Books: Training Ships

THE MAKING OF A SAILOR—Alan J. Villiers—Morrow ($4).

On a Baltic cruise in 1937, Alan John Villiers, author of The Cruise of the Conrad and of many a lyric tribute to the beauty of sailing vessels, was surprised to see six fine full-rigged ships in one week. Two were Swedish, two Danish, one was Norwegian, one Polish. Because four square-rigged grain ships had been lost that year, Author Villiers had almost given up hope for them when the six vessels in the Baltic raised his spirits. They were schoolships.

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