University of Virginia Library

Chapter VII.
The names of all sorts of Anchors, Cables, and
Sailes, and how they beare their proportions,
with their use. Also how the Ordnances should
bee placed, and the goods stowed in a ship.

THE proper tearmes belonging to Anchors are many: the least
are called Kedgers, to use in calme weather in a slow streame, or
to kedg up and downe a narrow River, which is when they feare the
winde or tide may drive them on shore; they row by her with an
Anchor in a boat, and in the middest of the streame, or where they
finde most fit if the Ship come too neere the shore, and so by a
Hawser winde her head about, then waigh it againe till the like
occasion, and this is kedging. There is also a streame Anchor not
much bigger, to stemme an easie stream or tide. Then there is the
first, second, and third Anchor, yet all such as a Ship in faire weather
may ride by, and are called Bow Anchors. The greatest is the sheat
Anchor, and never used but in great necessity. They are commonly
made according to the burthen of the Ship by proportion, for that
the sheat Anchor of a small ship will not serve for a Kedger to a great
ship. Also it beareth a proportion in it selfe, as the one flooke, which
is that doth sticke in the ground, is but the third part of the shanke
in length; at the head of the Shanke there is a hole called an Eye, and
in it a Ring, wherein is the Nut to which there is fast fixed a Stocke
of wood crossing the Flookes, and the length is taken from the length
of the Shanke. These ∥ differ not in shape but in waight, from two
hundred, to three or foure thousand waight. Grapells,

or Graplings,
are the least of all, and have foure flookes but no stock; for a boat to
ride by, or to throw into a ship in a fight, to pull downe the gratings
or hold fast.

The Cables also carry a proportion to the Anchors, but if it be
not three strond, it is accounted but a Hawser, yet a great ships

Hawser may be a Cable to the sheat Anchor for a small ship: and
there is the first, second, and third Cable, besides the Sheat Anchor
Cable. If the Cable bee well made, we say it is well laid. To keckell
or sarve the Cable, as is said, is but to bind some old clouts to keepe
it from galling in the Hawse or Ring. Splice a Cable, is to fasten two
ends together, that it may be double in length, to make the Ship ride
with more ease, and is called a shot of Cable. Quoile a Cable, is to
lay it up in a round Ring, or fake one above another. Pay more
Cable, is when you carry an Anchor out in the boat to turne over.
Pay cheap, is when you over set it, or turnes it over boord faster.
Veere more Cable, is when you ride at Anchor. And end for end is
when the Cable runneth cleere out of the Hawse, or any Rope out of
his shiver. A Bight is to hold by any part of a coile, that is, the upmost
fake. A Bitter is but the turne of a Cable about the Bits, and veare it
out by little and little. And the Bitters end is that part of the Cable
doth stay within boord. Gert, is when the Cable is so taught that
upon the turning of a tide, a Ship cannot goe over it.

To bend the Cable to the Anchor, is to make it fast to the Ring;
unbend the Cable, is but to take it away, which we usually doe when
we are at Sea, and to tie two ropes or Cables together is called bending.
Hitch, is to catch hold of any thing with a rope to hold it fast, or
with a hooke, as hitch the fish-hooke to the Anchors flooke, or the
Tackles into the Garnets of the Slings. Fenders are peeces of old
Hawsers called Junkes hung over the ship sides to keepe them from
brusing. In boats they use poles or boat-hooks to fend off the boat
from brusing. A Brest-fast is a ∥ rope which is fastened to some part
of the Ship forward on, to hold her head to a wharfe or any thing,
and a Sterne-fast is the same in the Sterne. The use for the Hawser is
to warp the Ship by, which is laying out an Anchor, and winde her
up to it by a Capsterne. Rousing is but pulling the slacknesse of any
Cables with mens hands into the Ship. The Shank-painter is a short
chaine fastend under the fore masts shrouds with a bolt to the ships
sides, and at the other end a rope to make fast the Anchor to the
Bow. To stop is when you come to an Anchor, and veares out your
Cable, but by degrees till the Ship ride well, then they say stop the
Ship. To those Cables and Anchors belongs short peeces of wood
called Boyes, or close hooped barrels like Tankards as is said, but
much shorter, to shew you the Anchor and helpe to waigh it, there is
another sort of Cans called Can Boyes much greater, mored upon
shoules to give Marriners warning of the dangers.

The maine saile and the fore saile is called the fore course, and
the maine course or a paire of courses. Bonits and Drablers are commonly
one third part a peece to the saile they belong unto in depth,
but their proportion is uncertaine; for some will make the maine

saile so deepe, that with a shallow bonet they will cloath all the Mast
without a Drabler, but without bonets we call them but courses; we
say, lash on the bonet to the course, because it is made fast with
Latchets into the eylot holes of the saile, as the Drabler is to it, and
used as the wind permits. There is also your maine top-saile, and fore
top-saile, with their top-gallant sailes, and in a faire gaile your studding
sailes, which are bolts of Canvasse, or any cloth that will hold
wind, wee extend alongst the side of the maine saile, and boomes it
out with a boome or long pole, which we use also sometimes to the
clew of the maine saile, fore saile, and spret saile, when you goe
before the wind or quartering, else not. Your Miszen, and Miszen
top-saile, your Spret and Spret top-saile, as the rest, take all their
names of their yards. A Drift saile is onely used under water, veared
out right a head by sheats, ∥ to keepe the Ships head right upon the
Sea in a storme, or when a ship drives too fast in a current. A Netting
saile is onely a saile laid over the Netting, which is small ropes from
the top of the fore castle to the Poope, stretched upon the ledges from
the Waist-trees to the Roufe-trees, which are onely small Timbers
to beare up the Gratings from the halfe Decke to the fore-castle, supported
by Stantions that rest upon the halfe Decke; and this Netting
or Grating, which is but the like made of wood, you may set up or
take downe when you please, and is called the close fights fore and aft.
Now the use of those sailes is thus, all head Sailes which are those
belonging to the fore Mast and Boltspret, doe keepe the Ship from
the wind or to fall off. All after sailes, that is, all the sailes belonging
to the maine Mast and Miszen keepes her to wind ward, therefore
few ships will steare upon quarter winds with one saile, but must have
one after saile, and one head saile. The sailes are cut in proportion as
the Masts and Yards are in bredth and length, but the Spret-saile is
¾ parts the depth of the fore saile, and the Miszen by the Leech
twise so deepe as the Mast is long from the Decke to the Hounds. The
Leech of a saile is the outward side or skirt of the saile from the earing
to the clew, the middle betwixt which wee account the Leech. The
Clew is the lower corner of a Saile, to which you make fast your
Sheats and Tacks, or that which comes goring out from the square
of the saile, for a square saile hathno Clew, but the maine saile must
bee cut goring, because the Tacks will come closer aboord, and so
cause the saile to hold more wind; now when the Saile is large and
hatha good Clew, we say she spreds a large Clew, or spreds much
Canvas. In making those sailes they use two sorts of seames downe
the Sailes, which doth sow the bredth of the Canvas together, the one
we call a Munke seame, which is flat, the other a round seame,
which is so called because it is round.

The Ship being thus provided, there wants yet her Ordnances,

which should be in greatnesse according to her ∥ building in strength
and burthen, but the greatest commonly lieth lowest, which we call
the lower tier, if she bee furnished fore and aft. Likewise the second
Tier, and the third, which are the smallest. The fore-Castle and the
halfe Decke being also furnished, wee account halfe a Tier.

Stowage or to stow, is to put the goods in Howle in order. The
most ponderous next the Ballast, which is next the Keelson to keepe
her stiffe in the Sea. Balast is either Gravell, Stones, or Lead, but that
which is driest, heaviest, and lies closest is best. To finde a leake, they
trench the Ballast, that is, to divide it. The Ballast wil sometimes
shoot, that is, run from one side to another, and so will Corne and
Salt, if you make not Pouches or Bulk-heads, which when the Ship
doth heeld is very dangerous to overset or turne the Keele upwards.
For Caske that is so stowed, tier above tier with Ballast, and canting
Coines, which are little short peeces of wood or Billets cut with a
sharpe ridge or edge to lye betwixt the Caske; and standing Coines
are Billets or Pipe-staves, to make them they cannot give way nor
stirre. The ship will beare much, that is, carry much Ordnance or
goods, or beare much saile; and when you let any thing downe into
the Howle, lowering it by degrees, they say, Amaine; and being
downe, Strike.