[masraum]

A group of sailors aboard the first Battleship Texas, 1900. T he dirtiest sailor, barefoot in the middle, was probably the "powder monkey." His job was to hand-carry silk bags of powder from the magazine to the gun mount. Why silk? It burns away completely when fired, and it's strong and relatively light. Why barefoot? Fear of sparks from even shoe nails sparking on a steel step. Each shot from each of the turret's two guns required up to 6 powder bags to propel the shell on its miles-long trajectory, so this man was a busy who got plenty of exercise. This is a gorgeous, gritty photo ---- so good it almost feels like you're staring right into their souls.

Taken by famed photographer Edward Hart.