Jan. 27, 1912.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
109 
To Honolulu in a Bark 
By PALMER H. LANGDON 
{Continued from last week.) 
Aug. 4, 1911; wind east to northeast; course, south, 53“ 
west. 
T ropical weather this morning; the trades 
had moderated and there was heat and 
humidity with rain squalls at intervals. 
What wind there was had drawn to the quarter, 
making necessary another tug at the ropes. As 
is well known a quartering wind is the joy of 
all masters and sailors, for with a wind coming 
diagonally over the stern, a ship sails the fastest, 
she holding a certain amount of air power, so 
to speak, rather than running away from her 
driving power as she does with a breeze dead 
astern. 
The sailors were busy to-day as usual mend- 
and expect speed in others. There is no time for 
explanation, and consequently every order is in 
the nature of a drive. When the ropes have 
been handled and made fast, the mate and his 
watch settle down again on the deck to sail mak¬ 
ing, feeling the better after the encounter with 
ropes and yards. 
Some day, as the character of sailors becomes 
more refined—and there is room for refinement, 
though there is probably less toughness to-day 
than ever—the old-time friction between masters 
and mates and the crew may entirely disappear. 
In the meantime, considering the varied and hard 
work that sailors do, and the way they are called 
upon for duty at all hours of the day and night. 
quarter moon appeared abeam of the ship in 
the east. The temperature was so mild, the 
breeze so gentle that no coat was necessary to 
keep warm. It was now a sail by the light of 
the silvery moon, and the bark’s sails and the 
dazzling water appeared particularly beautiful, 
for what is more beautiful than a bark under 
sail in a moonlit sea. The scene brought the pas¬ 
sengers together beside the teak taffrail on the 
poop, where way into the wee hours of the 
night they sang old songs, talked over old times 
and thought of days of the past. So fascinat¬ 
ing was the scene that all were loth to go 
below and leave the sight of a moonlit bark 
gently wafted over the sparkling seas. 
Latitude, 24° 35' north. Longitude, 144° 49' 
west. Day’s run, 189 miles. Honolulu 680 miles 
away. 
■Aug. 5, 1911; wind, east northeast; course, south, 72“ 
west. 
The vigor of the trades seems to have de¬ 
parted for the present, moderate breezes with 
FURLING SAIL. 
ing sail. Every ship is supposed to have a re¬ 
lief sail for every bit of canvas she carries, and 
with the ever constant wear and tear, it takes 
considerable labor and skill to keep up the two 
suits of sails. Sailors’ duties are certainly many 
and varied, and so much has been written about 
the cruel treatment of seamen aboard American 
vessels that a word on the subject is timely of 
conditions aboard the Welch. First off, there 
was no semblance of cruelty, not a man struck, 
not a man hazed. The mates on the ship were 
vigorous fellows and naturally wanted their 
orders obeyed immediately without asking why, 
and the sailors understood the necessity of dis¬ 
cipline, and while they might occasionally swear 
and grumble at their work and the mates curse 
and criticise the way it was done, this was only 
considered as part of the seafaring side of life 
the same way profanity prevails ashore in putting- 
through contracts of public work. The mate said 
he could get along with any kind of men as long 
as they did not give him any ‘back slack” (talk). 
However, as everything went so smoothly in the 
voyage to the islands, there were few occasions 
in the working of the ship that cuss words were 
heard in carrying out the nautical maneuvers. 
Then again in working a vessel properly, quick 
action is an absolute necessity, and the mates of 
course have had ‘‘spry action” drilled into- them 
the writer believes that masters and mates should 
remember that seamen are human and would no 
doubt like occasional words of encouragement 
and appreciativeness of work well done as well 
as sharp comments and thrusts at work undone. 
“Every soldier carries a marshal’s baton in his 
knapsack,” said Napoleon Bonaparte, the stern 
disciplinarian, but beloved commander of the 
French. Perhaps if seamen were given to under¬ 
stand that every sailor carried a captain’s com¬ 
mission in his dough bag, there might be a bet¬ 
ter opinion of each other between the forecastle 
and the cabin. 
Another way to improve conditions in the fore¬ 
castle would be to introduce music and athletics. 
Aboard American windjammers the main diver¬ 
sion is the accordion and card playing, while on 
some of the deep water ships of other nations, 
notably Germany, out door games are encour¬ 
aged and likewise music; the foremast hands 
forming a band among themselves with the con¬ 
sequent songs and good comradeship. 
After supper each evening the passengers 
gather on the poop deck beside the teak wood 
railing to watch the passing of the day, and this 
evening the cloud effects were particu’arly beau¬ 
tiful, the spectators being favored with a rain¬ 
bow and clouds in all sorts of fantastic shapes. 
As the sun sank out of sight in the west, a three- 
BENDING A NEW SAIL. 
plenty of rain squalls being the order for the 
past two days. 
The passengers had discussed many times their 
chances of reaching land if the ship went down. 
There on deck, ready for instant service, were 
the small boats, which all ships carry, to be used 
when the big boat goes to the bottom, and in 
each boat were sails, oars, boat hooks, compass, 
oil, water and bread, all kept in condition by a 
canvas cover. The bread is packed in tins and 
is replenished every six months. Each boat 
would hold fifteen persons. If put overboard 
in disaster, the course would be to sail wherever 
wind and wave would permit. As to the chances 
of reaching land or the course of passing vessels, 
the captain and mates would only shrug their 
shoulders. Passing vessels were certainly very 
scarce, for we had not seen one since we had 
been out, and this was to be expected, for sail¬ 
ing vessels steer one course in going to the 
islands from San Francisco and another return¬ 
ing, neither of which courses are the same as the 
one taken by the steamers. Therefore, the 
chances of being picked up from small boats 
were rather slim. 
But what little danger there really was. First 
off, we had a staunch ship which had been sea¬ 
soned with years of service, and the owners and 
captain knew what she could do. In the next 
