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FM 2021/4/24 page i

Object and Pattern Recognition in

Remote Sensing
Modelling and Monitoring Enviromental and
Anthropogenic Objects and Change Processes

Edited by
S. Hinz, A.C. Braun, M. Weinmann
FM 2021/4/24 page ii

Published by
Whittles Publishing,
Dunbeath,
Caithness KW6 6EG,
Scotland, UK

www.whittlespublishing.com

© 2021 S. Hinz, A.C. Braun, M. Weinmann

ISBN 978-184995-128-9

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted,
in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, recording or otherwise
without prior permission of the publishers.

The publisher and authors have used their best efforts in preparing this book, but assume no
responsibility for any injury and/or damage to persons or property from the use or
implementation of any methods, instructions, ideas or materials contained within this book.
All operations should be undertaken in accordance with existing legislation, recognized codes
and standards and trade practice. Whilst the information and advice in this book is believed
to be true and accurate at the time of going to press, the authors and publisher accept no legal
responsibility or liability for errors or omissions that may have been made.

Printed by
FM 2021/4/24 page iii

Contents

Foreword vii
Editors and Authors xi

Part I: Methodology 1

1 Introduction 1
1.1 Sensors and Imaging 3
1.2 From Image Information to Semantics of Objects 4
1.3 Conclusion 6
References 7

2 Object, Data and Sensor Modelling 9

2.1 Sensors and Sensor Models 9
2.2 Data Content and Complexity 20
2.3 Object Modelling 22
2.4 Extraction Strategy 29
2.5 Conclusions 32
References 33

3 Feature Extraction from Images and Point Clouds:

Fundamentals, Advances and Trends 35
3.1 Feature Extraction from 2D Imagery 36
3.2 Feature extraction from 3D point clouds 52
3.3 Spatio-temporal Features 63
3.4 Conclusions 65
References 65

4 A Short Survey on Supervised Classification in Remote Sensing 73

4.1 Supervised and Unsupervised Classification 73
4.2 Rule-based and Exemplar-based Learning 74
4.3 Recent Exemplar-based Supervised Classifiers 75
4.4 One-class Versus Multi-class Classification 92
4.5 Conclusions 94
References 95

5 Context-based Classification 101

5.1 Graphical Models 102
5.2 Markov Random Fields (MRF) 105
5.3 Conditional Random Fields (CRF) 109
5.4 Inference and Training 113
FM 2021/4/24 page iv

iv Object and Pattern Recognition

5.5 Concluding Remarks 116

References 117

6 Toward a Framework for Quality Assessment in

Remote Sensing Applications 121
6.1 Introduction 121
6.2 Related Work 122
6.3 Basics of Quantitative Quality Assessment 123
6.4 Framework for Quantitative Quality Assessment 137
6.5 Example for Quantitative Quality Assessment 140
6.6 Conclusions 142
References 143

Part II: Application 149

7 From Raw 3D Point Clouds to Semantic Objects 151

7.1 Point Cloud Acquisition 151
7.2 Basic Point Cloud Processing Techniques 156
7.3 Fusion of 2D and 3D Information 158
7.4 Scene Analysis 168
7.5 Conclusions 173
References 174

8 Traffic Extraction and Characterisation from

Optical Remote Sensing Data 179
8.1 Motivation 179
8.2 Traffic Model 181
8.3 Traffic Extraction and Characterisation 183
8.4 Evaluation and Discussion 191
8.5 Conclusions and Outlook 193
References 194

9 Object Extraction in Image Sequences 199

9.1 Object Tracking 199
9.2 Persons in Aerial Image Sequences 204
9.3 Detection of Persons 205
9.4 Tracking of Persons 209
9.5 Experiments 216
9.6 Conclusion 224
References 225
FM 2021/4/24 page v

Contents v

10 A Process-based Model Approach to Predict Future Land-use

Changes and Link Biodiversity with Soil Erosion in Chile 227
10.1 Introduction 227
10.2 Approach of this Study 228
10.3 Process-based Land-use Assessment 229
10.4 Prediction of Future Land-Use Changes 231
10.5 Estimation of Potential Erosion Risks 235
10.6 Discussion and Conclusion 239
References 241

11 Interferometric SAR Image Analysis for 3D Building

Reconstruction 247
11.1 SAR and InSAR Principle 247
11.2 Building Signature 251
11.3 Overview of Building Reconstruction Strategies 252
11.4 Approach of Building Reconstruction 255
11.5 Results 262
11.6 Summary and Outlook 263
References 264

12 Detection and Classification of Collapsed Buildings after

a Strong Earthquake by means of Laser Scanning
and Image Analysis 267
12.1 Motivation 267
12.2 Related Work 268
12.3 Damage Scales and Damage Features 270
12.4 Applied Models 273
12.5 Strategy for Damage Analysis 275
12.6 Results 283
12.7 Outlook 285
References 287

13 A Settlement Process Analysis in Coastal Benin:

Confronting Scarce Data Availability in Developing Countries 289
13.1 Introduction 289
13.2 Objectives of this chapter 290
13.3 Study Area and Data Availability 292
13.4 Methods for Settlement Process Studies based on Pattern
Analysis 294
13.5 Results of the Settlement Process Analysis 299
13.6 Discussion 302
13.7 Conclusion and Outlook 305
References 307
FM 2021/4/24 page vi

vi Object and Pattern Recognition

Part III: Conclusion 311

14 Benchmarking: A Basic Requirement for Effective

Performance Evaluation 313
14.1 Introduction 313
14.2 3D Reconstruction, Image Orientation and Navigation 313
14.3 Object Detection and Tracking 314
14.4 Object Classification and Semantic Segmentation 314
References 319

15 Remote Sensing and Computer Vision Image Analysis:

Summary and Recent Trends 323
15.1 Summary 323
15.2 The Complexity of Ground Truth Acquisition for
Model Validation and Accuracy Assessment 327
15.3 Recent Trends from our Perspective 330
15.4 Conclusions 339
References 340

Index 347
FM 2021/4/24 page vii

Foreword

An image says more than a thousand words – this well-known proverb, which
has its origin in the advertisement industry, describes much of the fascination of
photogrammetry and remote sensing, and in particular of its images. In sharp
contrast to machines – and the statement remains true also in today’s era of
deep learning and artificial intelligence – humans are capable of interpreting
images and videos, and of extracting the information contained therein without
much effort and in real-time. However, we do not know just how we accomplish
this task, which perhaps explains some of the fascination of aerial and satellite
imagery.
Major characteristics of photogrammetry and remote sensing are:

• contact-free data acquisition,

• short image acquisition time which allows the capture of dynamic pro-
cesses,
• derivation of 3D information from stereoscopic images,
• complete iconic documentation of the whole scene,
• the possibility to measure and monitor objects of arbitrary size; methods in
use vary in scale from microscopy all the way to planetary remote sensing.

Traditionally, remote sensing deals with earth observation from space – mon-
itoring of processes on the Earth’s surface, as well as in the atmosphere are of
prime interest – while the focus of photogrammetry is the 3D geometric and the-
matic exploitation of images of all kind. Technical innovations, however, have
led to more and more overlap between the two disciplines. Photogrammetry
was of course established long before satellites became available; nevertheless
it is today regarded as part of the wider field of remote sensing. Moreover,
photogrammetry forms one of the foundations of modern computer vision.
In recent years, photogrammetry and remote sensing have witnessed great
changes in virtually every stage of image acquisition and processing. These
developments have had a profound impact on the theory, development and
operational use of photogrammetry and remote sensing. Examples include:

• new and better sensors and platforms such as 3D cameras, flash lidars,
unmanned aerial vehicles and mobile mapping vehicles,
• the deployment of satellite constellations with the aim of imaging the earth
in high resolution every single day,
• a shift from single sensors to integrated sensor systems, e. g. for assisted
and autonomous driving,
FM 2021/4/24 page viii

viii Object and Pattern Recognition

• an increasing use of, and integration with, methods developed in computer

science and computer vision, both for geometric and sematic tasks,
• a shift from mapping to monitoring and to dynamic geospatial services,
e.g. for sustainable development.

Innovation in our field has been strongly influenced by progress in infor-

mation and communication technology, and terms like ubiquitous computing,
geosensor networks, digital earth, big data, deep learning, cloud computing, the
semantic web, the internet of things and crowd sourcing have become part of our
discipline. Besides a large variety of new applications, all the way from robotics
and driver-assistance systems to animal behaviour studies and environmental
monitoring, new methodologies for automatic, reliable information extraction
and cooperative decision making employing concepts from data mining and
machine learning, are now commonplace in our field.
This observation leads directly to the title of this book – Object and pattern
recognition in remote sensing. The book reports on research and development
projects which were carried out in approximately the last 10 years at the Institute
of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technol-
ogy (KIT) under the leadership of Professor Stefan Hinz, and it gives an excellent
overview of the current state-of-the-art in photogrammetry and remote sens-
ing. For decades KIT has been one of the prime centres in this area, and the
work documented in this book proves that this remains the case. While the
book is not designed as a text book, it is of high relevance to students and other
people wanting to learn about photogrammetry and remote sensing. The indi-
vidual chapters discuss a number of important topics and, at the same time,
show the clear direction of the current activities, at KIT and elsewhere, in
photogrammetry and remote sensing research.
I believe such success has basically two ingredients: (a) individual excellence,
which the KIT group greatly possesses, and (b) an international network, to be
able to share and learn from latest trends in their own discipline and in neigh-
bouring fields. Together with his group, Stefan Hinz is very active in the network
set up and maintained within the International Society of Photogrammetry and
Remote Sensing (ISPRS).
ISPRS, www.isprs.org, is an international non-governmental organization
that promotes international cooperation between the worldwide organizations
with interests in the photogrammetry, remote sensing and spatial information
sciences. Established in 1910, ISPRS is the oldest international umbrella organi-
zation in its field, which may be summarized as addressing ‘‘information from
imagery’’. The ISPRS scientific and technical programmes are organized by five
Commissions. Each Commission is sponsored by an ISPRS Member organi-
zation for the four-year period between Congresses. The Commissions have
established more than 60 Working Groups which are responsible for particular
topics within the Commissions’ areas of responsibility.
FM 2021/4/24 page ix

Foreword ix

KIT has been active in ISPRS for a very long time. As early as 1964 Kurt
Schwidefsky, one of the predecessors of Stefan Hinz and later an ISPRS Hon-
orary Member, became President of the ISPRS Commission II, then entitled
‘‘Theory, methods, instruments of restitution’’. From 2016 – 2020, Stefan Hinz
is President of Commission I, ‘‘Sensor systems’’; in the preceding period Boris
Jutzi held the position of Vice President of the same Commission, continuing
in this position for the present period. In addition, scientists from KIT chaired
ISPRS working groups, organised ISPRS events and presented numerous papers
at the ISPRS Congresses, symposia and workshops. As mentioned, such engage-
ment is an essential ingredient in modern science and development, which in
the days of open science, open source, open data and open access is heavily
influenced by international and interdisciplinary cooperation.
I congratulate the authors, and in particular the editors under the leadership
of Stefan Hinz, for this nice piece of work and hope that the readers will find
the material as interesting as I did.

Christian Heipke
ISPRS President 2016–2020
Institut für Photogrammetrie und GeoInformation (IPI)
Leibniz Universität Hannover
FM 2021/4/24 page x
FM 2021/4/24 page xi

Editors and Authors

Stefan Hinz studied geodesy and geoinformatics at the TU Muenchen (MSc, 1998) and
received the doctorate in 2003 and the venia legendi (Habilitation) in 2008. His research
work concentrated on image analysis for automatic mapping from aerial and satellite images
by methods of artificial intelligence. In the course of the habilitation, this research extended
towards thermal and radar data with application to short and long-term monitoring of moving
objects, land use and urban infrastructure. With the appointment in 2008 as full professor
for Remote Sensing and Image Processing at KIT, Professor Hinz became director of the
Institute for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (IPF) and has since then been leading a
group of scientists of about 30–35 people. He is head of the Graduate School for Climate
and Environment (GRACE) of approximately 100 PhD students and served as dean of the
Faculty for Civil Engineering, Geo- und Environmental Sciences for the period 2012–2018.
Since 2016, he has been President of Technical Commission 1 Sensors and Platforms of the
International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) and member of the
ISPRS Journal editorial advisory board.

Andreas Braun received the Diploma in Geoecology from Technical University of Karlsruhe
in 2009. After continuing his research in remote sensing at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
(Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing), he received his PhD in 2013 and spent
a year as a postdoctoral researcher at the university of Freiburg (Chair of Remote Sensing
and Landscape Information Systems). From 2011 he additionally started his studies of soci-
ology, economy and philosophy at the FernUniversität in Hagen (Germany) and received his
MA in sociology in 2016. In 2015 he was assigned a junior professorship for risk oriented
regional development at the Institute of Regional Science (KIT), which he currently holds,
investigating human vulnerability in developing countries (mainly in Latin America).

Martin Weinmann received the Diploma in Electrical Engineering and Information Tech-
nology from the Technical University of Karlsruhe in 2009 and the PhD degree from the
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in 2015. Currently, he is postdoctoral researcher at
the Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing at KIT. His main research interests are
in the fields of computer vision, pattern recognition, active 3D vision, image and point cloud
processing, and scene analysis. He served several years as reviewer for the International
Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS), the Institute of Electrical and
Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the German Society for Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing
and Geoinformation (DGPF).

Callum Banfield received his Diploma in Geoecology from the Karlsruhe Institute of Tech-
nology in 2013. After having spent one year travelling, he started pursuing a PhD in soil science
at the Department of Temperate Ecosystems of the Georg-August University of Goettingen.
During his PhD studies he is focusing on subsoil carbon dynamics of arable fields, combining
biomarker approaches with stable and radioactive tracers.

Clémence Dubois received her Double-Diploma in Topography, Geodesy and Geomat-

ics from the National Institute of Applied Sciences (INSA) of Strasbourg, France, and the
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Germany, in 2011, and her PhD degree from the
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in 2015. From 2012 to mid-2016, she has been with
the Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (IPF) of the Karlsruhe Institute of
Technology (KIT), and also a member of the GRAduate School for Climate and Environment
(GRACE) of KIT. Since 2016, she has been with the department "Geoscientific Information,
FM 2021/4/24 page xii

xii Object and Pattern Recognition

International Cooperation" of the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources,
Germany. Her research activity mainly covers SAR, InSAR and stereo-SAR image exploita-
tion, especially object detection and reconstruction, change detection, and lately DInSAR
and PS processing for diverse geo-hazard and remote sensing applications.

Franz Rottensteiner received a Dipl. Ing. Degree in surveying and PhD and venia docendi
in photogrammetry, all from Vienna University of Technology, Vienna, Austria. He has been
a Postdoctoral Researcher with the Vienna University of Technology, the University of New
South Wales (Kensington, NSW, Australia), and the University of Melbourne (Parkville, Vic-
toria, Australia). He is currently with the Institute of Photogrammetry and GeoInformation,
Leibniz Universität Hannover (Hannover, Germany), where he is an Associate (apl.) Pro-
fessor, leading the Photogrammetric Image Analysis Group. His research interests include
photogrammetry, automated extraction of topographic objects, processing of lidar data, and
sensor orientation.

Miriam Hommel received her Diploma in Geodesy and Geoinformatics from Universität
Karlsruhe (TH) in 2006 and her PhD degree from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
in 2010. From 2006 to 2010 she was staff member of the Institute of Photogrammetry and
Remote Sensing (IPF) at KIT and from 2010 to 2011 of the Fraunhofer Institute for Manu-
facturing Engineering and Automation (IPA). Since 2012 she has been an employee at Aalen
University of Applied Sciences. Her main research interests are object detection and recon-
struction from lidar and multi-spectral data, automatic change and damage detection, as well
as classification and statistical data analysis.

Boris Jutzi received a Diploma in Electrical Engineering at University of Kaiserslautern,

Germany, obtained his PhD degree at Technische Universität München (TUM), Germany,
and the Venia Legendi at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Germany. Currently he
is Adjunct Professor and head of the ‘‘Active Sensors & Computer Vision’’ Department at
the Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing at KIT. His main research interests are
computer vision, lidar remote sensing, automatic image analysis, and optical active sensing
with full-waveform lidar and time-of-flight imaging. He served several years for the Inter-
national Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS), e.g. 2012–2016 as Vice
President of the ISPRS Technical Commission I “Sensors and Platforms for Remote Sensing”
and 2016–2020 as Secretary of the ISPRS Technical Commission I “Sensor Systems”.

Sina Keller holds a degree in mathematics and geography from the University of Karlsruhe in
2010. She received her PhD degree from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in 2015.
During her PhD she worked on a model assessing natural hazards on critical infrastructure.
Currently, she is a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote
Sensing at KIT. Since 2012, she has been working as a lecturer for mathematics at the Baden-
Wuerttemberg Cooperative State University Karlsruhe. In 2015, she also took over leadership
of the research division at the company ci-Tec GmbH. Her main research interests address
the modelling of hydrological processes with hyperspectral and thermal data as well as the
modelling and investigation of road network vulnerability.

Jens Leitloff received his Diploma in Geodetic Engineering from the Technische Universität
Berlin in 2003 and his PhD degree from Technische Universität München in 2011. From
2008 to 2011 he was with the Remote Sensing Technology Institute at the German Aerospace
Center (DLR) in Oberpfaffenhofen. In 2011 he joined the Institute of Photogrammetry and
Remote Sensing at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). His main research interests are
computer vision, image processing, image and point cloud classification, camera systems and
camera calibration.
FM 2021/4/24 page xiii

Editors and Authors xiii

Florian Schmidt received his Diploma in Geodesy and Geoinformatics from the Techni-
cal University of Karlsruhe in 2009 and his PhD degree from the Karlsruhe Institute of
Technology (KIT) in 2012. From 2009 to 2012, he was staff member of the Institute of Pho-
togrammetry and Remote Sensing (IPF) at KIT. His main research interests include object
detection and tracking, machine learning and analysis of aerial image sequences.

Ulrike Sturm-Hentschel (nee Ulrike Sturm) received her diploma in geoecology in 2004 after
studying at Technical University in Karlsruhe (today: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology) and
the Universidade Federal do Parana in Brazil. From 2004 to 2006 she worked as a scientific
volunteer at Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde (Federal Museum of Natural History) in
Karlsruhe. From 2006 to 2011 she has been working as a scientific assistant at the Institute
of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing of Karlsruhe Insitute of Technology. In 2012, she
received her PhD for her study on the settlement processes in the coastal area of Benin, in
which she applied several remote sensing techniques for a spatially explicit assessment of
settlement growth. These studies were backed up by field research, and the two types of data
sets were related to each other. From 2012 to 2013 she has been working as a freelancer in
the field of sustainable development. Since 2013, she has been a scientific assistant at the
German Museum in Munich, responsible for the Department of Ground Transportation.

Antje Thiele received her Diploma in Geodesy from the Technical University Dresden in
2004 and her PhD degree from Leibniz Universität Hannover (LUH) in 2013. Since 2005,
she has been with the Fraunhofer Institute of Optronics, System Technologies and Image
Exploitation (IOSB) and since 2009 also with the Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote
Sensing (IPF) at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). In 2014, she took over lead-
ership of the group ‘‘SAR Image Exploitation’’ at Fraunhofer IOSB. Her research activity
mainly concerns SAR and InSAR image exploitation by focusing on object detection and
reconstruction, classification, change detection and simulation.

Uwe Weidner received his Diploma in Geodesy in 1992 and his PhD degree in 1997, both
from the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms University, Bonn. From 1997 to 2000 he worked for
a company in the field of aerial photogrammetry and from 2000 to 2002 for a company in
the field of industrial image processing and robotics. Since February 2003 he has been with
the Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, KIT, Karlsruhe, as senior scientist
in the field of remote sensing. His research interests include various aspects of automatic
object extraction using multi-/hyperspectral remote sensing data and evaluation of meth-
ods in remote sensing. He served several years as reviewer for the International Society
for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS), the Institute of Electrical and Electron-
ics Engineers (IEEE) and the German Society for Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and
Geoinformation (DGPF).

Thomas Vögtle received his Diploma in Geodesy in 1982 and his PhD degree in 1989, both
from the University of Karlsruhe. Since 1984, he has been a member of the Institute of
Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, working on several scientific projects. Since 1991 he
has been Senior Scientist and Lecturer at the same institute. His research activities concern
automation in image analysis and point cloud processing as well as 3D object extraction
from different data sets. He has served as reviewer for several international journals, has
published two lecture books as editor/co-author, and has received two awards (Dambach
award, Hansa-Luftbild award).

Sven Wursthorn received his Diploma in Geodesy from the Technical University of Karlsruhe
in 2002 and his PhD degree from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in 2014.
Since 2002, he has been with the Institute of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (IPF)
at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). His main research interests are geographic
information systems, augmented reality and photogrammetry.
FM 2021/4/24 page xiv
Chap-01 2021/2/20 page 1

Part I
Methodology
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
The Project Gutenberg eBook of In ship and
prison
 This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United
States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away
or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License
included with this ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you
are not located in the United States, you will have to check the
laws of the country where you are located before using this
eBook.

Title: In ship and prison

A story of five years in the Continental Navy with
Captain Samuel Tucker

Author: William P. Chipman

Illustrator: Arthur de Bebian

Release date: August 14, 2024 [eBook #74251]

Language: English

Original publication: United States: Saalfield Publishing Co, 1908

Credits: Peter Becker, David E. Brown, and the Online

Distributed Proofreading Team at
https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from
images generously made available by the Library of
Congress)

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN SHIP AND

PRISON ***
“Mark you, if you miss the craft, you shall receive forty
blows.”
(p. 214)
 IN SHIP and PRISON

A Story of Five Years in the

Continental Navy with Captain
Samuel Tucker

By WILLIAM PENDLETON CHIPMAN

Drawings by ARTHUR DE BEBIAN

THE SAALFIELD PUBLISHING CO.

NEW YORK AKRON, OHIO CHICAGO
 Copyright, 1908
BY
THE SAALFIELD PUBLISHING CO.

MADE BY
THE WERNER COMPANY
AKRON, OHIO
 CONTENTS

Chapter Page
I I Go In Search of Captain Tucker 9
II In Which I Defy the Captain 22
III Left on the Brig 38
IV A Dastardly Trick 51
V An Unfortunate Remark 67
VI In Which I Have My First Taste of a British Prison 84
VII I Meet a New Friend 99
VIII Our First Prize 113
IX An Astonishing Offer 127
X We Capture a Frigate 146
XI A Distinguished Passenger on Board 166
XII To Halifax Prison 180
XIII On Board a British Frigate 194
XIV I Rejoin the Boston 208
XV In Which We Capture the Pole 223
XVI To the Defense of Charleston 237
XVII Taken Into the British Camp 251
XVIII The Beacon House Light Expedition 266
XIX We Board a Cartel Ship 283
XX Charleston is Taken 299
XXI “The Cruise of the Nine” 313
XXII Captured by the Hind 327
XXIII The Escape 345
 ILLUSTRATIONS

Page
“Mark you, if you miss the craft, you shall receive
forty blows” Frontispiece
“What I want is a second mate” 82
“Master Dunn, you are my prisoner” 158
He soon came upon the shore, where a boat and
four men were evidently awaiting him 270
 AUTHOR’S NOTE
“Of those heroic men who were distinguished in the American
Revolution on land or sea, the far greater part have been depictured
by able pens. Monuments have been erected, biographies have been
written, and the elegant historian has adorned their memory with
unfading wreaths. * * * But there is one man of no mean rank in the
day of struggle—a pioneer of our infant navy—who took more prizes,
fought more sea fights, and gained more victories than, with a very
few exceptions, any naval hero of the age.”—From Shepard’s Life of
Captain Samuel Tucker.
“He did his part, and did it nobly, while our navy was in an embryo
state, and only consisted of a few armed sloops and schooners, and
yet performed such essential service in supplying the destitute army
of Washington.”—From American Almanac, 1835.
“It is well enough to bring the body of Paul Jones across the ocean
and bury it in American soil with appropriate honors. But the nation
should not forget that another man—Captain Samuel Tucker—lies in
a neglected grave today; yet no man captured more prize ships, or
did more to feed and clothe the army of Washington than he.”—
From The Herald, editorial, 1905.
The incidents of this book are taken largely from the log-book of
Captain Tucker, and are intended to picture the stirring times in
which he lived, and the thrilling adventures in which he engaged.
Midshipman Arthur Dunn, one of Captain Tucker’s officers, is the
narrator, and his story covers the five years during which his
commander played no small part in naval affairs. It is hoped the
narrative will arouse in the heart of every reader an admiration for
the brave Captain, and rescue from oblivion the name of another of
our Continental heroes—the man who did so much to keep the land
forces of our Revolutionary struggle supplied with ammunition and
stores at the expense of the enemy.
William P. Chipman.
IN SHIP AND PRISON
 CHAPTER I
I GO IN SEARCH OF CAPTAIN TUCKER
I cannot remember the time when I did not love the sea, nor is that
strange. I was born in sight of the ocean. My father, and, as for that
matter, his father before him, was a sailor. My first recollections are
of boats and oars, of vessels and ropes and sails. At fourteen I had
made a trip to the Great Banks on a fishing smack and at sixteen my
knowledge of the Atlantic coast reached from Newfoundland to
Charleston. Tall for my age, strong and hardy from constant toil and
exposure, and familiar with all sorts of sailing craft from a shallop to
a ship, I counted myself an able-bodied seaman. I now had one
ambition—to voyage to foreign ports.
Suddenly, unexpectedly, the single cable which bound me to the
homeland was severed. My mother—the only parent I can
remember, for my father was lost at sea while I was still a babe—
died. I left her in usual health for a voyage to Norfolk. On my return
I found her dead and buried. In caring for a neighbor, who was sick
with typhus fever, she fell a victim to the disease. A small cottage
with its scanty furniture, a few dollars in the care of Squire Sabins,
the village lawyer, and her dying message—these were my legacy. It
was the message which changed the course of my life, and sent me
away from my native town for years. It read:
“My dear Boy:—
But for you I should rejoice over what the doctor just told
me—that I have but a few hours to live—for it means a
reunion with your dear father, though a separation from
you. It is but a change from the presence of one loved
one to the presence of the other. Sixteen years I have
been with you, fifteen years away from him. Now I go to
be with him, and leave you to the care of Him who has
 promised to be with the fatherless. He will keep you in all
your ways.
Doubtless you know that there is no tie to keep you near
home, and will carry out your long cherished wish of
visiting other lands. You have my free consent. I was a
sailor’s daughter and a sailor’s wife. I believe ‘it is as near
to heaven by sea as by land,’ and have no objection, as
you long have known, to a sailor son. I only suggest that
you go to Marblehead and find Captain Samuel Tucker. He
was a friend of your father, and will be your friend and
adviser. Possibly he may be willing to give you a berth in
his own ship; if not, he may be able to secure a place for
you with some other captain as good and trustworthy as
himself. This much I am sure he will be willing to do for
you for your father’s sake. Never forget the great truths
you have learned at my knee, and, living by them, you
shall some day join your father and me in heaven. With
my best love and a kiss,
Your dying mother,
Elizabeth Dunn.”
Squire Sabins, who had been appointed my guardian, though himself
averse to the sea, offered no opposition to my plans, and a week
later, with a new sailor’s kit and as fine an outfit as a lad of my age
ever had, I left for Marblehead to look up Captain Tucker—a man
whom I had never seen, but about whom I had heard from
childhood, for, as the sole survivor of my father’s wreck on the coast
of France, he had been the one to bring the tidings of that
unfortunate event to my mother. I arrived at the village in the
evening, and was left by the stage at Mason’s Inn, where I passed
the night. Early the next morning, while I waited for the breakfast
hour, I went out on the street for a stroll. Of almost the first person I
met, an old fisherman on the way to his nets, I inquired for the
residence of the man I was seeking.
“Capt’n Samuel, I ’spose you mean, seein’ how thar ain’t but one
Capt’n Tucker here,” he responded. “That big, gabled house, standin’
thar all by itself on Rowland Hill, not far from the bay shore, is whar
he lives when to home. But he hain’t thar now. He sailed yisterday
from Salem for Lisbon.”
“You are sure of that, sir?” I asked with much chagrin at the thought
that I had lost by a single day the man I was anxious to see.
“I orter be,” he answered good-naturedly, “seein’ how my Bill went
with him, rated as an able seaman for the fust time, an’ I was over
thar to see them off. Bill will make a capt’n yit, ye see if he don’t, for
he’s with the smartest skipper that sails from these parts, who’s
promised to do the square thing by the lad.”
I was in no state of mind to dispute his assertion, or to listen further
to a recital of his family affairs, which he seemed disposed to make.
Thanking him for his information, though it had not been to my
liking, I turned abruptly and went back to the tavern, where the
disagreeable news I had received was confirmed by the inn-keeper
while I was at breakfast.
I arose from the table out of sorts with myself and uncertain what
course I had better follow. I knew I could go back to my native town
and reclaim the place I had given up on the coasting schooner. But I
did not want to do that, now that I had bidden farewell to all my
friends there with the expectation that I should not see them again
for months, perhaps not for years. I could not afford to wait, without
employment, until Captain Tucker returned. Could I find some other
ship in the harbor, or over at Salem, on which I might secure a
berth?
Debating this question with myself, I tramped about the town for
several hours, visiting the cliffs, the beach, the wharves, the old
powder house and Sewall fort. Occasionally I made inquiries about
the seventy vessels of various kinds which I could count in the
harbor, but while I found several opportunities to ship on a fisher or
coaster, I did not find a single vacancy on a vessel bound across the
ocean. Towards noon I reached Red Stone Cove, where there lay,
stranded and broken in two, a long boat, perhaps once belonging to
an East India-man. On the stern part of this disabled craft I at length
sat down and soliloquized:
“Evidently there’s no chance for me here, and after dinner I’ll hire a
boat and row across to Salem, and try my luck there. Perhaps I shall
be more fortunate. If not, I can come back here, and take a berth
on a fisher until Captain Tucker comes home.”
Little thinking the latter was the wiser course for me to follow by all
odds, I arose to retrace my steps to the inn. As I did so I noticed
that a yawl had rounded the opposite point, and was coming into
the cove, apparently crossing over from Salem. It occurred to me
that here might be a chance for me to secure a passage over to that
town in the afternoon, so I waited the arrival of the boat. Soon it
was near enough for me to see that it was pulled by two men in
sailor garb, while a third, whose dress and appearance suggested he
might be a ship’s officer, sat in the stern. In another moment the
light craft touched the beach, and the last-named gentleman
stepped ashore. As I went forward to accost him, I heard him say to
his companions:
“Remain here, lads, until I return. I shall not keep you waiting long if
I have good luck in finding the man I am after.”
“Aye! Aye! Capt’n,” they replied. “You’ll find us here when you get
back.”
Those words gave directions to the form of my salutation, as I
reached his side. Touching my hat, I said:
“I beg your pardon, Captain, but are you just over from Salem?”
“Yes,” he answered, a little gruffly, I thought, “but what is that to
you?”
“Do you know of any vessel over there that will soon sail for
Portugal?”
I added that last word to my query, for it had suddenly occurred to
me that, if I could reach that country, I might join Captain Tucker
over there as well as on this side of the ocean.
“I do,” he admitted, “but why do you ask?” and for the first time he
looked me carefully over.
“I’d like to ship on her,” I cried joyfully. “Will you kindly tell me her
name, and where I can find her captain?”
“I happen to be her master,” he responded affably. “Ebenezer
Weston, of the brig Young Phoenix, bound from Salem to Oporto
within a few hours,” he added with growing politeness. “Now tell me
who you are and why you wish to go to Portugal.”
I promptly did so, without a single interruption or word of comment
from him until my story was finished. Then he remarked:
“Arthur Dunn, son of Captain Thomas Dunn, and seeking for a place
with Captain Samuel Tucker. That’s all in your favor, young man. Now
tell me what experience you have had as a sailor—what do you
know of a brig and the handling of her?”
Modestly I told him, saying I hoped to be rated as an able seaman
on the vessel which shipped me.
We had been walking up the beach as we talked, and were now out
of the hearing of the sailors who remained by the yawl, a fact
Captain Weston was careful to note before he spoke again.
“I can do better than that for you, Arthur Dunn,” he then said, “if
you think you can fill the place. What I want is a second mate. I
came over here to look for a young fellow whom I know slightly and
whom I believed would answer for the berth. He may be here, and
he may not. He might be willing to ship with me and he might not.
What is more important, you are here, and are ready to go. Now
why can’t we strike a bargain?”
“I would do my very best, sir,” I stammered, hardly believing it
possible the man could be in earnest in his proposal.
“You are rather young for the position, I admit,” he said more to
himself than to me, “but you have had more experience at sea than
the man I was after, and the stock you came from, as I happen to
know, is excellent. Your father and grandfather were born sailors,
and I believe it will prove so in your case. Anyway, I’m willing to take
the risk, and will tell you what I’ll do. If you will sign for the voyage
over and back, and not join Captain Tucker until he’s home again,
which will be about the same time we heave into port, I’ll rate you at
forty-eight shillings as a starter. How will that do?”
“I certainly shall accept the offer, and thank you for it, too,” I
answered heartily. “When and where shall I report to you?”
He thought a moment; then replied: “There’s hardly room in the
yawl for you and your traps, and it would be something of a job to
tote the latter down here. So you’d better go back to the tavern, get
your dinner, and take the afternoon stage over to Salem. Let the
driver leave you at Long Wharf. I’ll have a boat there for you. This
completes my crew, and we’ll sail on the morning tide.”
“I’ll be on hand, sir,” I promised, and turned towards the village.
Before I reached the bank above the beach, however, he called out:
“Hey there, Master Dunn, I’m usually pretty close mouthed about my
affairs, especially here in this town, so you needn’t say anything to
anyone about whom you have shipped with. Just get your luggage
and come over to the brig.”
“Very well, sir,” I answered, thinking little then about the strangeness
of this request.
A rapid walk of ten minutes took me back to the tavern, where I got
dinner, settled my bill and clambered onto the top of the huge coach
that soon rattled up to the door.
“When shall we see you again?” asked the courteous inn-keeper,
following me out to the stage, with an evident desire to learn more
of me and my visit to the town than he had yet been able to
ascertain.
“When I come back with Captain Tucker,” I retorted, little knowing
how true were my words. “I’ve decided to go over the ocean after
him.”
“Your business with him must be important, then,” he muttered as
the great vehicle drove away.
Something more than an hour later I was on Long Wharf where I
found Captain Weston had been as good as his word. The two men
who had been with him at Marblehead were waiting for me with the
yawl, and, loading in my kit, they took me swiftly out to as trim a
brig as I had ever seen. Mounting to her deck I was warmly greeted
by the man whom I, at that moment, counted my best friend, but
who was to prove my greatest enemy before that voyage was over.
 CHAPTER II
IN WHICH I DEFY THE CAPTAIN
“Here you are safe on board the brig, Master Dunn, and in good
season,” Captain Weston said as he grasped my hand. “I’m glad of
it, for I’ve changed my mind since I left you, and we’ll heave anchor
and be off tonight. First of all, however, let me introduce you to my
first mate. Master Thomas Marshall, this is our second officer, Master
Arthur Dunn.”
As he spoke, a young fellow, who looked scarcely older than myself,
though I learned later that he was just over twenty-one, stepped
forward and offered me his hand.
“I’m glad to see you, Master Dunn,” he said in a hearty way that
quite won my heart, “and I welcome you on board the Young
Phoenix.”
Possibly my face revealed my surprise at finding the executive officer
of the vessel but a stripling, for as I took Master Marshall’s hand, the
Captain remarked: “Yes, it’s the Young Phoenix—young in name and
young in age, for she is only three years old, and what is more
fitting than that she should have young mates? Ha! ha! ha!” and he
laughed quite boisterously over his attempt at pleasantry.
For myself, I thought his laughter unseemly, and for some reason,
though I could not then have told why, it grated on my ears. But the
irritation I experienced was forgotten or overlooked the next
moment, for, turning to two sailors who stood near, Captain Weston
directed them to take my luggage down into the cabin. Then,
speaking to me, he added:
“And come right along yourself, Master Dunn. I’ll show you your
quarters, and have you sign the ship’s articles, and explain to you
about the watches. Then we’ll be ready to get under weigh.”
In five minutes these preliminaries were attended to, in ten minutes
more the anchor was hoisted, and, with all sails set, the brig was
standing out of the harbor. The breeze was a good one, the vessel
proved herself a good sailer, and before sundown we were out of
sight of land.
I do not imagine there was ever a more complacent lad than myself
when I took the second watch at eight bells, and found myself for
the time in sole command of the vessel. The night was a beautiful
one; the stars showed bright and clear in the deep vault over my
head; the wind—a west one—bore us rapidly along our course; the
brig responded to every touch of the wheel like a thing of life; and
my own feelings were in keeping with my surroundings.
I walked the quarter-deck with a slow and dignified tread,
occasionally pausing to direct some member of my watch to tauten a
rope, or ease up a sail, or to keep a sharp lookout forward. Perhaps
these commands were not always necessary, but I issued them
partly to impress my men with the feeling that I, though young, was
equal to the place I had been called to fill, and partly that I might
test the working of the vessel and familiarize myself with her
peculiarities. For, though you may not know it, each ship has her
own whims and moods, and only he who is thoroughly acquainted
with them can have full mastery over her.
So the minutes rolled away, each new discovery about the brig
increasing my complacency and giving shape to my thoughts. Here it
was less than forty hours since I had left home, and, though I had
not found Captain Tucker, I was in a better berth than he would have
been likely to give or find for me, thanks to my fortunate meeting
with Captain Weston. My quarters on the vessel were all I could ask;
the meal I had eaten at dusk had revealed the fact that the captain
was a good provider; the first officer, Master Marshall, appeared to
be a good sort of a fellow and one I could easily get along with. On
the whole, I was better off than I had even dared to hope or expect.
So I mused, and among my musings was one that took the form of
a resolve: Captain Weston should have no occasion to regret the
confidence he had put in me. I would do all that was possible to win
his approbation, until I had been advanced to the position of first
officer. From that it would be an easy step to the command of some
vessel—and when that place was reached I could go back to my
native village with pride and elation. Anyway, no more forecastle for
me. I was in the cabin, and there I would stay until I was Captain
Dunn.
I make mention of these thoughts here, for I was soon to learn the
lesson that there is a vast difference between an idle fancy and the
stern reality. In fact, my complacency received a rude shock almost
immediately. Walking along to Bill Howard, the oldest and most
experienced sailor on board the brig, who was taking his trick at the
wheel, I asked:
“How does she handle, Bill? Does she mind her helm readily?”
“I’ve seed them that does better,” he growled.
“I don’t know about that, Bill,” I retorted. “I call this a pretty fine
craft.”
“She’s well ’nough, I ’spose,” he admitted with some show of
reluctance. “At the same time Bill Howard wishes he wasn’t on board
of her.”
“Why, what’s the trouble?” I persisted. “It can’t be they don’t give
you enough to eat. I saw the supper sent down to you tonight. You
don’t often get better on shipboard.”
“I wants no better, if it only continues,” he replied.
“What makes you think it won’t, Bill?” I questioned, thinking he
might have been along with Captain Weston on a previous voyage
and had some revelation to make. I had known of skippers who
always fed their crews well until they got them out to sea. It might
be this that would prove to be the weak point of the man with whom
I had shipped so unceremoniously. But his reply was a question.
“I beg your pardon, sir, but have you sailed on the brig afore?”
“No, Bill, I haven’t. Have you?”
“Never, sir! and I can’t find anyone from fust mate to cabin-boy that
has.”
He paused a moment, as though giving me time to take in the
assertion; then he continued:
“You’s young, sir, but I can see you are a sailor. Now let me ax you a
question. Does it look well for a Capt’n when goin’ out of his home
port to have to ship all new men? Bill Howard says no, an’ he’d
never shipped on the brig had he knowed it. Mark my word, sir, I’m
no croaker, but I’ll bet ye a month’s pay we’ll both wish we were
ashore ’fore we make port again. An’ ’twon’t be the craft, sir; ’twill
be the ol’ man.”
“Oh! I guess it won’t turn out as bad as that, Bill,” I replied with a
laugh, and walked away.
But the conceit had been knocked out of me by his words. I was not
so sure that I had been wise to jump so quickly at Captain Weston’s
flattering offer. I was not so certain I wished to remain on the brig
longer than for that voyage. And I built no more air castles during
that watch.
A few minutes before the time for the watches to change Master
Marshall came on deck. Surprised at his early appearance, I went
forward to meet him. As I reached his side, dark as it was, I could
readily detect that he was troubled about something.
“Master Dunn,” he began immediately, “may I ask if you are well
acquainted with Captain Weston? Do you know anything about his
habits?”
“No, sir,” I answered with a sinking heart. “I never saw him or heard
of him until about three hours before I put my foot on the brig.”
“Then I’m not the only fool on board,” he remarked quickly, and I
thought he said it with considerable satisfaction. “My acquaintance
with him isn’t twenty hours old.”
He was silent a moment, and then as though some explanation was
necessary went on:
“I belong in Eastport, Maine. My last berth was as second mate on a
brig in the West India trade. We were wrecked a week ago, and a
Salem craft picked us up and brought us in there. I’d hardly stepped
ashore when I met Captain Weston. He called me by name, said he
knew of me, and, being in want of a first officer, would give me the
place if I could arrange to sail at once. Like yourself, I’m ambitious
to get ahead; it seemed too good a chance to lose, and, as he was
willing to advance enough for my outfit, I promptly accepted the
offer. In two or three hours I made my purchases, mailed a letter
home, telling of my good luck, and came aboard. As soon as I was
settled in the cabin, the Captain went over to Marblehead after you.”
“Not after me,” I interrupted, and then I explained how I came to be
shipped on the vessel as second mate.
“It looks bad,” he remarked when I was done. “Captains don’t
usually pick up their officers that way. But doubtless some of the
crew are old hands, and we can learn from them about the Captain.”
“No,” I declared, and then I told him of the conversation I had just
held with Bill Howard.
“It’s worse than I thought!” he ejaculated. “New officers and new
men throughout!”
“Why, what have you discovered?” I inquired, coming at last to the
question which I had for some time been eager to ask.
“You’ll see for yourself when you go below,” he replied, “though I
don’t mind telling you. He’s down there drinking like a fish, and is
already so he can’t tell whether he’s afloat or ashore.”
“Well, I’m glad it’s no worse than that,” I said with a sigh of relief,
“for I’m sure you and I can manage the brig.”
“It isn’t that that troubles me,” he responded quickly. “But you see
he’s captain whether drunk or sober, and you can never tell what
freak a drunken man will take. No, Master Dunn, we are in for it,
and must stand together so far as we can for our own protection
and for the protection of the crew.”
“You may count on me,” I promised, and as the watches were now
changing I started for the cabin.
Once there, I found Master Marshall had not overstated the
situation. The room was filled with the odor of rum, and a glass and
bottle, both empty, sat upon the table, while the skipper was lying
on the floor, now entirely overcome with the liquor he had drunk;
and there he still lay four hours later when I again went on deck.
It was not, in fact, until the next day at noon that he came on deck,
and I never knew a greater change in the appearance of any person
within the same length of time than there was in him. From the
neatly dressed, affable gentleman who had received me as I stepped
on board the brig, he had now become the ill-kept, blear-eyed,
irascible sot. Ignoring Master Marshall and myself, though both of us
were near the wheel, he walked rapidly down to the galley, where
the cook was issuing food to the men. Confronting that personage
just as he came through the door of the caboose, his hands full of
dishes, he angrily demanded:
“Who told you to give all that grub to those land-lubbers?”
“You did, sir,” stammered the man in great alarm. “Indeed, sir, I
haven’t given them a single thing more than you told me.”
“Take that for your impudence,” the irate officer cried, and with his
huge fist he struck the fellow a blow which sent him sprawling down
the deck, while the dishes he carried rolled to the opposite rail.
“Now, sir,” he shouted as the unfortunate cook regained his feet,
“hear me! You are to give the men just one-half what you’ve been
doing until further orders, and mark! if I catch you adding a single
pound to that, I’ll tie you to the mast and give you twenty lashes
with the cat.”
“I’ll do just as you say, sir,” the man meekly promised, as he began
to pick up his stray utensils.
That was the beginning of the brutal incidents we were called to
witness or experience through the remainder of our voyage. I have
no heart to write them out in detail here. But let me say I have
followed the sea for well nigh sixty years now, sailing on all kinds of
vessels and with all sorts of masters, but I never saw the equal of
Captain Weston for meanness or brutality. The men were starved
and beaten and worked nearly to death. I am sure there would have
been more than one fatality but for the courage and tact of Master
Marshall. When the captain was in his drunken stupors, he would
issue extra food to the men on his own responsibility, and so make
up to them in a measure that from which they were unjustly
deprived. In more than one instance, when the commander in some
ugly mood had ordered a sailor to the lash, he would contrive to put
off the punishment until later, and, on the skipper’s returning once
more to his cups, the man was allowed to go. But there were scores
of times when he could do nothing, for the Captain liked to do the
lashing with his own hands.
For a wonder I escaped any direct altercation with the Captain until
we had sighted the Bayona islands off the coast of Spain. It was
early morning, the sky was overcast, and a heavy wind was blowing
from the north-east. I was in charge of the deck and had sent Bill
Howard up the mainmast to belay a rope which had broken loose.
He completed his task, and started on his return to the deck. Just
then a sudden gust of wind took off his tarpaulin, and sent it scaling
toward the cabin hatch. It reached there as the Captain poked his
head out for a squint at the weather, and struck him in the face with
a force that must have stung him severely. With an oath he leaped
to the deck, and, discovering Bill bareheaded, he turned upon him
with the fury of a maniac.
“You low-lived cur,” he hissed. “I’ll teach you better than to throw
your hat at me! Here, Master Dunn, tie the villain to the mast, and
I’ll give him forty blows with the cat.”
“I beg your pardon, sir, it was the wind that took off Bill’s hat,” I
started to explain.