But to this the man would not listen; he took me
in on my own account, saying that no blue-jacket should be turned from
_his_ door, in distress. Here I staid and got a comfortable night's rest.
Next day I was a new man, holy-stoned the decks, and went a second time to
the Department.
All the gentlemen in the office showed a desire to serve and advise me.
The Pension Clerk gave me a letter to Mr. Boyle, the Chief Clerk, who gave
me another letter to Commodore Patterson, the commandant of the Navy-Yard.
It seems that government provides a boarding-house for us pensioners to
stay in, while at Washington, looking after our rights. This letter of Mr.
Boyle's got me a berth in that house, where I was supplied with
everything, even to washing and mending, for six weeks. Through the
purser, I drew a stock of money from the purser at New York, and now
began, again, to live soberly and respectably, considering all things.
The house in which I lived was a sort of half-hospital, and may have had
six or eight of us in it, altogether. Several of us were cripples from
wounds and hurts, and, among others, was one Reuben James, a thorough old
man-of-war's man, who had been in the service ever since he was a youth.
This man had the credit of saving Decatur's life before Tripoli; but he
owned to me that he was not the person who did it. He was in the fight,
and boarded with Decatur, but did not save his commander's life.
Pages:
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318
319
320
321
322
323