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Everywhere I went I carried a sea chest.  This was not typical for most sailors to have a sea chest but because I was the quartermaster I would keep a ship commissary, or a store of toiletries like soap, shaving cream, candy, razor blades, razors, watches, stationary, and so forth.  These were the things the navy would not generally supply us in sufficient quantities.  I would keep guys supplied with these items.  The way it worked is I would go to a big ship that had the supplies we needed.  I would stand in line and get a supply from them.  I would fill the chest with these items and then take them back to ship where I would resell them to the crew when we were under weigh.  Sometimes we would be under weigh for as long as 30 days at a time and these things often became necessary.