Saltash History and Heritage
A day in the life of the Training Ship Mount Edgcumbe
In the words of Alfred Smith – boy 1910-12
We were aroused by the petty officer of the watches boatswain’s whistle at six am. We then had to stow hammocks, as every boy slept in one on the lower deck. We then had to get washed and dressed in the rig of the day, which was a white duck suit. Seven o’clock was breakfast. Every boy sat at their mess tables on the main deck, the same procedure being for each meal. Then there was the general cleaning up to be done ending with the sweeping of all decks and general cleaning. 7.45 boys were assembled for the hoisting of the ensign at exactly 8 am. This was done by the sound of the bugles mainly, but on special occasions the full band was used for the ceremony. Then we assembled on the main deck for divisions and inspection. There were eight divisions, each comprising about thirty boys, these were numbered one to eight, the odd numbers forming the starboard watch, even numbers the port watch. Each division had an officer in charge, who was assisted by a chief petty officer, first class petty officer and a second class petty officer and two leading seamen, all the boys earning these ratings through ability and character. The chief petty officer verbally ran his division, but being answerable to his officer. At 8.30 we assembled for morning prayers after which the Captain read out the orders for the day, letters were read if any, mainly for boys wanted for such careers as the fishing industry, farming and all sorts of careers. I remember that besides going into the navy, there were those that went into the merchant navy and even the cable ship service, at that particular time a couple of boys joined the cable ship Sir John Pender, in my time, all these boys being time expired, or nearly expired. I have not mentioned much about Mr. Bartlett the Chief Officer, yet this is where he came in as he ran the ship’s routine only answerable to the Captain, here he gave him all his reports, good and bad, and if there were any boys in the report for any offence this is where the Captain ordered the punishment, mostly with cane according to the offence, but every one had a fair hearing.
Captain Henry Wesley Harkcom
After this assembly was over, one watch port or starboard went to school, there were three classes, the headmaster taking the senior class and his two assistant schoolmasters taking the others. One of the school masters had to be a Roman Catholic, and his particular job was to look after the RC boys in their religious studies. The other watch went to their various nautical under officer who taught that particular item. But the boys who had passed out of these classes were called the working party and under Mr. Parsons the boatswain carried out all the work required to keep the ship efficiently working. Some of the boys were detailed into the galley to assist the officer cook, the shoemaker’s shop, and the tailor’s shop, for all the boots and clothing were made aboard ship and the officers concerned taught the boys their trade. Each new boy after arrival was kitted out with a No. 1 blue suit, with navy collar, silk handkerchief and lanyard and an old blue suit belonging to a boy who had left the ship, this was for evening wear, two white duck suits, which was the working rig of the day, the cap and cap band, with ships name, a clothes marker, for all boys clothes had to be marked with his particular number, my number was in fact 104, so I was in the port watch. The boots were only for going ashore in as all the boys were bare footed all the year round whilst aboard, even when in boats crews. When a boy was allocated as cabin boy to each of the officers whose cabins were situated in the after part of the lower deck, their duty was to keep the cabin clean, also to look after their respective officer’s uniforms. The officers’ mess was also kept clean and tidy by a couple of boys who also waited on the officers at meal times. Then two boys at a time were selected as cabin boys, for Captain and Mrs. Harkcom’s quarters. Naturally these were picked boys as being of excellent character and ability, but nothing of these duties were allowed to interfere with the ships normal routine.
Between noon and two o’ clock was dinner time when the mess tables were lowered in position on the main deck and each mess has a leading seaman in charge and in rotation two different boys of each mess would go to the galley each day to receive the whole ration for their mess and their job was to serve out equally between the number of boys in the mess. The food was not touched until everyone was seated and grace was sung. After the meal was over, the same boys would wash up the utensils
and crockery and generally tidy up. The next day two more boys would assist the leading seaman, until all the boys in the mess had had their turn of the chores. The petty officers had their own mess tables and were also waited on by the boys detailed each day.
The afternoon was a repeat of the morning school and classes for seamanship, the working party continuing with what work was still to be done, until 4 o’ clock when school classes and other work was halted. The off duty officers from that time either port or starboard went ashore to be with their families, thus leaving half the officers aboard for the night. Thus alternately every officer was one night aboard and one ashore, except weekends then the officers who came aboard Saturday morning were on duty till Monday four o’ clock. This method worked out for the other set of officers next weekend. This is where the Chief Petty Officer of a division came in, if his officer was on weekend leave, he was responsible for his division to be properly dressed, clean and orderly, for all inspections, notably Sunday morning before church, when it was the Captain’s inspection.
After tea the evenings were spent leisurely, two or three evenings a week the Captain would give lectures and talks, even fire drill may occur, this may mean the order to abandon ship, and everyone with the exception of the fire fighting parties would have to leave the ship in the cutters. I have known even Mrs. Harkcom and the children, having to go into the jolly boat until the order was given to return. I don’t know if she liked the idea or not, but it was all in the routine of the ship. Thankfully this was never needed for a real fire, but we were well trained and always ready. Then at sunset the ceremony of lowering the ensign was preformed, again mostly to the sound of the bugle. The boys then had to get their hammocks from the store room and hang them in their own places on the lower deck ready for the signal from the officer of the watch to retire to bed. This was around nine and nine thirty pm according to the time of year. Believe me the boys were then ready to get into their hammocks for during the day there were never many idle moments.
Boys under training learning basic skills like cutting hair and repairing shoes
Alfred Smith during WW1 (Vivid was HMS Drake)
Petty Officer Alfred Smith on his wedding day
Nor was that the end for some, as night watch had to be kept, this was in two hour sessions for both officers and boys. One officer in charge and two boys on each deck and again a boy petty officer having a sort of wandering job of seeing that the watch was being kept observantly. This method went on until all the officers except the Captain and Chief Officer, and all the boys on the ship, with the exception of special duty boys had their turn, and it started all over again.
That was the end of the usual days routine, except Saturdays when the whole morning was taken up scrubbing decks and messes and generally cleaning the whole ship right through ready for Captains inspection. The afternoon was spent on sport ashore, or anything that was arranged to keep the boys interested. Saturday evening was bath night. The huge bath was situated in the fore peak on the main deck, and the boys had to go in a division at a time, the soap was severely rubbed into the hair of the head, so you had to thoroughly rub and wash to get it out of course you came out to be inspected by the duty officer to see if you were clean.
Then early Monday morning each boy had to wash his own clothes in tubs placed on the upper deck. This consisted of a navy flannel, a duck suit, and probably the navy collar if they had been worn. The working party rigging up the clothes lines in the forepart of the upper deck for drying the clothes and generally cleaning up afterwards.
Alfred Smith wrote the above account of his life on the TS Mount Edgcumbe in 1974
Alfred died in 1991 at the age of 95