A BRIEF

DICTIONARY OF SEA TERMS.

ABACK. The situation of the sails when the wind presses their surfaces against the mast, and tends to force the vessel astern.

ABAFT. Towards the stern of a vessel.

ABOARD. Within a vessel.

ABOUT. On the other tack.

A-BOX. Having the head yards aback.

ABREAST. Alongside of. Side by side.

A-COCK-BILL. The situation of the yards when they are topped up at an angle with the deck. The situation of an anchor when it hangs to the cathead by the ring only.

ADRIFT. Broken from moorings or fasts. Without fasts.

AFLOAT. Resting on the surface of the water.

AFORE. Forward. The opposite of abaft.

AFT-AFTER. Near the stern.

AFTER SAILS, and AFTER YARDS. The sails and yards on the main and mizen masts.

AGROUND. Touching the bottom.

AHEAD. In the direction of the vessel's head. Wind ahead is from

the direction towards which the vessel's head points.

A-HULL. The situation of a vessel when she lies with all her sails furled and her helm lashed a-lee.

A-LEE. The situation of the helm when it is put in the opposite direction from that in which the wind blows.

ALL-ABACK. When all the sails are aback.

ALL HANDS. The whole crew.

ALL IN THE WIND. When all the sails are shaking.

ALOFT. Above the deck.

ALOOF. At a distance.

AMAIN. Suddenly. At once.

AMIDSHIPS. In the centre of the vessel; either with reference to her length or to her breadth.

ANCHOR. The machine by which, when dropped to the bottom, the vessel is held fast.

ANCHOR-WATCH. (See WATCH.)

AN-END. When a mast is perpendicular to the deck.

A-PEEK. When the cable is hove taut so as to bring the vessel nearly over her anchor. The yards are a-peek when they are topped up by contrary lifts.

APRON. A piece of timber fixed behind the lower part of the stem,

just above the fore end of the keel. A kind of false or inner stem, on the after part of the stem, from the head down to the deadwood, in order to strengthen it. A covering to the vent or lock of a cannon.

ARM. YARD-ARM. The extremity of a yard. Also the lower part of an anchor, crossing the find add terminating in the flukes. ARMING. A piece of tallow put in the cavity and over the bottom of a lead-line.

A-STERN. In the direction of the stern. The opposite of a-head.
A-TAUNT. (See TAUNT.)

ATHWART. Across.

Athwart-ships. Across the line of the vessel's keel; across the length of a vessel, in opposition to fore and aft.

Athwart-hawse. Across the direction of a vessel's head. Across her cable.

A-TRIP. The situation of the anchor when it is raised clear of the ground. The same as a-weigh.

AVAST, or 'VAST. An order to stop; as, "Avast heaving!"

A-WEATHER. The situation of the helm when it is put in the direction from which the wind blows.

A-WEIGH. The same as a-trip.

AWNING. A covering of canvas over a vessel's deck, or over a boat, to keep off sun or rain.

BACK.

To back an anchor is to carry out a smaller one ahead of the one by which the vessel rides, to take off some of the strain. To back a sail is to throw it aback.

To back and fill is alternately to back and fill the sails.

BACKSTAYS. Long ropes running from a masthead to the vessel's side, slanting a little aft. (See STAYS.)

BAGPIPE. To bagpipe the mizen is to lay it aback by bringing the sheet to the weather mizen-rigging.

BALANCE-REEF. A reef in a spanker or fore-and-aft mainsail, which runs from the outer head-earing, diagonally, to the tack. It is the closest reef, and makes the sail triangular, or nearly so.

BALE.

To bale a boat is to throw water out of her.

BALLAST. Heavy material, as iron, lead, or stone, placed in the bottom of the hold, to keep a vessel from upsetting.

To freshen ballast is to shift it. Coarse gravel is called shingle ballast.

BANK. A boat is double-banked when two oars, one opposite the other,

are pulled by men seated on the same thwart.

BAR. A bank or shoal at the entrance of a harbour.

Capstan-bars are heavy pieces of wood by which the capstan is hove round.

BARE-POLES. The condition of a ship when she has no sail set. BARGE. A large double-banked boat, used by the commander of a vessel in the navy.

BARK, or BARQUE. A three-masted vessel, having her fore and main masts rigged like a ship's, and her mizen mast like the main mast of a schooner, with no sail upon it but a spanker, and gaff-topsail. BARNACLE. A shell-fish often found on a vessel's bottom.

BARQUANTINE. A three-masted vessel with yards on her foremast only.

BARREL. The main piece of a capstan, or steering wheel.

BATTENS. Thin strips of wood put around the hatches, to keep the tarpaulin down. Also put upon rigging to keep it from chafing. A large batten widened at the end, and put upon rigging, is called a Scotchman.

BEACON. A post or buoy placed over a shoal or bank to warn vessels off. Also as a signal-mark on land.

BEAMS. Strong pieces of timber stretching across the vessel, to support the decks.

On the weather or lee-beam is in a direction to windward or leeward, at right angles with the keel.

On beam ends. The situation of a vessel when turned over so that her beams are inclined towards the vertical.

BEAR. An object bears so and so, when it is in such a direction from the person looking.

To bear down upon a vessel is to approach her from windward.

To bear up is to put the helm up and keep a vessel off from her course, and move her to leeward.

To bear away is the same as to bear up; being applied to the vessel instead of to the tiller.

To bear a-hand. To make haste.

BEARING. The direction of an object from the person looking. The

bearings of a vessel are the widest part of her below the plankshear. That part of her hull which is on the water-line when she is at anchor and in her proper trim. BEATING. Going towards the direction of the wind, by alternate tacks. BECALM. To intercept the wind. A vessel or highland to windward

is said to becalm a vessel to leeward. So one sail to windward may becalm another to leeward.

BECKET. A piece of rope placed so as to confine a spar or another rope. A handle made of rope, in the form of a circle (as the handle of a chest), is called a becket.

BEES. Pieces of plank bolted to the outer end of the bowsprit, to reeve

the fore-topmast stays through.

BEFORE THE WIND. Sailing with the wind blowing after the ship. BELAY. To make a rope fast, by turns round a pin or coil, without hitching or seizing it.

BEND. To make fast.

To bend a sail is to make it fast to the yard.

To bend a cable is to make it fast to the anchor.

A bend is a knot by which one rope is made fast to another.

BENDS. The thickest and strongest planks on the outward part of a vessel's side, to which the beams, knees, and foot-hooks are bolted. BENEAPED. (See NEAPED.)

BENTINCK SHROUDS. Formerly used, and extending from the futtockstaves to the opposite channels.

BERTH. The place where a vessel lies. The place in which a man sleeps.

BETWEEN-DECKS. The space between any two decks of a ship.

BIBBS. Pieces of timber bolted to the hounds of a mast, to support the trestle-trees.

BIGHT. The double part of a rope when it is folded; in contra-distinction from the ends. Any part of a rope may be called the bight, except the ends. Also a bend in the shore.

BILGE. That part of the floor of a ship upon which she would rest if aground; being near the keel, it is more in a horizontal than a perpendicular line. The largest circumference of a cask. Bilged. When the bilge is broken in.

Bilge-planks. Thick strengthenings on the inner and outer lines of a ship's bilge.

Bilge-water. Water which settles in the bilge.

Bilge-ways. Pieces of timber bolted together and placed under the bilge in launching.

BILL. The point of the fluke of an anchor. Bill-boards protect the ship's planks from the bill of the anchor.

BILLET-HEAD. (See HEAD.)

BINNACLE. A box or stand near the helm, and elsewhere, containing the mariner's compass.

BITTS. Perpendicular pieces of timber going through the deck, placed to secure anything to. The cables are fastened to them, if there is no windlass. There are also bitts to secure the windlass, and on each side the heel of the bowsprit.

BITTER, or BITTER-END. The part of the cable abaft the bitts.
BLACKWALL-HITCH. A sort of tackle-hook guy.

BLADE. The flat part of an oar which goes into the water.

BLOCK. A piece of wood, with sheaves or wheels in it, through which the running rigging passes to add to the purchase. (See also TACKLE.)