 | A SEA GRAMMAR. |  |
Chapter XI.
Proper Sea tearmes belonging to the good or bad
condition of Ships, how to finde them and
amend them.
ASHIP that will try, hull, and ride well at Anchor, we call a wholsome
Ship. A long Ship that drawes much water will doe all this,
but if she draw much water and be short, she may hull well, but
neither try nor ride well; if she draw little water and be long, she may
try and ride well, but never hull well, which is called an unwholsome
ship. The howsing in of a Ship is when shee is past the bredth of her
bearing she is brought in narrow to her upper workes: it is certaine
this makes her wholsome in the Sea without rowling, because the
weight of her Ordnance doth counterpoise her bredth under water,
but it is not so good in a man of warre, because it taketh away a great
deale of her roome, nor will her tacks ever so well come aboord as if
she were laid out aloft and not flaring, which is when she is a little
howsing in, neere the water, and then the upper worke doth hang
over againe, and is laid out broder aloft, this makes a Ship more
roomy aloft for men to use their armes in, but Sir Walter Rawleighs
proportion,
worke is the best, because the counterpoise on each side doth make
her swimme perpendicular or straight, and consequently steady,
which is the best.
If a ship be narrow, and her bearing either not laid out ∥ enough
or too low, then you must make her broader and her bearing the
higher by ripping off the plankes two or three strakes under water
and as much above, and put other Timbers upon the first, and then
put on the plankes upon those Timbers, this will make her beare a
a Ship is cranke-sided and will beare no saile, and is called Furring.
Note also, that when a Ship hatha deepe Keele it doth keepe her
from rowling. If she be floty and her keele shallow, put on another
keele under the first to make it deeper, for it will make her hold more
in the water, this wee call a false Keele. Likewise if her stem be too
flat to make her cut water the better, and not gripe, which is when
shee will not keepe a winde well; fix another stem before it, and that
is called a false stem, which will make her ride more way and beare
a better saile. Also the Run of a ship is as much to be regarded, for
if it be too short and too full below, the water comes but slowly to the
Rudder because the force of it is broken by her bredth, and then to
put a false stem post to lengthen her is the next remedy, but to
lengthen her is better; for when a Ship comes off handsomly by
degrees, and her Tuck doth not lye too low, which will hinder the
water from comming swiftly to the Rudder, makes her she cannot
steare well, and they are called as they are, a good runne or a bad.
When a Ship hathlost a peece of her Keele, and that we cannot come
well to mend it, you must patch a new peece unto it, and bind it with
a stirrop, which is an iron comes round about it and the Keele up to
the other side of the Ship, whereto it is strongly nailed with Spikes.
Her Rake also may be a defect, which is so much of the Hull, as by
a perpendicular line the end of the Keele is from the setting on of the
stem, so much as is without that forward on, and in like manner the
setting in of her stern Post. Your French men gives great Rakes forwards
on, which makes her give good way and keepe a good wind,
but if she have not a full bow she will pitch her head extremely in the
Sea. If shee have but a small Rake, ∥ she is so bluffe that the Seas
meets her so suddenly upon the Bowes shee cannot cut the water
much, but the longer a ship is, the fuller should be her Bow, but the
meane is the best. The looming of a ship is her prospective, that is, as
she doth shew great or little: Her water draught is so many foot as
she goes in the water, but the Ships that drawes most water are commonly
the most wholsome, but the least draught goes best but rolls
most, and we say a Ship doth heeld on Starboord or Larboord, that
is, to that side shee doth leane most.
To overset or overthrow a ship, is by bearing too much saile you
bring her Keele upwards, or on shore overthrow her by grounding
her, so that she falls upon one side; and we say a Ship is walt
shee is not stiffe, and hathnot Ballast enough in her to keepe her
stiffe. And wall reared when she is right built up, after shee comes to
within much roome, and she is very wholsome, if her bearing be well
laid out. The Masting of a Ship is much to be considered, and will
much cause her to saile well or ill, as I have related in the masting a
Ship. Iron sicke, is when the Bolts, Spikes, or Nailes are so eaten with
rust they stand hollow in the plankes, and so makes her leake, the
which to prevent, they use to put lead over all the bolt heads under
water. Lastly, the trimming of a ship doth much amend or impaire
her sailing, and so alter her condition. To finde her trim, that is,
how she will saile best; is by trying her sailing with another Ship so
many glasses, trimmed a head and so many a sterne, and so many
upon an even Keele; also the easing of her Masts and Shrouds, for
some ships will saile much better when they are slacke than when
they are taught.
| A SEA GRAMMAR. | |