5. By successive improvements, the ships of antiquity were, at length, brought to combine good proportion with considerable beauty. The prows were sometimes ornamented with the sculptured figures of heathen deities, and otherwise adorned with paint and gilding, while the sterns, which were usually in the form of a shield, were elaborately wrought in carved work. The approved length of a ship of war, was six or eight times its breadth; and that for mercantile purposes, four times the breadth; hence, the distinction of long ships, and round ships.
6. Both the long and round ships had a single mast, which could be taken down or elevated at pleasure. These vessels were, however, propelled with oars on occasions that required it; and the former, in their improved state, were properly galleys with one, two, or three banks of oars, which extended from one end of the vessel to the other. The rowers were all placed under the deck; and, in time of battle, the combatants contended above, being in part defended from the missiles of opposing foes by shields carried on the arm, and by screens and towers placed on the deck. The bow of each vessel was armed with a brazen or iron beak, with which the contending parties often stove in the sides of each other's vessels.
7. The general size of vessels in the best days of antiquity, was not greater than that of our sloops and schooners; but there are instances on record, which prove that they occasionally equalled in capacity the largest of modern times. In the early ages, they were very small, and, for several centuries, were drawn upon the shore at the termination of every voyage. Stranding, however, became impracticable, after the increase in size, and the addition of the keel. The anchor and cable were, therefore, invented, to confine the ship at a suitable distance from the shore. At first, the anchor was nothing more than a large stone. Afterwards, it was wood and stone combined; and, finally, iron was the sole material.
8. The invasion of the Roman empire by the northern barbarians, caused the operations of war to be almost exclusively conducted on the land. This, together with the destruction of commerce during the general desolation of those ruthless incursions, and the barbarism of the conquerors, occasioned a retrogression, and, in some parts of Europe, nearly the total destruction of the art of building ships.
9. The active trade which arose in the Mediterranean, during the middle ages, and the naval enterprises connected with the Crusades, occasioned a revival of the art of constructing ships; yet, it did not advance beyond the condition in which the Carthaginians had left it, until about the middle of the fourteenth century. At this era, the inconsiderable galleys of former times began to be superseded by larger vessels, in which, however, oars were not entirely dispensed with.
10. The great change in the general construction of vessels, arose from the discovery of the polarity of the magnet, and the application of astronomy to nautical pursuits; for, by these means, the mariner was released from his dependence on the sight of the land, in guiding his vessel on its course. Larger ships were therefore constructed, capable of withstanding more violent storms and loftier waves.
11. To the Italians, Catalans, and Portuguese, was ship-building most considerably indebted, in the early days of its revival. The Spaniards followed up their discovery of the New World with a rapid improvement in both the form and size of their ships; some of which even rated at two thousand tons burden. In more modern times, it is said, that the Spaniards and French are entitled to the credit of nearly all the improvements which have been made in the theory of the art, the English having never contributed essentially to advance it, although the greatest naval power of this or any other time.
12. In the United States, very great improvements have been made in the construction of vessels, since the commencement of the present century. Our builders, however, are less guided by scientific rules than by experience and a practised eye; yet, it is generally conceded, that our ships of war and first-rate merchantmen, are superior in swiftness and beauty to those of any other country.
13. In Europe, the first thing done towards building a vessel, is to exhibit it in three distinct views by as many separate drawings; but, in the United States, the builder commences by framing a complete wooden model of the proposed construction—the thing itself in miniature. From this practice of our naval architects, have arisen the superior beauty and excellence of our vessels.
14. The timber generally used in the construction of American vessels, is live-oak, pine, chestnut, locust, and cedar. The trees of mature growth are chosen, and girdled in the beginning of winter, at which time they contain but little sap. When sufficiently dry and hardened, the trees are felled; and, after the timber has been roughly hewn, it is carefully stored in some dry, airy place, not much exposed to wind or sun.