QUARIERS ON BOARD THE OLD WOODEN WALLS.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 4, Issue 18, 5 March 1915, Page 5 (Supplement)

QUARIERS ON BOARD THE OLD WOODEN WALLS.

Rat-a-tat-tat!.' Rat-a-tat!! Tat tat!! 1 Startling enough at any time this "call to arms" on board a Man-o'War, but mor? startling when heard suddenly about two or three bells in the Mickue Watch, when everyone almost is soundly asleep in Iks hammock. It was a favourite game this of old Jacky D., the skipper of the 81-gun baUhvihif, Galrdon—and as ho stood there, just outside his cabin-door, watch in hand, his keen e ye taking stock of the hurly-burly that had been caused by h's little drummer lad with h's Rat-a-tat-tat. Men and boys with bare f?et wcro scurrying up the hatch-ways—hun-dreds cf them—in one long endless fetroam with their hammocks lashed up and tidy on their backs to stow them away in the hammock n?ttings. Then down they dive in hot haste to the loiv~ er deck again. Mess tallies are hurriedly hoised up from between the guns to th? deck overhead, port holes opened, guns run in ready for loading, guncrews ready, and the captain of each gun waiting anxiously and feverishly for the little bag of powder that will be handed up hand over hand by the little powder-monkeys from the powder magazine below. Yes! feverishly anxious lest his gun should not be the first to get a shot at the enemy. Up it comes at last! bag after bag of it and no stint now. through the holes provided for it in tlr? deck. Into tiie gun it g-oes and is rammed home by the loaders with the shot or shell lying close at hand in the racks. The guns are run out, coigns are raised or lowered at the breech* at the proper sight and distance are obtained, then—Bang!! The first shot has been fired.

Tho grim old skipper glances at the watch in his hand, and mutters ''Humph! Two and a-half minutes from the call! Not bad, but I've seen bettor." Then bang! bang! bang! from all parts of the ship. That is enough. The old s?a-dog turns to his cabin door. The sentry salutes, and with a "Good-night, sentry! 1 ' the skipper passes into his silent room. The sentry doesn't forget the kindly "Good-night.'' "Ah!" he mutters, " there isn't many that wishes the sentry 'good-night.' " but Jacky, grim old blue-jacket as he is, lias a tender spot in his heart for a marine, for ho remembers how—many years ago when ho was only a young 'sub'—he and' a small landing party of marines ne-scued a young lady, now his dear old wife, from a howling mob of Chinese who were subjecting her to all the inhuman indignities and tortures only possible to Germans ami low Chinese. Ono moi'o Rat-a-tat-tat and the firing ceases. Then the officer of the watch gives the order —"Pipe down." The hurly burly is renewed, guns are run in and braced taught, port holes are clos ed, mess tables lowered, and men and boys arc hurrying up the hatchways to be ready to receive their hammocks ns the numbers are called out from the nett'ngs "No. -53" —"Here ye' are. that's me, C'akey .Smith." " Xo. "81"—" Here I am, Jonny Fhinaghan." "Oh! ho! Johnny, sorry you've been wok*, up from youi sleep. Did you think the Fenians w?re coming, Johnny!-'/ "Ah! get out yvid ye. Co and Hog the hake, you dirty West Countryman." And so quip and crank go on till all are safely below. Hammocks are re-swung and very soon everybody is snugly settled for the rest of thj night. Xo, not everybody, apparently, for hero conic.:-; a poor little second-class boy. pip'.ng that he has 10-t his hammock. Poor little laddie! He's only a little chappie, and it is his first night or so at sea—so a ship's corporal takes him in tow to find it. "What numb.r did yon say?" "Fifty-five, Corporal." Up they go lo the hammock netting, but there is no fifty-five to be seen. There's fiftythreo there, but no fifty-five. So down again they dive to the lower deck and in and out among the sleepers goes the corporal with h's lantern, iierutjivsin<; every hammock, till—"Hiello. Smith. my sonny! Come out of that! You are in your wrong hammock./ Xo, 1 ain't. Corporal, this is 53." "Xo. it isn't, it's 55, .so up you go and get your own out of th ( v netting." Things are righted at last and so vnrta n page for that day in the history of the old Galedon.