The Middies' Berth

Thompson couldn't help chuckling at that. "It does, don't it? Mum allus used to call 'em feather dusters, though Army officers' ones is bigger, and made of feathers, so they look like 'em more. I got it caught plenty o' times. It don't look so new as it used to once, 'cause of catchin' it, see. They allus end up a bit bent, no matter how much you try not to knock it."

And of course the boy would be fascinated with the Marines' uniforms, because they were quite different from the Naval officers' ones and the sailors' slops.

He turned a little to smile encouragingly at the midshipman. "I don't mind you askin' me questions like that, you know. It's the only way to learn summat you don't know, askin' about it, after all. Least, that's what I was told, me first time at sea."

"Depends whom yer can ask.. n' when.. if at all.. 's not right...mos' of t' time." He answered knowingly and then he grinned:"... T' officers havin' bigger eh?.. well They've got more uniforms they need dustin'.. tho'... I was wonderin' like.. since others do t' cleanin' fer them.. they'd not need one at all."

Well that mother of the marine seemed like a wise woman even if perhaps her profession had been much less wise and a lot more.. he couldn't find the word and did not wish to think it neither.

"Yer kin' of work's not summat I'm expected ter know.. so I'm not.. askin' because I'd be thinkin' it would be asked fer t' lieutenants examination." He was asking because he was curious and felt more at ease with the marine than he had with any sailor, officer or the like on that or the other ship. He didn't know why and was not even trying to find a reason.

"I know that, sir. Mebbe that's why you feel easier askin' me things... 'cause nobody 'spects you to know it. Though you knew enough to look at me musket like Sarn't Quinn does." He paused for a moment, before saying thoughtfully, "Y'know, that's why they give you young gentlemen a sea-daddy. 'Cause they don't expect you to know everythin', and you need to have someone you can learn things from and ask questions about stuff."

He gave the boy a friendly smile. "Shame you ain't a Marine, sir. I c'n tell you all about that, but I can't tell you much about sailorin', like you should know - or be able to ask about."

" I knew because yer sarn't showed me." He smiled more proudly. "I've been 'elpin' him earlier. Before there was need ter go because of ter storm." He thought for a moment about it and decided that yes, it must've been that.

"Did it right, did I?" Who else better to know than a marine who's own habit was to see if their musket was in a right order along with of course, having to clean it to come to such an order.

"..'ve been given a sea-daddy." He then continued for a moment more. "That Chase..." And he made such a sour face as if he'd just been made to eat a whole ten lemons at the same time. Being a marine, what an odd thought. Though he couldn't say, it wasn't entertaining.

"Ah. Yes, sir, you did it just right. I hope you thought she was all right?" There was no reason for is musket not to be all right, of course - he looked after it properly, as shown by the fact he'd bothered to get a dry cloth to wipe the water off with.

"Cob Chase? You won't go far wrong with him showin' you the ropes, though it might take a bit of effort to talk to him like you've bin talkin' with me sir. An' I don't think you could have a better sea-daddy in this 'ere barky, y'know, sir. He's bin at sea for longer'n I know. It'll just take a bit of time for you both to trust each other, is all."

"Aye, would've shouted 't ye all loud like, if it had a speck of rust on her, or a flint that was not makin' jus' the right spark." He smiled, though he sounded almost serious at the threat he just gave.

"..Chase.. that man aye. T' one I've had flogged. 's a reason he was flogged, Thompson. Ain't an ounce of good in him!" He protested at the praise and shook his head:" He's a blackguard.. n' a dangerous man." Since many of the others found him to be a good friend and perhaps if he decided that he wished for mutiny, in the young lad's eyes, others would easily had followed.

"N' he plays like he's allright.. 's what makes him t' more worse too!"

"Just a moment, sir. If there weren't no good in him at all, Captain Bolitho would've seen that and wouldn't have given him the duty he did, would he? It's fair 'mazin' what captains know about the men, after all, sir. An' don't you think that... Wouldn't you have said the same about me, afore we started talkin' like this, sir?"

He still couldn't understand why De Guarde had anything against the sailors. "Why won't you give 'em a chance afore you decide they'm as bad as you think, sir?"

He asked the question out of genuine curiosity, trying not to sound judgemental or negative, anything that would make the middy snap. If nothing else, he'd found De Guarde touchy when the sailors were discussed.

He did not wish to voice his judgement of the captain. He was perhaps open with the marine, but it was just so far that he would dare to go. And giving one even an ounce to use against him, he'd done other things wrong already, he needn't add that to his list. So wisely he remained silent when Thompson pointed out the captain's judgement of character.

Instead he prefered to answer the second question if only a slightly bit snappish and as well in a tone that made it sound as if he were explaining it to a child for the fourth time. "Because I know how they are. They don't deserve a chance."

He paused debating whether to elaborate: "N'.. 's swift and reasonable that a midshipman, an officer ter be, would not fraternise with some Jack Tars..t' would be as if the King would've shared kisses with ter common folk!"

"Ever'one deserves a chance, sir," Thompson said mildly. "You'm still talkin' to me, after all, even though you know me mum's a whore. An' there's better folks than me who got pressed into the Navy as sailors." He shrugged, deciding to let the subject drop.

"What d'you like best about bein' at sea, then, sir?" he asked instead.

The young midshipman looked anything but happy at the reply. Tilting his head upwards a bit, so that he'd more resembled a man who'd look down upon others, he waited a long few moments before he'd decide to speak.

Letting the silence drag amongst them, he shifted in his place, and adjusted his neckcloth then his fest and rubbed at the top two buttons as if they've needed some shine, then pulled at the tails of the vest, straightened his coat and then finally he looked ready to answer.

".. about being at sea, or being on a ship?"

"At sea, sir. Seein' as you don't seem to have had any good experiences on a ship, that I know of, anyways. Though mebbe you'll tell me different." Thompson wished again that De Guarde's first captain had been Captain Aubrey, or Captain Ramage, or almost anyone else than who he'd had. He hoped it hadn't spoiled him for service in the Navy, serving under an inconsistent bully of an officer who'd confused him, made life a misery and apparently thought all sailors were the lowest form of life known to man.

"...when it's calm.. I like t' sea best when it's calm." He first spoke.

"..When.. in t' evenin' yer get on deck, and it's so dark, n' you feel it whisper. " He flushed and looked away:"..n' it's peaceful n' so smooth like.." He didn't like to see the sea up close. That he was now sure of. "When it glitters...as it reflects light..n' it feels.." He slowly shrugged his shoulders and turned quiet.

"Aye, it's nice in the evenin'... or early mornin', it's the same then. Well, it is until the watch below gets roused up and have to lash their hammocks up afore startin' to holystone the deck. But afore then, it's nice to be able to think. Me, I like it in the night, lookin' at the sky with the moon and all the stars -when the sails ain't in the way, that is, of course."

He turned to look at the middy properly for a moment. "Is there anythin' you like about either of the ships you've been on... or has it all been bad?" The expression on his face, if De Guarde could see it, was kind and a little hopeful that it hadn't all been bad.

"On Confidence.. I liked.." He sighed closing his eyes as he rested his head against the wood, leaning back just slightly, while his legs were moved further from the wall, in a slightly awkward but plausible position.

"...'s how our ways were followed. If we said summat.. it was done. There was noone interferin'. Here, I talk ter a sailor n' I get someone to come inbetween. But there, we weren't havin' that." He made a face and continued:" Confidence was a fine ship, Thompson. ..You know.. what I've told you about her. A fine ship."

"I'm sure she was, sir." No sarcasm there, thankfully. Just agreement with the lad's honest opinion.

"I don't mean to be rude, or nothin' like that, sir, but would you think about this? Mebbe... mebbe, 'cause Terpsy's different fr'm Confidence, mebbe the officers have a different way of talkin' to the sailors here than you'm used to. An' they come in between you an' the sailors 'cause you'm still used to the way things are on Confidence?"

And Thompson almost held his breath, hoping that would be received the way he'd meant it, as friendly advice and not as a criticism. He wouldn't dare criticise an officer, not even a middy who had yet to take his examination, but De Guarde probably wouldn't realise that.

".. firs' .. rule Thompson.. if ye wish ter keep authority is, that even if yer disagree with another officer or midshipman.. you do not do so in public like. 'tis what makes the sailors think that t' middie doesn' really have any authority n' that they can act as they please as long as they've got an officer ter back them. They loose respect that way, fear too. Thinkin'.. perhaps even if I strike ter middie, t' officer won't do anythin'. Might not even believe the lad over me..." He looked up at Thompson.

" ye usurp your middie's authority, n' yer doin' yourself no good. Ye think that's t' Terpsy's way.. but it may be workin' in t' short run.. long run has sailors talkin' behin' a middie's back, n' trying ter be disobedient, n' worse even if they can. N' they can that, Thompson. The vile creatures as they are." Useful only when they had something a middie would want. Otherwise, worth nothing in the boy's eyes.

"I didn't mean it quite like that, sir. I meant... Well, Terpsy's way is that everyone should be respected - officers 'cause they'm officers, and sailors 'cause they do jobs that need skill to do and Marines 'cause, well, 'cause we'm here. And if a middy wants a sailor to do summat he don't need to say 'Do this or it'll be the cat for ye.' He'll say summat like 'Tidy this away 'cause it's making Terpsy look a right mess.' He expects the men to be proud of their ship, see, and to keep her lookin' nice 'cause she's their ship and if she looks a mess, it makes them - the sailors - look bad."

"Their ship, not yours then?" He shook his head and felt that he could not see what the private was telling him. The sailors had to have respect but that respect was just a form of fear. He didn't think to need to explain to a sailor why he needed to do something. But just order in all. If the sailor did not do what he was ordered or he had even acted cocky, then the threat of the cat would whip him into line. And last, well the cat itself to be shown, the articles to be read, and the man to be flogged.

It was easy, simple and understandable. But Terpsy sounded as if she was requesting more equality that the boy wished to give. Sailors to be treated as something more than they were worth? A scandal in his right mind. And.. it was a past time, to bully a sailor, see if they'd snap. A favourite past time for some of the middies.

"They're takin' long." He murmured while the debate in his mind was finally coming to an end. "..think t' officers are wounded too?"

"Yes, my ship too, only not in the same way... the sailors put more into her, 'cause they'm the ones who do all the work, like settin' the sails, and holystonin', and reefin' and steerin'. And paintin' her and other things like that."

He glanced around to see if anyone was coming.

"Dunno, sir. Mebbe so, or they've got a deal of work to do aboard the French barky to get her ready to sail after we gave her a right poundin'."

"Aye. Might take a while." He stretched and arm a little and turned his wrist to flex some of his muscles. "Let us hope they're done till it's time ter have summat ter eat." True to the nature of a midshipman, the youth was thinking of the food and hoping that if for no other reason, the men above would hurry so that the rations could be distributed nicely and soon.

"..it wouldn' hurt ter know how long they may be takin'. Could spend that time doin' summat useful." He glanced at the marine:" ..like writtin' a letter.. as one." He leaned down and rubbed his knee and then the other, yawning.

"Dunno. Be nice to know how long they'm goin' to be. An' thanks, for offerin' to write for me... though I reckon if we start it now, you'll only write a very little bit afore we get interrupted."

Where was everyone?

Even as the thought passed through his mind, he heard the sounds of Terpsy being put back to rights; all the guns being stowed, the tools for cleaning and loading them being put away neatly. Maybe someone would remember they were there and check up on them. Maybe.

"S' what I am sayin'." He nodded. "Were we ter know how long we are to wait, then I'd certainly know what I am able ter do or not do. But now, 's as if they'd be appearin' at any moment, or be lastin' away for a whole day." He heared and listened to the sounds from above and caught snippets of talk amongst the sailors, but nothing that he could much understand.

And even less that he could discern as useful information. "..so.. what d' ye most like aboard this ship. ..per'aps.. what makes Terspy differen' fer ye from the other ones?"

"She'm a nice size. Temmyrare was too big f'r me, and the sloops and things I've bin on were too small, really. The other Marines are nice enough folks to share a berth with. There ain't been any real quarrels, anyways, even with Corp'l Johnson an' his temper. Sarn't Quinn's good'un and all." He wouldn't say anything about Lieutenant Brandeson - he couldn't, without criticising him, and he wasn't about to do that to a midshipman.

"Captain Bolitho's good. Fair, but not over-harsh. And I get on with the sailors. Most of us Marines here do, which is different. In a lot of the other ships I bin in, Marines and sailors kept apart and never really talked with each other, bein' as we'm so different."

De Guarde noticed that Thompson avoided to mention the lieutenant. A man he had seen once at the dinner and of whom he'd just heard when he was placed to rest, supposedly being sick and tired. He wondered if this was because he had no chance to see him yet because of his strange illness or was it because he was ashamed of him. A wise decision not to speak, if it was the later.

The officer, of what he remembered, had drunk at the captain's dinner. Of course, he did so himself, so it was only thus much that he remembered at all about him.

Deciding not to ask just yet he concetrated on what more the private had to say. "Aye.. then, a harder question for you, but tell. What is t' thing you least like on Terpsy,.. n' don' ye be tellin' or sayin' its ter food." He warned.

"The food's all right, sir. Better'n what we had at home, most days." He shrugged. "We ain't been anywhere real interestin' yet. I bin to th'West Indies in one ship, and round the Horn in another one, and this here ain't been any further'n Gibraltar yet. Of course, there's allus a chance of goin' some'rs interesting, sir, depending on the Captain's orders, but we won't know about it till we're goin' there."

(OOC - Time for bed for this Marine, I think. See you tomorrow...)