The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1883-06-09 00:00:00

THE INDIAN SECTION.

Land and Water describes the contents of the Indian
section of the Exhibition in an article from which we
extract the following :
Commencing with boats, we find among those em-
ployed in fresh waters the coracle, which is used in
the Bowany river in the Madras Presidency. The
model shown is three feet in diameter, and composed
of skin stretched over a bamboo framework.
A very rough canoe, a dug•out or donga, is exhibited
from Jessore. It is constructed of the stem of a palm
tree, all the soft portion of which has been scooped
out, leaving merely the hard outer layer. The-entire
length of this donga is twelve feet ten inches;
anteriorly, its prow, or fore part, is made from the
lower portion of the stem, and here it is widest, being
thirty inches across; posteriorly, it decreases in width
and depth until it becomes only eleven inches trans-
versely, while, to prevent the water entering pos.
teriorly, a transverse bridge has been left unexcavated.

In advance of the donga is the ekta of Patna, also a
canoe or dug out, constructed from the trunk of a semul
tree, the bottom being fiat both externally and in-
ternally, and at one end a small ridge has been left,
simulating a rib. The entire length is twenty-three
feet, while it is twenty-two inches wide and one foot
deep. A teakwood paddle is used for propulsion,
measuring about six and a-half feet in length; its
broadest portion is twenty-four inches wide and six
thick. The boatman either stands or sits at the bottom
of the boat, at either prow or stern, using his oar from
side to side at eaet stroke. It is from the prow of this
boat that the lahotree jal, a large triangular-shaped
net, is mostly used by the fishermen,

The model of a Chittagong boat employed for cap.
taring fish is shown. It is nve and a half feet long,
about nine inches broad, and six and a half high at
the middle. Ths common size used for fishing is
about twenty•fcur feet in length. This boat is fitted up
with a broad bamboo platform on one side, fixed
along the upper edge of the boat, and which projects
into the water. Behind this a bamboo projects out of
the water with a string of palm-leaves attached, form-
ing a kind of broom. This frightens the fish, which
jump upon the platform, one half of which is sub-
merged. From the platform they spring into the boat,
the bottom of which is covered with branches of
trees. When they spring into the boat they are pre-
vented escaping over the other Bide by a net which is
fixed either obliquely or perpendicularly along the
opposite gunwale. The prow of the boat is kept well
down in the water by being weighted with stones or
sand. The plan of capturing fish is likewise largely
made use of by the Burmese.

There is also the model of an ordinary fishing-boat
from Chittagong, about six feet long and eleven and
a-half inches wide in the middle. It is provided with
two paddles and a helm. The ordinary size of these
boats is about thirty-five feet long, and it is employed
with behandi and other nets.
There are several models of Madras catamarans and
one full aize outside the building. These rude-looking
constructions are exceedingly useful far crossing the
surf when such is impassable to ordinary boats. Con-
structed of from three to five planks lashed together
by ropes, they form a ratt. The prow is formed by
wedge-shaped sharpened timbers, while it widens at
the stern. It rides lightly on the sea, and rises to an
ordinary surf, bat is overwhelmed and rolled about by
a great breaker, when the natives jump overboard,
and again regain their vessel after passing the surf.

The surf, or Masula beats, of which there are some
good models, show how passengers are ordinarily con-
veyed ashore from passing vessels. They are broad,
while their bottoms are flat, in order to permit them
being beached, which is done at the third surf, when
they are immediately dragged out of the water by the
natives. The planks forming these boats are sewn
together by coir yarn, crossing the seams, which are
also wadded with noir. This allows the various por-
tions of the boot to yield to shocks, but precludes
leakage.

The fishing-boats of the Konkan arc considered to
be among the swiftest of the Indian Bailing-vessels.
There are two excellent models on the scale of one
inch to the foot, exhibited by Mr. McCann, Superin-
tendent of the Bombay Coast Guard. These vessels
are very sharp in the bows with hollow keels, well
rounded in the stern, and the mast slopes a little for-
wards, they are generally built of teak. The hull of a
machva resembles the bowl of an old-fashioned egg.
spoon, produced at the narzow end with a long, high,
and fine prow; and below with a deep bottom, the gar
board strakes rising very sharply. The false keel also
is deep and of a very curious concave form, unknown,
it is believed, in European waters, so that a boat
beached only touches the ground with her forefoot and
sternpost. There is no standing deck, but the whole
boat is crossed and strengthened by many strong
thwarts, and is generally provided with a sort of mat-
ting of palm-wood laths fastened with cord, wh,jch can
be laid down on the thwarts as a temporary deck, or
rolled up out of the way, something like patent
shutters. There is generally a low top-gallant bul-
wark on the port side and on the starboard, where the
nets are hauled, a bamboo is lashed to the gunwale for
them to run over. Almogt amidships is stepped a
short heavy mast raking forwards, so that the huge
single latine yard is slung between two-thirds and
three-fourths of the whole length from the stern. The
yard is about the whole length of the hull, and is slung,
Bo that when swinging fore and aft its butt is just over
the very head of the boat and the peak vertically over
her stern. The sail, however, is aheeted home to a
point very little aloft of amidships, leaving the whole
stern of the boat clear to work the nets in. It is
scarcely possible to conceive a better rig for a fishing
boat. The enormous latine yard is easily worked by
the strong crew necessary for the trade ; room is left
for work, and the boat is not lumbered with standing
rigging, as there is only one stay which is moveable
and shifted when the boat goes about. The sail
pressure is distributed over the whole length of the
boat, and the point of greatest pressure is over that of
greatest resistance. They cannot, of coarse, stay, but
wear with great speed and grace.
The machvahas little gear besides her simple rigging.
A grapnel of six arms weighing from 601 b. to 100ib. ,
a dozen long paddles, and es many bamboo poles
about 15ft. long, a small heavy box tilled with sand to
serve as a caboose, two leathern bnokets, and a lantern,
form the whole of her inventory, and with these on
board a boat of twelve tons has probably cost from
four to five hundred rupees to build, rig, and fit, They
are oar vel built, and are now generally iron fastened ;
but it is not very long sinee the fasteniags were very
largely of coir twine, and it is still a good deal used
for the purpose, especially in the upper works. Every-
thing is of the rudest sort. The Opber and even the
very spars are coarse and crooked; yet they sail Pke
witches and last longer than their owners.