COALING A BATTLESHIP.

; Coaling ship, that necessary but very , unpleasant evolution,, is one which ocl curs very frequently in the lives of the t modern men-of-war's-men. Owing to , the amount of time spent under way • by our present-day fleets, it takes place, oiice a month, or even ot'tener, and tho i officers and men come to look upon it as a mere matter of routine. It is : an undesirable job, it is true, for no- ■ where is dirt more unwelcome than on board a man-of-war, and when the dirt is coal dust, which lias the unpleasing knack of penetrating even to the inner- • most recesses of cabins, it is more unpleasant than ever. Let us imagine ourselves for the: timo being on board a battleship about to fill up her bunkers. The men will have been piped to "Shift into coaling rig" several hours before the collier comes alongside,, and will have been hard at. work making the various necessary preparations. The derricks for swinging the coal on board, tho barrows for wheeling the 2-cwt bags from the places where they are dropped to where the openings in the deck-lead to the bunkers below, the shovels for use in the collier, the straps for slinging' the bags, all these things have to be prepared and got ready beforehand. At last the dingy collier is seen making a move towards the ship, and as the boatswains' mates pipe "Clear lower deck, hands fall in for coaling ship!" the men rush aft and fall in in ranks on the quarterdeck. All the executive officers are present, and as everyone, officers and men alike, are wearing the oldest garments they possess, many of the said garments being stained with the grime of previous coalings, the motley throng can hardly be recognised as the smart ship's company of one of Ilia Majesty's battleships. "Men," says the commander, just before the collier comes alongside, "the other ship just finished has averaged over two hundred tons an hour. Let's see if we can't beat her!" A smile runs across tho ranks, and the commander notices it and is glad, for he knows it means that everyone will work their hardest to break the other ship's record. "Coal ship!" he shouts an instant later, and hardly before the words are out of his mouth the dirty-looking mob of men have dispersed. There is no confusion, for each man knows exactly what to do and where to do it, and while parties wait on forecastle and quarterdeck to secure the collier when vshe is alongside, others are ready to jump on board her as soon as she. is close enough. Still more are waiting with bags and shovels ready to fling on board her, and when she finally draws close there is a wild rush, and a couple of hundred men havo leapt on board. In most colliers there are four holds, and each will be worked by its own part of the ship, the forecastlemen taking No. 1, the foretopmen No. 2, the maintopmen No. 3, and the quarterdeckmen No. 4. The Marines and other ratings are employed on board the ship in running the coal barrows to the shoots and in tipping out their contents. . ......... ■• '-' Once on board the collier the.menare soon at work filling up the bags and placing the derricks and reeving and testing the wire whips which will hoist the coal in one ton, ten bags, at a time. \ The commander walks Tound to see everything ready, and having satisfied himself that things are as they should' be, he turns to the bugler at his side and says, "Sound the Commence!" The bugle blares out, and scarcely have the last' notes died away when the coaling] has begun. The steam winches in the collier commence their hideous clatter, and as the men" in the holds shovel away for dear life the first hoists come in. They are whipped up in a. winking, and fall with a thump on the battlesship's decks, and-as each arrives it ia set upon by a scrambling crowd, who cast.it loose from the whip. The bags are then placed on the Marines' barrows, 'and trundled off to their various destinations, and before we can properly realise what has happened several tons of coal have vanished down. . the shoots and the hunkers are ready for more. -.. , : Hoist after hoist comes in, the noisy - din of the rattling winches all but drowning the"efforts'of the band, who are playing their hardest to encourage the busy workers, and before an hour* has passed the once-white deck of the man-of-waT is ankle-deep in dust, while the black clouds cover the faces, hands, and clothes of everyone, with a layer . of ebony. The time passes quickly, and at the end of the hour they are informed that over 230 tons have been taken in, and each man redoubles his efforts to maintain this average. Officers and men work together for the sake of their ship's reputation, and everv now and then we catch a glimpse of the commander himself rushing by with a coal-I'aden barrow. " By the end of the second hour 480 out of the total 1000 tons have been stowed, and half an hour later, when there is a twenty minute respite for tea, everyone realises that the .back of the work "has been broken. During the short speirthe men get what food they can while the wardroom is besieged by a mob of hungry, thirsty, black 7 faced officers clamoring for food and drink. The short time, however, has soon passed, and before long the work has recommenced. The stokers below in the bunkers are having a bad time of it, for the coal comes down in a series of regular avalanches and they have to trim it until the bunker is full. They work in what is practically pitch darkness, for the flames from their slush lamps are only dimly visible through the thick clouds of'coal dust, but though the air they breathe is filled with the fine dust which they have to inhale into their lungs, they stick to their job with a dogsed perseverance like the fine fellows they are. ' Finally, the last ton comes crashing in, and'when the bugle sounds . the "cease fire" everyone heaves a sigh of profound relief. They are all tired, for the handling of 1000 tons of. coal in any shape or form is no childish play, but though the actual coaling is finished there is still a lot to be done before the collier can shove off. Half an. hour . sees it through, and all the coal on . board stowed, and at last, just as it is striking eight bells, the collier casts' ott ,and steams away. To ..get the ship clean the same night is out ot tw question, so bevond a rough wash down nothing is done, and. officers and mep go below to their baths with relief, glad that the unsavoury job is at last mushed Though the wardroom and. their cabins are" black with coal dust and though a layer of black covers all the food on the supper table, they are well pleased. The average per hour has worked out .at 245.7 tons, .and once more have thev upheld the honor ot their ship and the great service to which they belong.