sion is always present and its responsibilities are always in evidence. However expert a fireman or a machinist's mate, a yeoman, or a cook a man may be, he must realize that when he enlists in the Navy skill in his rating constitutes only part of his duty. In addition to showing that he is competent to perform the duties of his particular rating, he must place himself under military laws and regulations which are quite different from the laws which govern him in civil life. And it is the neglect of the military half of a man's duties that causes a very large percentage of the trouble he may experience in the Navy. A number of men fail to realize just what this military side of life in the Navy involves. In a general way they know that they must be obedient and respectful, but they do not seem to understand the real importance of being so. They do not realize that failure to be respectful and obedient will injure their records and ruin their chance for promotion.

REFUSAL TO OBEY

If you neglect to obey an order or refuse to obey it, you will not be sustained in your action once in a thousand times. If an officer or petty officer orders you to do a certain thing, and before it is done, another officer or petty officer orders you to do something else, it is your duty to inform the officer or petty officer giving you the second order that you have had previous orders, telling him what the orders are and who gave them to you. The officer or petty officer who gave you the second order will then decide whether you are to carry out the first orders or the second orders.

If the officer or petty officer instructs you to carry out the second orders which he himself gave, then it is your duty to carry them out. As soon as you have done so, endeavor to carry out your first orders. If

there has been any considerable change or delay, report to the officer or petty officer giving you the first orders the fact of the change or delay and the reason therefor.

If an order is received from the officer of the deck, it must be carried out without delay, as he is the representative of the commanding officer and the executive officer and is responsible for the safety of the ship. If the carrying out of such an order from the officer of the deck necessitates any considerable delay or change in your carrying out later any previous order you may have received, you should report such facts to the officer or petty officer from whom you received the first order. RESULT OF MISCONDUCT

You must understand clearly what will be the result of misconduct. Military offenses may be divided into two general classes:

(a). Those involving neglect of duty.

(b) Those involving deliberate violation of orders, regulations, or instructions.

Misconduct is punished according to the nature and degree of the offense.

NEGLECT OF DUTY

Offenses under this classification may vary in nature from minor cases-as, for example, "late at muster" or "slow in sweeping down "-to some neglect, the result of which may involve collision, sinking of the ship, or loss of life-as, for example, putting the rudder the wrong way or neglecting to close water-tight doors when it is your duty to do so. Owing to the great variety of these offenses and the different kinds of "neglect of duty," which extend all the way from mere trivialities to great catastrophes, punishment for “neg

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lect of duty" varies all the way from loss of liberty to that inflicted by sentence of a general court-martial. The object of punishing for neglect of duty is to enforce discipline, to make people careful, thorough, and reliable in whatever they do. In battle even a slight neglect or one careless act on the part of any one man may mean the difference between victory and defeat. The old maxim "Whatever is worth doing at all is worth doing well" applies more forcibly to duty on a man-o'-war's-man than to duty anywhere else. If an officer gives you an order, he counts not only upon your carrying it out, but also upon your executing it thoroughly and completely. He also relies upon your coming to him and telling him if, for any reason, you can not execute the order properly and thoroughly. This necessity of thoroughness enters into every feature of life on board ship. Neglect of thoroughness, neglect to do your duty-whatever may be your rate-may have tremendous consequences. Nelson signaled before a great battle: "England expects every man to do his duty." Even in those days it was realized that success in battle depended not only upon the captain, but also upon every individual man doing what he was supposed to do, and all that he was supposed to do. You may say, "That is all right in action, but why is such strict thoroughness necessary in time of peace?" This "little talk" is just for the purpose of answering questions such as this. In this case the answer is: Because it is necessary in time of peace to prepare for war."" It is necessary in time of peace to train everyone to do his duty thoroughly. If we didn't practice with our guns and if we didn't use our engines and our torpedoes in time of peace, we wouldn't know how to use them efficiently in time of war. All of our work in time of peace carried on at great expense-is for the purpose of insuring our readiness when war is declared.

One of the most important features of training is the schooling of personnel in thoroughness and impressing upon everyone in the service the meaning of the word duty. Remember the old saying that "wooden ships with men of iron will defeat iron ships manned by wooden men." There is a word the meaning of which you should master at the very outset of your career—a word that, while you are in the service, you should hold sacred. That word is duty. You must work from sense of duty." This means that you should do a thing not merely because you have to do it, or because you will be caught if you don't do it, but it means that you must carry out orders because it is your duty to carry them out. Do the things that you are ordered to do just as carefully and thoroughly when you are off by yourself as you would do them if you were being supervised.

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DELIBERATE VIOLATION OF ORDERS OR

REGULATIONS

Offenses of this nature are so serious that the offenders are usually tried by court-martial. In this case the offense, as a rule, lies not so much in the consequences of the act as in the defiance of authority. Discipline requires that authority be held supreme and sacred. Such offenses are severely punished because, since they are deliberate, they defy the supreme authority, and it is seldom indeed that excuses, such as ignorance, or drunkenness, or excitability, or the fact that the man who gave the order had no authority to give it, are accepted. You must accept as supreme the authority placed over you, and you must obey that authority. Obedience is a habit. It is just as easy to obey as it is not to obey. Besides, you have taken an oath to obey.

As previously stated, if you get conflicting orders it is not your business to decide which you will obey. Tell the man who gave you the last order and let him decide whether you are to obey his order or the one previously given. This decision is his privilege, not yours, and if you try to decide for yourself you will surely get in . trouble..

PUNISHMENTS IN THE NAVY

Punishments may be assigned in four different ways: 1. The captain is authorized to assign certain punishments. As a rule these are sufficiently severe to punish minor offenses only. In addition, the captain has authority to discharge you at any time for "inaptitude" or as "undesirable," provided that you are in your first enlistment.

2. Deck courts.-If the captain thinks you should get more severe punishment than he is authorized to assign, but that your case is not sufficiently serious for a summary court-martial, he may order a deck court. Such a court is not authorized to assign more severe punishment than 20 days' confinement and 20 days' loss of pay.

3. Summary court-martial.—If your offense is still more serious, the captain orders you to be tried by a summary court-martial. Such a court can sentence you to 30 days' confinement and the loss of three months' pay, or to a bad-conduct discharge, or reduction to next inferior rating.

4. General court-martial.-In case of a very serious offense, the commander in chief or the Secretary of the Navy may order a general court-martial. This court may sentence a guilty person to imprisonment at hard labor, loss of pay, and dishonorable discharge. The prison term may vary from six months to any number of years, depending upon the offense.