 | A SEA GRAMMAR. |  |
Chapter III.
How to proportion the Masts and Yards for a
Ship, by her Beame and Keele.
WHEN a ship is built, she should be masted, wherein is a great
deale of experience to be used so well as art; for if you over-mast
her, either in length or bignesse, she will lie too much downe by
a wind, and labour too much a hull, and that is called a Taunt-mast,
but if either too small or too short, she is under masted or low masted,
and cannot beare so great a saile as should give her her true way. For
a man of warre, a well ordered Taunt-mast is best, but for a long
voyage, a short Mast will beare more Canvasse, and is lesse subject
to beare by the boord: Their Rules are divers, because no Artist can
build a Ship so truly to proportion, neither set her Masts, but by the
triall of her condition, they may bee impayred or amended: suppose
a Ship of 300. Tunnes be 29. foot at the Beame, if her maine Mast be
24. inches diameter, the length of it must be 24. yards, for every inch
in thicknesse is allowed a yard in length, and the fore Mast 22. inches
in thicknesse, must bee 22. yards in length; your Bowle spret
length and thicknesse must bee equall to the fore Mast, the Misen
17. yards in length, and 17. inches diameter.
But the Rule most used is to take the 4/5 parts of the bredth of
the Ship, and multiply that by three, will give you so many foot as
your maine Mast should bee in length, the bignesse or thicknesse will
beare it also, allowing an inch for a yard; but if it be a made Mast,
that is greater than one Tree, it must be more: for example, suppose
the Ships bredth 30. foot, foure fifts of 30. foot are 24. foot, so you
foot and 24. inches thorow, allowing an inch to every yard. The fore
Mast is to be in length 4/5 of the maine Mast, which will be 20. yards
wanting one 4/5 part of a yard, and 20. inches thorow. The Boulspret
must ever bee equall with the fore Mast. The misen Mast halfe the
length of the maine Mast, which will be 12. yards long, and 12. inches
diameter. Now as you take the proportion of the Masts from the
Beame or bredth of the Ship, so doe you the length of the yards from
the Keele.
These Masts have each their steps in the Ship, and their partners
at every Decke where thorowthey passe to the Keele, being strong
timbers bolted to the Beams in circling the Masts, to keep them steady
in their steps fast wedged for rowling; yet some ships will not saile so
wel as when it doth play a little, but that is very dangerous in foule
weather. Their Cotes are peeces of tarred Canvas, or a Tarpawling
put about them and the Rudder to keepe the water out. At the top
of the fore Mast and maine Mast are spliced cheeks, or thicke clamps
of wood, thorowwhich are in each two holes called the Hounds,
wherein the Tyes doe runne to hoise
hathbut one hole or hound, and one tye. Every Mast also hatha Cap
if a top; which is a peece of square timber with a round hole in it to
receive the top Masts or Flag-staffe, to keepe them steady and strong,
lest they be borne by the boord in a stiffe gale. The Crosse-trees are
also at the head of the Masts, one let into another crosse, and strongly
bolted with the Tressell trees, to keepe up the top Masts which are
fastened in them, and those are at the tops of each Mast; all the Masts
stand upright but the Boulspret which lyeth along over the Beak-head,
and that timber it resteth on is called the Pillow.
.
Now for the yards, suppose the ship be 76. foot at the Keele, her
maine yard must be 21. yards in length, and in thicknesse but 17.
inches. The fore Yard 19. yards long, and 15. inches diameter or
thick. The spret-saile Yard 16. ∥ yards long, and but nine inches
thicke, and your Misen-yard so long as the Mast, the top yards beares
halfe proportion to the maine, and fore yard, and the top gallants,
the halfe to them, but this rule is not absolute; for if your Masts be
taunt, your yards must be the shorter; if a low Mast, the longer, but
this is supposed the best. To have the maine Yard 5/6 parts of her
Keele in length: the top Yard 3/7 of the maine Yard, and the maine
Yard for bignesse ¾ parts of an inch, for a yard in length. The
length of the fore Yard 4/5 of the maine Yard; the Crossejacke Yard
and Spretsaile Yard to be of a length; but you must allow the Misen
Yard and Spretsaile Yard ½ inch of thicknesse to a yard in length.
building of all sorts of Ships, were they all built after one mould, as
also of their Masts, Yards, Cables, Cordage, and Sailes, were all the
stuffe of like goodnesse, a methodicall rule as you see might bee projected:
but their lengths, bredths, depths, rakes and burthens are so
variable and different, that nothing but experience can possibly
teach it.
| A SEA GRAMMAR. | |