THE CREED OF A SAILOR.

Dunstan Times, Issue 3360, 15 August 1927, Page 2

THE CREED OF A SAILOR.

(By Captain E. R. G. R. Evans, R.N., C.8., D.5.0.) My way of looking at life has always been that, it is a dull business unless you make it interesting. With a Welsh father and an Irish mother I could hardly be expected to sit down quietly and swallow the cut-and-dried educational stuff that was handed out to the sons of respectable parents in the days of my youth; consequently I found my school training appallingly dull. I was constantly looking about and seeking some kind of adventure, and I was frequently in trouble, so much so that I developed quite an instinct for getting out of tight corners, an instinct which has often saved my life and, no doubt, my reputation. .L-think that, unconsciously, I have divided my views of life into a series of principles, ideals, ambitions, likes, dislikes, jjnd creeds. The dividing line is elastic, and I do change ray opinions and views of this business of living, to a certain degree. i Concerning principles, mine arc very simple. I never owe money, and I always endeavor to repay hospitality. 1 do my utmost to give those around mo a good time provided they do their job efficiently and cheerfully. I realise that by nature I am piratical and rebellious, and so I must have principles or come to grief; but I have a very strong sense of duty to the great nation which employs me, and this helps me to develop principles that are sufficient for the day. One of my ideals is cleanliness, and for this reason I love the snowy wastes of the Polar regions, the Norwegian fjords, and the wind-swept slopes of Iceland, where nothing is ever dirty. I also love clean, well-run ships, welldressed ships’ companies, ,and a spotlessly clean home. My ideal “humans” are great men who still remain human. Great admirals —we have some of these, but 1 never discuss my naval superiors generals; like Haig, who remain unspoilt, and who cheerfully give up their leisure to helping the down-and-out when they are not employed piofessionally; great lawyers like Fmlay, Birkenhead, and Cave; diplomats 1 am not so sure about, and politics I steer clear of! Merchant princes I admire only for their ability and drive; they do not come within my “ideal” series; and bishops—well, I only know one slightly. . ... , One cannot live this life without some ambitions, and as to my amlntions I suppose they are disappointing to my friends, for they are wrapped up m Tn:y home and nay family. I recognise that, owing to the state of promotion in the Service to which I have the honor to belong, there are so few jobs and so many clamoring for them that I must not be too professionally ambitious. . , ~ . In life all men of spirit have thenlikes and dislikes, but life is too short for quarrels —except perhaps international quarrels—and people whom 1 dislike I drop down a mythical crevasse •v of unfathomable depth, and try to keep them down it and out of my sight Those whom I like' I live for, for these people make life worth living. Some of them are on thrones anc some are sturdy Welsh miners, who are not too proud to wear my unwanted clothes when times are bad, and who send me beautiful, new-laid eggs when prosperity reigfis supreme. IT nave a number of friends in the police, whose views of life are worth knowing, for they see more of it than most of us. L dislike the domineering kind, and I detest folk who nag and whine. I like the independent, and I respect above all the women and men who work. Yes, I certainly like hard walkers, and I hate those who don’t pull their pound. Beyond despising men who marry ugly girls for their money, 1 have few other likes and dislikes, except, perhaps, human sharks and jelly fish and the human parasites. My creeds boil down to patriotism and religion mostly, and I am a great reliever in tact. Patriotism is certainly part of outlives. We Britishers have a. great heritage as a nation won for us by our. forefathers, and I believe it is the job of every one of our citizens, male and female, to preserve and protect our possessions and our rights I also believe in the right to work, _ but after last year’s exhibition my ideas on the subject of strikes have gone into the melting pot. ' Naturally, I view with some apprehension the gathering storm-clouds of reduction and disarmament. Some people consider patriotism to be merely a sentiment. My view is that patriotism towards the country of one’s birth or adoption becomes a bound'eii duly, otherwise, one should get out and go elsewhere. Patriotism is a family business, and I hate folk who won’t , fight for the family welfare. My religion is that of the healthy, primitive man. That there is a great God somewhere I do not doubt, and I believe that if one’s good deeds reasonably outweigh one’s evil doings ni ; petty sins, the celestial ‘Admiral of the Fleet” will let one through the Golden Gates. Anyway, I am nut worrying about it for tho present. T. am far more concerned with the future of this wonder# fill old Emjiiro of ours, and with getting my beloved sailor men permanent employment when the arc “axed.” time expired, or otherwise superannuated. Christianity, which is the religion of my upbringing, I cannot express any opiniort on, beyond that it is a form of superlative and practical kindness. Some of us are Christians at heart and some are not. The people with the shortest purses are usually the most Christian. I only have a medium purse, and as far as finance goes 1 am Christian according to impulse. Hero again, you may sometimes find that those you befriend turn and bite back, only I try to bite very much harder. My creeds include love. I believe that love makes the world go round, although I do not believe in talking about the secret places in my heart, except to the one person who counts. I met my wife in the Viking country, and had primitive instincts enough to know the right girl when I saw her and to propose to her right away; we were engaged within ten minutes of meeting, and I hope neither of us will ever regret our hasty decision. It doesn’t look like it. for when a very great personage visited our house recently and asked our Norwegian nurse how she liked England, the young woman re- , plied, “I have not seen much of England, ma’am, hut I call this home ‘the birthplace of the happy smile.’ ” We have raised the nurse’s wages for that appreciation I , , While on the subject of smiles—the complicated machinery of life, like all other machinery, needs lubrication, anv amount of it. By meeting misfortune with a smile and success with a cheer I find I can best lubricate mv life.' One o c mv friends accuses me of• bating a £IO.OOO smile ; this may be. but I would rather, have a threnvlia’peimy smile than a million dollar frown The. foregoing briefly summarises mv general ideas of life, but tn enjoy the

business of living I cannot be without certain excitements and pastimes, and I must have more than my share of exercise. I! like and enjoy fighting when once wound up to it, but I am at heart a man of peace and a lover of Nature in all her glory. On leave 1 always ask myself, “What do you want most?” Sometimes I want gaiety, sometimes solitude. I love big parties and gatherings of sailor folk, for sailors enjoy things so, but 1 would go fifty miles to a dance, a picnic, or a Cup-tie final, and X never say “no” to a theatre unless I am convinced that the piece, lacks lines, (music or legs. .1 take special pleasure in watching crowds; so much so that last Bank_ Holiday I went with some friends to Richmond Park, Hampton Court, Hampstead,- and Putney Heath merely to see people happy. They were happy, millions of them, all well dressed and nearly all wearing smiles, from a penny upwards! That day X wore my alleged £IO,OOO smile, and nobody shouted “Take it off!” but lots of-them smiled back, and my party got a multitude of “glad eyes,” although we rode round in a hired motor car. I see no reason why any one should be bored with life, and I never admit boredom. We all have to live, and with such a variety of sights and “humans” about us, such books to read, and such a lot of pretty girls to look at in our shops, why be dull? Laugh, and most people will laugh too; if they cannot laugh, they often will smilp. . “Niceness” is a quality that helps one live one's life. It goes hand-in-hand with cheerfulness. 1 avoid the “let’s all be gloomy brigade” treat them like a plague. I am a tremendous optimist, democratic to the bottom of my heart, and, though a true Celt to my finger-tips, I great admirer of the English and most of their institutions, and I also believe our politicians to be the fairest and best in the world. Finally, I adore children. At heart, perhaps, I am nothing more than a great big baby myself.