SEAMEN

SEAMEN, such persons as are reserved to serve the king or others, at sea; who may not depart without licence, &c. See MARITIME State.

Seamen fighting, quarrelling, or making any disturbance, may be punished by the commissioners of the navy with fine and imprisonment. Registered seamen are exempted from serving in any parish, office, &c. and are allowed bounty-money beside their pay. By the law of merchants, the seamen of a vessel are accountable to the master or commander, the master to the owners, and the owners to the merchants, for damage sustained either by negligence or otherwise. Where a seaman is hired for a voyage, and he defects before it is ended, he shall lose his wages; and in case a ship be lost in a storm, the seamen lose their wages, as well as the owners their freight.

Means of preserving the Health of SEAMEN. There is scarce any article of more importance to a commercial nation than this, as by means of its seamen every such nation is not only enriched, but defended from its enemies. Seamen are subject to putrid disorders from many causes, the principal of which are the want of cleanliness, the bad air in ships, and the putrid provisions which they are often obliged in long voyages to feed upon. So exceedingly fatal were the diseases produced from these causes formerly, that when the first East-India vessels sailed, three of them suffered so much from the scurvy by the time they had got only three degrees beyond the line, that the merchants who had embarked on this adventure were obliged to do duty as common sailors; and out of their complement of 480 men there died in all 105. Sir Richard Hawkins also, an intelligent and experienced officer who lived about that time, relates, that "in 20 years, during which he had used the sea, he could give an account of 10,000 mariners who had perished by the scurvy alone." We have also a striking instance of the fatal effects of the scurvy in lord Anlon's celebrated voyage round the world. Soon after he had passed the straits of Le Maire, this disease began to appear among his men; and by the time that the Centurion had advanced a little way on her voyage, 47 had died of it in his ship; and there were but few on board who had not in some degree been affected, though they had scarce been eight months from England. In the ninth month, when standing for the island of Juan Fernandez, the Centurion lost double that number; and the mortality went on at so great a rate, that, before they arrived there, she had lost upwards of 200, and at last could muster no more than six men in a watch capable of doing duty. The other ships suffered in the same proportion.

tion. After having reached the island, the crews quickly recovered their health: but they had continued only a short time at sea when the same fatal distemper broke out again; and before the Centurion, which now contained the survivors of all the three crews, had got the length of the island of Tinian, more than four-fifths of the original complement were destroyed. However, it is probable that this extreme mortality was not occasioned by the scurvy alone; but that it was conjoined with that putrid and pestilential distemper called the jaill or hospital fever*. But whether this was the case or not, it is certain that both these distempers originate from putrefaction, and the same causes which prevent the scurvy will also prevent the jaill-fever.

How great is the contrast between this fatal voyage of lord Anson, and that of captain Cook, who, "with a company of 118 men, performed a voyage of three years and 18 days, throughout all the climates, from 52° north to 71° south, with the loss of only one man by a distemper;" and even this one, of a phthisis pulmonalis, or consumption of the lungs, of which he would in all probability have died though he had remained at land! As this far exceeds any thing of the kind ever known before, it is evident, that the means used by captain Cook for the preservation of his mariners must be looked upon as the best for preserving the health of seamen that ever have been found out; for which reason we shall in this article give a summary account of these means.

The ships, besides being fitted up in the completest manner for resisting the dangers of the sea, were supplied with several kinds of provisions different from those usually furnished. They had wheat instead of oatmeal; sugar instead of oil: they had also malt; four krout, salted cabbage; portable broth; salep; marmalade of carrots; and inspissated juice of wort and beer. Some of these had before been found highly antiscorbutic; and others were sent out by way of experiment, particularly the two last. From the malt was made sweet wort, which by Dr Macbride was recommended as a powerful antiscorbutic; and was given from five to six pints a-day, as the surgeon thought necessary. Sour krout is cabbage cut small; to which is put a little salt, some juniper-berries, and anniseeds. It is then fermented, and afterwards packed close in casks; in which state it will keep good for a long time. The allowance for each man was two pounds a-week; but was increased or diminished according to circumstances. Salted cabbage is the vegetable cut to pieces and salted down in casks, by which means it may be preserved for a long time. Portable broth is made from the ligamentous and mucilaginous parts of beef boiled down into a kind of glue, and afterwards diluted with boiling water. Salep and rob of lemons and oranges were used only for the sick and scurbutic who were under the care of the surgeon. Marmalade of carrots is the juice of yellow carrots inspissated till it becomes of the consistence of honey or treacle, which last it resembles both in taste and colour. It was recommended by baron Storich of Berlin as a very great antiscorbutic. The inspissated juice of wort and beer were invented some years ago by Mr Pelham secretary to the commissioners of the victualling-office. This gentleman considered, that if the juice of malt, either as beer or wort, was inspissated by evaporation,

it was probable that it would keep good at sea; and if so, that a supply of beer might be had at any time, by mixing it with water. Mr Pelham's experiments succeeded so well, that the commissioners caused 31 half-barrels of this juice to be prepared, and sent out along with captain Cook's ships for a trial; 19 on board the Resolution, and 12 on board the Adventure. They were also provided with fishing-nets, lines, and hooks of every kind, for catching fish, wherever that was practicable.

The general success of these articles and precautions has already been mentioned. With regard to particulars, captain Cook tells us, that of such of the men as showed the least symptom of the scurvy, and even to such as seemed inclined to it, sweet wort was given from one to two or three pints a-day each man; or in such proportion as the surgeon thought necessary, which sometimes amounted to three quarts. "This," says he, "is without doubt one of the best antiscorbutic medicines hitherto discovered; and will, with proper attention to other things, I am persuaded, prevent the scurvy from making any great progress for a considerable while. But I am not altogether of opinion that it will cure it at sea. Sour krout is not only a wholesome vegetable food, but in my opinion highly antiscorbutic, and it spoils not by keeping. A pound of this was served to each man, when at sea, twice a-week, or oftener, as was thought necessary. — An ounce of portable broth for each man, or such other proportion as circumstances pointed out, was boiled in their pease, three days in the week; and when we were in places where vegetables were to be got, it was boiled with them and wheat or oatmeal every morning for breakfast, and also with pease and fresh vegetables for dinner. It enabled us to make several nourishing and wholesome messes, and was the means of making the people eat a greater quantity of vegetables than otherwise they would have done. The surgeon made use of rob of lemons and oranges in many cases with great success. We were certainly gainers by the exchange of wheat instead of oatmeal, and sugar instead of oil. Sugar, I apprehend, is a very good antiscorbutic; whereas oil, such as the navy is usually supplied with, I am of opinion, has a contrary effect.

"But the introduction of the most salutary articles, either as provisions or medicines, will generally prove unsuccessful, unless supported by certain regulations. On this principle, many years experience, together with some hints I had from Sir Hugh Palliser, captains Campbell, Wallis, and other intelligent officers, enabled me to lay a plan whereby all was to be governed.

"The crew were at three watches, except upon some extraordinary occasions. By this means they were not so much exposed to the weather as if they had been at watch and watch; and had generally dry clothes to shift themselves when they happened to get wet. Care was also taken to expose them as little as possible to wet weather. Proper methods were used to keep their persons, hammocks, bedding, cloaths, &c. constantly clean and dry. Equal care was taken to keep the ship clean and dry between decks. Once or twice a-week she was aired with fires; and when this could not be done, she was smoked with gun-powder, mixed with vinegar or water. I had also fre-

Seamen. frequently a fire made in an iron pot at the bottom of the well, which was of great use in purifying the air in the lower parts of the ship. To this and to cleanliness, as well in the ship as among the people, too great attention cannot be paid; the least neglect occasions a putrid and disagreeable smell below, which nothing but fires will remove. Proper attention was paid to the ship's coppers, so that they were kept constantly clean. The fat which boiled out of the salt-beef and pork I never suffered to be given to the people, being of opinion that it promotes the scurvy.

"I was careful to take in water wherever it was to be got, even when we did not want it; because I look upon fresh water from the shore to be more wholesome than that which has been kept for some time on board a ship. Of this essential article we were never at an allowance, but had always plenty for every necessary purpose. Navigators, indeed, cannot in general expect, nor would they wish to meet, with such advantages in this respect as fell to my lot. The nature of our voyage carried us into very high latitudes: but the hardships and dangers inseparable from that situation were in some degree compensated by the singular felicity we enjoyed of extracting inexhaustible supplies of fresh water from an ocean strewed with ice.

"We came to few places where either the art of man, or the bounty of nature, had not provided some sort of refreshment or other, either in the animal or vegetable way. It was my first care to procure whatever of any kind could be met with, by every means in my power, and to oblige our people to make use thereof both by my example and authority; but the benefits arising from refreshments of any kind soon became so obvious, that I had little occasion to recommend the one or to exert the other."

In Lord Anson's voyage, those who were ill of the scurvy found themselves so much refreshed with the oranges and lemons they met with on the island of Timian, that these fruits have since been reckoned the best antiscorbutics in the world, and vast advantages were imagined to arise from the rob or extract of the juices of these fruits, if ships could be supplied with them in sufficient quantity. Captain Cook was supplied with some quantity; but his opinion is very different. In a letter to Sir John Pringle, dated July 7th 1776, he has the following paragraph: "I entirely agree with you, that the dearness of the rob of lemons and of oranges will hinder them from being furnished in large quantities: but I do not think this so necessary; for though they may assist other things, I have no great opinion of them alone. Nor have I a higher opinion of vinegar: my people had it very sparingly during the last voyage; and towards the latter part of it, none at all; and yet we experienced no ill effects from the want of it. The custom of washing the inside of the ship with vinegar I seldom observed, thinking that fire and smoke answered the purpose much better."—For further particulars relating to the means of prevention and cure of the scurvy, see the article MEDICINE, n° 448.

On the whole, it is easy to observe, that the same means which are necessary for the preservation of health at land, will also preserve it at sea; and without these the best medicines are ineffectual. The whole indeed may be comprehended under the following articles.

1. Plenty of wholesome food and drink. 2. Pure air. 3. Dry and warm lodging. 4. Moderate exercise, without excessive fatigue or want of sleep. If the provisions which ships carry out along with them would keep sound throughout the whole time of the voyage, there would be no more occasion for an exact regimen at sea than at land; but as the provisions necessarily spoil and become putrid in long sea-voyages, we are thence obliged to use large quantities of antiseptics, in order to correct that putrid tendency.—On land there is commonly a free circulation of air; and therefore the maladies which partly ensue from confined and putrid air in ships, have been thought to arise from some malignant quality in the sea-air itself: but if a proper circulation of air is produced throughout all the parts of the ship, either by ventilation or otherwise, the sea-air is found to be equally wholesome with that of land; nay, where the land-air is confined, as in jails and hospitals, it is found to produce diseases worse than even the scurvy. Lastly, if a person at land indulges himself in sloth and uncleanness, if his habitation is damp and dirty, he will very probably lose his health; and it is not to be wondered at if he should do the same in similar circumstances at sea. The means, then, of preserving the health of seamen are, besides an attention to the purity of the air, the cleanliness of the ship and crew, the laying in a sufficient stock of wholesome provisions, which will keep as long as possible, and renewing them as frequently as an opportunity can be found. And as drink is an article as essential to the preservation of health as food, a method of procuring a constant supply of pure uncorrupted water at sea must certainly be an object of the utmost importance; for which see the articles (Refreshing) SEA-WATER, and WATER (preserving it from putrefaction at sea).