Gaskets.—Take three or four foxes, middle them, and plait them together into sennit. This is done by bringing the two outside foxes alternately over to the middle. The outside ones are laid with the right hand, and the remainder are held and steadied with the left. Having plaited enough for an eye, bring all the parts together, and work them all into one piece, in the same manner. Take out foxes at proper intervals. When finished, one end must be laid up, the other plaited, and the first hauled through. The name sennit is generally given to rope yarns plaited in the same manner with these foxes. Sennit made in this way must have an odd number of parts. French sennit is made with an even number, taken over and under every other time.
To bend a Buoy-rope. Reeve the end through the eye in the other end, put it over one arm of the anchor, and haul taut. Take a hitch over the other arm. Or, take a clove-hitch over the crown, stopping the end to its own part, or to the shank.
To pass a Shear-lashing.—Middle the lashing and take a good turn round both legs, at the cross. Pass one end up and the other down, around and over the cross, until half of the lashing is expended. Then ride both ends back again on their own parts and knot them in the middle. Frap the first and riding turns together on each side with sennit.
CHAPTER VIII.
BLOCKS AND PURCHASES.
Parts of a block. Made and morticed blocks. Bull's-eye. Dead-eye. Sister-block. Snatch-block. Tail-block. Whip. Gun-tackle. Luff-tackle. Whip-upon-whip. Luff-upon-luff. Watch or tail-tackle. Runner-tackle.
Blocks are of two kinds, made and morticed. A made block consists of four parts,—the shell, or outside; the sheave, or wheel on which the rope turns; the pin, or axle on which the wheel turns; and the strap, either of rope or iron, which encircles the whole, and keeps it in its place. The sheave is generally strengthened by letting in a piece of iron or brass at the centre, called a bush.
A Morticed Block is made of a single block of wood, morticed out to receive a sheave.
All blocks are single, double, or three-fold, according to the number of sheaves in them.