by John Marshall

“ The carpenter then makes the best of his way to the foreman afloat’s office, and finds no person there also [errata 5] ; he then is at a loss, and asks the first person he meets, who readily tells him he is gone afloat; perhaps he is on board the ship the stores belong to, to consult the carpenter about the defects. In the afternoon they all go on board, winter time, dark, wet, cold, and hungry, and often times obliged to bear up for the guard-ship, and lie in their wet cloathes all night, the ship’s duty standing fast for want of men and boats ”

“ A boat may be sent to the yard for present-use stores only, to prevent delay, in the same manner as is in practice for obtaining a small quantity of provisions, when so large a vessel as a lighter is unnecessary ”

“ From the naval officers being unacquainted with the numerous and tedious forms required in the drawing and returning of stores (which are not even the same in all the dock-yards) , much delay is caused to the party sent from the ship, and to those who issue the stores.
“Seamen sent to the dock-yard are deprived of their best meals; as it is impossible for men of different messes to take beef with them; or could it be cooked at the yard, if they did; on banyan days, pease only are boiled; and the privation of substantial food is often the cause of unintentional drunkenness ”

“ The men, in the winter months, frequently get wet early in the day; and not only remain so, but are obliged to sleep in wet cloaths, when prevented by bad weather from returning to their own ships, which causes desertion, drunkenness, and discontent. ”

“ As so much more expedition would be used by the stores being entirely shipped by dock-yard people, there is reason to believe that no more lighters, or decked boats, would be required; at all events four, of about twenty tons each, to convey present-use stores to the large ships, and sea and foreign stores to the smaller vessels, would be sufficient. ”

“ He at length conducted her into Portsmouth harbour; and, a few days after she was dismantled, received a commission, dated Dec. 19th, 1807, appointing him lieutenant of the Dispatch. Between the date of his acting order and this, no less than 800 midshipmen had passed over his head, by being placed on the list of lieutenants. We know of no other instance in which an officer ever held an acting order for nearly two years and a half, the greater part of the time on the home station. During this period Mr. Barrell had been occasionally employed on boat service ”

“ The men sent with these warrant-officers to the yard (more particularly from small ships and vessels) reduce the working strength afloat so much as very materially to retard the equipment of the ship.
“The warrant officers must get the demands signed by the master attendant, or builder, and clerk of the survey, at whose office, notes or warrants to the store-keeper and timber-master, for the delivery of the stores are given ”

“ When stores are to be conveyed to foreign stations in ships of war, they are shipped in sailing lighters in a few hours by the dock-yard people, who are accustomed to the business; but the delay, confusion, and inconvenience incident to the warrant-officers drawing stores are so various, that they will most properly appear in Reference No. ”

“ Up to this period he had been present at the capture and destruction of no less than thirty-nine French, Dutch, and Danish ships of the line, twenty-six frigates, eight corvettes, thirteen large brigs, one cutter, twenty-five gun-vessels, and several small privateers and row-boats. ”