Flogging Wasn't the Worst of ItProtecting America's Seamen in the Waning D ays of Sail
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fter suffering for days under the wrath of Captain Adolph C ornelius Pedersen, John H enry Stewart could take no more. Stewart, the ship's cook, walked out of the galley, jumped over the side, and disappeared under the waves. Weeks later, with second mate Ado lph Eric Pedersen in hot pursuit, it was Axel H ansen's turn. Upon hitting the water, however, H ansen grabbed the log line and called fo r help . The order went out for the Puako to maintain her co urse. Soo n the only sound from as tern was the rush of water as the ship carried on her way. By World War I, when these events roo k place, life for seamen o n American-flag vessels had beco me relatively civilized. Thus, the abuses and outright tortures m ered out against more than a dozen seam en in 19 18 and 19 19 by Adolph Cornelius Pedersen and ano ther ship's offi cer, Frederick Hansen, have to be considered anomalies. Historically, shipping out on sailing ships had been a nas ty business. Finding oneself on the wrong side of a ship's offi cer, J)UPLICA TE .
by E. Kay G ibson
especially a "bucko" m ate, proved mo re dangerous than anything Ki ng Neptune had to offer. Up to the early 1900s, the marine laborer had no recourse against his ship's officers. Vessel mas ters, who often thought of themselves as kings or deities, ran their ships with militaristic authori ty and often exacted discipline by brutal corporal punish ment. If things became intolerable under such a master, deserti o n was the seaman's only escape, bu t it carried severe penal ties, which could include forfe iture of wages and even imprisonment.
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Comult General ln1tn.u:tio n No; 338 wheri eu.cutin&" thi• form.
REPORT OF THE DEATH OF AN AMERICAN CITIZEN.
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In the eyes of so me masters, it made economic sense to make
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Cause of death: . .Suic.id.e .. b y ....dr_oIDing. ..on ...the .. b i g h __ aea ... .. _. _______________ _ [)i,poejtion ol the remairu: Bo4Y---no.t .. .re.o.o.T..ex.e.d..•_
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Penon or official responUble for custody of ellcct1 and accounting therefor: .. Me.atu .. .A•.C;"--- Pe4er.ee-n., ... Accompanied by relatives or friends as follows: Bkt n • .. PWlkO • "
Addreu of rdativei (so far as biown) :
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N oti6cation sent lo:
This information, an inventory of the dfeets, accounts, etc., have been recorded in full in the MiKellaneous Record Book, pagef---.04 .... -·-·····-···-·-······-·········- • and copies placed under File 330 in the eonespondence of thia oftice. Rem11.rk. : .Ile.c.eal!l..e.d.. .. .ahipp.ed ..aa .. .o o-D.k...an ...tha. .. Am ~.r. i.c.an.. Ba.r.Un.t.ine. ....... .
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Death certificate fo r the ship 's cook, j ohn H enry Stewart, filled out by the American Consulate in Cape Town after the Puako cleared into the port three months after Stewart's death. "Cause of death: Suicide by drowning on the high seas"
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When the Puako got underway in Ap ril 19 18 from British Columbia at the start ofher infamous voyage, she was manned by a predominandy green crew led by more seasoned "bucko" mates and, of course, the captain. Puako could maintain nine knots under fu ll sail.
life o n board so uncomfortable and downright miserable that seam en might desert and thus fo rfeit their wages after serving fo r months. This scenario proved ripe for a confl ict to develop between an unscrupulous mas ter's fi scal interest and a seaman's physical interest, which often led to abuses by ships' officers. O n these "hell ships,'' seam en might be viciously beaten by m as ters and m ates, food rations were substandard in quali ty and quantity, and living quarters fell well below m inimal stan dards. N o wo nder that the crews who signed on to voyages under sail were often the dregs of society who had few alte rnatives. This was the state of affa irs in 1834 when Richard H enry D ana Jr. signed o n as a green hand aboard the brig Pilgrim fo r a two-year ro undtrip voyage from Boston to Califo rnia. D ana kept a diary that became the foundation for his classic book Two Years Before the M ast, whi ch had a decided impact on drawing public attention to the deplorable plight of sailo rs. A yea r in to D ana's experience before the mas t, the crew of the Pilgrim was fo rced to witness a brutal and seemingly senseless flogging that made a profound impression on yo ung D ana. In his book, published five years later in 1840, Richard Henry Dana Jr. , 1942
SEA HISTORY 121 , WINTER 2007-08