BOAT THE OARS. Put them in their proper places fore and aft on the thwarts ready for use.
BOB. A knot of worms on a string, used in fishing for eels; also colloquially, it means a berth.—Shift your bob, to move about, to dodge, to fish.—Bear a bob, make haste, be brisk.
BOB. The ball or balance-weight of a clock's pendulum; the weight attached to the plumb-line.
BOBBERY. A disturbance, row, or squabble; a term much used in the East Indies and China.
BOBBING. A particular method of fishing for eels—
"His hook he bated with a dragon's tail,
And sat upon a rock, and bobb'd for whale."
BOBBING ABOUT. Heaving and setting without making any way.
BOBBLE. The state of waves when dashing about without any regular set or direction, as in cross tides or currents.
BOBSTAY-COLLARS. These are made with large rope, and an eye spliced in each end; they are secured round the bowsprit, on the upper side, with a rose lashing. They are almost entirely superseded by iron bands.
BOBSTAY-HOLES. Those cut through the fore-part of the knee of the head, between the cheeks, for the admission of the bobstay; they are not much used now, as chain bobstays are almost universal, which are secured to plates by shackles.