THE LURE OF THE OUTFITTER 17 



me aboard the steam whaler William Lewis. 

 When we arrived at the shipping office on the 

 water front, it was crowded with sailors and 

 rough fellows, many of them half drunk, and all 

 eager for a chance to land a berth. A bronzed 

 and bearded man stood beside a desk and sur- 

 yeyed them. He was the skipper of the steamer. 

 iThe men were pushing and elbowing in an ef- 

 fort to get to the front and catch his eye. 



" I've been north before, captain," " I'm art 

 able seaman, sir," " I know the ropes," " Give 

 me a chance, captain," "Take me, sir; I'll make 

 a good hand," — so they clamored their virtues 

 noisily. The captain chose this man and that. 

 In twenty minutes his crew was signed. It was 

 not a question of getting enough men; it was a 

 mere matter of selection. In such a crowd of 

 sailormen, I stood no show. In looking back on 

 it all, I wonder how such shipping office scenes 

 are possible, how men of ordinary intelligence 

 are herded aboard whale ships like sheep, how 

 they even fight for a chance to go. 



It was just as well I failed to ship aboard the 

 William Lewis, The vessel went to pieces in 



