Zealand

33. Of Position

Captain and I stood at various places around the top of the dried dock to watch the men working on Zealand's foredeck. "It is best we do it from afar, Boy. This allows us to overview[1] without interfering with the progress or being in the way of danger."

"So many men. I had not imagined it would need that many."

"With most of them idled these past months, Mr Pett wishes to set as many as possible to work." He pointed across the yard. "And over there in the sail loft and the mast hall, many more are engaged with crafting."

I nodded as I realised. "Good for both them and us, sir. They all get money, and we get the repairs fast done."

"Indeed, Boy. And that they get paid soon is among the reasons I gave five bags full."

"Aha! But among? There are other reasons for the extra two hundred and sixty?"

"Indeed, but there is far more than that extra, Boy. With the continuing war, guineas now trade at twenty-four shillings, so my five bags are six thousand pounds – five hundred and fifty beyond the cost of the two ships. The additional will settle the wage arrears of those idled officers and sailors we sign aboard. As well, it will pay for the repairs, the stores and most of the victuals."

I marvelled at this while I re-cyphered. "Those five bags gained almost three hundred pounds value in five months."

"Aye, Boy, and I love the irony of it. The King has taken us into this war, causing guineas to rise in value as his treasury declines. He cannot pay the Navy, so I have my choice of the best among those who had been set ashore, settling their outstanding wages with a small portion of the gain I have made from his folly."

"And with all the gold in the hide, you gained seven hundred and twenty."

"Far more than that, Boy." He pointed toward the gang-board. "But that is for me to explain later. We now have an inventory to make."

As we entered the great cabin, he said, "We will begin by examining all the spaces to know what is here, that we may decide how best each can be used. Open the first door, Boy."

The small size of the space surprised me, not much larger than our garderobe. Aha! Of course, a place to hang –

My thoughts were interrupted by Captain's words, "Appears to be a cloak closet, the shelf for hats and gloves and the pegs for capes and such."

"As I was thinking, sir, it being just beyond the entrance."

The next door revealed a privy closet, like the one at Billingsgate but with no window. Then puzzled by the dim light coming from above, I pointed up and asked, "How is that possible, sir?"

"Prisms, Boy. Pieces of moulded glass set into the deck, shaped to expand the daylight into here."

I nodded as I closed the door and opened the next one to see a bathing box. "Much like you had in London, sir – and the privy, as well."

"Indeed, Boy. I copied both of them from the designs in a Dutch prize we took near Tobago."

My mind was still on Tobago, trying to place it on the map as I followed Captain into a huge room, and I startled at how brightly lit it was. Of course, the previous rooms were with prisms, not windows such as these – two full walls of windows. In the corner opposite them stood a large bed with posts and curtains. A sleeping room for one of us. Likey for him – too big for me.

Then I saw a ship in a glass case sitting on a table, and I approached to examine it. "This looks just like Zealand, sir."

"Aye, a presentation piece – a very fine one."

"What means that, sir?"

"When a ship is commissioned, a model is occasionally presented; oftentimes, by her namesake." He leant down and read the golden plaque. "Gegeven aan Zeelandia door de Staten van Zeeland. Yes, this had been presented to the ship by the province of Zeeland."

"To the ship, not to the captain?"

"Aye, Boy. And it appears the captain had intended to take it away."

"Why do you think this, sir?

"It is delicate and fragile, so its proper place at sea is in a cupboard, not out on a table. Models such as this are brought out only in calm ports, and then usually only as an ornament placed in the centre of the dining table to impress and amuse guests."

"And with all its detail, it would surely do that. But I had questioned why you think the captain wanted to take it away, sir."

"Yes, I see. With her minor damage, it appears Zeelandia had surrendered, rather than face further injury to the crew. The tradition in such cases is to allow all aboard to carry away their own chattel. And that is the point here, Boy. Their own chattel – nothing belonging to the ship."

"Aha! And he was seen trying to take it."

"So it appears. When we capture a prize, we watch close to ensure no property of the ship is taken." He pointed at the model. "And that this was stopped, offers hope that most of the navigation instruments are still aboard, as well as other small items of high value."

"Do they secret[2] them in their clothes? Like I saw the beggars do in the shops and stands along Cheapside."

"Aye, Boy. And it is not only the beggars who do such – unrighteousness and corruption know neither class nor position in life." He bent down and opened a cloth bundle beneath the table. "And here, a bed sheet filled with cutlery and plate.[3] Appears he was apprehended before he could carry it away."

Captain looked up from it and continued, "A task for you, Boy. Find where these belong and then inventory all the tableware to know what quantity remains."

"Aye, sir."

Then he stood and pointed toward the cupboards and drawers along one wall. "And count what bed and bath linens are stowed in there."

"Aye, sir. Is this where you will sleep?"

"It is, Boy. And we shall call it my night cabin."

"And where will I sleep?"

"In the forecastle."

"Where is that, sir?"

He turned and pointed at the model. "Here in the bows with sixty to eighty other crew."

"Oh, my room must be tiny, then."

Captain chuckled. "Nay, Boy, it is huge. One vast space where the ordinary seamen eat and sleep." He moved his finger toward the other end of the model. "And here aft, below the great cabin is the gunroom for officers, and below that, the messes[4] for mates and midshipmen."

I pondered this a short while, nodding. "Divided by position."

"Aye, and with your intelligence and eagerness, you will fast move aft and up."

Notes:
[1] As a verb in the 1600s, overview meant to observe or inspect from a superior position, and this meaning became obsolete in the 1800s. Its current meaning is from 1934.
[2] Secret was once a verb, meaning to hide.
[3] Plate in this context meant the gold and silver tableware.
[4] Messes in this sense are communal eating, relaxing and sleeping spaces aboard a ship.