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Nat Bowditch
Lem Harvey is a common sailor who ships on the Astrea under Captain Henry Prince when she sails to Manila. Lem Harvey replaces Dan Keeler in the crew after Keeler’s leaves Prince’s employ to sign as second mate on another ship. Harvey’s history of sailing on privateers has also given him the necessary knowledge of ship’s weapons to take charge of training the men on the Astrea’s cannons. Unfortunately, Harvey is a bitter, confrontational man whose bad attitude sours the crew. His abusive language during cannon drills makes the other sailors cranky and leads to tensions between them and the officers, especially the captain. He twice tries to jump ship in port. These escape attempts land him twice in the brig, after which Captain Prince punishes him by relieving him of his cannon-drill duties. This sours Harvey’s attitude further. But eventually, he swallows his pride and asks Nat Bowditch if the young man thinks that even someone as “dumb” as Harvey himself can learn navigation. With patience—both from Nat and toward himself—Harvey soon excels at the art of navigation, and by the end of the Astrea’s record-breaking voyage, he’s become a friendly, supportive, and positive member of the crew. In this way, Lem Harvey exemplifies Nat’s teaching techniques and Nat’s belief that anyone can learn and improve themselves and their life if only they’re treated—and treat themselves—with dignity rather than abuse and belittling. After the Astrea returns from Manila, Harvey uses his new knowledge to secure a spot as the second mate on another ship. When this ship sinks—Harvey makes a mistake in his reckoning thanks to an error in Moore’s charts—his family, including his brother-in-law Zack Selby, believe him to be lost at sea. But another ship rescues Harvey and takes him with them on the conclusion of their journey to the West Indies; his return to Salem many months later silences those who deny the benefits and safety of “book sailing.” He offers his knowledge and experience of the marine topography and political situation in and around the Malay peninsula to Nat when Nat assumes command of the Putnam, but a broken leg prevents him from making the voyage.
Lem Harvey Quotes in Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
The Carry On, Mr. Bowditch quotes below are all either spoken by Lem Harvey or refer to Lem Harvey. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 13: Discovery
Quotes
Prince looked at the paper covered with Nat’s tiny figures. “All that—to find one error? And there are probably two hundred thousand figures in those tables. Maybe that’s why he didn’t check every figure, Mr. Bowditch.”
“But he should have! Mathematics is nothing if it isn’t accurate! Men’s lives depend on the accuracy of those tables! It’s—it’s—criminal to have a mistake in a book like this! Do you hear me! It’s criminal! Men’s lives depend on these figures!” Nat hadn’t realized how he was shouting until he stopped. In the heavy silence he heard the bong-bong of the ship’s bell.
Captain Prince said, “Eight bells. Your watch, Mr. Bowditch. Men’s lives depend on that, too.”
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Chapter 14: Nineteen Guns
Quotes
“I—I’m dumb. About book learning, I mean. Do you think you could teach me anything without—bawling me out?”
“Yes. But I couldn’t teach you much as long as you bawled yourself out.”
“Huh…sir?”
“I mean—suppose you made a little mistake—or didn’t understand something right away. If you wasted my time cursing and yelling ‘I can’t get that! What’s the use?’ then I couldn’t teach you.”
“But—but—” For a long time Lem was silent. Then he chuckled. “Mr. Bowditch, sir, heaven help you, but you’ve got yourself a job.”
They shook hands on it.
Now, when Nat taught the rest of the crew, Lem stood listening […]. At first it was slow work. In spite of everything, Lem’s anger would blaze at himself and he would storm and rage. […But finally] Lem settled down, and he learned so fast that he surprised even Nat.
Chapter 19: Strange Sailing Orders
Quotes
Now the meaning of the strange sailing time dawned on the crew. Nat looked at Mr. Cheevers and saw anger, amusement, and respect in his eyes. But the faces of the men before the mast were frightening to watch. Not two of the lot, Nat figured, had had the slightest intention of sailing on the Astrea. They had doubtless heard of the clever desertion of the other crew. They’d planned the same stunt, signed on for a square meal and a month’s pay. Now they faced months at sea—the terrors of the Cape—the grilling passage through the Sunda Strait—a layover in Batavia—where men died like flies.
Their baffled rage was naked on their faces.
Chapter 20: Book Sailing
Quotes
“It seems Moore had figured 1800 was a Leap Year. So he had the calculations for the moon off. Seems like an awful little mistake in a book makes a big mistake in miles. That’s what I heard the mate say when we was trying to get off the reef. I don’t understand much about it. Don’t want to, I guess. You see, Mr. Bowditch, if he hadn’t been depending on the book, he’d have been sounding. Log, lead, and lookout. That’s the way to sail […;] we tried to run the boats in [… but] couldn’t see the rocks. When I come aground, I was the only one there.”
Nat said, “You’d have been safer heading straight out from shore.”
“Yeah,” Tim agreed. “I guess that ought to be in a book, too.” Then he flushed. “I didn’t mean it like it sounded […]. But—but—a book ain’t no good.”
Chapter 21: “Sealing is Safer”
Quotes
Polly stopped smiling. “Aunt Mary, think of it this way; if a ship was aground off Salem Harbor—say on Rising States Ledge—or the Haste—every able-bodied man in Salem would be out there trying to save the crew, wouldn’t he?”
“Of course!”
“And the women wouldn’t try to stop them, would they? No matter how long and hard they worked? No matter if they were risking their lives?”
“No-o-o-o,” Mrs. Boardman admitted, “when a ship is in danger, men do everything they can.”
“Well, every ship is in danger, every time it sails,” Polly said. “But the more men know about navigation, the safer our ships will be, won’t they? Nat isn’t working to save just one ship. He’s working to make every ship safer every time it goes to sea. Every ship in America!” Polly was really warming to her idea. “Every ship in the world!”
Chapter 24: Man against the Fog
Quotes
Lem growled. “When did you last shoot the sun?”
“About three days ago.”
Lem gulped. “Three days? Seventy-two hours? And since then?”
“It’s simple mathematics, Lem. At such a speed, in so many hours, you log so many miles in a given direction. It’s—”
“Yeah,” Lem growled. “Seventy-two hours through the Roaring Forties. Seventy-two hours by dead reckoning, and then you enter Salem Harbor. Why, you…[…]” He slumped in a chair and stared at Nat.
Nat winked at Polly. “Have you any idea what’s the matter with him?”
Polly’s eyes danced. “He just doesn’t understand about you and mathematics, dear. Two plus two is four. It comes out right, doesn’t it?”
[Polly] looked at Nat with glowing eyes. “It’s really you! Captain Bowditch, F.A.A. and A.M., I’m very proud of you!” She blinked back sudden tears. “Oh, Nat, it’s been so long!”
Nat’s arm tightened around her. Somewhere out of the past a voice whispered, “A long time to sail by ash breeze.”
“Was it awfully hard?” Polly asked.
“Not too bad, Nat told her. “Rough weather sometimes. But I’ll say this for it—I was never becalmed!”
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Lem Harvey Quotes in Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
The Carry On, Mr. Bowditch quotes below are all either spoken by Lem Harvey or refer to Lem Harvey. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 13: Discovery
Quotes
Prince looked at the paper covered with Nat’s tiny figures. “All that—to find one error? And there are probably two hundred thousand figures in those tables. Maybe that’s why he didn’t check every figure, Mr. Bowditch.”
“But he should have! Mathematics is nothing if it isn’t accurate! Men’s lives depend on the accuracy of those tables! It’s—it’s—criminal to have a mistake in a book like this! Do you hear me! It’s criminal! Men’s lives depend on these figures!” Nat hadn’t realized how he was shouting until he stopped. In the heavy silence he heard the bong-bong of the ship’s bell.
Captain Prince said, “Eight bells. Your watch, Mr. Bowditch. Men’s lives depend on that, too.”
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 14: Nineteen Guns
Quotes
“I—I’m dumb. About book learning, I mean. Do you think you could teach me anything without—bawling me out?”
“Yes. But I couldn’t teach you much as long as you bawled yourself out.”
“Huh…sir?”
“I mean—suppose you made a little mistake—or didn’t understand something right away. If you wasted my time cursing and yelling ‘I can’t get that! What’s the use?’ then I couldn’t teach you.”
“But—but—” For a long time Lem was silent. Then he chuckled. “Mr. Bowditch, sir, heaven help you, but you’ve got yourself a job.”
They shook hands on it.
Now, when Nat taught the rest of the crew, Lem stood listening […]. At first it was slow work. In spite of everything, Lem’s anger would blaze at himself and he would storm and rage. […But finally] Lem settled down, and he learned so fast that he surprised even Nat.
Chapter 19: Strange Sailing Orders
Quotes
Now the meaning of the strange sailing time dawned on the crew. Nat looked at Mr. Cheevers and saw anger, amusement, and respect in his eyes. But the faces of the men before the mast were frightening to watch. Not two of the lot, Nat figured, had had the slightest intention of sailing on the Astrea. They had doubtless heard of the clever desertion of the other crew. They’d planned the same stunt, signed on for a square meal and a month’s pay. Now they faced months at sea—the terrors of the Cape—the grilling passage through the Sunda Strait—a layover in Batavia—where men died like flies.
Their baffled rage was naked on their faces.
Chapter 20: Book Sailing
Quotes
“It seems Moore had figured 1800 was a Leap Year. So he had the calculations for the moon off. Seems like an awful little mistake in a book makes a big mistake in miles. That’s what I heard the mate say when we was trying to get off the reef. I don’t understand much about it. Don’t want to, I guess. You see, Mr. Bowditch, if he hadn’t been depending on the book, he’d have been sounding. Log, lead, and lookout. That’s the way to sail […;] we tried to run the boats in [… but] couldn’t see the rocks. When I come aground, I was the only one there.”
Nat said, “You’d have been safer heading straight out from shore.”
“Yeah,” Tim agreed. “I guess that ought to be in a book, too.” Then he flushed. “I didn’t mean it like it sounded […]. But—but—a book ain’t no good.”
Chapter 21: “Sealing is Safer”
Quotes
Polly stopped smiling. “Aunt Mary, think of it this way; if a ship was aground off Salem Harbor—say on Rising States Ledge—or the Haste—every able-bodied man in Salem would be out there trying to save the crew, wouldn’t he?”
“Of course!”
“And the women wouldn’t try to stop them, would they? No matter how long and hard they worked? No matter if they were risking their lives?”
“No-o-o-o,” Mrs. Boardman admitted, “when a ship is in danger, men do everything they can.”
“Well, every ship is in danger, every time it sails,” Polly said. “But the more men know about navigation, the safer our ships will be, won’t they? Nat isn’t working to save just one ship. He’s working to make every ship safer every time it goes to sea. Every ship in America!” Polly was really warming to her idea. “Every ship in the world!”
Chapter 24: Man against the Fog
Quotes
Lem growled. “When did you last shoot the sun?”
“About three days ago.”
Lem gulped. “Three days? Seventy-two hours? And since then?”
“It’s simple mathematics, Lem. At such a speed, in so many hours, you log so many miles in a given direction. It’s—”
“Yeah,” Lem growled. “Seventy-two hours through the Roaring Forties. Seventy-two hours by dead reckoning, and then you enter Salem Harbor. Why, you…[…]” He slumped in a chair and stared at Nat.
Nat winked at Polly. “Have you any idea what’s the matter with him?”
Polly’s eyes danced. “He just doesn’t understand about you and mathematics, dear. Two plus two is four. It comes out right, doesn’t it?”
[Polly] looked at Nat with glowing eyes. “It’s really you! Captain Bowditch, F.A.A. and A.M., I’m very proud of you!” She blinked back sudden tears. “Oh, Nat, it’s been so long!”
Nat’s arm tightened around her. Somewhere out of the past a voice whispered, “A long time to sail by ash breeze.”
“Was it awfully hard?” Polly asked.
“Not too bad, Nat told her. “Rough weather sometimes. But I’ll say this for it—I was never becalmed!”
