Every Boy's Book: A Complete Encyclopædia of Sports and Amusements

by Unknown

CUTTER BEFORE THE WIND.

Ropes.—There are various ropes to hoist and lower sails, called haulyards (pronounced halliards). There are also other ropes of great importance, especially those called the sheets, which are to haul in the sails, and make them stand to the wind. In a yacht, the mainsail has sometimes a sheet each side; and sometimes only one sheet reeved through double blocks, which travel on an iron rod, called “a horse,” from side to side. The jib has two sheets, the starboard and port (right and left). The foresail has the same, except in some instances, when it has but one sheet working on a traveller, like the mainsail. The topsail has only one, which is rove through a sheave at the end of the gaff and a block at the throat of the gaff, and then down to a cleat or fastening place on the deck. Signal haulyards are for hauling up the colours, and pass through a small sheave, in the truck ([10]), at the end of the topmast. The ensign haulyards are reeved through a small block at the peak end, and lead down to the boom. The other ropes on board a yacht are for the support of the spars, and are called “standing rigging,” while those used for the sails are called “running rigging.”

TOPMAST AND FORETOPMAST STAY.

SAILING A YACHT.

If the reader has paid attention to our instructions, he ought now to be pretty well conversant with build, rigging, spars, and sails of a yacht; the next thing, therefore, is to explain the actual practical sailing of a yacht. The number of hands must depend on the tonnage of the boat and the number of sails. It is best to have a steersman, and one hand for each sail. Our yacht is now lying at anchor, or moorings, which consists of a chain and buoy, fastened to a heavy anchor sunk in the bed of the river. Having got on board, by means of the little boat called a “dingy,” we first unloose the fore and mainsail, and forestaysail; haul out the jib on the bowsprit, ready for hoisting; hoist the colours, with the name of the yacht or club to which she belongs, to the gaff-end; and stand by to hoist the canvass. We will suppose it just past high water, the yacht swinging ebb, and the wind up stream; we shall, therefore, have tide with us, and the wind against us. We now hoist the throat and peak halliards, till the former is well up block to block; then, by hauling at the peak-halliards till the after part of the sail is taut (tight), the mainsail is set, and she swings head to wind. The next thing is to hoist the forestaysail and the jib, which must be well purchased up, and the sheet well hauled in, before we can get her on the wind, i. e. sail close up to the wind. The ropes must now be coiled up, and hung on the cleat belonging to each. Our canvass being now up, we may cast off, slack out the mainsail, haul in jibsheet on the contrary tack to which we intend to sail, and we are under weigh.

We have already told the reader that “starboard” means right, and “port” means left. Formerly, the word “larboard” was used for left; but, owing to the similarity between the two words starboard and larboard, the word port was substituted for the latter. A boat is said to be on the starboard tack, when the wind is blowing from the starboard side; the port side is then called the lee side, and the starboard the weather side. She is on the port tack when the wind blows from the port side, which is then called the weather side, and the starboard the lee side. When in steering she is brought nearer the wind, she is said to “luff;” and when further from it, to “bear away.” When the helm is put so as to cause the boat to luff, the helm is “put up;” when it causes the boat to bear away, it is “put down,” or a-lee.

Proceeding to our cruise, we must haul the jib-sheet well in, put the helm up, and sail close to the wind; as, the wind being against us, we shall have to “beat up,” that is, sail in a zigzag direction. In sailing close to the wind, we must always take care not to sail too close, but always keep the canvass quite full. Upon the skill of the steersman, mainly depend the motions of the boat; he must endeavour to attain the happy medium of keeping the boat close to the wind, and yet not allowing the canvass to shake. The practised yachtsman feels with his helm every variation of the wind, and meets it with a turn to port or starboard; but the young sailor would do well to watch the colour at the masthead, and, by keeping it in a line with the gaff, he will not steer very wildly. We are now getting near the opposite bank from whence we started, and must therefore tack. If the boat is quick in stays (i. e. will go round quickly), and the bottom is not muddy, and is deep enough for the boat, we may go pretty close to the bank before we tack; but if she is a slow tub, we must begin in good time. First, we must see that all the canvass is quite full; then the mainsail must be hauled to the middle of the boat, or amidships, and the helm put gradually down. When she is head to wind, let fly the jibsheet; if she is on the starboard tack, haul in the port foresheet taut, which is called backing the foresail; the wind, by blowing on the foresail, assists the boat round. When she begins to fill on the other tack, cast off the port (now the weather) foresheet, and haul in the leesheet and also the jibsheet, and trim the mainsail (i. e. let go, or haul in, the mainsheet), according to the direction of the wind. If when the boat is in stays, or head to wind, she moves neither way, put the helm amidships; if she moves back, put the helm the contrary way to what you had it before, resuming its former position when she moves on again. When the wind gets more on our beam (i. e. blows directly across us), we may slack out the canvass a little; the more aft it blows, so much more we must square our sails. There is a heavy cloud in the wind’s eye, that admonishes us that a squall is brewing, and the dark ripple of the water to windward tells us that it will soon be here. Keep her well full, that as the squall strikes her she may have good way on; and luff into the wind as soon as the squall begins: and if she does not right at once, let go jib and foresheets; if that fails, cast off the mainsheet, and send a hand to stand by the fore and jib halliards, which must be let go when the squall becomes violent. We must now reef the mainsail; to effect this, allow plenty of room for driving to leeward; set taut the “topping-lift,” a rope which hoists up the end of the boom; lower the halliards; hook at the end of the boom an earring which is higher up in the sail, and tie up the reef-points; then, having set up our mainsail, hoisted a smaller jib, and drawn in the foresheet, we are under sail again.

We must take care always to observe the rules of sailing, when meeting with another yacht. Whichever boat is running free must make way for one close hauled; for a boat when close hauled cannot conveniently alter her course, but when she is running free she is always able to move to which side she pleases. As we get into wider water, we shall find more swell, that impedes the boat to windward; but, if the waves be long enough, there is a way of easing her over them, by putting down the helm slightly, just before the highest of them strikes her bow; thus, by stopping the boat’s way, she strikes the sea with less violence.