Ditty Box

A ditty box is a small bag or box in which a sailor kept his small tools, items for sewing such as needles and thread, minor equipment, writing materials and those special personal articles. The name may derive from nautical slang. According to John Rogers in “Origins of Sea Terms: A modern glossary of seagoing terminology” the bags or boxes were an essential part of the sailor's sea-going wardrobe.

Here is a potpourri of hopefully interesting items. Pieces about the Navy, sailors’ yarns being the stories and experiences they would chat about with their shipmates, of titbits picked up here and there, anecdotal “stuff”, other things noted seen or read.

This page should always be regarded as “work in progress”.


SEAMEN'S PHRASES & NAVAL LANGUAGE:

The English language has over centuries become littered with seamen's  and naval words and phrases which are now in common usage with the average user having no idea as to their origin. Here are just a few examples:

➢ “A square meal” – Sailors in the days of sail in Nelson’s navy, each had their own individual 
      “platter”, it being a square piece of wood on which to have their meals.

➢ "Bosn's Locker" - broom closet

➢ "Brow" - Entrance to the ship

➢ "Buffer" or "The Buffer" - Chief Boatswain (pronounced "Bosun")

➢ "Bulkhead" - Wall

➢ “Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey” or “It’s brass monkey weather” -  
      Cannonballs used to be stored aboard warships in piles, on a brass frame or tray called a
      "monkey". In very cold weather the brass would contract, spilling the cannonballs: hence very
      cold  weather is "cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey".

➢ "Crusher" - Regulating Petty Officer (A ship's policeman)

➢ "CO's Cabin" - Commanding Officer's cabin

➢ "Davy Jones' locker" - Sea bed

➢ "Deck" - Floor

➢ "Deck-head" - Ceiling

➢ "Duff" - Dessert

➢ "Galley" - Kitchen

➢ "Gash" - Garbage

➢ "Hatch" - Door in the deck

➢ "Jimmy" or "Number One" - Ship's Executive Officer

➢ "Kye" - Hot chocolate

➢ "Navy Gravy" - Ketchup

➢ "Porthole" - Window

➢ "Scrambled eggs" - The gold oak leaves on a senior officers cap.

➢ "Scran" - Food

➢ “Shove off” - to push away from.

➢ "Stand easy" -  take a break

➢ "Stores" - Supplies

For a much more extensive listing I suggest you go to the following site dedicated to such words and phrases:
              http://www.navy.mil/navydata/traditions/html/navyterm.html

ROYAL NAVY SIGNALS

Probably the best known signal ever made in the Royal Navy was that made by Admiral Lord Nelson to his fleet at the commencement of the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805, it was “England expects that every man will do his duty” (Ibid – Bibliography “Trafalgar, The Men, The Battle, The Storm”, P149). They did and the combined French and Spanish fleets were strategically annihilated.

The Royal Navy of the Napoleonic era served under the most draconian discipline legislation to the inclusion of extremely barbaric sentences of physical punishment that one could imagine; a ship’s Captain literally held the sentence of death in his hands in dispensing justice to his crew as he thought fit.

If one were to allow a humourist a rewrite of that signal under today’s liberal social attitudes compounded by Health & Safety at Work legislation and anti-discrimination statutes, then add some imaginative licence the resulting scenario would be at the very least surprising. Read on:-

NELSON AT TRAFALGAR 2012
A Present Day Humourist's View 

Nelson: "Order the signal, Hardy."

Hardy: "Aye, aye sir."

Nelson: "Hold on, this isn't that I dictated to Flags. What's the meaning of this?"

Hardy: "Sorry sir?"

Nelson (reading aloud): “England expects every person to do his or her duty, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religious persuasion or disability. What gobbledygook is this for God's sake?"

Hardy: "Admiralty policy, I'm afraid, sir. We're an equal opportunities employer now. We had the devil's own job getting "England" past the censors, lest it be considered racist."

Nelson: "Gadzooks, Hardy. Hand me my pipe and tobacco."

Hardy: "Sorry sir. All naval vessels have now been designated smoke-free working environments."

Nelson: "In that case, break open the rum ration. Let us splice the main brace to steel the men before battle."

Hardy: "The rum ration has been abolished, Admiral. It’s part of the Government's policy on binge drinking."

Nelson: "Good heavens, Hardy. I suppose we'd better get on with it full speed ahead."

Hardy: "I think you'll find that there's a 4 knot speed limit in this stretch of water."

Nelson: "Damn it man! We are on the eve of the greatest sea battle in history. We must advance with all dispatch. Report from the crow's nest, please."

Hardy: "That won't be possible, sir."

Nelson: "What?"

Hardy: "Health and Safety have closed the crow's nest, sir. No harness; and they said that rope ladders don't meet regulations. They won't let anyone up there until proper scaffolding can be erected."

Nelson: "Then get me the ship's carpenter without delay, Hardy."

Hardy: "He's busy knocking up a wheelchair access to the foredeck Admiral."

Nelson: "Wheelchair access? I've never heard anything so absurd."

Hardy: "Health and safety again, sir. We have to provide a barrier free environment for the differently abled."

Nelson: "Differently abled? I've only one arm and one eye and I refuse even to hear mention of the word. I didn't rise to the rank of Admiral by playing the disability card."

Hardy: "Actually, sir, you did. The Royal Navy is under represented in the areas of visual impairment and limb deficiency."

Nelson: "Whatever next? Give me full sail. The salt spray beckons."

Hardy: "A couple of problems there too, sir. Health and safety won't let the crew up the rigging without hard hats. And they don't want anyone breathing in too much salt, haven't you seen the adverts?"

Nelson: "I've never heard such infamy. Break out the cannon and tell the men to stand by to engage the enemy."

Hardy: "The men are a bit worried about shooting at anyone Admiral."

Nelson: "What? This is mutiny!"

Hardy: "It's not that, sir. It's just that they're afraid of being charged with murder if they actually kill anyone. There are a couple of legal-aid lawyers on board, watching everyone like hawks."

Nelson: "Then how are we to sink the Frenchies and the Spanish?"

Hardy: "Actually, sir, we're not."

Nelson: "We're not?"

Hardy: "No, sir.  The French and the Spanish are our European partners now. According to the Common Fisheries Policy we shouldn't even be in this stretch of water. We could get hit with a claim for compensation."

Nelson: "But you must hate a Frenchman as you hate the devil."

Hardy: "I wouldn't let the ship's Diversity Co-ordinator hear you saying that sir. You'll be up on disciplinary report."

Nelson: "You must consider every man an enemy, who speaks ill of your King."

Hardy: "Not any more, sir. We must be inclusive in this multicultural age. Now put on your Kevlar vest; it's the rules. It could save your life"

Nelson: "Don't tell me, Health and Safety. Whatever happened to rum, sodomy and the lash?"

Hardy: As I explained, sir, rum is off the menu! And there's a ban on corporal punishment."

Nelson: "What about sodomy?"

Hardy: "I believe that is now legal, sir."

Nelson: "In that case................... Kiss me, Hardy."

The Naval Hymn & Naval Prayer

The Church Pendant

The Royal Naval Church Pendant evolved from the English–Dutch wars of the 17th century being made up from the then current English and Dutch ensigns. It was flown by both sides to indicate that the ships were at prayers and that there was to be a cessation of hostilities between both sides.

In 1941 a Royal Naval ship would fly the Church Pendant at the peak or gaff when holding a service on board to indicate to other vessels that “The ship’s company is at prayers” as a signal for passing vessels to proceed quietly and slowly in respect. The Royal Navy still flies it today for the same purpose.

The 1934 Royal Navy Signals Handbook, which, with very few changes was still in use when the cruiser Ajax was involved in the Battle for Crete, has the entry:
          89 CHURCH PENDANT
               (Flown at) Singly, at the peak or gaff in harbour: - “The ship’s company is at prayers”.
               It did have other meanings when flown singly at other positions or when flown in  
               conjunction with other flags. e.g. when flown singly just above the signal platform it
               indicated “Man overboard”.   
                           Source: Mr Jim Smith, “ The River Plate Veterans and Families Association”,
                                                                retired Petty Officer, Royal Navy.

The Navy Prayer 

Royal Navy Chaplain’s Badge

O eternal Lord God, who alone spreadest out the heavens and rulest the raging of the sea; who hast compassed the waters with bounds until day and night come to an end: Be pleased to receive into thy almighty and most gracious protection the persons of us thy servants and the Fleet in which we serve. Preserve us from the dangers of the sea and of the air and from the violence of the enemy; that we may be a safeguard unto our most gracious Sovereign Lady, Queen Elizabeth and her dominions, and a security for such as pass on the seas upon their lawful occasions; that the inhabitants of our Islands and Commonwealth may in peace and quietness serve thee our God; and that we may return in safety to enjoy the blessings of the land with the fruits of our labours and with a thankful remembrance of thy mercies to praise and glorify thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Source: Royal Navy, Chaplaincy Services

The Navy Hymn

Hear the Choir of the Northern Baptist Association, England, singing this hymn:




The words of the hymn now commonly known as “The Navy Hymn” came from William Whiting, an Anglican of Winchester in England who originally wrote them in 1860 as a poem reputedly influenced by surviving his ship sinking in a violent storm and by the words in verses 23 to 31 of Psalm 107. The text was published the following year in the first edition of Hymns Ancient & Modern, a hymnal which was quickly adopted throughout England. Whiting many years later became headmaster of Winchester College Choristers School.

John Dykes, an English Anglican clergyman, composed the tune "Melita" to accompany the 1861 published version of the hymn. Dykes was a well-known composer of nearly three hundred hymn tunes, many of which are still in use today. "Melita" is an archaic term for Malta, a Mediterranean island with an ancient seafaring tradition which had long been a British colony and Royal Navy base and was the site of a shipwreck mentioned in Acts of the Apostles.

This hymn is best described by Wikipedia as “a hymn traditionally associated with seafarers, particularly in the maritime armed services. It was popularized by the Royal Navy and the United States Navy in the late 19th century, and variations of it were soon adopted by many branches of the armed services in the United Kingdom and the United States. Services who have adapted the hymn include the Royal Marines, Royal Air Force, the British Army, the United States Coast Guard and the United States Marine Corps, as well as many navies of the British Commonwealth. Accordingly, it is known by many names, variously referred to as the Royal Navy Hymn, the United States Navy Hymn or just The Navy Hymn, but most often by either the first or last line of its first verse “Eternal Father Strong to Save” or “For Those in Peril on the Sea". The hymn has a long tradition in civilian maritime contexts as well, being regularly invoked by ship's chaplains and sung during services on ocean crossings.

Several versions now exist, I offer the 1861 version.

Verse 1:
Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
Who bid'st the mighty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep;
Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea!

Verse 2:

O Christ! Whose voice the waters heard
And hushed their raging at Thy word,
Who walked'st on the foaming deep,
And calm amidst its rage didst sleep;
Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea!

Verse 3:

Most Holy Spirit! Who didst brood
Upon the waters dark and rude,
And bid their angry tumult cease,
And give, for wild confusion, peace;
Oh, hear us when we cry to Thee,
For those in peril on the sea!

Verse 4:

O Trinity of love and power!
Our brethren shield in danger's hour;
From rock and tempest, fire and foe,
Protect them wheresoe'er they go;
Thus evermore shall rise to Thee
Glad hymns of praise from land and sea.

______________

PSALM 107

Verses 23 to 31

²³ Those who go down to the sea in ships,
      Who do business on great waters,

²⁴ They see the works of the Lord,
      And His wonders in the deep.

²⁵ For He commands and raises the stormy wind,
      Which lifts up the waves of the sea.

²⁶ They mount up to the heavens,
      They go down again to the depths;
      Their soul melts because of trouble.

²⁷ They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man,
      And are at their wits’ end.

²⁸ Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble,
      And He brings them out of their distresses.

²⁹ He calms the storm,
      So that its waves are still.

³⁰ Then they are glad because they are quiet;
      So He guides them to their desired haven.

³¹ Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness,
      And for His wonderful works to the children of men!

The Patron Saint of Sailors & Seafarers

St. Nicholas of Tolentino

Feast Day September 10th

St. Nicholas of Tolentino, was a member of the austere Order of The Hermits of St. Augustine. Born about 1246, he died on 10th September 1310. His tomb lies in Tolentino. He was canonised by Pope Eugene IV in 1446.   

A traditional account has it that a ship in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, caught by a storm, was forced into shallow waters where it became grounded. The sailors were unable to manoeuvre it back into deeper water. Accounts of Bishop Nicholas' help to distressed sailors had already spread far and wide. The sailors called on Nicholas for aid, even though they were distant from him, as they believed they might be saved by his prayer and intervention.
Nicholas actually appeared on the ship and gave the sailors a helping hand. Together they retied and strengthened the ropes holding the masts and worked with poles to pry the ship away from the threatening rocks into deeper water. As soon as the boat was freed and able to again set sail, the image of Nicholas vanished.
The ship took refuge in a calm harbor and the sailors went looking
for a church where they could thank God for their rescue. It so happened that they had taken shelter in Myra and made their way to the cathedral church. Seeing a number of priests, they were suddenly startled to see Bishop Nicholas himself, whom they recognized from the image they had seen on shipboard, giving them assistance. They asked Nicholas how he had heard them and been able to come to their rescue. Nicholas replied that a life devoted to God allows a person to be so clear-sighted as to be able to actually see others in danger and hear their calls for help. The bishop urged the sailors to devote their lives to God and, thereby, to help people in need.

Icon: Niculita Darastean, Romania St Nicholas Centre Collection
Source: http://www.stnicholascenter.org/pages/about-st-nicholas-center/

Note - The St Nicholas Center is entirely web based.

A prayer:
Heavenly Father, in imitation of Christ your son our Lord, Saint Nicholas of Tolentino miraculously calmed the raging oceans and saved a shipboard crew from being lost at sea. Through his intercession, grant protection of all those serving in the sea services. May their hope be firmly anchored in the promises of Christ, and may they always seek and find the Light of Christ, their true compass and guide.

The Town of Ajax

Town of Ajax Corporate Crest
(Image courtesy of The Town of Ajax)

This chapter utilises local historical information generously provided by courtesy of the Town of Ajax Archive, Ontario, Canada  supplemented from local and other historical archives.

The naming of the Canadian Town of Ajax in Ontario is unique being the only recorded instance of a town or city taking its name from a ship. It continues to be the only town or city in the world so named.

But why name a town after a ship, especially a Canadian town with that of a British warship?

How did this happen?

And why this particular ship?

On September 10, 1939 when Canada declared war on Germany, the present site of the Town of Ajax was then just peaceful rolling farmland nestled on the edge of Lake Ontario in Pickering County, some 16 miles (25 Kms) east of Toronto. In fact at that time it had only been 150 years since the first white settlers had arrived in this area to start their new life in what to them was unknown land.

And so it had remained peaceful farmland until abruptly early in 1941 it suddenly became the site of Defence Industries Limited (D.I.L.), Pickering Munitions Works. Thus began what was to rapidly become a vast munitions plant, the largest in Canada and one of the biggest in the world. By 1945 the Works had filled 40 million shells; employed over 9,000 people at peak production, by far the majority being female. It boasted of its own post office, water and sewage treatment plants, a school population of over 600, 30 miles of railroad and 30 miles of roads. The entire D.I.L. plant site included some 2,985 acres. People had come from all over Canada to work at D.I.L.

This enormous burgeoning war plant had grown very quickly into a community which sorely needed to have its own identity, its own name. In mid summer of 1941 the D.I.L. management formed a committee to arrange a competition to choose a name. The name chosen was to come from the first significant British naval victory of World War 2 and of course, the D.I.L. Pickering plant was a critical supplier of shells to the British Royal Navy.

Ajax Town Hall

Off the coast of South America between 13th to 19th December 1939 a flotilla of British warships, HMS Ajax, HMS Exeter and HMS Achilles (Royal Navy New Zealand Division), commanded by Commodore Henry H. Harwood, had engaged and routed the powerful German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee at the Battle of the River Plate, near the Uruguayan port of Montevideo. A feat of arms which Winston Churchill, then First Lord of the Admiralty, described in a memorable speech presented at a Luncheon in celebration of the Battle at London’s Guildhall in February 1940 to the attendant crews of HMS Ajax and HMS Exeter (HMS Achilles had returned to New Zealand for her own celebration) ‘the brilliant sea fight.....takes its place
in our naval annals .....in the days of a dark cold winter it warms the cockles of the British heart’. That speech literally reverberated around the world. This Battle thus became one of the Royal Navy’s most well known World War 2 naval battles and in 1956 was made into a very successful film ‘The Battle of the River Plate’ starring John Gregson, Peter Finch and Anthony Quale. The name Ajax and the names of her accompanying ships became worldwide symbols of courage and determination; attributes this Canadian community obviously respected and found synonymous with their name seeking aspirations. So Ajax was chosen as the name of this war-born community.

Although the reverse has been common practice for the Royal Navy to name its ships after towns and cities, this naming was unique forging a link not only to the Royal Navy but to those officers and crews who served in this, the seventh Royal Naval vessel to bear the name, HMS Ajax, a cruiser built in 1934 and it’s successor, a frigate built in 1962, through which a tradition has now been established. The Town takes a particular interest in maintaining very strong links with the HMS Ajax and River Plate Veterans Association (Note 1) with regular mutual visits particularly as anniversaries occur. Since 1962 each incoming Mayor automatically extends an invitation to the British Admiralty for their ships to visit the town, particularly if an HMS Ajax is currently in commission. Both the cruiser and frigate did pay visits. Upon the frigate being decommissioned and scrapped her anchor was donated to the Town and is now proudly installed there. Special commemorations are to take place in the Town in June 2014 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Battle in which a contingent of members of The HMS Ajax & River Plate Veterans Association will participate.

In 1945, World War 2 ended, but not the Town of Ajax. As the young veterans returned home, accommodation was required for thousands of additional university students. Consequently, the University of Toronto leased much of the D.I.L. plant to house the new flood of engineering students. War machinery was moved out and the buildings were converted to classrooms and laboratories. The residences that had housed war workers now housed university students. All the facilities of the University of Toronto were duplicated at Ajax. By 1949, the last year of the University of Toronto, Ajax Division, some 7,000 engineering students had received their basic training here.

But what was to become of this Town named Ajax? Many people who worked or lived in Ajax during the D.I.L. or university days wanted to remain there. Due largely to the vision of George W. Finley of the Central Mortgage and Housing Corporation, Ajax became a planned modern community using the war time base for its post-war foundation. The swords were beaten into ploughshares. Post-war Ajax began its growth.

Industry and people came from everywhere to take advantage of the many assets of Ajax. Its schools, churches, hospital, steam generating plant, comprehensive town planning and particularly its geography on the shore of Lake Ontario close to Toronto but setting its individual identity, at a separate pace with its friendly, industrious and involved citizens.

Brenda Kriz, Records Manager and Freedom of Information Coordinator for the Town of Ajax, who devoted intensive research to the subject, concluded the name Ajax was adopted by the management of the Defence Industries plant in the late summer to early autumn of 1941 following the competition to name the community which had been held in mid-summer. The community gained its own municipal government in 1950 as the Corporation of the Improvement District of Ajax. 1953 saw it become the Corporation of the Town of Ajax holding its first council elections that December. In 1973 it was amalgamated with the Village of Pickering while annexing certain portions of the Township of Pickering and became The Town of Ajax. This was all part of the new Durham Region. The Durham Region and the Town of Ajax officially came into being on January 1st 1974. In 2011 Ajax had a population of 109,600.

There is one final and unique chapter of this bond connecting Town and Ship. The Town is a living memorial as it accords the honour of naming and dedicating all of its streets by taking the names of the Officers and Crew of this Cruiser Ajax, the Frigate which followed her of the same name and of the other two warships at the Battle of the River Plate, HMS Achilles and HMS Exeter. To date some 600 streets have been so named. Thus Bob Sharplin is now remembered by “Sharplin Drive” completed in 2012 and dedicated along with several others on 16th June 2014 in the presence of this author, Bob's son, during the Town's celebrations to mark the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of the River Plate.

"Sharplin Drive" Street Naming Ceremony, Town of Ajax, 16th June 2014

From left - Elizabeth Sharplin (Clive's Wife), Clive Sharplin (Bob's son), Mayor Steve Parish  



Source: Canadian “Daily Commercial News”

 



Notes:

1. ibid. "Resources", Veterans & Families Associations.