On the Ocean 173 



aim. The British marines had not been taught any 

 thing approximating to skirmishing or sharpshoot- 

 ing; the Americans had. The British sailors had 

 not even been trained enough in the ordinary duties 

 of seamen; while the Americans in five weeks had 

 been rendered almost perfect. The former were at 

 a loss what to do in an emergency at all out of their 

 own line of work ; they were helpless when the wreck 

 fell over their guns, when the Americans would have 

 cut it away in a jiffy. As we learn from Commo 

 dore Morris' "Autobiography," each Yankee sailor 

 could, at need, do a little carpentering or sail-mend 

 ing, and so was more self-reliant. The crew had 

 been trained to act as if guided by one mind, yet 

 each man retained his own individuality. The petty 

 officers were better paid than in Great Britain, and 

 so were of a better class of men, thoroughly self- 

 respecting; the Americans soon got their subor 

 dinates in order, while the British did not. To sum 

 up : one ship's crew had been trained practically and 

 thoroughly, while the other crew was not much bet 

 ter off than the day it sailed; and, as far as it goes, 

 this is a good test of the efficiency of the two 

 navies. 



The U. S. brig Vixen, 12, Lieutenant George U. 

 Read, had been cruising off the southern coast; on 

 Nov. 22d she fell in with the Southampton, 32, 

 Captain Sir James Lucas Yeo, and was captured 

 after a short but severe trial of speed. Both vessels 

 were wrecked soon afterward. 



