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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2001
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"Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum Drink and the devil be done for the rest Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!"  --Robert Louis Stevenson, 1881
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Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 4,189
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2001
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>quantities of drink<
But, truth be told, prior to the 20th Century alcoholic beverages were viewed from a much different perspective, as a form of nourishment. And in many places distilled spirits were considered safer to drink than the available water supply. Even the Mayflower had enormous amounts of alcoholic beverages on its manifest, far more beer and wine than water, and these were Puritans who frowned on drunkeness. Indeed, beer was a staple beverage of the Pilgrims, even the children drank it.
>A ship's manifest of 1630 shows that the Puritans (of all people) had thoughtfully provisioned themselves with 10,000 gallons of beer, 120 hogsheads of brewing malt, and a dozen gallons of distilled spirits. No wonder construction of a stockade was generally the first order of business. "In the late seventeenth century the Rev. Increase Mather [father of Cotton, the man who would preside over the 1692 Salem witch hysteria] had taught that drink was 'a good creature of God' and that a man should partake of God's gift without wasting or abusing it. His only admonition was that a man must not 'drink a Cup of Wine more than is good for him'. ... At that time inebriation was not associated with violence or crime; only rowdy, belligerent inebriation in public places was frowned upon." (1)
"Thou dost cause grass to grow for the cattle and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth, and wine to gladden the heart of man." 104th Psalm<
I remember the first time I toured the Mayflower replica in Plymouth, Massachusetts, and the guide told us in the hold of all the kegs of beer brought along...I was incredulous.
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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As for use of steel plates - the manufacture of steel plates didn't begin until about fifty years later. Little coal was available, little iron ore. I tried hard to find dates, had no luck.
Not true, Bill. Boilers were being manufactured as early as 1780. To do that they had to manufacture iron or steel plates. They knew how to do it. They had the technology. They chose not to use it. Or they lacked the imagination to.
- Pfranz
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member
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Being "old navy" myself (30 years worth), I couldn't pass up this string without adding some comment.
Regarding USS Constitution: as recently as 1980, and possibly yet, the Commanding Officer was an active duty U.S. naval officer. Command was a sinecure obtained through some political connection. I knew an officer who was assigned to the position whose primary duties were to strut around the ship wearing the uniform of an officer of that era.
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old hand
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OP
old hand
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 866 |
JohnHawaii Not only the CO, but the whole ship's company, including its Marines detachment, are serving military personnel. Interesting to note that "the United States Marine Corps USS Constitution Detachment is the oldest detachment in the Corps". Ship's website: http://www.ussconstitution.navy.milstales
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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"old navy"
Maybe you can answer me a question. When I went a-visiting back in the late '60s I was told it was a commissioned ship, but I looked in vain for a commission pennant. Why does (did) it not fly one?
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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The alcohol in beer, wine or liquor kept bacteria or other microorganisms from growing there, so it was safer than the water.
What is the name of the sailing vessel that the the Coast Guard uses for training its recruits? There was an article in Smithsonian awhile back about it but I forget the name. It was pretty cool -- the recruits learned basic seamanship and at the same time soaked up some nautical heritage. I've often wondered if the other branches of the service have similar techniques of steeping their recruits in the history of their particular branch.
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jun 2002
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I've haven't heard that the USAF has its recruits chancing their arms in Wright Flyers ... Speaking of which, it is the 100th anniversary of the world's first powered flight by Richard Pearse, of Waitohi, Canterbury, New Zealand this week. I hoisted a few in his honour last night. If you doubt it, read this: http://www.ctie.monash.edu.au/hargrave/pearse1.html- Pfranz
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
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the world's first powered flight by Richard Pearse, of Waitohi, Canterbury, New ZealandHummph!® http://snurl.com/1234
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member
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"I looked in vain for a commission pennant..."
Might have been difficult to see at the very top of the mast. The ship's history indicates a number of commissionings and decommissionings, but I would expect her to be flying the pennant in her current commissioned status.
I have a commissioning pennant from a destroyer my father commanded and put out of commission, and it's really not very large.
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