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It will be seen that the space occupied by the sailors and firemen is almost
invariably above the legal requirements so far as capacity is concerned.
In only one instance are European firemen limited to their bare space, and
in only one case is a sailors' forecastle occupied by the full number for which
it is certified.
The first is the steam ship "Monte Videan,'' of Glasgow, built in 1887,
and owned by Messrs. Allan Brothers. Here 12 firemen occupied a space
certified for the same number, but containing 14 bunks.
The four-masted sailing ship "Hinemoa," of Glasgow, built in 1890, affords
an instance of 20 sailors having their exact legal limit, and, as a general
observation, it is found that, as a rule, the newer the vessel the more likely are
the crew to be limited to the legal minimum.
In this latter vessel it was remarked that the men got in each other's way,
and could not dress rapidly, so that if wanted on deck to shorten sail, they
had to be roused earlier than ought to have been necessary.
This was in a deck-house seven feet high, and clearly the case would have
been worse in a low forecastle.