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A Meeting at Sea By Margaret Havers Late one July evening at lat. 43.41 , long . 27 .58, course 125 ° on a velvet black sea in the North Atlantic, two ships came close alongside each other for twenty short minutes. Two barkentines: one of 3,200 tons displacement, the other 250 tons. I was aboard the smaller vessel. As the smaller vessel, und er power, approached the other ship which lay becalmed, a male chorus could be heard drifting across the water. Music, lights , merrymaking. As we closed her we could see thousands of yards of canvas hanging between her spa rs and as th e deck lights cast their glows up into th e rigging the canvas appeared creased and folded like fluted chiffon as it fluttered in the light breeze. All was moving, the ship , the cloth, the lights, and then moving limbs and waving arms could be discerned as we moved even closer. Two ships bound for Lisbon-two ships who set out from Newport Rhode Isla nd on June 27 on the New World Race with their trainee crews aboard. The fourmasted barkentine Esmeralda from Chile and the three-masted barkentine Our Svanen with her youn g crew of Royal Canadian Sea Cadets rend ezvoused at dusk. At 1800 that same evening, before the 2200 rendezvous we chanced to haul a board 65 lbs. of bea utiful , huge, shiny, energetic strong tuna. Magnificent! Our young cadets quavered at the sight of so much "high protein diet" arriving aboard again . Almost within minutes the Captain clapped his hands and gleefully announced "Hahl we will make a presentation for the
Esm eralda! " Our young cook visibly brightened . The line-throwing gun was fired with a glo-stick in the head of the projectile. Simultaneously the cannon fired. Once the line landed aboard the Esmeralda the tuna which was attached to this line was slipped gently into the water and pulled across the gulf between the two ships. Throughout this operation more music and more clapping and cheering was taking place between them . Spotlights were swung to illuminate sails and Svanen 's spreader lights shone on her rigging and decks. The fish arrived at the Esmeralda safely and was ha uled aboard to much more clapping and cheering . Our cadets sang "Heart of Oak " at the tops of their lungs and if they were out of tune, I don't think it was very important. A few minutes later more music assailed our ears and it was the Esm eralda band playing "Heart of Oak" for us. Our cadets followed with "Oh Ca nada " a nd by this time the heaving line was on its way back. In tqe water by Esm eralda 's hull was a lifejacket. We receive orders to pull gently, the lifejacket bobbed towards us and we heaved it aboard. Unwrapping man y layers-lifejacket, line and waterproof bag-we came upon their gift to us. A beautiful book on Chile translated into English, French and Spanish, a bronze medallion of the Esmeralda and to crown it all 6 bottles of delicious C hilean wine. We announced to our crew that the wine would be served at our customary Captain' s Dinner which mark s the farewell of each six-week course. My eyes blinked like ca mera shutters
Our Sva nen rolls along under gray skies with everything set and flags streaming. Th e 130 ' barkentine built in Denmark in 1922 carried grain in Scandina vian waters until 1969 when the Ha verses bought her, to spend the next ten years rebuilding her. Today she sails out of British Columbia on Canada 's west coast, training Royal Canadian Sea Cadets in sometimes distant cruising.
and I committed all I saw to memory. Those minutes passed quickly-we may never have th e experience again. We lay alongside another vessel in fine conditions a nd th ere was little danger. We drank in the simple pleasure of being at sea, smelling fresh air, singing and exchanging friend ship-two countries, two cultures, two languages bound by a common medium . Surely the sea was meant for such meetings ! ls this romantic talk? Damn right it is. Anyon e sailing through the fog off Newfoundl a nd at nine knots carrying the responsibility of 20 young people in their hands, anyone concerning themselves with the safety of young men and women afloat furlin g the topgallant and topsails in a 40 knot wind-anyone teaching them, training th em, making them aware, teaching them in six short weeks to grow up has earned the right to speak of romance. As we moved away slowly into the inky blackness of the night and our young train ees di spersed to watch stations , studies or bunks, our wheelhouse watch, Captain , helmsman and I were treated to the voice of Esmeralda's captain, Captain Roehrs, saying over the radio to us: "I don ' t speak English good, but my fri ends I must tell you that in all my years at sea, this night will be my greatest memory. "
EDITORIAL NOTICE No United States vessel took part in this 20th anniversary gathering of tall ships from around the Atlantic world. This, as we of the American Ship Trust know, is not due to any lack of interest. No, the lack stems rather, as we have come to see it, from two things: First, a lack of national recognition and focu s on this intensely valuable and productive activity. Second, and not unrelated to the first, a stultifying set of US regulations unsuited to the needs of sail training ships which effectively bar US flag vessels from sail training . The American Sail Training Association, now nearing its tenth anniversary, is working to overcome both the recognition and the regulation problems-with growing success. We urge you be in touch with them and support their campaign. P .S. 41