They're sailors! Of course they should have tats. Just how miserable and sanitised a world has it become that sailors having visible tats is even an issue? Next thing you know they'll make it illegal for gentlemen to bugger strapping young stokers!
Read a newspaper /magazine article recently about how a lot of tattoo artists are pissed with the sudden prominence of tats in regular society, removing the outsider ambience and making them just another form of cosmetic. I'll see if I can find it online.
While we're on the subject, here's a rather nice photo of King Frederick IX of Denmark.
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