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 "No?" asked Uncle Rob. "Think a little. Why does the captain wear his?"

"So that people can find him," I said. "When folks see that, they know that he is on deck, attending to business and that the boat is being handled right. It's a sort of a guaranty that things are in the hands of some one who knows how."

"And the sailors' uniforms?"

"Same thing. They show where the sailors are and that there are plenty of them, and what sort of looking fellows they are, and that they are attending to their duties. The uniforms give confidence, of course."

"And is that all they are good for?"

"Well, all except to keep the men warm, and protect them."

"Yes," said Uncle Rob, "that is something, isn't it? To keep the men in them comfortable no matter what the weather;—so that they can go about their duties and not be thinking to whether they are going to be warm or cold when the next breeze blows. Still, you think that the uniforms are not the principal thing about the boat and voyage?"