Mental Illness and the MN

[robpage]

After the time I spent at sea , I only remember one sane one , and she wore skirts , I think she was married to a second mate though , so there was an element of madness there somewhere

[Red Lead Ted]

I Remember a xmas cruise aboard the Windsor Castle. Been on the Africana gin for about 4 days the dart team we had in the pig was called loony tunes. Most of them were catering lads apart from me and my mate we won the xmas handicap in the bar so naturally we had a good drink which carried on in one of the stewards cabin. I awoke about 4am only to find a naked chappie on his knees in front of me just about to carry out a seamEns duty Kicked him away he went about 10 yards out the door when he stood up i would swear someone had been playing conkers with his plumbs one was hanging down about 12 inches longer than the other. He was the ugliest queen i had ever encountered on any ship needless to say i never saw him again was it some thing i said? or done All part of the course lads Regards Terry.

[Des Taff Jenkins]

Hi Jaycin.
In 1949 before going to the Vindicatrix sea school we had the usual Drs examination, nothing about mental health, schizophrenia was a word I for one had never heard of, it was not a subject that was as prevelent as it is today, I have no doubt many seamen who served during the war had mental problems later. There were of course as you know by reading the posts that booze played a good part in altering a mans mind. I recall waking up on a tanker after a boozing night, to the scene of hundreds of little dwarfs marching down the alleyway, but that wasn't madness or schizophrenia, just DTs. Maybe if they had had the modern technics that medical science has today they would have found many who would have been unfit for sea.
Serving on tankers up the Persian Gulf did send many a good man around the bend, on one ship I was on the sparky just up and jumped overboard one night. The heat up the Gulf was such that on one trip to Abadan 6 men on different tankers died, the Captain of one Swedish ship collapsed and died walking down the gangway.
But I don't think anyone was subject to a medical mental test. Maybe if there had have been the Merchant Navy might have been short of seamen.
Cheers Des

[happy daze john in oz]

There was a first officer on the Windsor, name of B. Kerr. Had a problem with drink and smokes. Reutedly drank the alcohol out of the compas gimble and was known to extract the alcohol out of Brasso. In an attempt to give up smoking he had aquired a dummy smoke. He was supposed to suck on it every time he got the craving, for a smoke that is, but some how it never worked. He would light up a smoke, take apuff then go onto toe dummy one. Within a minute he would light a second one nad do the same, the first one still alight in the ash tray. He later went on to become a ships capatian with UCL.
Then there was Joe Murphy, senior second engineer who always slept with his engine room boots on, the steam queens used to go mad when we took his bed linen back for dhobi.

[happy daze john in oz]

[QUOTE=robpage;76596]AS a B & C Engineer Cadet


Rob, can you recall the senior engineers name??

[Colin Pook]

Good morning Jacyn and a happy New Year to you,
When I first left school at 15 I applied for a job on the railways. At the medical I wes told that I was deaf in the left ear due to a perforated ear drum. I then joined the M.N. through the 'back door' on the I.o.W. ferries. From then on , for the next 40 years, I never had a medical that included a hearing test, and I'm still 'mutton jeff' in that ear.

cheers
Colin

---------- Post added at 08:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:39 AM ----------

hi Rob, Nice to see someone from Britains No 1 city. I'm ex Talbot Rd. Southsea , and then Elson, Gosport, but now residing in W. Wales. My first ship was the 'paddler' Sandown.
Are you still in Pompey?

Cheers,
Colin

[robpage]

Rob, can you recall the senior engineers name??

Oh Yes , very Well . He was probably the most bigotted man I have met in the last 60 years . He wrote a request , after the third engineer went to Mass in Durban one Sunday that the office sent him no more F*****g Catholics . I was shown his end of voyage letter by Charlie Banks the personnel manager in London and invited to comment , I was an English T**t , The man had mental problems , so I will PM it to you , But if you was not a Mason , Not Scottish , Not Ex John Browns , you stood no chance with the guy . What was sad is he was far fro,m the best Engineer that I ever sailed with , and his response to his own inadequacy was to firmly blame all about him .