and evenh anded in th e trea tment of its inhabi tants. W h atever his feeli ngs-of which ho mesickn ess may have been a major compon ent-Melville broke his indenture and once again we m to sea, this time enlisting in the Navy. T h e fri gate United States, flying th e pennant of Commodore T hom as ap Cates by Jones, arrived in H onolulu in early A ugust 1843, bearin g both news and distinct reminders of ho me. W hen she sailed on 20 August sh e carri ed the fo rmer m erch ant sailor and wh alem an o n rhe las r leg o f his epic voyage. T h eir first d estinati o n, rh e M arquesas, gave Melville the chance to furth er p o lish hi s sro ry- relling skills: rhe som etime deserter and beach comber, with his recent sojourn among rhe Taipis still fres h in his m ind, wo uld have been a prime source of in relligen ce o n whar yo un g sailors might expect fro m th e nymphs of paradise. H e h ad learned earlier in life, li ving in rhe sh adow of his brillian t and articulate brother Gansevoorr, to bide his rim e and speak up o nly when rhe stage was clearly his, and when his audience was primed to listen. This ab iliryto mel r in to rhe background, to beco me parr of the scen ery, h ad served him we ll in hi s ea rlier travels, and it was
Tll E
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A most entertaining engagement calendar for 2002
pro bably his salva tion in the navy. A survival insrincr to ld him rhar d isappearin g in to rhe woodwork was no r o nly rhe best way to avo id attention and its attenda nt risks-such as flogging, th e p ros pect o f which terrifie d h im - bu r also to observe the minuriae of daily ro u tine th ar co nstitute th e spirit and substance of naval life. Like th e narrato r of hi s fifth book, White j acket: Life in a Man of War, H erman walked a tightrope berween m eetin g the dem ands of du ry and shu n nin g atte ntio n in th e interest of self-p reserva ti o n. U nlike h is narrato r, Melville p ro bably was no r a m ember of th e el ire of the m ai n ro p, but, at least at rhe o utset of his cruise, of the afterguard- rh e mass o f common sailors who h andled th e lower sails from deck level. H e clea rl y aspi red to the mainrop, h owever, and m ay have been inv ited there in hi s ho u rs off wa tch, w here h e cultivated rhe acquaiman ce of rhe captain of rhe m aintop, John C h ase, rh e quintessential hero ic sail o r, who ap peared later as J ack C hase, capta in of rh e main to p in White j acket. From this perch , and from his oth er un obtrusive viewpo in ts, Melvill e ga rnered a broad and detailed perspective on the life of an enlisted m an in rh e navy of his time.
It was, for th e sake of thi s unique acco um of enli sted life , a happy accident that he served before rhe m as t and n o r as a midshipman or junior offi cer like hi s more privileged co usins. His cruise rook him back to th e M arq uesas and th ence to th e coas t o f Peru , wh ere United States linge red for many m o nths before makin g her way back to Boston via Cape Horn and Rio de Janeiro . His seafarings behind him for a time, he embarked o n his new ca reer as travel w riter, mining the rich lod e h e h ad exposed during his n early four years afl oat. H e traveled by sea later in life-to E urope several rimes, and to San Francisco in th e clipper M eteor, commanded by his youn ges t brother , T om- bur always as a p asse nge r. And as h e noted of p assengers in "Loomings," the first chapter of Moby-Dick, h e go t " . . . seasick .. . and did not enjoy [himself] much , as a gen eral thin g." But the world can be grateful indeed rh at h e did sail for a li ving, and for his uniqu e written legacy of the great days of Am eri can seafarin g. 1.
Mr. Putnam is a museum educator at the South Street Seaport Museum, New Yo rk, New York.
Simpl y th e b est se lectio n o f
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