Ancient Mariners

New Zealand Listener, Volume 3, Issue 75, 29 November 1940, Page 5

Ancient Mariners

HIPS and animals are already in use as methods of transport at the time recorded history starts. And ships progressed faster than land conveyances as a means of taking people and goods about in what we might call wholesale quantities. Ships that carried a fair number of passengers or a goodly load

of merchandise were in use long before land transport had passed the pack animal and crude sledge and waggon stage. We have definite knowledge of quite considerable vessels used 3,000 years ago, by the Egyptians. These ships, with propulsion power supplied by a score cf rowers, went all about the Mediterranean on lawful and unlaw-

ful occasions; the Greeks also took up the building of the ancient equivalent of the Atlantic liner, and progressed to vessels carrying three tiers of oarsmen, then to four and five tiers of them; and so to a record of 15 tiers of sweating, straining galley slaves. The crews these ships carried tan into triple figures-much larger crews than ten or twelve thousand ton cargo ships carry to-day. But the limit in size appears to have been 180 feet, and one can imagine that the seasen’s union of that distant day, if one existed, must have had plenty to complain about. No ham, egg and sausage breakfasts, for the Greek and Roman seafaring man. The Mediterranean was the start of. the maritime Age in a substantial way, but we must not forget the Viking, who in rougher and more dangerous seas, made use of sails to provide auxiliary power, while still retaining rowérs as the main means of motivation. They could cram well over 200 people on to their galleys, which must have been more than enough for comfort.-(John Moffett, " Ancient and ModernTravel Through the Ages,’ 4YA, November 12.)