The Story of the Britannia""

ok-Morning Amenities-"One Day's 'Four'"-A Typical Day-The Hardships of "Four"-A Day in the Wave-"A Nice Fresh Breeze"-Reefing Topsails-"Man Overboard"-Comfort for Mothers-A Trip in a Skiff-Forbidden J

y-The Queen's Medal-Captain Marryat's Spectacles-Cadets' Food-A Hard Case!-Remarkable Physical Development-Influenza Epidemic-An Il

s has been stated, was appointed in 1889-found himself confro

he appeared to be cut out for the work; and yet it was his lot to bring to light a rascally sort of bullying which had, as he himself admits, been going on for a long time, and to be made the object of repeated attacks in the columns of t

public schools, joins in the same strain, though goodness knows there have been gruesome tales told of these from time to time. He says, with some truth, that the difference in age between the cadet captains and the other boys is too slight, and that supervision by superiors is the only safeguard

y, that this was constantly extorted by means of menaces and cruel treatment; and there is no

Let a suitable captain be appointed, and remain as long as his services

command, and certainly there are not wanting instances where, in similar institutions, a long period under one co

t be regarded as a flagrant instance of individual depravity such as may be encountered in any school. If the initials of the writer are genuine, his time in the train

ritannia, pointing out that, judging from the officers eventually turned out, the ship cannot be a sink of in

Britannia in an unfavourable light, replies that "Through the Mill" takes much too rosy a view of the ma

n the Britannia: "About the fagging for money, two or three cadets have been found out to be practising this

N. S.

dmiral N. S

le & Son,

ve been others who were not detected, but the general feeling of the bulk of the cadets on the subject is,

ple statement did

ppearances; and, among other things, he deprecates the method of corporal punishment by means of a cane over t

t he has to expect to be "satisfied" on these points; says the best proof of the efficiency of the Bri

the Mill" replies at length to the editor of the Western Morning News, winding u

"second class" punishment, which are brutal. Would it not be possible to give the headship to a

e, including the punishments alluded to when they are needed. The last sentence of "Old Etonian's" letter, as quoted above, can only be classified as impertinent ignorance-or ignorant impertinence, whichever may be deemed most suitable. His ideas are based on a conviction that no one except a public school master knows anything about the management

ridicule, as a sort of bugbear with a big stick, such men as Captain D

discipline are the best men to train young officers in their own service, and asks what Wykehamists and E

APTAINS (CHR

le & Son,

adets who was expelled by Captain Digby. He says that his son and his contemporaries went through it when first they joined, and had their turn at fagging afterwards; and then, seeing that he has, by implicatio

long time, and, owing to the reticence of youth, it took me a year to get to the

be safe to assume also that the captain had not been too well served by some of his subordina

pass; indeed, it is said that they have recurred with great regularity, and each time, no do

ay very well be quoted from here. It is styled "H.M.S. Britannia, the Cradle of the Royal Navy: by one

Pr

It does not seem much in my line; but I may as well remark that these notes, sc

y Mo

Nav

aby" throughout one

ump! Bother

ones, time for y

I wish the corporal would not bump against

s he gets into his clothes, and I thank my st

and the bugle. Never mind; the fou

es. Ugh! how cold the water is! But it has the effect of waking us up pretty quickly. How nice it is t

is five minutes before I can bear it. Jones, havin

I fall into conversation with Jones, and am giving him good advice about his various shortcomings, when first warning goes. We hurriedly comple

in, late again as usual; go on deck before breakfast, s

iddle deck carrying my boots, and put them on there. Just time to lace them up before the bugle sounds 'Fall in,' and the officer of the day be

and let me off. We all sit down, awaiting grace. My spirits rise. But behold! the corporal's legs appear descending the hat

is the officer of the day, so he will let me off easy, perhaps. The corporal sal

; but I find that Grey, who sits next me, has secured me three. I thank him and fall to. Here come the sausages round, followed by ham, and a choice of tea or cocoa. Sausages are all very well in their way, but they

cone, and filling it with water, empty it over them. It gets them fairly on the neck: heads disappear.

ceed to the poop of the Britannia. Soon the bugle sounds 'Fall in'; we are inspected, and prayers are read by the chaplain, after which w

r. I am no good at French, so indulge in a game of nibs with my neighbour, who does not love 'parley-voo' any more than I do. We are d

. My enjoyment of it is rather hindered by Brown, who is heaving bread at me; however, he is spotted by the chief captain, and told to go to the defaulters' table at tea. Brown says it is all my fault for looking such an ass, which may be true, but is not polite. I vow vengeance on Brown: he will avoid me after dinner, I expect. The tarts being polished off, and grace again said, we get half an hour to ourselves before muster. I spend it in the 'sanc' ('sanctuary,' a special place in the messroom, reserve

bathe; and here comes the officer of t

here is a sound of great splashing, and the water is alive with heads. I have a jolly swim out to one of the sailing cutters, and

box as myself; poles are served out to us, and for a whole hour of this blessed afternoon we have to do a variety of exercises, and double rou

he officers are playing, too, at the first eleven nets. I find one of the tennis cou

wn to the messroom and finish my story in the Strand. I have time to rea

hammock, I have to do my fours-viz. to stand for an hour on the middle deck before undressing. It is precious dull work, as there are very few chaps at the same business to-night. After half an hour is up, I am the only one left. I can hear the fellows talking and laughing on the sleeping deck. I think of many things, but my thoughts grow confused, and I begin to yawn, and near

on my flannels. Muster over, my class goes off to the Wave, with a couple of fourth term classes, for shifting the topgallant masts and yards. The Wave is a barque of about 300 tons, with auxiliary s

ING DECK ON BOAR

le & Son,

e foremast, and we get ours done much more smartly than the fellows at the main, as we chance to be a better lot. This sort of work goes on for an hour, when we return to the Britannia, and have break

BOARD THE

M. Crocket

s in a piece of paper, tying them up with a lanyard. The wind is freshening, and I ask old Johnson, the boatswain, what it will be like outside. He says: 'A nice fresh breeze,' and I know what that means! At last we go down in the boat and are off. I pull the second stroke oar, and we soon reach the Wave and scramble on board. During the few minutes which elapse before the first lieutenant arrives, the instructor shows us

soon the engines are stopped, and our progress is under sail alone. After a little while we are sent aloft to reef top-sails, and take in top-gallant sails. I get on

LLING E

be curiously drawn to the lee side of the ship! We, whose souls do not 'sicken on the heaving Wave,' begin to feel the pangs o

ET M

eboat's crew. The first lieutenant, throwing the lifebuoy into the sea, raises a cry of 'Man overboard.' Immediately the engines are stopped and the main-yard squared

ng that the crew are in the comfortable position of sitting in a boat at an angle of about forty-five degrees, as the fore part are the stro

is not felt so much now that it is dead aft. While we are passing between the old castles of Kingswear and Dartmouth we go aloft to take in the sails. I am not on the yardarm this time, but next to it. While the 'Descent of Man' has lost him the gymnastic properties of his ancestors, a sailor's life brings out the power of 'Ascent in Man,' judging by the prehensile talent so quickly acquired by his hands and feet. Think of this and take comfort, O mothers!

ematics, and then have our dip. F. and I make for the cricket field, and sp

ning. But this being unavailable, we consider strawberries and cream would be a good substitute, and ac

ing lately. I suggest getting one of the blue boats, and rowing out to photograph the German man-of-war lying in the harbour. We manage to wheedle a skiff out o

" TENDER TO TH

le & Son,

and are imbibing lager beer and smoking. We are at once offered beer and cigars, and indulge in a weed apiece, but no more, considering discretion to be the better part of valour. It is difficult to refuse our hosts, who so cordially press upon us their hospitality. F. imagines he can sp

y leave of our genial hosts, we step into our boat, and pull quickly up the harbour. We have to return the boat to its place, and find the boat-keeper in a towering rage, promising to

search us for 'stodge,' which it is against rules to bring on board. We are redolent of tobacco, of course,

r tea. Then preparation, and half an hour to ourselves till prayers. No 'fours

h wildly at Jones's hammock. Bump! We are both down, and the other fellows in great delight

a little conversation, I am o

y fast. The studies are varied by seamanship, including signalling by semaphore, flag, and Morse systems; working anchors and cables, learnt by a

val at 10.30 for receiving our weekly pocket money, consisting of the noble sum of one shilling, wh

m until Monday, get extra pocket money, which may not exceed five shillings, added to their railway fare. Having no friend to invite me, I hav

it follows, therefore, that we are famishing by the time our evening meal is ready, which is not until seven o'clock. The consequence is that a great deal of money finds

re dinner, rowing ashore to the platform abreast of

y, so it is an hour before we arrive at our destination. The road leads across the hills at the back of Dartmouth towards the open sea, which here

not yet in sight. I expect she will have some difficulty in getting out of the harbour, the wind being light and the tide against her, and

' is pretty well up in the manners and customs of cadets. She sports the Prince of Wales's feathers over the shop door, having been patronised by the two Royal cadets. F. and I get the third term room to ourselves, and order a meal consisting of cocoa, potted meat, sa

e description of the trip to Totnes on the "whole" does not intimately concern the Britannia;

nd two comrades land on the Kingswear side, taking

ve chosen in a small wood. It is roofed over with branches woven together, and the 'news' set to work to gather fresh bracken for us. When we consider it sufficiently comfortable, we establish ourselves with our books, and the

91; so, apparently, there was still some talk about the treatment

fast disappearing under the wise rule of the latest captains. There will always be something of the kind in a mild form in a

strict, but not unduly severe;

practical when there are so many subjects to take up; but the

concludes a

training-ship on the Dart, and which will, doubtless, often rise up before us in the years to come,

before the advent of Captain A. W. Moore, whose per

as urgently needed in some respects, and that Captai

ciplinary matters, and one is embodied in

ible for their instruction in seamanship, gymnastics, boating, swimming, etc., and is to keep a record of each cadet's progress

day, and a second lieutenant will be present at all musters of ca

he lieutenants, to be given to the executive offic

whole period of their sojourn on board. He soon gets to know each one intimately, and they can go to him for advice in any difficulties which may crop up. He takes an interest in their conduct and progres

N A. W

l Sir A. W. Moor

le & Son,

eutenants, who thus have a definite line of work prescribed, i

hought of it before! That it has worked

man-master-at-arms or serjeant-major-and the substitution of a cadets' gunner, known

AND ALBERT"

le & Son,

heir work practically and thoroughly, and usually display considerable capacity for command and a quite remarkable amount of tact in the discharge of their duties. The gunners are the pick of the "warrants," and there would be no diff

s" of gunners, and consequently the best

harge of the sleeping decks, messroom, servants' mess place, and to see that the cadets' servants are clean and tidy and p

ance, from without; for in January 1897, the Admiralty issued a new circula

for entry were a

13? to 15; September 15th, 1897, 13? to 15?; an

hat the subjects taught in the Britannia could not be properly learnt by boys so young. If thi

n the training ship; but instead of there being two terms in each year, involving two years' training

ETS' HO

le & Son,

would render it possible not only that a cadet should learn the s

ectricity disappear from the regular tabulated curriculum; English-including English history, naval history, and geography-is also omitted; but all these subjects still find their place under th

es at the final examinations since 1897, only twelve, or 1·2 per cent., have failed. In 1902 and 1903 (to anticipate a li

s, was attached to the Britannia for the purpose of taking out the third and fourth term cadets cruising in the

ssumed the duties of executive officer, and instructed the cadets in seamanship; the engineer taught them steam, and the c

E SIC

le & Son,

er 1st, or later if desirable; she was laid up dur

se benefit from these short cruises, which must, moreover, in fine summer weather,

ile a tremendous peal of thunder simultaneously resounded overhead; the ship trembled from stem to stern, and some of the occupants of the wardroom even imagined that they saw the lightning flash through the room. There was no doubt about it, the ship was struck by lightning. It had struck the copper band round the "truck"-the small round disc which surmounts the mast, and carries the blocks for the flag halyards-split the truck, burnt through the wire

d were everywhere hailed with enthusiasm. One hundred of them went to Lo

At Bristol buns and ginger-beer were served out during the stoppage, and they were sustained for the remainder of the journey t

ADETS ON BOAR

M. Crocket

he Admiralty to a sumptuous lunch. At 1.15 fall in again, and march to the Palace to mount guard on the Queen's return. Then they returned to the Admiralty for a "stand easy," and lay about on the grass in the First Lord's garden, which they found very pleasant; and the enjoyment of their repose was presently enhanced by the appea

were taken to see the Spithead Review, on the 26

be awarded annually, by the vote and selection of his comrades, to the cadet who

had already gone to sea, and was serving in H.M.S. Astr?a; Cadet G. B. Alexander rece

erms is to be seen. They are hard at work, no doubt, but a quarter of an hour devoted to dancing every night, instead of 'x,' would invigorate their brains to further ef

old Academy, and for a considerable portion of the College time; it is not ea

N IN SE

other than the spectacles worn by Captain Marryat. The donor was

shipman Easy strutting about with the Articles of War under his arm, and laying down the law to his superiors, or murmuring, "Duty before decency" as the unlucky Mr. Biggs stands trouserless on the gangway? Or shall we see that marvellous picture, dear t

ERM GROUP: "PASSIN

le & Son,

d by Messrs. Armstrong and Co. It fills up one side of the model room, and must have taken some getting in there; but sailors do not stick at trifles:

pondent, under the pseudonym of "Blue Jacket," starts the question of the cadets' food, stating that he und

says he always found the food good

rior description, the butter and meat being often uneatable; and alleges t

ther hand, particularly if reiterated, would be a likely occasion for a small dose of "fours," as a reminder not to be unduly troublesome. The allegation that boys who made justifiable complaints about food were punished for it requires som

perversity or from having been unduly pampered at home, make a point of finding fault with t

mess was once known to insert in the complaint book a bitter wail because only three sorts of ch

if not kept very sharply under supervision, and inferior stuff is

ut there is a small slice of the twentieth centur

ter, in some very big boys being entered; and the following remarks in the Britannia Magazine for Christmas, 1901, appear to

rto unknown specimen of the naval officer in embryo. It scarcely seems credible; but having the authorities to back us up with statistics, we feel safe in our statement-th

isited the ship in the spring of 1901, and caused a good deal of talk at the time;

" SEA-GOING T

le & Son,

fore alluded to, the captain was busy detecting culprits and putting it down before anyone wrote to the Press, and yet the busy newspaper correspondents persisted in saddling him, and the whole system, with the blame of it. And similarly, in the case of the epidemi

the ships have been at Dartmouth-the sewage has been discharged from the vessel into the ri

ce, the Britannia had, in March, 1901, been, not sixteen but over thirty-seven years in the Dart; and where, in the name of common-sense, did he

obson, emeritus Professor of Surgery, who says that he has been on board several times, an

d by the Admiralty to investigate the causes, and who speaks most highly of the sanitary condition of the

ions are made against Dartmouth itself, which draw forth a reply from th

e worse, the position is insanitary, and nothing is right, in short, except the excellent officers which this dreadful institution turns out! It would not be precisely f

editor of the Britannia Magazin

selfishly interested, brings to the authorities' notice that the additional number have somehow to be accommodated. Various suggestions have been made, but none, to our mind, feasible. A third term cadet has it from the

ut, fortunately, none of the drastic measures

r in the Great Western Railway Company's little steamer the Dolphin, which was profusely decorated. A large wooden pavilion was erected near the site of the College, handsomely hung with flags, etc., of various colours. The foundation-stone is a block of Cornish granite, which

VISIT, MA

sell & Son

he King, after declaring the stone "well and truly laid," was to present to s

sible, to produce the medals at the proper moment would, of course, be immediately foll

learning of the impending disaster, stuck his spurs in his horse and tore at full gallop through the town to the pontoon, wh

something to say

Deputy-Master of the Horse in the character of Gilpin (wasn't it?) in his celebrated ride to York; and if the shed

ly dispensed with some of his garments as he rode; and, for an officer in full, gold-plated, stand-up-collar uniform, this is indeed a d

t rides thr

e there

fter their Majesties had been with us, showing in detail their movements outside the pavilion;

ature: but, magnified to about double the original and working size, it becomes an atrocity, a

ight, it might seem more appropriate to include this among the Britannia games

of England

arines

l beneath

ll brave, in

le or th

sea warpat

need fea

p throug

pound shel

battle rage

fe down t

of conn

from ev

blind as m

and air

, Drake, an

arines

cree

eships an

no long

lurks benea

fathom

head's fel

them fro

cree

or flag

ill terr

es that star

ver more

.'s will na

e to get

creep thro

pound shel

t stand the ti

re safe down

DRESSED FOR THE

M. Crocket

last verse may come true in case of war. We are doing a good deal of business in the matter o

e Britannia during the 'ninet

mas, appointed Se

ore, appointed A

. Curzon-Howe, appoin

laghan, appointed F

oss, appointed A

health. Captain Cross is still in command, and will proba

the next three years, makes a total of 2,172 in the thirteen years under consideratio