill 75 
 
 Towing trials 89 
 
 Traditions of the Service 24 
 
 Tropical weather 18, 92 
 
 Turning trials 67, 80, 83, 88 
 
 Turret, in the 12-inch 88, 152 
 
 Under way, getting 10 
 
 Uniforms, naval 24 
 
 Uncas, the tug ; 56 
 
 Wardroom country 6 
 
 Wardroom mess 6, 7, 122 
 
 Watling Island 19 
 
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