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- 10514
- extracted_at
- 2026-01-30T20:48:14.843Z
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- 10448
- text
- in all their affairs are regulated by the despotic ordinances of the
captain. And though it is evident, that to a certain extent this is
necessary, and even indispensable; yet, as at sea no appeal lies beyond
the captain, he too often makes unscrupulous use of his power. And as
for going to law with him at the end of the voyage, you might as well
go to law with the Czar of Russia.
At making the fire, the emigrants take turns; as it is often very
disagreeable work, owing to the pitching of the ship, and the heaving
of the spray over the uncovered “galley.” Whenever I had the morning
watch, from four to eight, I was sure to see some poor fellow crawling
up from below about daybreak, and go to groping over the deck after
bits of rope-yarn, or tarred canvas, for kindling-stuff. And no sooner
would the fire be fairly made, than up came the old women, and men, and
children; each armed with an iron pot or saucepan; and invariably a
great tumult ensued, as to whose turn to cook came next; sometimes the
more quarrelsome would fight, and upset each other’s pots and pans.
Once, an English lad came up with a little coffee-pot, which he managed
to crowd in between two pans. This done, he went below. Soon after a
great strapping Irishman, in knee-breeches and bare calves, made his
appearance; and eying the row of things on the fire, asked whose
coffee-pot that was; upon being told, he removed it, and put his own in
its place; saying something about that individual place belonging to
him; and with that, he turned aside.
Not long after, the boy came along again; and seeing his pot removed,
made a violent exclamation, and replaced it; which the Irishman no
sooner perceived, than he rushed at him, with his fists doubled. The
boy snatched up the boiling coffee, and spirted its contents all about
the fellow’s bare legs; which incontinently began to dance involuntary
hornpipes and fandangoes, as a preliminary to giving chase to the boy,
who by this time, however, had decamped.
Many similar scenes occurred every day; nor did a single day pass, but
scores of the poor people got no chance whatever to do their cooking.
This was bad enough; but it was a still more miserable thing, to see
these poor emigrants wrangling and fighting together for the want of
the most ordinary accommodations. But thus it is, that the very
hardships to which such beings are subjected, instead of uniting them,
only tends, by imbittering their tempers, to set them against each
other; and thus they themselves drive the strongest rivet into the
chain, by which their social superiors hold them subject.
It was with a most reluctant hand, that every evening in the second
dog-watch, at the mate’s command, I would march up to the fire, and
giving notice to the assembled crowd, that the time was come to
extinguish it, would dash it out with my bucket of salt water; though
many, who had long waited for a chance to cook, had now to go away
disappointed.
The staple food of the Irish emigrants was oatmeal and water, boiled
into what is sometimes called _mush;_ by the Dutch is known as
_supaan;_ by sailors _burgoo;_ by the New Englanders _hasty-pudding;_
in which hasty-pudding, by the way, the poet Barlow found the materials
for a sort of epic.
Some of the steerage passengers, however, were provided with
sea-biscuit, and other perennial food, that was eatable all the year
round, fire or no fire.
There were several, moreover, who seemed better to do in the world than
the rest; who were well furnished with hams, cheese, Bologna sausages,
Dutch herrings, alewives, and other delicacies adapted to the
contingencies of a voyager in the steerage.
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