My friend and benefactor decided to go to Hamburg, and I am going with him. With four months pay in his pocket, he stopped to have a few drinks, and bought a bottle of gin to drink on the train. At Osnabruck we had to change trains, and while in the waiting room he threw his money all over the floor. I crawled on hand and feet to gather as much as I could find, and as it was at night there were but few people in the waiting room. I kept the money until he sobered up the next day. He slept on the train to Hamburg, and he was thunderstruck when he reached in his pockets and found them empty. He had no idea how he had lost his money so hard earned and I was happy to return it to him.
I rented a room on the Lincoln strasse in Altoona, and consulted a doctor, as I still suffered from the malaria. Attacks would come about 6 P.M. One day I overstayed my time and had to hire a Porter to bring me to my lodging, my sweat saturated the bed sheet and mattress, and the landlady ordered me out.
I told the doctor that my money was running out, and he told me to go to the Hospital. I was in the Hospital in Altoona four weeks, and was still very weak when I was discharged as cured, so I thought.
Where was I to go, should I visit my former boss he had asked me to see him when I was in Hamburg. I decided not to in my weak condition, and having been arrested twice, the city has lost its appeal. Bremerhaven would be better. A railroad was built between Geestemunde and Cuxhaven. I was hired and soon fired again for my inability to push a wheelbarrow or handle a shovel. Besides malaria hit me again and I spent 11 days in the Bremerhaven Hospital.
Again discharged as cured I went across the River Weser to Noordenham, to help unload a British ship with grain. The work was not hard but very dusty. I was to hold a bag for a shoveler. My pay was 3 Mark for a 10 hour day. The shoveler worked on Contract.
His filled bags were weighed and counted. Good bag holders were in demand. The shoveler bought a liter of cheap alcohol to wash his and his helpers throat, and keep him in good humor.
Living quarters were scarce, and we were permitted to sleep on the empty grain bags as in Liverpool. All went well for a few weeks and Malaria hit me the third time. I spent 5 days in the Hospital in Braake on the Weser.
Ships were unloading cotton again in Bremerhaven, and my desire for America did not lessen, I found a new companion willing to travel without fare or baggage. It so happened that another ship from the same company that owned the Ormesby (the first ship I stowed away on) was ready to sail. My companion and I had no trouble to hide in the coal bunker. The Ormesby had failed me, lets hope we have more luck with her sister ship the Newby.
Well this time we were only two passenger to surprise the Captain and he surprised us in return by landing at Barry Dock about seven miles from Cardiff to take on coal, and he wished us good speed and maybe many other things. Wales was a desolate country in the late fall of the year. While on the way from Welchpool to Newtown the sole of my shoe let loose and every step that I made I scooped up snow and dirt, and no house to be seen for miles.
We pushed on to Liverpool again and reached it in fairly good condition. We hunted a sailors boarding house again, with the old story that our bags were in London. The sea-bags did not come but the boarding lady had a ship for me, bag or no bag. I was given a bag by her and put on a train to Preston, about 30 miles north of Liverpool, there they put me on a Danish 3 mast bark. My sea bag had a seaweed mattress which filled half the bag, a pair of leather boots with bad soles, a suit of oilskin with southwester, an old shirt and pants, and a ladies under drawer with lace. The British law says a sailor must be furnished with a sea bag and a sea bag I had. I had cheated her with a lie and she got even with me.
The only German on board was from Regensburg, and he was a sailor. The first order after I had unpacked was to lower the top sail, my countryman and I started to climb. I went as far as the rope ladder reached, on looking up I had to pull myself on a rope, looking down I quickly had my arms around the mast, the deck below looked so small that I was afraid I would upset the ship.
This was no place for me, I decided to desert this very night. I never reached the top, my countryman said that he would lower my part of the sail. After I got down I went to the captain and told him that I was a coalpasser and not a sailor and that I was shanghaied. He was sympathetic and said that he understands and that I would overcome my fear in time, and I changed my mind about deserting, any place was better than England.
The next day a tug-boat towed us out of the harbor, and when the tow line was dropped we were ready to set sail. I was told to go first, and when I was on the rope ladder fists began to fly on my back, so I had to hurry and climb faster, only to find that I had climbed to where I had been afraid to go the day before. To this day I do not know how I got up there, and looking down I saw sailors setting sails far below me.
I don't remember the exact date, it was the last days of November 1894 and the weather was stormy all the way. The crew consisted of the captain and 7 and 1.2 men and I being the half.
I asked a sailor where the latrine was and he said at the captains quarter. It was, but only for the captain, he chased me away and said it was on the bowsprit. The bowsprit is a large boom or spar running out from the stem of the vessel, to carry its sails, and supported by steel cables, some for you to sit on and some to hold onto for support. One had to climb out far to prevent from being doused.
We had coal in the hold and the boat was leaking from the strain. We had to pump most of the time while the spray from the Nord sea kept us wet to the bones. One day while pumping I thought I had reached the limit of my endurance, and took a rest, and so did the other 3. The captain came with a revolver and said he blows the brain out of the first man leaving the pump. The sight of the shooting iron miraculous regained my strength.
I suffered terrible from lack of clothing, and the storm increased intense. The night from December 23 to 24 was the most terrible of all. We had lost faith of ever seeing land again. The storm had upset the stove, and we had not a stitch of dry clothes, and only biscuits to eat, and they were so old that when you cracked one with your fist, a swarm of insects would crawl from it. I could eat them at night, when I could not see them. Between pumping I was sometime at the wheel and nights as lookout before the mast. Sometime the captain would sneak up to me at night and move his hand in front of my eyes, to see if I was asleep, and fine me the little money due me.
One night while at lookout I noticed a blinker, and shouted the news to the stern. The captain came and said that he cannot see anything, so he went for his binoculars and found that I was right, land was not far off, and I said to myself if I ever get my feet on dry land again, to hell with all the sailing ships I have had enough.
From the Skager Rak to the Kattegat and from there to Ronne the home port on the Island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea.
Christmas was spent at sea. The trip lasted 29 days. We learned that on that awful night December 23 to 24 seven German fishing boats disappeared with man and mouse.
After receiving our discharge, we were sent from Ronne to Copenhagen on a small coast steamer. I was given 3 Danish Krone for my pay because my landlady in Liverpool had been paid for my board and sea bag. We found lodging in a cheap Hotel, the price for lodging was one krone a night. I paid for one night.
On the night of December 31 I had no more money, but sneaked up to the bedroom with the intention to get up early in the morning, make up the bed and act as I had not slept in it, but overslept. I had to confess to the proprietor and offered my labor for compensation. He declined and said that I should go to the Politikammer (police station) and there I would get a ship ticket to Lubeck and two Kronen, which was an agreement between Denmark and Germany, to exchange their stranded sailors.
In the Herberge zur Heimat my coat was stolen during the night, with the discharge paper from the ship. I refused to leave the Herberge without a coat, and after much argument was given another old one. From there I went to the Police Station to report the loss of coat, papers and money. Money I could not have lost because I did not have any, but it helped me.
A policeman was sent with me to the Herberge, to ascertain the truth of my statement, and I was given a paper stating the loss of coat with papers and money, and for that reason I had to beg my way from Lubeck to Hamburg, a trip I had made once before.
Now I am in Hamburg again and after about 10 days I was again put to work sorting coffee beans. This time I was given 7 days and discharged. It seemed to me that a policeman is like a watch dog, that was kept by those that have, against those that didn't have. I began to hate them and wished them the cholera.
I decided to depart from this inhospitable place and had a peaceful sleep in a haycock near Altoona, that was interrupted by two saber-bearing representatives of the law who delivered me to a bedroom with iron curtains on the window. There was no sorting of coffee beans, but making coffee bags. Each of us had a small bench with a post and a hook attached, the material was folded and sewed with a roll seam. I being left handed made the seam the wrong way, and had to learn to sew with the right hand.
They did not care if I was a juvenile or not, they put me among the petty offenders in the work shop and in the sleeping quarters. We received some pay for our work, and on Saturdays a keeper came and asked you if you had a special wish, like cheese, bologna, white bread, chewing tobacco, etc. No smoking. Purchase is made from your wages. The keeper had a dog hitched to a little wagon, when making his purchase.
At night we slept in a room for about 20 men. The time was spent with telling stories, and what one did not know he could learn while being protected from society. Sometimes the conversation was so loud that the keeper had to rap at the door to keep quiet. The Stubenalteste (the one longest in the room) had his bed nearest the door. Newcomers were tantalized by fear of being isolated. One of the roommates in conspiracy with the Stubenalteste would crawl under the beds to the door and knock on the floor. The Stubenalteste made believe it was the keepers knocking, jumps out of bed, says "yes Mr. Keeper, I am listening". The fellow under the bed now speaks into his leather boot which sounded as if it was coming from the keeper: 'is so-and-so, (the newcomer) in the room ?'. The one longest in the room now asks the gang if he was among them. When the newcomer tells that he is present, the voice from the boot tells him to get up, put pants and shoes on, and bring his mattress as he is to be isolated. After he is ready and stands before the door, the voice in the boot tells him to go back to bed. Laughter is so loud that keeper really raps at the door.
All newcomers have to tell why they are here, one of them said that he was punished for his being polite, that's the bunk, tell us more. Well all I did was say the chimney sweeper wishes a Merry Christmas, they could not arrest you for that, but why did they? Because I was not the Chimney sweeper, and the real sweeper was sore for collecting the Christmas presents, he was to collect.
At the end of a term you were given the few Pfenig you could not spend and you are not to be hungry or homeless again. They find a job for you in jail, but cannot find one for you at the outside; if poverty is a crime, most of us are criminals.
It is now spring 1895 and I was able to earn enough to keep me from begging and the Reise (traveling) fever was still with me. In about 6 months I would be of age and my own boss, but that was still a long time off, and I could not resist the temptation to make another try for America.
Again a British tramp steamer, I do not remember her name nor homeport, but we promptly landed in England again, this time in West Hartlepool. No more Liverpool for me, it will be London and from there back to Bremerhaven, and wait until I am of age. We begged our way from Hartlepool to Middlesborough, to Hill, to Sheffield Nottingham, Birmingham, Northhampton and finally London.
I had to beg in London too until I got a job with two Austrian Acrobats. They hired a piano organ, a hand truck, some dumbbells and gave an exhibition of their skill and strength, while I played the organ. I had to pull the piano from street to street while they pulled their cart. The pay was on a commission basis, 25% after all deductions; sometimes I got a shilling and sometimes 18 pence. I knew that I was being cheated but what could I do? I paid 6 pence for a double bed to share with my comrade. I found many destitute Germans in London.
I met my first American in a small park in the Whitechapel district, who was so lousy that even I who had them kept away from him. Being of German parentage he could speak and understand some German. Here is his story: he came to London on a cattle steamer feeding cattle on the way to England. He was given 15 shilling and a return ticket on the same boat. He sold his ticket for another 15 shilling, hoping that he could make the trip without the ticket, and now he is out of luck.
Winter was hard on us, no money for shelter; often we sat on a grating behind a hotel or theatre to enjoy the warmth coming from the boiler room, our backs against the wall and fell asleep, to be awoken with great pain inflicted by the stick of a policeman who his us on the soles of our shoes. Jumping up there was another whack on our shins only to fall on our knees, unable to stand on our feet and to be told to move on. No arrest, to arrest a bum means that you have to feed him, and Christian John Bull is not as foolish as the Germans.
It is sometimes hard to remain calm when a hare-brained soul saver tells you of the love of Jesus.
continue reading.