Britain at Work
A Pictorial Description of Our National Industries

EVERYDAY LIFE IN THE ROYAL NAVY. 383 compared to the din here, while the tempera- ture is often as high as 140 ’ Fahr. A gale of hot wind rages in this—the bowels of the ship—and causes the coal dust to fly about and whip the face like hail. In front of each boiler—and our latest cruisers carry thirty boilers in four great .rooms—stands a black, begrimed sentinel, waiting' till it is his turn to open the furnace door and shovel fuel into the roaring element; for a regular routine of firing is observed. At each side of the room are the coal bunkers, where the trimmers, by the dim light of Davy lamps, are working like demons, filling up the trollies, and skilfully avoiding the falling masses occasioned by the lurching of the vessel. If a man does not join the Royal Navy either as a bluejacket or stoker, he may volunteer for- armourer, blacksmith, carpenter, cooper, painter, plumber, sailmaker, ship- wright, sick berth staff, or domestic, full particulars concerning the qualifications for which may be obtained from any recruiting station or post office. Last, but not least, there are the Royal Marines, which corps cPelite forms a portion of the Naval forces of the country, although they are in every sense sailors, while their motto “Per mare, per terrain ” aptly describes the nature of their duties. The Royal Marines are divided into two corps, Artillery and Light Infantry ; the former have their headquarters at Eastney, while the latter are grouped in three divisions at Portsmouth, Plymouth and Chatham. The depot is at Walmer, where all recruits join and are trained pretty thoroughly before joining their divisions, the course lasting about a year and including instruction in gunnery. As a rule, more than one-half of this force is embarked for duty on His Majesty’s vessels. When serving on board ship the marines are employed as sentries, and keep regular watch like the bluejackets, and when not on guard assist in all the duties of the ship except going aloft. In action, the men of both the Marine Artillery and Light Infantry are stationed at the guns conjointly with the seamen gunners, those not so employed being used as a rifle party on deck. The marines form part of all Naval brigades landed for Photo: Russell & Sous, Southsea. A ROOM IN THE NAVAL BARRACKS, WHALE ISLAND, PORTSMOUTH.