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Chapter 22: Science and Sumatra
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Carry On, Mr. Bowditch, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Hard Work, Perseverance, and Success
Safety and Responsibility
Risk and Reward
The Growth and Development of America
Courage and Grief
Summary
Analysis
Dr. Holyoke brings Nat along with him to tend to Lem; after all, the bone-setting experience may well prove useful on Nat’s upcoming voyage. Lem distracts himself from the pain of their setting his bones by describing as much as he can remember about the treacherous conditions and coral reefs that Nat will face—now without Lem by his side.
Lem confirms Nat’s worries about the upcoming voyage, and his tales of treachery and danger underscore the tremendous risk—and responsibility—Nat takes on in captaining the ship. Yet, the rewards—both in terms of financial gain and to prove the accuracy of his navigational methods—outweigh them.
Themes
Near the end of November, the Putnam sets sail, Captain Nat Bowditch commanding, with Mr. Denny as his first mate and Lupe Sanchez as his second. The company of sailors includes old hands like Chad Jensen and less experienced greenhorns, like Chad’s grandson Corey. Nat addresses the men quietly and respectfully. But as Salem Harbor recedes into the distance, the weight of his responsibility settles heavily on his shoulders. He finally understands why Captain Prince always looked so strained during their earlier voyages. Nat falls into a reverie about all the things that could go wrong, but then shakes himself out of it and stands on deck for the sea breeze to clear his thoughts.
Like Dan Keeler and Lem Harvey before him, Lupe Sanchez shows that a little hard work and determination can change a person’s life. His rise from cutthroat sailor to second mate also confirms the rightness of Nat’s view that all men can be taught—both to sail and to feel the self-respect that allows them to improve their lot in life. But despite having friends among the crew, Nat now realizes the intense isolation a captain faces every time the ship sets sail. Although he’s used to feeling responsible for the wellbeing and safety of the crew, as a subordinate, his actions remained subject to the oversight of another. Now the ultimate responsibility rests with him.
Themes
Under Nat’s command, the Putnam makes record time across the Atlantic. In the Indian Ocean, they encounter a typhoon, which they luckily outrun. Unfortunately, at every port they find that other crews have beaten them to the pepper harvest. Undeterred, if increasingly frustrated, Nat continues to travel eastward. Finally, they arrive at Tully Pas, where they wait through almost unbearable tropical heat, through delays, and through the locals’ attempts to overcharge them. And through it all, Nat keeps a wary eye on the locals, whom he distrusts.
Nat’s stellar navigational record remains unbroken on this voyage, although bad luck plagues the Putnam, nevertheless. Determined to make good on the owners’ investment (perhaps because, having formerly invested in the sealing ship himself, he understands the importance of it), Nat presses on, undeterred and determined to succeed no matter what happens. A lifetime of overcoming obstacles has prepared him for this struggle.
Themes
One night, Nat can’t sleep, so he climbs up to the deck, where he finds Corey Jensen asleep at the watch. Chad overhears Nat calling his grandson’s name and hurries to investigate, fearing that Corey has died. When he discovers Corey asleep, he screams out in rage, which Nat joins. If murderous locals had tried to board the ship, intent on mayhem, they’d all be dead because of Corey’s irresponsibility.
Corey Jensen’s failure to fulfil his duties—and his grandfather’s apoplectic reaction—offer a pointed reminder that the members of a crew share the responsibility of each other’s wellbeing. If any one person fails at any one task, they put everyone’s lives at risk.
Themes
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When the last (and best) of the pepper harvest finally arrives in town, Nat successfully haggles for a fair price, despite the attempt of local merchants to overcharge him. His courage impresses Lupe. Then, when the crew of the Putnam finally begin loading their cargo of freshly harvested peppers, Nat gives the men strict orders to let no more than two locals board the ship at any time. And although this slows their progress, he believes that it keeps them safer. When the local merchant attempts to suddenly raise his prices, Nat refuses to bargain any longer and decides to head back toward Africa, where they can fill the rest of their holds with coffee.
Nat’s life has taught him to face down threats and obstacles with courage and has made him into the kind of captain that sailors trust and want to follow. All the while, he maintains tight focus on his responsibility for the safety and wellbeing of the crew, placing that above all other concerns, including how quickly they load cargo or how much money his owners stand to make on the voyage. He successfully manages the risks yet again to bring the best possible rewards.
Themes
At the Isle of France (present-day Mauritius), Nat runs into Captain Ingersoll, who’s just about to weigh anchor and return to Salem. Nat expects to follow him within a week, and he even calculates that he’ll be able to overtake Ingersoll’s slower ship on the way. But the Putnam runs into one storm after another, both before and after they double the Cape of Good Hope. Nat expected to be home by the end of October, but October, November, and most of December come and go, full of bad weather. The Putnam claws towards Salem at a painfully slow rate. Finally, on Christmas Eve, the bad weather abates, only to be replaced with a worse hazard: thick, impenetrable fog.
Despite Nat’s wide-ranging education and skills, he remains subject to bad luck and happenstance anyway, like the bad weather the ship encounters on its return voyage. He can only work hard to make the best of his circumstances. The fog threatens to delay the exhausted crew when they’re practically on the doorsteps of their own homes, and it will provide the toughest challenge to Nat’s navigational methods he’s faced thus far.
Themes
