Quite right Barry, I would also add that the ommisson of a reference to 'baccy as a stand on non smoking misses the point. Any one caught smoking on a ship of the line would probably have been hung for gross negligence endangering His Majestys' Ship. Fire always was and remains the greatest danger on a ship. 'Baccy was chewed, with at least on merchant men, spitoons being provided alongside the wheel for use by the helmsman. Anyone caught spitting on the deck would likewise be flogged. The whiteness of the decks was a measure of the capability of the First Lieutenant: "Six days shalt thou labour and do all that thou has to do. On the Seventh thou shalt holystone the decks and clean out the chain locker." One other titbit of Naval lore. Although the hands were mustered for Divine service on Sunday, this was of secondary importance to the reading of the Articles of War, read aloud to ensure that no enlisted man could claim ignorance of them. The majority of the articles had as penalty "Death or such lesser punishment as the court may decide."

Pete M