William Brand

Welcome aboard.

There are quite a few pirates in your area. Welcome aboard.

A close friend of mine makes custom knives and swords and I have decided to commission a boat hook and a boarding axe. I need some pictures of period boat hooks and boarding axes. I'm less concerned about whether they are French or English, German or Italian. I just need some good solid examples that are pre-1705 if possible, though I could use something as late as 1720. Dorian Lasseter has been kind enough to find me some already, but I want to view as much range in design as possible. The more examples, the better Mike can recreate one for me. Thank you in advance.

I crave turkey gravy quite often, as I'm a Triptophan addict.

July 27, 1704 - Off the coast of Martinique William was awoken from sleep by Miss Tudor, who informed him that Martinque was sighted. She went about the business of laying out his ledger, charts and breakfast while he dressed in the quartergalley. Tudor brushed down the black coat that Kendra had made for him, careful to lay it out over the back of a chair at the ward room table. "How seems the crew to you today, Miss Smith?" William inquired as he emerged from his room. "Anxious, Captain." William nodded, placing his newly acquired watch in his waistcoat pocket. "I believe their revenge is now somewhat deluded by thoughts of port...with Martinique so close by." she added. "Aye." William agreed, and was glad for it. "And how are you, Miss Smith?" "Anxious." she said again, smiling. "I need clothing." William agreed, sitting down at the table. The crew of the Watch Dog had gone long without new clothing. Having lost their first tailor at La Margarita, and having had no sufficient means to buy cloth and tailor made items there, they were now in great need. Half the sailors aboard had patched their slops and shirts more than once. William's own choices for clothing in the great cabin numbered too few. "I should like some fresh shirts." William said. "There is nothing so fine as clean shirts and...well...clean food." "We have apples, and Mister Gage still manages to spoil us I think." she pointed out. "I know. And he does. He sets forth some excellent fare. Still...I'm missing the variety of fruit." William said and he tongued the back of his own teeth. They felt well rooted, but scurvy was so common, he was ever dreaming at night of losing his teeth. He suppressed a shudder then, for some of the dreams had been awful ones. "Yessss...the variety of fruit." William said, echoing himself. In answer to this, Tudor laid out the last of the unspoiled preserves from the larder. William smiled appreciatively and invited her to join him. He also asked her to fetch up the Master Gunner and the Master at Arms. She agreed at once and went off to bring the officers to the ward room. Eight Bells of the Morning Watch

Thank you for the information, Harry. I second Jim's huzzah.

I'm craving turkey gravy again.

Excellent. Do you think you will be joining any of the encampments or staying in the modern camp? Either way, I would love to add you all to the tentative list if that's okay with you.

Welcome aboard, Mister Talbot.

I would enjoy a full report on the paintings.

My how the list grows and grows and we are only on the seventh of January. All attendees are strongly encouraged to focus on recruitment of new and old pirates to this year's event. Early recruitment will give these new attendees the time they will need to prepare kit, education and funds for PIP 2007.

The remainder of the day passed with almost no incidents, although tongues wagged and threats were made often about dragging Tawny from his private "room" and teaching him to "dance" aloft. William made no effort to stem the tide of ill feelings. It gave the restless crew something to hate and somewhere to focus all of their losses and labors. Since leaving La Desirade only two months previous, the crew had seen its share of disappointments. Not to say that their rewards were not soon to be great, but even great reward can wear upon a weary crew, so William let them mutter and plot with all of the empty imagination of a crew bent for port. "Crew's in a foul mood, Cap'n." Mister Pew said from the taffrail later that night. "Not a one of 'em that wouldn't pay for the privilege to slit the man's throat with a boat hook." "Aye, Mister Pew." William agreed, not looking up from the weathered tome he was reading by lamplight. "It will keep them hot enough to burn away the long hours left to port." It was Mister Pew's turn to agree, though he had a wary look about him that belied other thoughts. Mister Pew was of a mind himself to go down to the cable tier and do to Tawny with a pike staff, what he had meant to do to Meg, though his anger, like Owen's, did not entirely stem from injustices to Meg. Mister Pew was more angry at his own marines, or more to the point, himself. This tawny interloper had stolen aboard ship and lived among their ship's stores for several days undetected. He had soiled the bilge of their home and their sanctuary with his filth. His odor had somehow lessened the whole ship and Mister Pew could not decide how much blame should be added upon his own head. William glanced up to watch the Master-at-Arms in profile as he stewed in silence. William guessed at the man's thoughts and sent out bread upon the waters. "Was there something else, Mister Pew?" Preston turned away from the taffrail and furrowed a brow more than once before speaking. "Cap'n. If I had been...if..." "More diligent?" William offered, then shook his head. "The bastard just slipped aboard!" Preston spat, thumping a fist on the rail. William closed the book with his finger in the pages to hold his place. He tapped the spine of it with his other hand. "Lazarus was in the hold only yesterday. Just yesterday. He found no evidence of a stowaway then." Pew nodded, for of course, it was a waste of time to be bothered about the past, especially with the rather favorable, if somewhat thin outcome. But life is as much about regret as it is acceptance. "I went down to see if any of the pecans from Desirade remained aboard, and I found no man there while I searched." William added, for he too had argument enough to be upset with himself. "Take comfort in your choice of marines. Paul Mooney did good service, and I seem to recall you wanting Owen for a watchmen." Pew said nothing. "Perhaps I was wrong to say 'no' in regards to Mister Monahan." William added, then he amended himself. "I was wrong to say, 'no'." Mister Pew smiled a little and dared an 'Aye, Cap'n' which made William smile too. "You're a Captain of Marines now, Mister Pew. Take your victories with your bruises." "Aye, Capn', but I would rather take my victories with a spot of Ale." "As would I." William agreed, setting the book aside. And so they did, retiring to the galley to drink a little and spin stories of earlier victories and bruises. The night passed in this fashion, with some drinking and some on watch. The business of the day was soon lost amidst music, conversation and the eventual snoring on the berth deck. Only Meg and Ajayi passed a long night, both in their distinct but altogether different pains. July 26th became July 27th, with only the bell and the watch marking the alteration.

William looked about the throng to see how the mob felt on the subject. Each of them agreed that Tawny's fate should fall to Meg, for her fate had been threatened and abused by Tawny. Even the lookouts aloft shouted their approval, Siren calling louder from above than any on the deck. It was soon obvious that the consent was unanimous and William could find no fault with the reasoning, but this, that Meg might need time to recover herself before being asked such a thing. "Mister Pew, have this thing thrown in the cable tier." William said with no more regard for Tawny's existence then to see him off the weatherdecks. "With pleasure, Cap'n." Mister Pew returned, and finding no amendment in the Captain's orders, he and the rest of the marines were unkind in their delivery of the prisoner, turned pirate. They dragged him only part way down the steps into the berth hold before letting gravity carry him the rest of the way. Tawny was addled by the fall, and his brains might have been dashed if he hadn't landed more upon his shoulder than his head. Then he was dragged through the berth deck to the cable tier and more than a few able seamen lay hands upon him. When the door was finally shut, Tawny was grateful for the combined pain, for it allowed him the reprieve of unconsciousness.

Chicken spup made with a touch of celery, leeks, and spinach, lightly seasoned. The aches and pains seem to be going round the Pub of late.

Well, well, well...and opportunity to rest from labors in my own establishment. I think I shall fetch up a plate of hot food and sit before the fire awhile.

Tawny stirred a little and remained in such pain that a constant din of groans came up from him. It was all anyone could do not to silence him, but to kick the man only inspired more of the cacophony and so the beating had all but ceased by the time William came out from the surgery. "Who is this creature?" William asked, with no more interest than a pedestrian interest and no one replied for a moment, for some guessed that William's question might be rhetorical. Even Paul, who knew his name could not bring himself to it, knowing himself to be too angry to control any answer that he might make. William looked at Owen, knowing he had never been one to keep blame from those who were due such assignment. "He calls himself...Tawny." Owen said, his tone derisive. "He throws the title 'bout like a clipped coin." "Mercy..." Tawny managed, and William's face furrowed a little. He crouched down beside the man. "Mercy...?" He returned, as if the word were utterly foreign to him. "I...beg mercy." "My mercy was extended some time ago. I do not remember you among that throng which was present to receive it." William explained in careful tone that belied something dangerous underneath. "I...I am your prisoner, sah." "Quite impossible." William said, shaking his head. "All of my prisoners are aboard the Maastricht. I brought none aboard but those who would serve." A slow and wicked looking smile spread on Owen's face, for he understood almost at once where the Captain meant to go with these words. Owen understood the finer points of a taunt, and the Captain was warming up for a decidedly vicious one. Tawny did not like the look of Owen's smile, but he found the calm, almost pleasant regard of the Captain even less appealing. "There are only volunteers aboard this boat, Mister...Tawny." William explained. "Article twelve...?" William asked aloud, turning to Miss Smith, who stood hard by. She too smiled and began to speak from memory that which she had memorized. "Shall anyone at any time meet with a prudent Woman, that Man that offers to meddle with her, without her Consent, shall suffer what Punishment the Captain or Majority of the Company shall think fit." "Aye...just so." William agreed. Tawny's eyes widened a little in understanding. He called out in a harsh and desperate manner. "I give myself a prisoner!" "I have taken all the prisoners that I mean to take." William said, shaking his head as he stood. "And as you are not a prisoner, and morever, since you insist that you are not a volunteer aboard this vessel, then I must conclude that you are a pirate." "But...Tawny is..." the desperate man began, but William cut him off soundly. "Gentlemen, we have a pirate aboard ship! What shall be done with him?"

Her is a nice little reference on Cheddar... http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A850754 "Originally made in England, Cheddar takes its name from Cheddar Gorge in Somerset. However, today Cheddar cheeses are manufactured throughout the world. The name is not protected, which has allowed it to be used (and abused) by producers worldwide. According to local legend, creation of the original bit of Cheddar was a happy accident, following the abandonment of a pail of milk (for safety, apparently - there must have been rampant milk-thieves stalking Somerset in those days) in the Cheddar Gorge caves. The milkmaid later returned to find that the milk had been transformed into something else. God only knows what possessed her to eat it. The distinctive flavour of the cheese is said to owe a great deal to the grazing provided by the rich pastures of the Somerset levels. The Cheddar caves, consistently at a temperature of 7°C, were an ideal place to store the cheese in - until a load of rats came along and spoiled the whole show. Cheddar - a Royal Life Whether the milkmaid tale is a load of old pretendy or no, there is no doubt that cheese making was already well-established by the 12th Century - coagulant-loving Henry II declared Cheddar cheese to be the best in Britain and 10240lb (4645kg) of the treasured substance (at a farthing per pound) figures in the king's accounts (the Pipe Roll) in 1170. This is before pizzas or sandwiches were officially invented. He shared the joy with his son, Prince John, who is on record as having bought a load of the stuff in 1184. At the time of the unfortunate Charles I, the parliamentary records show a huge demand for Cheddar - it was sold to the court before it was made, and was only available there. Giant Royal Cheddar Shocker Queen Victoria was once presented with a drum of lovely Cheddar that weighed 11cwt (558kg), formed from the milk of over 700 cows."

But we cannot fit everyone.

The "How to Cook Medieval" site has a page on cheese found here... http://www.godecookery.com/how2cook/howto02.htm "This list includes cheeses that were known during the Middle Ages & Renaissance, along with some 17th century varieties and a few modern cheeses that are acceptable period substitutes. Beaufort Brie Camembert Cheddar - first recorded use is in 1500. Comté Cottage Emmenthal Farmer's - similar in both taste & texture to Medieval cheese. Glouscester - first recorded use is in 1697. Grana - first recorded use is in 1200. Gorgonzola - first recorded use is in 879. Gouda - first recorded use is in 1697. Gruyére Maroilles Mozzarella Parmesan - first recorded use is in 1579. Port-Salut Reblochon Rewen, Rowen, Ruayn - Autumn cheese, made after the cattle had fed on the second growth. This was apparently a semi-soft cheese, but not as soft as a ripe modern Brie: one period recipe says to grate it. It appears to be the same cheese that in France today is called fromage de gaing. See: Tart de Bry Ricotta - for Platina's recipe for ricotta cheese, see: Recocta. Romano Roquefort - first recorded use is in 1070. Spermyse - soft or cream cheese flavored with herbs. Stilton"

I found this site helpful. some of the dates appear to be off... http://www.geocities.com/lgol27/HistoryCheese.htm History of Cheese Introduction Cheese is one of the most varied and subtle foods in the world. In taste cheese can be bland, buttery, innocuous, rich, creamy, pungent, sharp, salty or lightly delicate. In texture it can be hard enough to chip off in flakes, so soft and runny that it needs to be eaten with a spoon or at any one of a dozen points of softness and firmness between these two extremes. In aroma, cheese can be rank and overpowering enough to turn the stomach of the strongest man (and still be eaten with relish by devotees), delicately aromatic or virtually unnoticeable. Cheese can serve as the perfect companion for wines, a superbly satisfying finale to a gourmet meal or simply as a basic nourishing foodstuff for family snacks. The Start Archaeologists have discovered that as far back as 6000 BC cheese had been made from cow's and goat's milk and stored in tall jars. Egyptian tomb murals of 2000 BC show butter and cheese being made, and other murals which show milk being stored in skin bags suspended from poles demonstrate a knowledge of dairy husbandry at that time. It is likely that nomadic tribes of Central Asia found animal skin bags a useful way to carry milk on animal backs when on the move. Fermentation of the milk sugars would cause the milk to curdle and the swaying motion would break up the curd to provide a refreshing whey drink. The curds would then be removed, drained and lightly salted to provide a tasty and nourishing high protein food, i.e. a welcome supplement to meat protein. Cheesemaking, thus, gradually evolved from two main streams. The first was the liquid fermented milks such as yoghurt, koumiss and kefir. The second through allowing the milk to acidify to form curds and whey. Whey could then be drained either through perforated earthenware bowls or through woven reed baskets or similar material. The Legend Most authorities consider that cheese was first made in the Middle East. The earliest type was a form of sour milk which came into being when it was discovered that domesticated animals could be milked. A legendary story has it that cheese was 'discovered' by an unknown Arab nomad. He is said to have filled a saddlebag with milk to sustain him on a journey across the desert by horse. After several hours riding he stopped to quench his thirst, only to find that the milk had separated into a pale watery liquid and solid white lumps. Because the saddlebag, which was made from the stomach of a young animal, contained a coagulating enzyme known as rennin, the milk had been effectively separated into curds and whey by the combination of the rennin, the hot sun and the galloping motions of the horse. The nomad, unconcerned with technical details, found the whey drinkable and the curds edible. The Jews From Biblical sources we learn that when David escaped across the River Jordan he was fed with 'cheese of kine' (cows) (2 Samuel 17:29), and it is said that he presented ten cheeses to the captain of the army drawn up to do battle with Saul (1 Samuel 17:18). Indeed, records show that there was at one time a location near Jerusalem called 'The Valley of the Cheesemakers'. Clearly, skills had been developed to preserve milk either as an acid-curd based cheese or as a range of lactic cheeses, and fermented milks such as today's unsweetened natural yoghurt. Roman Cheesemaking Learning these techniques, the Romans with their characteristic efficiency were quick to develop cheesemaking to a fine art. Cheesemaking was done with skill and knowledge and reached a high standard. By this time the ripening process had been developed and it was known that various treatments and conditions under storage resulted in different flavours and characteristics. The larger Roman houses had a separate cheese kitchen, the caseale, and also special areas where cheese could be matured. In large towns home-made cheese could be taken to a special centre to be smoked. Written evidence shows clearly how far the Romans had changed the art of cheesemaking:- Homer, ca. 1184 BC, refers to cheese being made in the mountain caves of Greece from the milk of sheep and goats. Indeed one variety called 'Cynthos' was made and sold by the Greeks to the Romans at a price of about 1p per lb. This could well have been the Feta cheese of today. Aristotle, 384 - 322 BC, commented on cheese made from the milk of mares and asses - the Russian 'koumiss' is in fact derived from mare's milk and is fermented to provide an alcoholic content of up to 3%. Varro, ca. 127 BC, had noted the difference in cheeses made from a number of locations and commented on their digestibility. By this time the use of rennet had become commonplace, providing the cheesemaker with far greater control over the types of curd produced. Cheese had started to move from subsistence to commercial levels and could be marketed accordingly. Columella, ca. AD 50, wrote about how to make cheese in considerable detail. Scottish cheesemakers today would be perfectly at home with many of the principles he set out so clearly some 1900 years ago. By AD 300, cheese was being regularly exported to countries along the Mediterranean seaboard. Trade had developed to such an extent that the emperor Diocletian had to fix maximum prices for a range of cheeses including an apple-smoked cheese highly popular with Romans. Yet another cheese was stamped and sold under the brand name of 'La Luna', and is said to have been the precursor of today's Parmesan which was first reported as an individual make of cheese in AD 1579. Thus, Roman expertise spread throughout Europe wherever their empire extended. While the skills remained at first with the landowners and Roman farmers, there is little doubt that in time they also percolated down to the local population. Roman soldiers, who had completed their military service and intermarried with the local populace, set up their 'coloniae' farms in retirement, and may well have passed on their skills in cheesemaking. With the collapse of the Roman Empire around AD 410, cheesemaking spread slowly via the Mediterranean, Aegean and Adriatic seas to Southern and Central Europe. The river valleys provided easy access and methods adopted for production were adapted to suit the different terrain and climatic conditions. Cheesemakers in remote mountainous areas naturally used the milk of goats and sheep. Tribes such as the Helvetica, who had settled in the Swiss Alps, developed their own distinctive types of cheese. They were in fact so successful in doing this that for a period all export of their Emmental cheese was banned. In Central and Eastern Europe the displacement of people through centuries of war and invasion inevitably slowed down developments in cheesemaking until the Middle Ages. Production was often restricted to the more remote mountainous areas where sensible cheesemakers simply kept their heads down and hoped for the best. In the fertile lowlands of Europe dairy husbandry developed at a faster pace and cheesemaking from cows' milk became the norm. Hence, the particular development of cheeses such as Edam and Gouda in the Netherlands. This was much copied elsewhere under a variety of similar names such as Tybo and Fynbo. A hard-pressed cheese, relatively small in size, brine-salted and waxed to reduce moisture losses in storage, proved both marketable and easy to distribute. France developed a wider range of cheeses from the rich agricultural areas in the south and west of that country. By and large,soft cheese production was preferred with a comparatively long making season. Hard-pressed cheese appeared to play a secondary role. To some extent this reflects the Latin culture of the nation, mirroring the cheese types produced in the Mediterranean areas as distinct from the hard-pressed cheese that were developed in the northern regions of Europe for storage and use in the long cold winter months that lay ahead. However, throughout the Dark Ages little new progress was made in developing new cheese types. Middle Ages During the Middle Ages, monks became innovators and developers and it is to them we owe many of the classic varieties of cheese marketed today. During the Renaissance period cheese suffered a drop in popularity, being considered unhealthy, but it regained favour by the nineteenth century, the period that saw the start of the move from farm to factory production. The Development of Some Cheese Varieties with the Date First Recorded Cheese Variety Year(AD) -------------- -------- Gorgonzola 879 Roquefort 1070 Grana 1200 Cheddar 1500 Parmesan 1579 Gouda 1697 Gloucester 1697 Stilton 1785 Camembert 1791 Data compiled from Scott (1986).

An incorrigible little elf that keeps breaking into the house at night to make shoes.

This is where I live and work, though it isn't quite how it is pictured here. I'll try and snap off a new picture later today.

Agreed. When we all screamed "Happy New Year!" last night, I said, "Goodbye 2006." "And good riddance." Mark added.

July 26, 1704 - Aboard the 'Dog William was roused from his hammock even as he had climbed into it. The news of treachery aboard sent him out dressed in slops and shirt, where he found men bearing Ajayi into the surgery. He also found Meg Wardell there. A small crowd gathered around the surgery door forward and William was soon surrounded by many a curious face as Owen and Paul Mooney made their report of the incident. William did not interrupt and after a time he stepped into the surgery, closing the door behind him. Tempest was already employed in the care of Meg Wardell, examining her for any wounds less obvious then her bloodied scalp. When she was satisfied that all of the young woman's extremities were intact, she set to the task of bandaging the damaged Yoruban. William remained in the surgery for a full hour while Tempest worked. He did what he could to help when help was required of him and he did what was needed to stay out of the way when he was not required. He sent for drink and food for the patients and the good Doctor. Meg Wardell was finally lulled into a comfortable silence of warm blankets and the semi privacy of the surgery by Chanault. He wrapped her as one would a young girl awoken by bad dreams, tucking her into a cot along the ward wall. She made no noise and would take no food, but she drank a flagon dry when it came, curling up again afterward, childlike. Ajayi proved to be as quiet as Meg, but on other terms. He sat straight up on the table as he was want to, for he had a stature born as much from bearing as height and even the injury would not bend him. He made no utterance at all except to hiss once through set teeth when the Doctor began the stitching. Apart from this, his demeanor seemed more curious than concerned, for he watched Tempest ply and gather his punctured flesh the whole time she sewed. Tempest, like her patients, was quiet in her work. She took in every sound made and every silence, careful to work with speed, for while Ajayi's wound was clean it was also severe. The knife had passed across the bone of his leg high up on the thigh. The injury passed clear through the front of the leg, but the muscles of the leg had not been parted, an she was sure that the leg would heal given time, for Ajayi was a strong man and he showed signs of previous and grievous harms. "Our man has tangled with a dog..." she noted aloud, and William looked where the Doctor looked. At first, William thought she meant the stranger aboard ship, for the man had bitten Ajayi's left hand, but while it was bloodied by Tawny's teeth, there were signs of a previous scar or two, though they were faded by the years. "I must go and see the prisoner." William said, excusing himself from the room.

A very Happy New Year to all.