In Scandinavia it was not unusual for a small landowner to go to sea leaving wife and children on the farm. A sailor could earn hard currency, sending some of it to his family to pay taxes and make essential purchases. The land would provide the rest. And some men enjoyed the varied experiences to be had by a seaman.

Leif married late in life, right after inheriting the property, because it was the thing to do. Even so, he sired five children, all conceived during his brief visits to check on his belongings and to monitor the accounts. The dates of birth all fit with this belief and there was no indication of an interloper or even a wife’s cousin to be chased away.

*****

It was with stoicism that Hilda received the news that Leif’s ship had sunk with total loss of life. Her immediate concern was to find a way for them all to survive without the cash her husband had provided. Her oldest son was able to manage the farm. She would dry herbs, hunt mushrooms, preserve berries and take in sewing in order to earn coinage. Her oldest daughter would marry in a few years and meanwhile could look after the two youngest children. The middle child, Karl, represented surplus labor and a thirteen year old appetite she could ill afford.

Since the boy had admired his father and talked about going to sea himself, it was in this direction that Hilda looked for a solution. So it was that Karl and Hilda took to the road, hitching rides on farmers’ wagons in the direction of the port city. Arriving before nightfall, she located the house of the friend of an aunt, where it had been arranged for them to spend the night.

Karl did not sleep well for thoughts of travel to strange places, the dreadful possibility of being rejected, exciting adventures, ship wreck and other imaginings. Shortly after first light, mother and son were on the street that fronted the wharves. Hilda stopped at every inn and shop, asking the proprietor for any useful information he might have. She spoke to every sailor who was not staggering back to his ship, still woozy from booze and brawls. Quickly establishing that she was not a whore, she inquired if they knew of a captain needing a cabin boy. It was one of these who suggested she try the “Lady Tuke.”

Upon arrival at that ship’s berth, Hilda found a merchant vessel that was well maintained, at least to her eye. She helloed up the gang plank. Two heads appeared over the side and then an officer came down to see what she wanted. After explaining her mission, the officer glanced at Karl and indicated that he would speak to the captain.

*****

When the officer reappeared at the top and motioned for Karl to come aboard, the boy scurried up, anxious to show alacrity. He followed the officer to the rear of the ship where they stopped before a door flanked by two portholes. The man knocked once, opened the door and stood aside for Karl to enter. The door was closed behind him.

It took a moment for the lad’s eyes to adjust to the diminished light of the captain’s cabin. Right away, he could tell that a man was seated at a desk under a bank of mullioned windows. A few seconds later, the boy could make out the captain’s appearance. A little above average height, slender, with salt and pepper hair and a neatly trimmed beard, the fellow was occupied with his ledgers.

Not knowing what to do, Karl stepped forward a few paces and removed his cap, holding it in front with both hands. There he waited until the captain took notice of his presence.

“Your father was a sailor,” he stated.

“Yes, sir.”

“I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“I understand that your mother thinks you are ready to go to sea. What do you think?”

“I’ve always wanted to,” Karl replied with what he hoped was sufficient enthusiasm to impress on the captain the earnestness of his desire.

“What are the duties of a cabin boy?”

“To be the captain’s servant, to shine his boots and run errands.”

“It is to do whatever the captain asks of you to the very best of your ability. Do you think that you can do that?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Are you a strong boy?”

“Yes, sir.”

“I want to see for myself, take everything off.”

This instruction came as such a surprise to Karl that he hesitated. The captain, however, did not delay in saying, “That’s all right lad. I’ll tell your mother that you’re a fine young man, just not suited for this ship.”

“Please, sir. I want the job. I just didn’t think …” And with that Karl flopped down on his bottom and began unlacing his left boot.

The captain was charmed by this childish gesture. He imagined that the boy must do the same each night, next to his rude bed in the loft of a tiny farm house. The man returned to his ledgers, but followed the youth’s progress out of the corner of his eye.

Karl was down to his under shorts when he paused again, unsure whether the captain meant for him to remove these or not. Not wanting to be told yet again to undress, the lad removed them, deciding that it would be better for the captain to tell him to put them back on if he preferred. Guessing correctly the boy’s thought process, the man watched this deliberation with amusement.

Now naked, the youngster looked toward the captain, but the man appeared to be engrossed in his reading. Not knowing what else to do Karl stood up. Finally, the captain noticed that he was ready.

“Come,” he said and at the same time motioned the boy forward with his free hand.

Karl stepped forward unsure how closely the man wished to observe him. For his part, the captain was already fully satisfied with the youth’s unexpectedly fine appearance. A discernable grove ran from below the lad’s neck nearly to the tight knot of his belly button, muscles flaring from each side of this divide. Pliable now in one so young, they would harden by the time the boy was ready to become a sailor and turn to stone a few years after that.

The captain put down his ledger and gestured for the youngster to come within reach. Realizing that the man intended to examine his musculature by touch, Karl moved closer. Whereupon he felt the man’s hands on his arms and legs, chest and back. He got an erection when the captain took up his penis and gave it a few squeezes.

“I’m sorry, sir,” the lad apologized for his lack of control.

“That’s all right, son. For a while I was afraid there might be something wrong with you. But everything seems to work as it should. There’s just one more thing to check.”

The captain stood and led the youngster to a narrow cot that was built in to the wall next to the cabin door. “This is where you’ll sleep. Try it out,” the man suggested.

Karl stretched out on his back. The captain bent over and lifted the boy’s knees, then positioned the lad’s feet about two feet apart. Kneeling at the side of the bed, the man again took up the youth’s penis in his weathered hand. With the other, he opened a small compartment underneath the cot. There he located an open tin of petroleum jelly.

Taking up a dollop of the lubricant on two digits he applied it to the youngster’s anus and firmly inserted his index finger. Except for a whimpered, “mmmmm,” there was no reaction from the youngster. A couple of minutes of steady stroking and Karl splashed himself with semen.

From the same compartment, the captain located a rag that he used to clean his hands and the boy. While Karl dressed the captain said, “I expect you’ll need to return home to pack and say goodbye to your brothers and sisters. We don’t sail for another two weeks, but I want you back here in three days.”

The man wanted to give the lad time to think about what he was getting into and to find a way out if he wasn’t willing. The captain knew from experience that a reluctant boy was worse than none. “If you don’t want to be cabin boy on the “Lady Tuke,” you can tell your mother that you weren’t offered the job.”

*****

A few years later, Karl was an ordinary seaman on another vessel. Still a sympathetic person he had many admirers among the officers and crew. It was rivalry and jealousy that led to his untimely end.