when he wants to work or read, but I should suppose he’d prefer to live with his officers.”
“The matter of preference doesn’t enter into it,” said the quartermaster. “He has to live alone in his cabin. The service regulations require it.”
“I don’t see any sense to that,” said Henry.
“Perhaps not. But you would if you were a seaman. Rules like that are necessary to preserve discipline. The captain must be the absolute and unquestioned boss. His word is law on shipboard. ‘That is necessary for the safety of the ship. And everything is done to make his subordinates understand that he is absolute. This matter of living apart emphasizes all this.”
“I see,” said Henry. “And I suppose the same reason holds for the officers living in the wardroom.”
“Exactly.”
“But what about the warrant officers? They have to be obeyed, too. Yet they don’t seem to be singled out in this way.”
“Oh, yes they are. You know there are four messes on this boat—the captain’s mess, at which you have been eating, the wardroom mess, the warrant officers’ mess, and the general mess for the crew.”
“I see,” said Henry. “But what do you do