The Seaman's Friend Part 7

TO TRIM THE YARDS WHEN CLOSE-HAULED.--In smooth water, with a light breeze, brace the lower yards sharp up, and trim the upper yards each a trifle in abaft the one below it. If you have a pretty stiff breeze, brace the topsail yard in about half a point more than the lower yard, and the topgallant yard half a point more than the topsail yard, and so on. If you have a strong breeze and a topping sea, and especially if reduced to short sail, brace in your lower yards a little, and the others proportionally. This will prevent the vessel going off bodily to leeward; and if she labors heavily, the play of the mast would otherwise carry away the braces and sheets, or spring the yards.

MISSING STAYS.--If after getting head to the wind she comes to a stand and begins to fall off before you have hauled your main yard, flatten in your jib sheets, board fore tack, and haul aft fore sheet; also ease off spanker sheet, or brail up the spanker, if necessary. When she is full again, trim the jib and spanker sheets, and when she has recovered sufficient headway, try it again. If, after coming head to the wind, and after the after yards are swung, she loses headway and refuses to go round, or begins to fall off on the same tack on which she was before, and you have s.h.i.+fted the helm without effect, haul up the mainsail and spanker, square the after yards, s.h.i.+ft your helm again a-lee, so as to a.s.sist her in falling off, and brace round the head yards so as to box her off. As she fills on her former tack, brace up the after yards, brace round the head yards, sharp up all, board tacks, haul out and haul aft.

WEARING.--Haul up the mainsail and spanker, put the helm up, and, as she goes off, brace in the after yards. If there is a light breeze, the rule is to keep the mizzen topsail lifting, and the main topsail full.

This will keep sufficient headway on her, and at the same time enable her to fall off. But if you have a good breeze and she goes off fast, keep both the main and mizzen topsails lifting. As she goes round, bringing the wind on her quarter and aft, follow the wind with your after yards, keeping the mizzen topsail lifting, and the main either lifting or full, as is best. After a vessel has fallen off much, the less headway she has the better, provided she has enough to give her steerage. When you have the wind aft, raise fore tack and sheet, square in the head yards, and haul down the jib. As she brings the wind on the other quarter, brace sharp up the after yards, haul out the spanker, and set the mainsail. As she comes to on the other tack, brace up the head yards, keeping the sails full, board fore tack and aft the sheet, hoist the jib, and meet her with the helm.

TO WEAR UNDER COURSES.--Square the cross-jack yards, ease off main bowline and tack, and haul up the weather clew of the mainsail. Ease off the main sheet, and haul up the lee clew, and the buntlines and leechlines. Square the main yards and put the helm a-weather. As she falls off, let go the fore bowline, ease off the fore sheet, and brace in the fore yard. When she gets before the wind, board the fore and main tacks on the other side, and haul aft the main sheet, but keep the weather braces in. As she comes to on the other side, ease the helm, trim down the fore sheet, brace up and haul out.

TO WEAR UNDER A MAINSAIL.--Vessels lying-to under this sail generally wear by hoisting the fore topmast staysail, or some other head sail. If this cannot be done, brace the cross-jack yards to the wind, and, if necessary, send down the mizzen topmast and the cross-jack yard. Brace the head yards full. Take an opportunity when she has headway, and will fall off, to put the helm up. Ease off the main sheet, and, as she falls off, brace in the main yard a little. When the wind is abaft the beam, raise the main tack. When she is dead before it, get the other main tack down as far as possible; and when she has the wind on the other quarter, ease the helm, haul aft the sheet, and brace up.

TO WEAR UNDER BARE POLES.--Some vessels, which are well down by the stern, will wear in this situation, by merely pointing the after yards to the wind, or sending down the mizzen topmast and the cross-jack yard, and filling the head yards; but vessels in good trim will not do this. To a.s.sist the vessel, veer a good scope of hawser out of the lee quarter, with a buoy, or something for a stop-water, attached to the end. As the s.h.i.+p sags off to leeward, the buoy will be to windward, and will tend to bring the stern round to the wind. When she is before it, haul the hawser aboard.

BOX-HAULING.--Put the helm down, light up the head sheets and slack the lee braces, to deaden her way. As she comes to the wind, raise tacks and sheets, and haul up the mainsail and spanker. As soon as she comes head to the wind and loses her headway, square the after yards, brace the head yards sharp aback, and flatten in the head sheets. The helm, being put down to bring her up, will now pay her off, as she has sternway on. As she goes off, keep the after sails lifting, and square in the head yards. As soon as the sails on the foremast give her headway, s.h.i.+ft the helm. When she gets the wind on the other quarter, haul down the jib, haul out the spanker, set the mainsail, and brace the after yards sharp up. As she comes to on the other tack, brace up the head yards, meet her with the helm, and set the jib.

BOX-HAULING SHORT ROUND; sometimes called _wearing short round._--Haul up the mainsail and spanker, put the helm hard a-weather, square the after yards, brace the head yards sharp aback, and flatten in the head sheets. As she gathers sternway, s.h.i.+ft the helm. After this, proceed as in box-hauling by the former method. The first mode is preferable when you wish to stop headway as soon as possible; as a vessel under good way will range ahead some distance after the sails are all thrown flat aback.

Few merchant vessels are strongly enough manned to perform these evolutions; but they are often of service, as they turn a vessel round quicker on her heel, and will stop her from fore-reaching when near in sh.o.r.e or when close aboard another vessel.

CLUB-HAULING.--This method of going about is resorted to when on a lee sh.o.r.e, and the vessel can neither be tacked nor box-hauled. c.o.c.k-bill your lee anchor, get a hawser on it for a spring, and lead it to the lee quarter; range your cable, and unshackle it abaft the windla.s.s.

_Helm's a-lee!_ and _Raise tacks and sheets!_ as for going in stays.

The moment she loses headway, let go the anchor and _Mainsail haul!_ As soon as the anchor brings her head to the wind, let the chain cable go, holding on to the spring; and when the after sails take full, cast off or cut the spring, and _Let go and haul!_

DRIFTING IN A TIDE-WAY.--As a vessel is deeper aft than forward, her stern will always tend to drift faster than her head. If the current is setting out of a river or harbor, and the wind the opposite way, or only partly across the current, you may work out by tacking from sh.o.r.e to sh.o.r.e; or you may let her drift out, broadside to the current; or, keeping her head to the current by sufficient sail, you may let her drift out stern first; or, lastly, you may _club_ her down. If the wind is partly across the current, cast to windward. If you work down by tacking, and the wind is at all across the current, be careful of the lee sh.o.r.e, and stay in season, since, if you miss stays, you may not be able to save yourself by wearing or box-hauling, as you might on the weather sh.o.r.e. If the channel is very narrow, or there are many vessels at anchor, the safest way is to bring her head to the current, brace the yards full, and keep only sail enough to give her steerage, that you may sheer from side to side. If there is room enough, you will drift more rapidly by bringing her broadside to the current, keeping the topsails shaking, and counteract the force of the current upon the stern by having the spanker full and the helm a-lee. You can at any time shoot her ahead, back her astern, or bring her head to the current, by filling the head yards, taking in the spanker, and setting the jib; filling the after yards, taking in the jib, and setting the spanker; or by bracing all aback.

BACKING AND FILLING IN A TIDE-WAY.--Counter-brace your yards as in lying-to, and drift down broadside to the current. Fill away and shoot ahead, or throw all aback and force her astern, as occasion may require. When you approach the sh.o.r.e on either side, fill away till she gets sufficient headway, and put her in stays or wear her round.

CLUBBING IN A TIDE-WAY.--Drift down with your anchor under your foot, heaving in or paying out on your cable as you wish to increase or deaden her way. Have a spring on your cable, so as to present a broadside to the current. This method is a troublesome and dangerous one, and rarely resorted to. An anchor will seldom drag clear, through the whole operation.

CHAPTER XII.

GALES OF WIND, LYING-TO, GETTING ABACK, BY THE LEE, &C.

Lying-to.--choice of sails. Scudding. Heave-to after scudding. Taken aback. Chappelling. Broaching-to. By the lee.

LYING-TO.--The best single sail to lie-to under, is generally thought to be a close-reefed maintopsail. The fore or the main spencer (sails which are used very much now instead of main and mizzen staysails) may be used to advantage, according as a s.h.i.+p requires sail more before or abaft the centre of gravity. If a s.h.i.+p will bear more than one sail, it is thought best to separate the pressure. Then set the fore and main spencers; or (if she carries staysails instead) the main and mizzen staysail; or, if she is easier under lofty sail, the fore and main topsails close-reefed. A close-reefed main topsail, with three lower storm staysails; or, with the two spencers, fore topmast staysail, and reefed spanker, is considered a good arrangement for lying-to. If the fore topmast staysail and balance-reefed spanker can be added to the two close-reefed topsails, she will keep some way, will go less to leeward, and can be easily wore round. Close-reefed topsails are used much more now for lying-to than the courses. As s.h.i.+ps are now built, with the centre of gravity farther forward, and the foremast stepped more aft, they will lie-to under head sail better than formerly. Some vessels, which are well down by the stern, will lie-to under a reefed foresail, as this tends to press her down forward; whereas, if she had much after sail, she would have all the lateral resistance of the water aft, and would come up to the wind. In carrying most head or after sail, you must be determined by the trim of the vessel, her tendency to come to or go off, and as to whether the sail you use will act as a lifting or a burying sail.

A topsail has an advantage over a spencer or lower staysail for lying-to, since it steadies the s.h.i.+p better, and counteracts the heavy weather roll, which a vessel will give under low and small fore-and-aft sails.

SCUDDING.--The most approved sail for scudding is the close-reefed maintopsail, with a reefed foresail. The course alone might get becalmed under the lee of a high sea, and the vessel, losing her way, would be overtaken by the sea from aft; whereas the topsail will always give her way enough and lift her. The foresail is of use in case she should be brought by the lee. Many officers recommend that the fore topmast staysail, or fore storm staysail, should always be set in scudding, to pay her off if she should broach-to, and with the sheets hauled flat aft.

It has been thought that with the wind quartering and a heavy sea, a vessel is more under command with a close-reefed foretopsail and maintopmast staysail. The foretopmast staysail may also be hoisted. If the s.h.i.+p flies off and gets by the lee, the foretopsail is soon braced about, and, with the maintopmast staysail sheet s.h.i.+fted to the other side, the headway is not lost.

TO HEAVE-TO AFTER SCUDDING.--Secure everything about decks, and watch a smooth time. Suppose her to be scudding under a close-reefed maintopsail and reefed foresail; haul up the foresail, put the helm down, brace up the after yards, and set the mizzen staysail. As she comes to, set the main staysail, meet her with the helm, brace up the head-yards, and set the fore or foretopmast staysail.

If your vessel labors much, ease the lee braces and the halyards, that everything may work fairly aloft, and let her have a plenty of helm, to come to and fall off freely with the sea. The helmsman will often let the wheel fly off to leeward, taking care to meet her easily and in season. The sails should be so arranged as to require little of the rudder.

TAKEN ABACK.--It will frequently happen, when sailing close-hauled, especially in light winds, from a s.h.i.+ft of wind, from its dying away, or from inattention, that the s.h.i.+p will come up into the wind, shaking the square sails forward. In this case, it will often be sufficient to put the helm hard up, flatten in the head sheets, or haul their bights to windward, and haul up the spanker. If this will not recover her, and she continues to come to, box her off. Raise fore tack and sheet, haul up the spanker and mainsail, brace the head-yards aback, haul the jib sheets to windward, and haul out the lee bowlines. When the after sails fill, _Let go and haul!_ This manoeuvre of boxing can only be performed in good weather and light winds, as it usually gives a vessel sternway.

If the wind has got round upon the other bow, and it is too late for box-hauling, square the yards fore and aft, keeping your helm so as to pay her off under sternway; and, as the sails fill, keep the after yards shaking, and haul up the spanker and mainsail, squaring the head-yards, and s.h.i.+fting your helm as she gathers headway.

CHAPPELLING.--This operation is performed when, instead of coming to, you are taken aback in light winds. Put the helm up, if she has headway, haul up the mainsail and spanker, and square the after yards.

s.h.i.+ft the helm as she gathers sternway, and when the after sails fill, and she gathers headway, s.h.i.+ft your helm again. When she brings the wind aft, brace up the after yards, get the main tack down and sheet aft, and haul out the spanker as soon as it will take. The head braces are not touched, but the yards remain braced as before. The former mode of wearing, by squaring the head-yards when the after sails are full, has great advantages over chappelling, as the vessel will go off faster when the wind is abeam and abaft, and will come to quicker when the wind gets on the other side.

BROACHING-TO.--This is when a vessel is scudding, and comes up into the wind and gets aback. For such an accident, the foretopmast staysail is set, which will act as an off-sail, so that by keeping the helm up, with the maintopsail (if set) braced into the wind, she will pay off again without getting sternway. If the close-reefed foretopsail is carried instead of the main, it can be easily filled.

BROUGHT BY THE LEE.--This is when a vessel is scudding with the wind quartering, and falls off so as to bring the wind on the other side, laying the sails aback. This is more likely to occur than broaching-to, especially in a heavy sea. Suppose the vessel to be scudding under a close-reefed maintopsail and reefed foresail, with the wind on her larboard quarter. She falls off suddenly and brings the wind on the starboard quarter, laying all aback. Put your helm hard a-starboard, raise fore tack and sheet, and fill the foresail, s.h.i.+vering the maintopsail. When she brings the wind aft again, meet her with the helm, and trim the yards for her course.

CHAPTER XIII.

ACCIDENTS.

On beam-ends. Losing a rudder. A squall. A man overboard. Collision.

Rules for vessels pa.s.sing one another.

ON BEAM-ENDS.--A vessel is usually thrown upon her beam-ends by a sudden squall taking her, when under a press of sail, and s.h.i.+fting the ballast. She must be righted, if possible, without cutting away the masts. For, beside sacrificing them, the object can seldom be accomplished in that way, if the ballast and cargo have s.h.i.+fted. Carry a hawser from the lee quarter, with spars and other good stop-waters bent to it. As the s.h.i.+p drifts well to leeward, the hawser will bring her stern to the wind; but it may not cast her on the other side. If a spring can be got upon the hawser from the lee bow, and hauled upon, and the stern fast let go, this will bring the wind to act upon the flat part of the deck and pay her stern off, and a.s.sist the spring, when the sails may be trimmed to help her in righting. If she can be brought head to the wind, and the sails be taken aback, she may cast on the other tack. When there is anchoring ground, the practice is to let go the lee anchor, which may take the sails aback and cast her. Then the ballast and cargo may be righted.

If there is no anchoring ground, a vessel may still be kept head to the wind, by paying a chain cable out of the lee hawse-hole; or by bending a hawser to a large spar, which may be kept broadside-to by a span, to the centre of which the hawser is bent. The same operation may be applied to a vessel overset, and is preferable to wearing by a hawser.

Make fast the hawser forward to the lee bow, carry the other end aft to windward and bend it to the spar, and launch the spar overboard. By this means, or by letting go an anchor, though there be no bottom to be reached, a vessel may often be recovered.

LOSING A RUDDER.--The first thing to be done on losing a rudder, is to bring the s.h.i.+p to the wind by bracing up the after yards. Meet her with the head yards, as she comes to. Take in sail forward and aft, and keep her hove-to by her sails. A vessel may be made to steer herself for a long time, by carefully tr.i.m.m.i.n.g the yards and slacking up the jib sheets or the spanker sheet a little, as may be required.

Having got the s.h.i.+p by the wind, get up a hawser, middle it, and take a slack clove-hitch at the centre. Get up a cable, reeve its end through this. .h.i.tch, and pay the cable out over the taffrail. Having payed out about fifty fathoms, jam the hitch and rack it well, so that it cannot slip; pay out on the cable until the hitch takes the water; then lash the cable to the centre of the taffrail; lash a spare spar under it across the stern, with a block well secured at each end, through which reeve the ends of the hawser, one on each quarter, and reeve them again through blocks at the sides, abreast of the wheel. By this, a s.h.i.+p may be steered until a temporary rudder can be constructed.

A rudder may be fitted by taking a spare topmast, or other large spar, and cutting it flat in the form of a stern-post. Bore holes at proper distances in that part which is to be the fore part of the preventer or additional stern-post; then take the thickest plank on board, and make it as near as possible into the form of a rudder; bore holes at proper distances in the fore part of it and in the after part of the preventer stern-post, to correspond with each other, and reeve rope grommets through those holes in the rudder and after part of the stern-post, for the rudder to play upon. Through the preventer stern-post, reeve guys, and at the fore part of them fix tackles, and then put the machine overboard. When it is in a proper position, or in a line with the s.h.i.+p's stern-post, lash the upper part of the preventer post to the upper part of the s.h.i.+p's stern-post; then hook tackles at or near the main chains, and bowse taut on the guys to confine it to the lower part of the preventer stern-post. Having holes bored through the preventer and proper stern-post, run an iron bolt through both, (taking care not to touch the rudder,) which will prevent the false stern-post from rising or falling. By the guys on the after part of the rudder and tackles affixed to them, the s.h.i.+p may be steered, taking care to bowse taut the tackles on the preventer stern-post, to keep it close to the proper stern-post.

A SQUALL.--If you see a squall approaching, take in the light sails, stand by to clew down, and keep her off a little, if necessary. If you are taken by one, unprepared, with all sail set and close-hauled, put the helm hard up, let go the spanker sheet and outhaul, and the main sheet. Clew up royals and topgallant sails, haul down flying-jib, haul up the mainsail, and clew down the mizzen topsail. When you are before the wind, clew down the topsail yards, and haul out the reef-tackles.

You may run before the squall until it moderates, or furl the light sails, bring by the wind, and reef.

A MAN OVERBOARD.[5]--The moment the cry is heard, put the helm down and bring her up into the wind, whether she is on the wind or free, and deaden her headway. Throw overboard instantly life buoys, or, if there are none at hand, take a grating, the carpenter's bench, or any pieces of plank or loose spars there may be about decks; and let two or three hands clear away a quarter boat. The best plan is, if the vessel was on the wind, to haul the mainsail up and brace aback the after yards and raise the head sheets; then, having her main yard aback, she will drift down directly toward the man. Keep your head sails full to steady her, while the after ones stop her headway.

[5] See Totten's Naval Text Book, Letter XX.

If you are sailing free, with studdingsails set, clew up the lower studdingsail, brace up the head yards, haul forward the fore tack, and keep the head yards full, while you luff up to back the after ones.

Lower away the boat as soon as it is safe, and, as the vessel will have turned nearly round, direct the boat with reference to her position when the accident happened and her progress since.

COLLISION.--If two vessels approach one another, both having a free wind, each keeps to the right. That is, the one with her starboard tacks aboard keeps on or luffs; and the other, if it is necessary to alter her course, keeps off. So, if two vessels approach one another close-hauled on different tacks, and it is doubtful which is to windward, the vessel on the starboard tack keeps on her course, and the other gives way and keeps off. That is, each goes to the right, and the vessel with her starboard tacks aboard has the preference. The only exception to this is, that if the vessel on the larboard tack is so much to windward that in case both persist the vessel on the starboard tack will strike her to leeward and abaft the beam; then the vessel on the starboard tack must give way, as she can do it more easily than the other.

Another rule is that if one vessel is going dead before the wind and the other going free on the starboard tack, the latter must luff and go under the stern of the former.