Sail (boat)

“ Each sail is hoisted to its masthead by one halyard, and its luff is kept close to the mast by hoops or more usually by a lacing. A boat thus rigged is possibly the safest of any, and is not easily capsized. ”

“ If the after sail is the more powerful, it is obvious that the wind will drive round that sail and the stern of the boat with it in the direction of the arrow C, while the head of the boat will run up into the wind. If, on the other hand, the head sail be the more powerful of the two, the bow will be driven off the wind and the boat will bear away. ”

“ All the men stand with oars outstretched and ropes in readiness, awaiting the inevitable moment when the boat will be gripped by the whirlpool and drawn into its vortex. At the skipper’s bidding the oars on one side dip into the water, on the other side long poles are thrust out to keep the boat off the rocks, while the sail, skilfully handled by the most experienced sailors, is taken in or let out, turned and twisted, as the circumstances demand. ”

“ I had my marine glass with me, and during an interval when the fog—which now and again settled upon us—disappeared, I swept the horizon all round. As I looked easterly, my eye caught a strange black sail. Directing the captain and mate's attention to it, they examined, but could not make out what it was. At length we decided that it was a whale-boat with dark-coloured sails, and approaching us. Nearer and nearer it came, though yet far off; for when I had first seen it, refraction had made the small sails loom up higher even than those of a 300-ton vessel. ”

“ Take a bit of pine board, sharpen it at one end, set up a mast about a quarter of the length of the whole piece from the bow, fit on a square piece of stiff paper or card for a sail, and you are ready for action. Put this in the water, with the sail set squarely across (A, Fig. 141) , and she will run off before the wind—which is supposed to be blowing as indicated by the arrow—at a good rate of speed. If she does not steer herself, put a small weight near the stern, or square end; or, if you like, arrange a thin bit of wood for a rudder. ”

“ FLY-BLOCK. The block spliced into the topsail-tye; it is large and flat, and sometimes double.
FLY-BOAT. A large flat-bottomed Dutch vessel, whose burden is generally from 300 to 600 tons. It is distinguished by a remarkably high stern, resembling a Gothic turret, and by very broad buttocks below. Also, a swift canal passage-boat.
FLY-BY-NIGHT. A sort of square-sail, like a studding-sail, used in sloops when running before the wind; often a temporary spare jib set from the topmast-head to the yard-arm of the square-sail.
FLYER. A fast sailer ”

“ Bring the yacht close to the wind, and haul the main-sheet flat aft, and belay it carefully; for, if it should get adrift whilst the sail was being furled, some one might be knocked overboard. Then stand by the throat and peak-halliards, and, at the word "Lower away," ease away handsomely on each, taking care not to let the peak drop too fast, which, if done, sometimes causes the hoops to jam, and the whole sail to stick, till the peak-halliards are hoisted upon again to clear things. ”

“ The first day that you get under way with your new canvas should be a fine one. If it comes on to blow hard, and you have to reef your mainsail, it will certainly be pulled out of shape. You must not expect your sails to stretch in a day. You will have to tighten up the lacing and haul out the earing many times before your mainsail [89] has stretched its full, and the oftener the better for your sail’s flatness.
Laying up a Boat for the Winter.—In laying up a small yacht, it is well to have her upon shore, and if possible, under cover. ”

“ Secure for a sail material as strong as you can find, but it need not be heavy. Unbleached muslin is cheap and will make good sails. Turn over the edges and sew or hem them, as in the diagram. Make eyelets like button-holes in the luff of the sail—that is, the edge of the sail nearest the mast. Sew a small loop of rope [161] in each corner of the sail. Through the eyelets lace the luff of the sail to the mast.
From spruce or pine make a sprit two inches in diameter. ”

“ Always anchor it so that the wind is blowing on one end and not broadside as it is a strain on the anchors and ropes to hold a boat broadside on.
By erecting a spar fifteen or twenty feet high and four or five inches in diameter, a square-sail can be rigged on yard-arms so that the house-punt can be sailed before the wind. A long oar will be necessary to steer with, or a portable rudder may be made and hung to the stern with pins and ropes. ”

“ Leeway and lateral resistance—Heeling—Balancing sails—Tacking—Action of rudder—Longitudinal resistance—Deep keel or centre-board.
Any object floating on the water will have a tendency to drift before the wind; but a boat, with its scientifically constructed hull, sails, and rudder, can be so guided as to sail with the wind on her quarter or abeam, or even close-hauled, as it is called, that is, with the wind meeting her at an angle of about forty-five degrees. ”

“ A heavy sea may cause the boat to roll over, the sail may swing and spill the wind and allow her to be caught aback with her weather roll and to avoid a breaking sea which may swamp her, it will be necessary to swing her about for eight points, or at right angles, which cannot be done in a seaway in time to avoid swamping.
Never try to luff a boat up to a sea when in this position, but ease the sheet, swing her off and let the sea run diagonally under her keel. ”

“ Sit to windward while steering.
If struck by a squall, luff up to it, or ease the sheet, or do both.
Always luff up in the wind before hoisting or lowering sail.
Never climb the mast of a small boat. If anything is wrong aloft, lower the mast to set it right.
Belay a halyard by taking a few turns round its cleat. Do not put a half-hitch on the top of the turns.
Do not jibe in the middle of a squall, if you can avoid doing so. If a jibe is unavoidable, lower your peak first; haul in your mainsheet, and pay it out on the other side, so as to lessen the jerk as the boat jibes. ”

“ In the chapter on how to build the Rough and Ready, the sprit sail is depicted and fully described.
The Balance Lug
comes as near the square sail of a ship as any canvas used on small boats, but you can see, by referring to the diagram, Fig. 151, [116] that the leach and the luff are not parallel and that the gaff hangs at an angle. To boom out the canvas and make it sit flat there are three sticks extended across the sail from the front to the back, luff to leach, called battens. ”

“ First I emptied my boat of its water-breakers and provisions, then let it tow astern. Next I got an axe out of the boatswain's locker and chopped away the rigging that held the broken spars to the bark, then when the vessel was clear I squared the topsail-yard by the braces, ran aloft, cast off the gaskets that held the sail, descended to the deck, where I sheeted home the topsail as well as possible, and carried the halyards through a leading block to the capstan, on which I hove away until I had lifted the yard as high as my strength allowed. ”

“ Inasmuch as the whole balance of the boat depends upon the out-rigger, it would never do, of course, to have the large, heavy sail, bearing the weight of the wind, on the opposite side of the boat; consequently, when sailing up in the wind, where tacking is necessary, instead of putting about or jibing, the crew assemble and, lifting the mast with all the rigging, carry it bodily from the bow to the stern, where it is stepped anew; the stern then becomes the bow, and the man at the helm has to scramble quickly to the other end of the boat to find out which way he is going. ”

“ In puffs or squalls, and as you rise towards the crests of the waves, when running in seas, the boat should be luffed up and sheets eased before she is heeled rail-under, for if you wait too long she will answer her helm sluggishly and may capsize before she will luff to meet the sudden gust. Don’t let her lose headway but as soon as the squall has passed or the craft has righted bear off again until the next puff comes along. ”

“ Make for the nearest port with all speed, and keep a man at the downhaul ready at a moment's notice to lower sail. The moment the wind stops drop the sail and make everything snug, leaving only bare poles. When the thunder-squall strikes you, be it ever so hard, you are now in little danger; and if the wind from the new quarter is not too fresh, you can hoist sail again and make the best of your way to the nearest port, where you can "get in out of the wet." ”

“ Do not "sweat up" either the throat or peak halyards too taut the first time you set it, and avoid reefing a new sail. Lower it down altogether, set the trysail, or do the best you can under head sail and the mizzen if on board a yawl. A mainsail should always be allowed to stretch gradually, and the slack of the head and the foot should be taken up at intervals. ”

“ TAKING CARE OF THE BOAT You must not only learn to sail, but you must learn to take care of your boat, to keep her neat and clean, and have everything above and below decks in shipshape order. Nothing looks worse than a slovenly kept and dirty yacht; a boat with fag ends of rope hanging about, loose and tangled messes of gear, sails not properly stowed, and a general air of untidiness apparent everywhere. The first attribute of good seamanship is order. Therefore, if you want to be considered a skillful sailor, keep your boat both above and below decks in shipshape fashion. ”

“ Except when under sail the boat was propelled by five oars, and in order to balance the power from this unequal number, oars of different lengths were used.
Except when under sail the boat was steered by means of an oar over twenty feet long.
The complete equipment of a boat included paddles, harpoons, lances, spades, mast and sail, water and bread kegs, lantern, flares and waifs, and other small gear. ”

“ Three or four successive coats of paint should be applied to a boat the first time it is painted, and before using, it should be launched, half filled with water, and allowed to stand for a few days so that the joints will swell and close properly. A mast six or eight feet high and a leg-of-mutton sail will enable a boy to sail before the wind in a quiet breeze, but rough-weather sailing should not be attempted in this style of open boat. ”

“ He said people in ships always wetted the sails before they put them up. So I wetted it; but that only made matters worse than they were before. A dry sail clinging to your legs and wrapping itself round your head is not pleasant, but, when the sail is sopping wet, it becomes quite vexing.
We did get the thing up at last, the two of us together. We fixed it, not exactly upside down—more sideways like—and we tied it up to the mast with the painter, which we cut off for the purpose.
That the boat did not upset I simply state as a fact. ”

“ Still another matter to be considered when selecting a boat is whether you should use a keel or a centerboard craft. Every boat, in order to sail well, must have a portion which projects below the bottom and which will prevent the craft from sliding sideways or making “leeway” on the water when the wind is from the side or when sailing against the wind. ”

“ To reef the sail bring the boat into the wind, trim the sheet in until the boom cannot swing beyond the sides of the boat, lower the sail about halfway and then lash the first luff cringle to the boom with the earring, tying it in a reefing knot which can be readily cast off. ”

“ If a boat worked by both sails and oars be running under sail for the land through a heavy sea, her crew should, under all circumstances, unless the beach be quite steep, take down her masts and sails before entering the broken water, and take her to land under oars alone. ”

“ Never walk along the lee side of the boat when the sheet is loose and the sail is swinging, but move on the windward side and avoid any danger of being knocked overboard by the swinging boom and flapping sail. ”

“ Wyse!" "'Bout ship!" "Down with the helm!" "Helm a-lee!" Up comes the schooner's head to the wind, the sails flapping with the noise of thunder—blocks rattling against the deck, as if they wanted to knock their brains out—ropes dancing about in galvanised coils, like mad serpents—and everything to an inexperienced eye in inextricable confusion; till gradually she pays off on the other tack—the sails stiffen into deal-boards—the staysail sheet is let go—and heeling over on the opposite side. Again she darts forward over the sea like an arrow from the bow. "Stand by to make sail!" ”

“ Now I wished for my boy Xury, and the long-boat, with the shoulder of mutton sail, with which I sailed above a thousand miles on the coast of Africa; but this was in vain. ”

“ As we drew nearer, we could see that the three men fishing seemed old and solemn-looking men. They sat on three chairs in the punt, and watched intently their lines. And the red sunset threw a mystic light upon the waters, and tinged with fire the towering woods, and made a golden glory of the piled-up clouds. It was an hour of deep enchantment, of ecstatic hope and longing. The little sail stood out against the purple sky, the gloaming lay around us, wrapping the world in rainbow shadows; and, behind us, crept the night.
We seemed like knights of some old legend, sailing across some mystic lake into the unknown realm of twilight, unto the great land of the sunset. ”