The Shipwreck (Falconer, 1762)/The Shipwreck/Canto 2

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CANTO II.

ARGUMENT.

  • Time of day
  • Last appearance, bearing, and distance of Crete
  • Rise of the sea and low'ring of the sky
  • A squall
  • Orders in consequence of it
  • Main-sail split
  • Ship veers before the wind
  • Hauls upon the wind again
  • Another main sail bent and set
  • Very strong gale
  • Top-sails furled
  • Top-gallant-yards sent down
  • Sea still enlarges
  • Sun-set
  • Courses reefed
  • Four seamen washed off the lee-yard arm in reefing the main-sail, and drowned
  • Great anxiety of the Pilots on being nigh a lee-shore
  • Mizen balanced and reefed
  • Bravery of the Sailors
  • A very high sea breaks over the Ship, and carries every thing on deck overboard in its passage
  • A leak sprung, which continually employs both pumps
  • Ship labours in great distress
  • Guns launched over-board to ease her
  • Dreadful appearance of the weather
  • Prodigious lofty sea
  • Severe fatigue of the Crew as the leak increases
  • Consultation and resolution of the officers
  • Speech of the Master to the Crew, and advice in consequence of approaching the lee-shore
  • Prayer
  • Orders being given to veer before the wind, the fore-stay-sail is hoisted and immediately splits
  • The head-yards brac'd aback
  • The mizenmast cut away.
Four hours elaps'd, the culminating ray,The Sun t' Atlantic regions wheel'd away:The shore of Crete more distant now appears,And, twenty miles South-West[errata 1], Cape Spado bears: ​The rising billows, round the western end, 5Increas'd in bulk, a spacious length extend:Succeeding clouds, th' ethereal cope invade,And Heav'ns high concave, wrap in deep'ning shade:A low'ring squall obscures the southern sky,Before whose sweeping breath, the waters fly: 10The top-sails can no more its weight sustain;At ev'ry hatchway[1], "Reef!" they call again:The bow-lines[2] and the hallyards[3], quickly gone;They next, to clue-lines[4] and reef-tackles[5] run;The shiv'ring sails descend; the yards are squar'd; 15Nimbly aloft the ready Crew repair'd:The weather earings[6], and the lee, they pass'd;The reef enfolded, and the points made fast:Their bus'ness soon performing, they descend,And, vigilant, th' approaching squall attend; 20 ​Beneath its driving force, the waves engage;And foaming white, the whirling surges rage:Now, black with pregnant ruin, it impends,And, cataracts with storm, tempestuous blends:Impell'd by mighty pressure, down she lies; 25"Brail up the mizen[7] quick!" the Master cries:"Mann the clue-garnetts[8], let the main-sheet[9] fly!"In thousand shiv'ring shreds it rends on high!The main-sail, all in streaming ruins, tore,Loud flutters, like the hollow thunder's roar: 30She lab'ring, bends beneath the cogent weight,Careening[10], as if never more to right:"A-weather[11] heave the helm!" the Chief commands,"To trim[12] the fore-sail, next prepare all hands!"Around, before the squall, she veers apace; 35And the fore-yard, directly square, they brace:The swelling sail, the flowing sheets sustain,Whose firm coërtion equally restrain. ​While o'er the foam, the Ship impetuous flies,The helm, th' attentive Timoneer[13] applies: 40Thus vigilant, the falcon marks his prey,And skims with ardent eye, th' aërial way;Each motion watches, of the doubtful chace,Obliquely wheeling thro' the azure space:Thus, and so quick, the helm responsive flew, 45Whose swift rotations[14] all her curves subdue.But now, to leeward pass'd th' exhausted squall,Their Fear's dispell'd, again the wind they haul[15];The helm a-starboard[16] flies, the shiv'ring sailsAre all sharp trim'd, to clasp th' augmenting gales; 50The mizen draws; she springs aloof once more,And the fore-stay-sail[17] balances before:The fore-yard then, with nervous arms is brac'd,Whose larboard tack is mann'd along the waist;Next, on the stretching sheet the Seamen bend, 55Then, haul the bow-line to the bowsprit's[18] end: ​To top-sails now they ply; the bunt-lines[19] gone,Thro' rattling blocks[20] the clue-lines swiftly run;Th' extending sheets, on either side are mann'd,Abroad they come, the flutt'ring sails expand: 60The yards again ascend each com'rade mast;The leeches[21] taught, the hallyards are made fast;The bow-lines haul'd, and yards to starboard brac'd[22];And straggling ropes, arrang'd in order, plac'd.As when by hunters gall'd, a mountain boar, 65The cultur'd glebes, and vineyards, rushes o'er;Resistless, forces thro' each fencing bound,Tears up the sprouts, and tramples to the groundThe tender vines and shooting plants around;The lab'ring Husbandman, with toil and care, 70Attempts, by props, the drooping limbs to rear;New grafts th' uprooted shrubs, in just array,And from his grounds, the ruins clears away.The main-sail, by the squall so lately rent, 75In streaming pendants flying, is unbent: ​With brails[23] refix'd, another soon prepar'd,Ascending, spreads along, beneath the yard:To each yard-arm, the head-rope[24] they extend,And soon the earings and the robands[25] bend. 80That task dispatch'd, they first the braces[26] slack,Then, to the chesstree[27], bring aboard the tack:And, while the lee-clue-garnett's low'r'd away,Taught aft the sheet, they tally[28], and belay.Auster's resistless force all air invades,South and by West the threat'ning tempest blows; 85Fierce, and more fierce, the gath'ring tempest grows,And ev'ry rolling wave more ample spreads.The Ship no longer can her top-sails bear,All hopes of milder weather disappear:Bow-lines and hallyards are cast off again, 90The clue-lines mann'd, and sheets let fly amain:Clued-up[29] each top-sail, and by braces squar'd.The mounting Crew ascend, and spread each yard: ​Around the sail, the gasketts[30] are convey'd,And rolling-tackles[31] to the cap[32] belay'd: 95The yards, to point the wind, by some, are brac'd;Some, to send down top-gallant-yards[33], are plac'd: Some, trav'llers up the weather-back-stays[34], send; At each mast-head, the top-ropes[35], others bend;The parrels[36], lifts[37], and clue-lines soon are gone, 100Topp'd[38], and unrigg'd, they down the back-stays run: ​The flying rigging all aloft belay'd,And yards secure, along the booms[39] were laid.The ropes then clear'd below, from toil and pain,The Sailors hope an interval, in vain; 105Fatigu'd, would fain indulge a short repose,But, still more violent, the tempest blows;The billows heave, in mountains, to the skies,Fresh troubles and perplexities arise:No season this from duty to descend! 110All hands the growing storm must now attend.
His task perform'd, the sacred lamp of dayNow dipt in western clouds his parting ray;His languid fires, half-lost in ambient haze,Refract, thro' madid clouds, a crimson blaze; 115Till deep immerg'd, the sick'ning orb descends,And cheerless Night, o'er Heav'n her reign extends.The Ship whole courses can no longer bear,To reef the courses is the Master's care:The watchful Sailors, ready at command, 120Swift, as the order's giv'n, the brails are mann'd;But here, the doubtful Officers dispute,Till Skill and Judgment, Prejudice confute.Some first the flutt'ring lee-sheet would let goThus might the sail again to ruins blow; 125 ​Th' experienc'd Mariner, in practice try'd,This dang'rous method ever will avoid;Who wou'd secure, with Art, the flutt'ring sail,Should never first, the lee-yard arm embrail:To windward, ready, waiting the command, 130At the clue-garnett, tack, and brails they stand;The tack's[40] eas'd off, involv'd the doubling clue,Between the pendent blocks, ascending flew:The sheet and weather-brace[41] they now stand by,Bunt-lines and lee-clue-garnett, next apply; 135Then all prepar'd, "let go the sheet!" he cries,Loud rattling, jarring, thro' the blocks it flies,Beneath the lee-yard-arm expanding, fills,Till close embrail'd, and squar'd, the belly spills[42]:The fore-sail then secur'd, with equal care, 140Again to reef the main-sail they repair:While some above the yard, o'er-haul the tye,Below, the down-haul-tackle[43], others ply: ​Jears[44], lifts, and brails a Seaman each attends,Along the mast the pond'rous yard descends; 145When down sufficient, they securely brace,The down-haul, for a rolling-tackle[45], place.The earings and the reef-lines[46] are prepar'd,Then, climbing pliant shrouds[47], they mann the yard:At each yard-arm a dreadless Sailor strides, 150Who safety, and a Landman's ease, derides:The earings to the cringles first they bend,The reef-band[48] then, with sinewy arms extend;Around the yard the circling ends are pass'd,And soon the outer-turns[49], and inner fast: 155The reef-lines next, from hand to hand receiv'd,Thro' eye-lid-holes and roband-legs are reev'd;The folding reefs, in plaits inroll'd, they lay,Extend the worming lines, and ends belay. ​This talk perform'd, the order they attend, 160To furl the main-sail, or on deck descend;When, fatal chance! an unexpected roll,That, sideways, seem'd to bury half the hull[50],From off the lee-yard-arm four Seamen shook,Who, thus surpriz'd, their faithful hold forsook: 165In vain, to grapple pendent ropes they try,The pendent ropes a solid gripe deny:In vain they cry for aid, with panting breath,And saintly struggle with th' approach of Death:Th' impetuous surges gath'ring o'er them, sweep, 170And down they sink forever to the deep:Their sad companions their lost state bemoan;Perhaps a fatal prelude to their own.Pensive and sad, on deck the Pilots stand,Nor can determine on the next command: 175Surrounding dangers now they ponder o'er;A storm, a lofty sea, and leeward shore!"Should they, tho' reef'd, again the sails extend,"Again, in shiv'ring streamers, they may rend;"Or, should they stand, beneath th' oppressive weight, 180"The lab'ring Ship may bend, ne'er more to right."They mourn the cruel consequence in vain,Where perils, unallay'd by Hope, remain:Too late to weather[51] now Morea's land,And drifting[52] fast on Grecia's rocky strand. 185 ​Long pond'ring in their minds the doubtful choice,The Chiefs to furl the courses give their voice:That done, to reef the mizen next apply,Beneath it, broadside to the surge to try[53].Adown the mast, the yard they low'r away, 190Then jears and topping-lift[54] secure belay:Soon, o'er the head the circling canvass past[55],Around the yard and sail the gaskett's fast:The reef[56] enwrapp'd, th' inserted nittles ty'd,The hallyards, thrott[57] and peek, are next apply'd: 195The order's given, the yard aloft is sway'd;The brails are gone; th' extended sheet belay'd.Not more advent'rous was th' attempt to moveTh' infernal Pow'rs with strains of heavenly love,When faithful Orpheus, on the Stygian coast, 200In sacred notes implor'd his Consort lost;Tho' Fates and Furies fill'd the dire domain,And tortur'd Souls forever mourn'd in vain;Than mine, in ornamental verse to dressThe harshest sounds mechanic Arts express: 205Such arduous toil sage Daedalus endur'd,In mazes self-invented long immur'd;Till Art her salutary aid bestow'd,And snatch'd him from the intricate abode; ​Elated then, on wings before unknown, 210He 'scap'd the winding labyrinth, his own.Thus by Experience taught the rugged way,Where Phœbus' Daughters never dar'd to stray,Th' untrodden desert, long I've wander'd o'er,Where Phocian strains were never heard before, 215And now, like him, my Fancy aims to soar:The verse attempts in smoother notes to flow,Replete with sad variety of woe.As yet no threat'ning affect of the stormsThe dreadless Seamen's fortitude alarms; 220No thoughts of future woe their souls appall,They know no Danger, or they scorn it all;Tho' ev'ry rising wave more dreadful grows,And, in succession dire, the deck o'erflows.Far other cares the Master's mind employ, 225Approaching perils all his hopes destroy;In vain, he spreads the graduated chart,And bounds the distance by the rules of art;Across the geometric plane, expandsThe compasses to circumjacent lands; 230Ungrateful task! for nought he now exploresBeneath the lee, but Death and fateful shores.While musing thus, with horrid doubts dismay'd,The linear space, the anxious Chief survey'd;On deck, the watchful Pilots cry aloud, 235"Secure your lives! grasp every man a shroud!"Rous'd from his trance, he mounts the cause t'explore;When sudden, bursting with tremendous roar,A giant surge down rushes from on high,And, fore and aft dissever'd ruins lie; 240 ​The trembling hull confess'd th' enormous stroke;The crashing boats th' impetuous pressure broke:Companion[58], binnacle[59], in floating wreck,With compasses and glasses strew'd the deck;The mizen rending, from the bolt-rope[60] flew, 245Torn from the earing to the flutt'ring clue:The sides convulsive shook on groaning beams[61],And yawning wide, expand the pitchy[62] seams.They sound the well[63] and, terrible to hear!Along the line four wetted feet appear: 250At either pump they heave the clashing brake[64],And, turn by turn, th' ungrateful office take;They both in close rotation still attend,And help incessant, nervous Seamen lend; ​But all in vain! for lo! the sounding clue 255Updrawn, an undiminish'd depth they view:Still, o'er th' lab'ring Ship, t'augment their Fear,Vast torrents force a terrible career:Nor this severe distress is found alone,The ribs[65], oppress'd by pond'rous cannon, groan; 260Deep-rolling from the fluid mountain's height,The crashing sides seem bursting with the weight:Accumulated perils thus arise,And adverse Fate experienc'd Art defies:In such extremes, no moment should be lost, 265But over-board, the cumb'rous cannon tost;A task, that last distress alone requires,And only dread of instant death inspires;For, while the trembling Ship intent to ease,Between the horrid hills of raging seas, 270Some fatal wave may, with impetuous sweep,Immerge them struggling in the op'ning deep.The forelocks[66] drawn, the frappings[67] they unlace,And prizing crows[68] beneath the metal place;They watch a coming roll, their strength apply, 275Th' uplisted tubes from ev'ry carriage fly! ​The Ship thus eas'd, some little respite findsFrom the rude conflict of the seas and winds:But short the pause of woe! new dangers rise,Cimmerian darkness fills the cheerless skies, 280Save, when the forky lightnings horrid blaze,And dart athwart the gloom terrific rays:Above, all Heav'n appears a scene of woe,Where hov'ring Ruin threatens all below:Beneath, the storm-lash'd surges furious rise, 285And wave upborn on wave assails the skies:Now, riding on some billow's topmost head,The Vessel hovers o'er abysses dread;Then, swift immerging down the horrid vale;She hears no more the roaring of the gale: 290Till up-returning on succeeding hills,Again its direful pow'r the trembling, feels.Now Valour sinks beneath extreme Distress,And Anguish and Dismay their souls oppress:For while, in ceaseless inundation, o'er 295The sea-beat Ship, the booming waters roar,No diminution of the leaks is found,The jarring pumps with constant strokes resound;The leather[69] fretting too on either side,By friction wore, must ever be supply'd: 300No ease, no respite in these sad extremes!Pregnant with some new woe, each moment teems!Again the Chief th' instructive draught extends,And, o'er the figur'd plane attentive, bends. ​To him the motion of each orb was known, 305That, in its course, surrounds the solar throne:But here, alas! his Science nought avails,Art droops unequal, and Experience fails.The diff'rent traverses since twilight made,Are on the hydrographic circle laid, 310Then, in the graduated arch contain'd,The ample angle of lee-way remain'd:Enormous chord! whose sweep is almost foundA quadrant of the horizontal round:Her place explor'd with mathematic skill, 315His soul, Amaze, Suspence and Terror fill;When, Falconera's[70] Isle beneath the leeTen leagues alone, his eyes transfixing see;Distracting thought! for on that cruel shore,On lurking shelves, the dreadful breakers roar; 320And, if on those destructive ledges tost,At once the Ship and hapless Crew are lost.As fatal still appears, that Danger o'er,The steep St. George[70] and barren Gardalor[70].The Master and the Pilots long consult, 325And trembling, ponder on the last result:"Tho' Corinth's gulf extend, along the lee,"And, to its ports, appears a passage free;"Yet, in the height of this tempestuous gale,"The Ship's depriv'd of ev'ry ruling sail; 330 ​"And, in the hollow interval no more"She can sustain the seas that thunder o'er:"At ev'ry pitch, the quiv'ring bowsprit's end"Beneath the wat'ry pressure, seems to bend:"Eventful omen! since the masts on high 335"On that support, in trembling Hope rely."At either pump, the Seamen pant for breath,"In dire Dismay anticipating Death."Thus, ev'ry Danger in their minds revolv'd,On the last, dreadful effort they resolv'd. 340Then, to the Crew, whom racking doubts perplex,The fatal purpose, thus the Chief directs.Ye hapless Partners in a wayward fate!Whose dauntless Courage now is known too late;Ye! who, unmov'd, can brave the ruthless storm, 345When horrid tempests all the deep deform;Who, patient in Adversity, still bearThe firmest front, when greatest danger's near!The Truth, tho' grievous, I must now revealWhat, long in vain, I purpos'd to conceal. 350Ingulf'd, all helps of Art we vainly try,To weather leeward shores, alas! too nigh:Our sea-wreck'd Ship no longer can sustainTh' augmenting fury of th' boist'rous Main:Bereft of sail, to present Deaths we haste, 355And one short hour perhaps may be our last:Lo! rocky shores beneath our lee appear,That fatal goal concludes our sad career,Hemm'd in by Fate and Destiny severe: ​Unless, by Heav'n's Assistance, we can gain 360Some creek, or inlet of the Grecian main.This previous counsel, for your safety giv'n,Before our fated Ship on rocks is driv'n,Perhaps, if follow'd, from the wat'ry grave,Amidst the surf, our company may save. 365First, every ax to hand convenient lay!And lash secure, to cut the masts away,The longest lines on deck must be convey'd,And on the weather quarter-rails belay'd;If hap'ly some alive should reach the land, 370Th' extended cords to fasten on the strand:Whene'er loud thund'ring on the leeward shore,Aloof, we hear the broken surges roar,Thus, for the imminent event prepar'd,Brace fore and aft[71] to starboard ev'ry yard; 375Then, broach[72] the Vessel to the westward round,And climb the rigging till she strikes the ground:When first she, bilging, feels the dreadful shock,And with her bottom strikes the pointed rock;The ablest Seamen from the shrouds descend, 380And lashings[73] round their waists securely bend; ​Then burst the hatches[74] off, and ev'ry stay,And ev'ry weather-lannyard[75], cut away:Planks, gratings, booms and rafts to leeward cast,And with redoubled strokes attack each mast; 385This buoyant lumber may sustain you o'erThe rocky shelves and ledges to the shore.But, on the masts if possible, remain,The surest method safety to obtain!Tho' great the Danger, and the Task severe, 390Yet bow not to the Tyranny of Fear;If once that slavish yoke your souls subdue,Adieu to Hope! to Life itself adieu!No more remains, but now prepare to veer,Two skilful Helmsmen on the poop to steer. 395And thou eternal Pow'r! whose sov'reign swayThe raging storms and roaring seas obey!On thy supreme Assistance we rely,Thy Mercy supplicate, if doom'd to die:To thy unerring Will submissive trust, 400With whom "whatever is, is ever just."Thus in a land whom adverse Pow'rs oppress,That groans beneath Misfortune and Distress; ​To Victor-Hosts, her wealth becomes a prey,Her Glory, Prowess, Fortitude decay: 405Some skilful Statesman, from the ruling helm,Beholds black Ruin hov'ring o'er his realm:He darts around his penetrating eyes,Where Dangers grow and hostile unions rise:Watchful remarks the mischief-planning Foe, 410Eludes their schemes, and wards off ev'ry blow;Judicious, frustrates all their deep designs,Their plots evades, their projects countermines;Tries his last Art, the tott'ring State to save,Or in its Ruins find a glorious grave. 415The order now was giv'n to bear away,The order giv'n, the Timoneers obey.Both stay-sail[76] sheets to mid-ships were convey'dAnd, round the fore-mast, on each side belay'd:Then to the hallyards ev'ry Man applies, 420They hoist,———the rending sail to ruins flies!Still new Distress ⟨enhances⟩ former woes,For now six feet, the sounding-measure shews:But still the Master resolute appears,Settles his Grief, and doubles all his Cares. 425"Away there, low'r the mizen-yard on deck!"He calls, and, "brace the foremost yards aback! ​"Unmov'd she lies, nor will the helm obey!"Then cut, sad shift! the mizen-mast away[77]!He said; they to the lannyards quickly run, 430And, quick the stay and weather-shrouds are gone: ​The tall mast groans with their redoubled blows,And tott'ring, crashing o'er the quarter goes.Thus, when some limb is seiz'd with gangren'd pains,That spread their baneful influence thro' the veins, 435Th' experienc'd Artist all his Skill applies,To check the dire contagion as it flies;But, if the malady eludes his Art,To save the whole, he wisely dooms a part:T' impede the Death, increasing pangs convey, 440Lops from the trunk th' infected branch away.
  1. ↑ Hatchways are square holes in the decks to pass up and down through, and likewise to take in and deliver the cargo by.
  2. ↑ Bow-lines are ropes fastened to the outer edge or leech of the square-sails in three different places: their uses are to bind the weather or windward-edge of the sail tight forward on a side-wind, to keep it from shivering.
  3. ↑ Hallyards are those ropes or Tackles by which the sails are hoisted up and lowered down, on the masts or stays.
  4. ↑ Clue-lines are ropes fastened to the clues, or lower-corners of the square-sails: their uses are to draw each clue up to the yards, for the more easy furling or reefing them.
  5. ↑ Reef-tackles are ropes which run through holes at each top-sail-yard-end, and are fastened down on the edge or leech of the sail, at the extreme parts of the lowest reef: by hauling in these the reef-band, which contains the holes, is bound close up to the yard, for the more readily tying the points.
  6. ↑ Earings are small lines fastened to holes at the extreme parts of each reef and each head-rope: the method of passing them is, by taking six or seven turns round the yard-end, each turn being inserted through the hole, which is called a cringle.
  7. ↑ Mizen is a large sail bent to the mizen-mast, of an oblong figure, only that the upper-end of it is peaked or sloped: it is commonly reckoned one of the courses, which are main-sail, fore sail, mizen, and fore-stay-sail; but chiefly the main-sail and fore-sail.
  8. ↑ Clue-garnetts are the same to the main-sail and fore-sail, which the Clue-lines are to all other square-sails, and are hauled up when the sail is to be furled or brailed.
  9. ↑ Sheets are the ropes that extend the bottoms of all sails, and are fastened to the clues or corners: to the main-sail and fore-sail there is a sheet and tack on each side, the tack always being fast to windward close down to the gunnel, and the sheet stretched aft to leeward: tacks are only used on a side-wind.
  10. ↑ Careening is lying down on either side.
  11. ↑ A-weather, the reason of putting the helm a-weather, or to the side next the wind, is to make the Ship veer before it, when it blows so hard that she cannot bear her side to it any longer.
  12. ↑ To trim the sail, is to place it properly to the direction of the wind.
  13. ↑ Timoneer, (from Timon, Ital. the Helm) the Steersman.
  14. ↑ Rotation, because the helm is commanded by a wheel.
  15. ↑ To haul the wind is to bring the Ship's side to the wind, after he had been running more before it.
  16. ↑ The helm a-starboard directs the Ship's head to the left or to port, and è contra; hence, the Ship running northward before the wind, the helm put a-starboard brings her stem westward.
  17. ↑ Vulgarly so called, but properly the fore-topmast-stay-sail, is a three-cornered sail that runs upon the fore-top-mast-stay over the bowsprit: its use is to command the forepart of the Ship, as the mizen commands the hinder or after-part, and balance each other: thus if a Ship wants to cling the wind with her side, the mizen is set and the staysail down: and if she wants to veer, the stay-sail is hoisted and the mizen brail'd up, &c.
  18. ↑ The fore and fore-top-sail bow-lines are stretched to the bowsprit-end.
  19. ↑ Bunt-lines are ropes which pass up behind each yard, and, leading through a block or pully, reach down before their respective sails, to the bottom of which they are fastened: their use is to haul the foot of the sail close up to the yard, when it is to be brail'd or furled.
  20. ↑ Blocks are pieces of wood, so hollowed as to receive a little wheel or sheave within, on the edge of which the ropes run they are so situate in different parts of the Ship, as to command most of the necessary mechanism aloft, by hauling different ropes on deck.
  21. ↑ It has been said before that the leeches are the edges of the sail, which reach up, and down, and are consequently made streight or taught when the sail is hoisted.
  22. ↑ Braces are the ropes that traverse or turn the yard on either side the mast: the yards are braced to starboard when the starboard-brace is hauled in, and è contra.
  23. ↑ Brails are the clue lines, bunt-lines, and leech-lines: their uses are to haul the clues, leeches, and bottoms of the sail close up to the yard; and this is called brailing up, which I have taken the liberty to call embrailing.
  24. ↑ Head-rope is that to which the upper part of the sail is sewed. (See Bolt-rope, p. 29.)
  25. ↑ Rope-bands or robands, are small ropes of a length that will take three turns round the yard: they are passed through holes under the head-rope to fasten it to the yard.
  26. ↑ Because the lee-brace confines the yard, so that the tack cannot come down till the braces are cast off.
  27. ↑ Chesstree is a piece of wood which stands up and down edgeways, bolted to the Ship's side: there is a large hole in it, through which the tack is passed, and when the clue of the sail comes down to it, the tack is said to be aboard.
  28. ↑ Tally is a phrase particularly used for hauling aft the sheets: to belay is to make fast:
  29. ↑ Clued-up is the same with embrailed.
  30. ↑ Gasketts are platted ropes to wrap round the sails, which is called furling them.
  31. ↑ A rolling-tackle is a rope passed through a single and double-block, so that it becomes fourfold: its use is to confine the yard close to leeward, to keep it from galling against the Mast by the motion of the Ship.
  32. ↑ Caps are strong, thick pieces of oak of an oblong figure, with two holes in them so fitted, that the hindmost or aftmost is bolted close down on the lower mast-head, and the foremost is for containing and keeping steddy the topmast, which slides up through it: and so of the top-gallant-mast.
  33. ↑ It is usual to send down the top-gallant-yards at the approach of a storm, to ease the mast-heads: they are the highest yards that are rigged in a Ship.
  34. ↑ Back-stays are long ropes, reaching from the top-mast-head to the chains, for securing the top masts, which are the second masts in height, and stand at the head of each lower mast, as the top-gallant mast stands at the head of the topmast. Travellers are large rings round the back-stays, with a rope, of about six feet long, fast to each; which being fastened to the top-gallant-yard-arms, confine them to the back-stays when they are hoisted and lowered, to prevent them from swinging amongst the rigging.
  35. ↑ Top-ropes are those by which yards and masts are hoisted and lowered.
  36. ↑ Parrels are those ropes by which the yards are fastened to the masts; being so passed round both, that the yard slides with ease up and down the mast as occasion requires: they are of three several kinds, a particular definition of which is immaterial here, as they are all constructed to serve the same purpose.
  37. ↑ Lifts are ropes which reach from each mast-head to their respective yard-arms; as, from the lower mast-heads to the lower yard-arms, and from the top-mast-heads to the top-sail-yard-arms, &c. to sustain the weight of the yard when it is manned.
  38. ↑ A yard is said to be topped, when one lift is slacked and the other hauled in, so that it forms greater or less angles with the mast; and here, all the rigging being taken off from the top-gallant-yards, they are topped up and down, and a traveller fastened to each end, in order to slide down the back-stays, as they are lowered by the top-ropes.
  39. ↑ Booms are spare masts or yards, which remain ready on deck to supply the places of those that may be carried away aloft.
  40. ↑ It has before been observed, that the tack is always fastened to windward; therefore when the tack is cast off, and the clue-garnett hauled up, the clue or corner of the sail immediately mounts to the yard, which must be carefully done in a storm, to preserve the sail.
  41. ↑ It is necessary immediately to haul in the weather-brace here, when the sheet is gene, to keep the sail from splitting.
  42. ↑ To spill a sail is to confine it from swelling out over the yard, and is done by bracing it so that the wind lays it flat against the mast; which is called bracing it a-back.
  43. ↑ The violence of the wind forces the yard so much out, that it is necessary to hook a tackle to it (called by the above name) to haul it down, for the more conveniently reefing the sail.
  44. ↑ Jears, to the fore-sail, main-sail and mizen, are the same as hallyards to all other sails. The tye is the upper part of the jears.
  45. ↑ When the yard is down, the rolling-tackle is shifted; and one end being hooked to the mast, the other is hooked to the weather yard-arm and drawn tight, to keep the yard from swinging.
  46. ↑ Reef-lines are used to the courses only, and are passed in spiral turns through the holes, and over the head of the sail successively, till they reach the extremes of the reef, and then being hauled taught, draw it up to the yard.
  47. ↑ Shrouds are thick ropes stretching from the mast-heads down to both outsides of the Ship, and are the chief support of the mast: They are doubled, and the bight or middle being clapped over the mast-head, the two lower ends are drawn taught down to the chains by lannyards. (See Lannyards, page 35.)
  48. ↑ The reef-band is a long piece of canvass sewed acroſs the sail, for strengthening it in the place where the reef-holes are made, which pass through the band.
  49. ↑ The outer-turns are for stretching the reef taught along the yard: the inner-turns are to bind it close up to the yard.
  50. ↑ The hull is the body of the Ship.
  51. ↑ To weather a shore is to pass on the wind-side of it, which could not be done here, by reason of the violence of the storm.
  52. ↑ Drift is the motion and direction by which a Vessel is forced to leeward sideways, when she is unable to carry sail any longer.
  53. ↑ To try, is to lie broadside to the direction of the wind and sea in a storm.
  54. ↑ Topping-lift is a tackle which tops the upper end of the mizen-yard.
  55. ↑ A piece of canvass is passed round the sail here, to prevent the gaskett from cutting it when set; and this is called balancing the mizen.
  56. ↑ The reef of the mizen is at the bottom of it, and the nittles are short lines which passed through the reef-holes, are knotted under the foot-rope. (See Bolt-rope, page 29.)
  57. ↑ The thrott is that part of the mizen-yard which is close to the mast.
  58. ↑ The companion is a square wooden porch, erected over the hatchway, that goes down to the cabbin or apartment of the chief officers.
  59. ↑ The binnacle is a box which stands before the helm on deck, having three divisions, the middle one for a lamp or candle, and the other two for the compasses which direct the Ship's course and the watch-glasses.
  60. ↑ The bolt-rope surrounds or girts all sails, their edges being sewed to it: in square sails it is distinguished by three names, viz. head-rope or upper part; leeches or sides; and foot-ropes or bottoms.
  61. ↑ Beams are strong pieces of timber stretching across the Ship, to keep the sides at their proper distance, and support the decks.
  62. ↑ Because the seams or junctions of the planks are filled with pitch, to prevent the water from penetrating the deck or sides.
  63. ↑ The pump-well is an apartment in the Ship's hold that contains the main-mast and pumps, and is planked round, to keep the cargo clear of the pumps: it is sounded by letting a measured iron rod and line down the pump, by which they know whether the leaks increase or diminish.
  64. ↑ The brake is the pump-handle, which is occasionally fixed and taken off.
  65. ↑ Ribs are the curved timbers of a Ship which reach from the keel or bottom to the gunnel: by these the body of the Ship is constructed, on which the out-side planks and cieling are afterwards placed.
  66. ↑ Forelocks are little flat iron wedges drove into the bolt-ends to prevent their loosening in the carriages.
  67. ↑ Frappings are the tackles and ropes by which the guns are fastened to the Ship's side.
  68. ↑ Crows are long bars of iron with a point at one end and two claws in the other: their use is to move or heave weighty bodies.
  69. ↑ The leather which is nailed round the pump-boxes or suckers.
  70. ↑ 70.0 70.1 70.2 The first of these Islands lies 26 leagues north of Cape Malacha, and the other two at the entrance of the gulf of Engia (see any modern chart of the Archipelago, their names not being mentioned in antient geography) and are in the track of the Ship's scudding before the wind.
  71. ↑ The intent of bracing the yards fore and aft here is to lie under the masts when they are cut away, in order to bear the masts the better up off the rocks, that the men may the safer get along upon them.
  72. ↑ Broaching too is bringing the side to the wind in a storm, but is commonly understood to be done by accident or neglect, on account of the great difficulty in steering a Ship before the storm and sea: and this is done here to bring the Vessel's broadside to the shore, so that the masts when cut away may possibly reach to it, in order to effect the escape of the Crew.
  73. ↑ Lashings are lines to fasten any thing, and are here designed to secure the Men from being washed over board by the height of the sea while employed on deck.
  74. ↑ Hatches are the covers of the hatchways, of which gratings are a particular kind made to let the light pass between decks.
  75. ↑ Lannyard; there is in the lower end of every shroud, and upper part of every chain-plate, a round block of wood, called a dead-eye, with three holes in it, and the lannyard is a rope that, passing through the holes of both dead eyes, becomes sixfold, and draws its respective shroud quite taught, for the security of the mast; so that these must all be cut away previous to the mast, in order to disengage it from the side.
  76. ↑ It has been before mentioned, that the fore-stay-sail is one of the sails which commands the fore-part of the Ship, and is for that reason hoisted at this time, to bear her fore-part round before the wind: for the same reason, after it is split, the foremost yards are braced aback, that is to form right angles with the direction of the wind. For a further illustration of this, see the last Note of this Canto.
  77. ↑ When a Ship is forced by the violence of a contrary wind to furl all her sails, if the storm increase and the sea continue to enlarge, she is often strained to so great a degree, that, to ease her, she must be made to run before their mutual direction; which however is rarely done but in cases of the last necessity. Now as she has no head-way and is almost deprived of motion, only that of incessant rolling and tossing, occasioned by the violent agitation of the waves, the helm is also deprived of its governing power, which is only the consequence of the Ship's having head-way; it therefore necessarily requires an uncommon effort to wheel or turn her into any different position. It is an axiom in natural philosophy, That every body will persevere in its state of rest, or moving uniformly in a right line, unless it be compelled to change its state by forces impressed; and that the change of motion is proportional to the moving force impressed, and is made according to the right line in which that force acts.
    By this principle it is easy to conceive how a Ship is compelled to turn into any direction by the force of the wind acting upon her sails in lines parallel to the plane of the horizon; for the sails may be so set as to receive the current of air either directly, or more or less obliquely; and the motion communicated to the Ship must of necessity conspire with that of the wind. As therefore the Ship lies in such a situation as to have the wind and sea directly on her side, and these increase to such a height, that she must either founder or scud before the storm; the aft-most sails are first taken in, or so placed that the wind has very little power on them, and the head sails or foremost sails are spread abroad, so that the whole force of the wind is exerted on the Ship's fore-part, which must therefore of necessity yield to its impulse. The prow being thus put in motion, its motion must conspire with that of the wind, and will be pushed about so as to run immediately before it: for this reason, when no more sail can be carried, the foremost yards are braced back, that is, in such a position as to receive all the current of air they can contain directly, to perform the operation of head-sails; and the mizen-yard is lower'd to produce the same effect as furling, or placing obliquely the aftmost sails; and this attempt being found insufficient, the mizen-mast is cut away, which must have been followed by the main-mast, if the expected effect had not taken place.

Erratum

  1. ↑ Original: north-east was amended to South-West: detail
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