Part 3

A shade of homesickness came over me as I saw the North Star for the last time but I was soon interested in the Southern Cross of which I had heard so much. I wish I could describe some of the beautiful colorings shown in the tropical sunsets. I missed the twilight effects as seen at home, for as quickly as the sun goes down, darkness closes in. As I was enjoying my evening walk with the Captain at one time, a small boy who had been sent to sea apparently with the idea of getting him out of the way, came to me and said, "Wouldn't you like some Youth's Companions to read? I have lots of them." At that time I had more of a juvenile than a matronly air and I presume he thought they would furnish me with appreciative reading matter. He had not then learned that he should not speak unless spoken to. One day on being told to make a rope fast he replied, "I did hitch it." An order to let go a brace was answered by the question, "Which string do you mean?" At one time he was placed on duty to open and close shutters during squally weather and the officer told him to use a good application of soap and water before coming aft. When the novelty of his new duty had worn off and he had rather forgotten why he had been placed there the officer called to him and said, "What did I tell you to do?" "Wash myself, sir," was the reply. It was a long while before he could obey an order without replying and at the same time to remember his "Sir" when a reply was necessary.

As we approached the equator it could be seen that some special interest in the voyage was being taken among the sailors and we learned that three of them had never crossed the line before and that an initiation of so doing was about to take place. The crew assembled at the bow of the ship and at the blowing of a trumpet by one of their number, Neptune appeared inquiring the name of the ship, where she was bound, etc., and announced that he would like to pay her a visit. Before his apparent arrival a staysail had been fastened to the rigging and filled with water. A bucket had been filled with a mixture of lamp black and grease with a few other combinations, while a razor, a foot or more in length, had been made by the carpenter. As soon as Neptune and Amphitrite--two sailors fantastically dressed--appeared, the candidate for crossing the line was blindfolded and brought before them. A number of absurd questions were asked the candidate and he was finally ordered to be shaved, which was done by applying the mixture with an old paint brush and shaving it off with the razor. He was then thrown backwards into the sail of water and I was much surprised to see how good naturedly the men took so many surprises--for we had an excellent view from the quarter deck, of the whole entertainment. We heard afterwards that it was considered a great success, also that one of the men had been watching through a glass for the equator, seeming to think that a straight line passing through the center of the earth should certainly be seen. He thought he surely saw it when a hair was drawn tightly across a spy glass without his seeing it and the glass then given to him.

In one of his rambles about the decks, on a moonlight night, one of our passengers told me of some of the tattooes he had seen on the arms of different sailors. One had his mother's gravestone, with a weeping willow over it; another had the Goddess of Liberty remarkably well done. The large number of different sketches was really quite an entertainment. That reminds me of an engraved whale's tooth which I have in my possession and which was given to my grandfather in Nantucket many years ago. A full rigged ship with every rope, even to the smallest one, is carved upon it, with the engraver's name and the name of the ship. It is now nearly a hundred years old and among my most prized possessions.

We soon sighted the Island of Fernando Norouha which is a penal settlement for the convicts of Brazil. This island is about six miles in circumference and two thousand and twenty feet high. It had a rocky barren appearance with nothing to be seen but a few birds around it. About thirty miles from this island are the Martin Van Rocks, three hundred feet high. In the south Atlantic we sighted the group of Tristan Da Cunha Islands which had a very gloomy, foggy look. Tristan is inhabited by English people and I have been told that the women are particularly handsome there. In this region it is very chilly and damp and though the thermometer stood at fifty-five degrees it seemed much colder. At this time we began to prepare for the heavy weather of our Easting, as the run across the Indian Ocean is called. New sails were bent and everything battened down. The days were very short, the sun rising at about half past seven and setting at five o'clock. We usually made the run about forty degrees south in order to get better winds. What a dreary outlook it was! Nothing but sky and water with waves which were mountains high. The only bit of life outside of our ship's company was a number of birds of a different nature from any I had ever seen and they followed the ship day after day. Cape pigeons and albatross were in large numbers. We caught many of the latter and measured them. I remember one weighing thirty pounds and measuring fifteen feet from tip to tip of the wings. Cape hens about as large as good sized turkeys, ice birds, and many other small birds. I enjoyed feeding them and it was very funny to watch them tumble over each other in their efforts to get something to eat. Such a noise as they did make with their squabblings! Many sharks were caught and I never knew a sailor to have any compunctions about disposing of these man-eating creatures. A shark line was towed astern at different times and one day it took the combined efforts of five men to haul one in. Whales, all of ninety feet in length, stayed about the ship several days at a time. We saw many sun-fish which are a light gray in color. They have one large fin out of the water and are very hard to harpoon.

Once in a while another ship would come in view and if near enough we always spoke to one another by our flag code. This was always an interesting event. Certain sentences given in the code book would be represented by certain flags, each flag representing a letter of the alphabet. The questions usually asked were, "Where are you from?" "Where bound?" "How many days out?" and then a wish for a pleasant passage. My experience in running down the Easting has always been the same and I have made the trip a number of times. I have heard of ships running across the Indian Ocean with royals set but whenever I have been, we have had a succession of heavy gales. In thirty-six degrees fifty minutes south and Lon. twenty-nine degrees fifty-nine minutes east a heavy gale sprung up which gradually turned into a hurricane. The barometer was falling fast when I retired and at eleven o'clock it stood at 28.50. I have merely to close my eyes now and I can hear the wind as it shrieked and roared about us. We ran before those mountainous seas with but one thought and that to keep them from breaking over the ship. All hands were on deck all night, each one lashed, with the exception of those who were between decks passing out oil cases which were broken open and thrown overboard by those on deck. Fifteen hundred cases were used that night with good effect. The seas were as high but the oil prevented them from breaking over the ship. During the worst of the gale one man was washed overboard but his loss was not discovered for nearly twenty minutes, and even if it had been, nothing could have been done to save him in such tremendous seas. Clark Russell says that the grandeur and sublimity of the ocean can be best seen on a yard arm during a gale of wind, but somehow I have not been able to make those words applicable to the gales through which I have passed. Through our ninety degrees of Easting I had but little exercise. The lee side of the cabin usually found me with my books, work and numerous small articles for ready use. I think the most exercise I had during those days was when I tried to dress, as it was almost impossible to stand in one spot any length of time on account of the rolling and pitching of the ship. With a firm stand I would place myself in front of my mirror, only to gradually slide away across the room to a lounge where I would sit down, then I would climb back, and with as much speed as possible do what I could before disappearing again. In a length of time I was able to make my toilet, and when made it was not changed during the day in those latitudes.

They were certainly strenuous days, but we were well and had good appetites for the excellent meals which were served to us by our capable Chinese steward and cook. The doings and sayings of our cabin boy would fill a book, but he was trustworthy and attended faithfully to our wants. One night after I had retired, a heavy thunder storm came up which might have caused us considerable trouble had not our usual strict discipline been carried out. Having become so used to confused sounds on deck I did not realize that the ship had been struck by lightning, though I heard a sound which in my dozing condition I laid to something falling down in the bathroom. When the Captain came in to ask if I were all right I sleepily said, "Why not? I think something has fallen down." He did not tell me until morning that the ship had been struck and had caught fire aloft. By changing the course the sparks were made to fall overboard while men were sent aloft to cut away the blazing fragments. About ten minutes before the vessel was struck, a dozen men were aloft furling a sail just where the lightning struck us, and when the storm was over it seemed a special act of Providence that we still had these men with us.

I have so often been asked what could we possibly have to eat that would be appetizing for such lengthy voyages. We always carried fowl in large numbers and it was very seldom that we did not have fresh eggs enough for our table during the voyage. Potatoes, onions, and lemons we always had in abundance and they were very important items of our food. The following is one of the menus served to us on quite a stormy day as we were running across the Indian Ocean. For breakfast: baked beans, fish balls, brown bread, hot biscuits, tea and coffee. For dinner: soup, roast chicken, cold tongue, boiled potatoes, squash, and onions, English pudding, hard sauce, and coffee. For supper: warm biscuit, cold chicken, cold tongue, fried potatoes, cake and tea. In fine weather our menus were more elaborate and I never knew any one to complain of being hungry aboard ship while I was going to sea.

After eighty-seven days of such sea life I was aroused one morning to go on deck and see if I could see anything that looked like land and saw what at first seemed to me to be a small cloud in the distance about thirty miles away. As the morning wore on, the Australian coast gradually loomed up before us, the land first seen proving to be Cape Bridgewater. We sighted Cape Otway in the afternoon, the lighthouse being plainly seen in the evening, and such a beautiful evening as it was! Not a cloud in the sky! The stars shone like diamonds and the reflection on the water of the beautiful moon put a finish to the charm of a perfect night. The Southern Cross was almost directly over us, while in close proximity to the moon was the brilliant Venus. We remained on deck very late that night to enjoy our beautiful scene. During the evening a very pretty phenomenon took place when the sky became a brilliant red, like the reflection of a fire, forming an arc through which the stars could be plainly seen. It remained thus for some time, until it gradually changed into a white light, the Southern Lights or Aurora Australis as the change is called.

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EDITORIAL

PROSPERITY IS HERE

Whatever may be the situation throughout the country, Cape Cod shows evidences of prosperity that cannot be overlooked. In fact, dull times on the Cape are a thing of the past and each year sees a steady growth, increasing land values and larger summer population.

While the Cape has not increased very fast in permanent population it has shown a remarkable advancement in wealth and prosperity. Lands that a few years ago had little value have been developed, cottages and homes have been built, agricultural interests developed and all along the line the Cape has moved steadily forward.

This year there has been a great many real estate changes, shore colonies are being opened up and builders are busy everywhere supplying the demand for more summer homes.

All signs point to the fact that the Cape is at that stage in its development where it is becoming widely and favorably known as a summer resort region. Its business facilities are increasing, the quality of its stores improving and from a more or less provincial community it is developing into a region second to none in prosperity along the New England coast.

It has been widely and extensively advertised and although it has not boomed as have some of the southern resorts its growth has been more steady and sane and it is devoid of those inflated values which are apt to be followed by a depression in so many cases. The Cape's growth has been a conservative one and therefore a permanent one.

Again we wish to warn prospective lot buyers upon the Cape not to have dealings with real estate agents of the type known as "land sharks." The reputable agents are well known and can be depended upon to give a square deal, but there are get-rich-quick men who stand ready to take advantage of the unwary and sell them sand lots among the dunes and locations among the scrub oaks, remote from habitations and worthless for any purpose. Beautiful prospectus and misleading blue prints do not afford a sufficient basis for lot buying and personal investigation is as needful here as anywhere else. Cheap land is apt to be dear at any price and unless one personally investigates what is being offered it will be well to go slow.

There are plenty of real seaside bargains left on the Cape. In the vicinity of the popular resorts land values are apt to be high, but there are numberless localities that have not yet been developed that present good possibilities and the seeker after a summer home can find such localities without much trouble and a very little money will buy land suitable for their purposes amid surroundings that are congenial, scenic and healthful.

Among the hundreds of new cottages that are being built upon the Cape this season are those ranging from the simple cottage costing only a few hundred dollars and those which are destined to be pretentious summer homes, but whether hundreds of dollars are spent or thousands all are assured pleasant, healthful environments with opportunities for rest and recreation unsurpassed.

We predict a brilliant future for our region. It is just beginning to be understood and appreciated. Its advantages are becoming known and its attractiveness understood.

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HABITS AND THE GAME

Your habits will determine largely whether you give or take orders.

Is it your habit to shirk responsibility--to "pass the buck"--whenever possible? If so, you will never be the "boss." One man has no one to whom he can pass the buck. That person is the chief. Accept and welcome responsibility. Have the courage to face the consequences of your acts and decisions.

Develop self-confidence, not egotism. Let that confidence be founded on experience, study, common sense, and careful work.

Indulge in retrospection. Examine decisions that you have made, in an attempt to develop the faculty for reaching conclusions on tenable grounds quickly, Quick decisions expedite the processes of business and inspire confidence in one's co-workers. The man who does not know his mind cannot guide efficiently the mental or physical energies of others.

Are you careless? Do you permit to pass unquestioned points about which you are uncertain? Do you take it for granted that these things will "get by" or that they never will be noticed? Again you are shifting the burden, expecting that someone will do the work you should have done. That carelessness will militate against you to prevent your elevation to an executive position. The boss cannot be careless and hold the respect of his associates or his position.

Success comes to the one who plays the game. There is no royal road to it, or chance about it. It comes from eternally plugging at it, by study and concentration and an absence of the fear of making a mistake. A mistake is not such a frightful thing as many imagine. An honest mistake can be readily changed into a success many times. The fear of making mistakes frequently deters a weak man from going ahead where another will study well the situation, form a conclusion, and go ahead.

Your own character and habits determine whether you are a leader or a follower.

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GET AFTER THE BILLBOARDS

If your town has not yet taken action against the billboard nuisance it is time that it did. Have a strong town by-law passed and see that it is enforced. There is no question that public sentiment is against the billboard. They should be made outlaws upon the highways. State legislation has been enacted against them, but its effectiveness has been tempered by the timidity of those charged with the enforcement of the laws to destroy the "property values" that is claimed for them. Public sentiment, rightly used, can do more than laws. Offending billboard advertisers can be shown that such advertising is injudicious and in time they will voluntarily give it up.

By law, billboards can be debarred from localities possessing unusual scenic beauty. The Mohawk Trail and Cape Ann are examples of the application of this principle. Cape Cod has just as great claims. Its scenic beauty is marred and destroyed by the glaring monstrosities that greet the traveler everywhere. Let them be removed and an irritating offense against the nerves and asthetic senses will be removed.

The only way to get rid of the billboards is to act.

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HELP THE CAUSE

In certain ways the whole community can be helped by concerted action. The interest of the whole is the interest of all. Anything that tends to help others will help you. Just now a question of importance is the further development of Cape Cod by the establishment of terminal facilities on the Cape Cod canal. This will cost money, but it will be money well expended. If we wait for someone to do the developing for us we will have to wait a long time. The state is ready to do its share, but it wants the locality itself to do a part. A canal terminal is the one thing needful to make the canal of local advantage. We have the opportunity and we should grasp it. It is a case where local conservatism should be forgotten and every community should help bear the burden of an expense that will assist in the development of Cape Cod as a whole.

CONCLUSIVE EVIDENCE

E.M. Chase

"Willie."

"What."

"Is that the way to answer your mother?"

"Yesum, I mean nomum."

"I want you to stay out in the front yard where you can watch my flower garden this afternoon. I have planted some flower seeds out there and I want you to keep the neighbors' hens way. Your father is going to put a wire netting around the garden as soon as he can get a chance."

"Why not ask the neighbors to keep their hens at home?" mildly inquired Mr. Brown.

"I have told them time and time again, but the Bakers say it must be the Jones' hens and the Joneses say it is the Bakers' hens. As a matter of fact all their hens come over, but I don't want to make a fuss, I can't afford to lose the only two neighbors I have."

"But ma, I promised Ned I'd go fishing with him."

"You had no business to promise anything of the kind, now go out there and say no more about it."

It was a warm spring day, just the right kind of weather to go fishing or rambling through the woods or playing marbles with the other boys or to do almost anything except stay in the front yard and watch neighbors' hens. Willie thought himself much abused and cast about for a means of escape. He dared not run away; he had tried that before and the memory of the results was rather painful. A shrill whistle interrupted his bitter thought and a moment later Ned came in view carrying a fishing rod, basket, and can of bait.

"Hello, Bill, ain't yer ready yet?"

"Can't go."

"Tough luck, what's the trouble?"

"I gotta stay here and keep the hens out of ma's garden."

"Why don't yer cut it, you can stay away from home until late then your ma will get worried and be so glad when you show up she won't whip yer."

"Not on your life, I did once. I never got home 'til long after dark. Mother licked me good for running away then pa whoppoped me for scaring ma, nope, I've learned my lesson."

"Gee, Bill, it's dirt mean, but I'll tell you what I will do, I'll come back and play marbles with yer if the fish don't bite good."

"I wish the old hens was in Tophet. Say, Ned, ain't got a book yer could let a feller have, have yer?"

"Sure, one of the latest. I just finished it and it's a corker. I promised Joe Hykes he could take it next but you will have time to read it this afternoon and Joe is off playin' ball."

Willie grabbed the book eagerly. It had an alluring cover, the design was worked out in bright red, brilliant yellow and poisonous green and it represented a man in the act of killing a young and presumably beautiful woman. It was of the dime novel variety entitled "Conclusive Evidence," just the thing to appeal to the imaginative Willie. Soon all thought of hens slipped from Willie's mind, his heart beat rapidly, he breathlessly followed the hero's thrilling adventures, he almost shed tears when the girl who had helped the hero outwit the villain was found mysteriously murdered. With keen interest he watched the authorities carry the hero to jail. He was first in the audience at the trial, he drew a long breath when only circumstantial evidence could be brought out, his heart sank when the villain rushed into the court room and cried out that he had conclusive evidence, his hopes went down, a sharp pain assailed him in the shoulder, he thought the villain had grabbed him, he jumped up and--in place of the court room, prisoner, judge, jury, witnesses, interested onlookers, etc., he saw his mother standing beside him and--horrors--a dozen or more hens blissfully digging in the loosened earth of the garden.

"Where did you get that book, Willie?"

"It was lent to me, ma, don't tear it ma, don't tear it, it ain't mine, ma--"

"That will do, Willie, it is not fit for you or any other boy to read, now you come in the house and go to bed."

"But ma, it is only four o'clock and I'm hungry and I won't let 'em in the garden again, ma, please can't I stay out here, ma?"

"You do as I told you without further delay."