CADET OF 1849.
Our aspirant was, however, more than equal to the occasion, for he replied without hesitation, “Lord Nelson and Lord Selborne, sir.” If this boy was not accepted, it must have been because Destiny had so clearly marked him out for a career in the diplomatic service.
In any case, his cheerful selection of a great Admiral and a First Lord a century apart suggests reflections on the vast changes which have occurred in the constitution and administration of the Navy during this period; and particularly, having regard to the subject of this book, in respect of the manner of entering young officers of the executive branch.
Let us see, then, what were the conditions under which a lad could enter the Navy, in the executive branch, in the eighteenth century.
The method—if method it can be called—was grotesquely haphazard; and the only marvel is that it produced so many good officers and seamen: men who could take their ships anywhere, and win against odds when they got there. Indeed, it was the men who were feared by our enemies; our ships were often inferior to those of the French, but they were handled in such a masterly, cocksure-of-victory style, that inferiority of size or metal appeared to be of little account.
These mighty sea warriors, who made the British flag an emblem of fear, were, as a rule, entered as “captain’s servants,” their friends making interest with some captain about to commission a ship, who would have perhaps eight or ten such youngsters on his books; their pay all went into the captain’s pocket, forming, in fact, a considerable proportion of the emoluments of his office. After a time these lads were, entirely at the will and caprice of the captain, rated as midshipmen or able or ordinary seamen.
Naturally, in making a selection from numerous applicants the captain would give the preference to his own relatives: sons, young brothers, nephews, and so on; failing these, the sons, brothers, or nephews of his friends would come in, or youngsters recommended to him by persons of rank or influence.
By far the greater number of young officers were entered in this manner up to near the end of the eighteenth century; but there was in the early part of the century an alternative which was probably open to those who could command a certain amount of interest. These were entered under the authority of a letter from the Admiralty—the forerunner, in fact, of the present Admiralty nomination.