| CHAPTER | | PAGE |
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| I. | A Short History of Boats | [1] |
| | The first boat. Rafts and canoes. Catamarans. Early forms of boats. Coracles and goofahs. The evolution of the sailboat. Types of modern boats. Schooners, sloops, ketches, catboats, round- and flat-bottomed boats. | |
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| II. | What Boat to Use | [10] |
| | Speed, stability and seaworthiness. Boats for various uses. Whale-boats, surf-boats, life-boats, fishing boats, oyster-boats, pilot-boats, spongers, skiffs, dories, skip-jacks, etc. | |
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| III. | Parts of Boats | [19] |
| | Various parts of a boat’s hull. Masts and spars. Blocks and tackle. Anchors and cables. Deck fittings. Cleats, chocks. Rudders, tillers, wheels, etc. Keels and centerboards. Leeboards. Ropes and standing rigging. What each is for. | |
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| IV. | Various Rigs | [39] |
| | Square-rigged vessels. Ships, barks, barkentines, brigs, brigantines, topsail-schooners, schooners. Ketch and yawl rigs. Sloop rigs. Catboats. Types of fore and aft sails. Lateen, lug, gunter, sprit, leg-o’-mutton and other sails. What rig to use. | |
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| V. | How to Sail a Small Boat | [59] |
| | First steps in learning to sail. Handling and sailing small boats. Getting under way. Sailing on the wind, tacking. Coming about. Sailing before the wind. Wearing ship. Jibing. Luffing. Reefing. Coming to a landing. Coming to anchor. | |
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| VI. | The Care of Boats | [87] |
| | Equipment. Anchors and safety appliances. Moorings. Sea anchors. Stowing sail. Care of boats and sails. Caulking, painting, etc. | |
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| VII. | Marlinspike Seamanship | [102] |
| | Ropes and their parts. Simple and useful knots. Splices. Bends and hitches. Ornamental knots. | |
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| VIII. | Simple Navigation | [125] |
| | Rules of the road at sea. Lights, beacons and signals. Buoys and lighthouses. Channels. Use of compass. Charts and their use. Dead reckoning. Logs. Sounding. Landmarks. Bearings. Currents and tides. Fogs. Stars. Winds and waves. Storms. Sailing in heavy weather. What to do in case of accident. | |
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| IX. | Building Small Boats | [164] |
| | The simplest boat to build. How to build a round-bottomed boat. Building from patterns. | |
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| X. | What not to Do | [180] |
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| | Nautical Terms and Their Meanings | [187] |