Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1890-01-31
HOW THEY MAKE SAILS.
TALK WITH A MAN WHO KNOWS
ALL ABOUT THE BUSINESS.

makers-How a Craft Is Fitted Out with
a Complement of sails-The Measuring,
Sewing and FITTING.
"Steam, although it hasn't quite
knocked out sailmaking, has pretty near
ly given the quietus to n once important
and money making business" said well
known Bay Ridge sailmaker. Gas lorg
as men use ships and boats so long will
there be sails made, suppose; but still,
for all that, the trade isn't nearly what
it used to be, when Atlantic packets and
East Indiamen and Pacific coast ships
used wind instead of that" and the
speaker pointed to huge ocean steamer
which was crawling down the bay, emit
ting huge black cloud from her double
tunnels.
TIMES HAVE CHANGED.
"Those were the times" he continued.
"A suit of sails for a ship made big
hole in $4,000 or $4,000. No voyages
were made without the sailmaker being
called into requisition, and wages were
high and profits large. But by degrees,
s.the steamship became the rule and the
sailing ship the exception, trade grew
less and less until at last it is practically
confined to small crafts, yachts and sail
ing boats OF course there are some full
rugged ships and barks left, but the sails
for these are usually made by local maxi
ers at the places where the crafts are
built. And as there is little or no big
ship building in New York, why conse-
quently there is no use for the sailmaker,
at least to any extent"
elbow do you manage to measure a
craft for her sails!''
1--WE take the measurements of the
stays or ropes which form the outside
edges of the sails in some cases, and in
others we measure the spars upon which
they are bent or fastened. With this
data and a knowledge of the required
swell or belly of the sail we calculate
the dimensions. In the case of MAIN
sail or spanker, for example, we meas
ure the gaf. boom and mast. Canvas
| comes in bolts or rolls, each containing
about forty yards. 1t is an easy matter
| from the figures alluded to to ascertain
how much canvas will be required for
the complete sail. The canvas is made
of hemp, and is wonderfully strong. 1t
varies in quality from the heaviest and
toughest used for the big sails of the
largest ships down to the expensive white
duck for yachts, of so fine texture
that it can be used by the yachtsmen for
trousers"
GLOW do you manage to sew such ma
terialy"
"There have been sail sewing ma
chimes in use. but l cannot say that they
are success altogether. And so hand
sewing is the general rule. We use for
this purpose, as you see, stout Irvine,
which is soaked in tar to prevent its rot
ting, hard steel needles of a triangular
shape and two to three inches in length,
and palm. This last is a piece of
of leather. or rather several pieces of
leather, which covers the palm of the
hand and the lower part of the thumb.
1t has in it, near the ball of the thumb,
piece of steel about the size of quar-
ter with a toughened surface. In sew
ing the base of needle rests on this steel,
and it is then pushed through the cam
vas. In fact, it acts as thimble for the
sailmaker
THE Irvine, which is made of soft
hemp, comes in 100-yard skeins, and is,
after tarring, wound into big balls. One
of the first duties of sailmaker's ap-
prentice is to tar and wind
THE STITCHES PULLED "HoME."
st must be pretty hard work sewing?"
Eyes, it is. You see, every stitch has
to be pulled home. l run my needle
through the canvas so, take a turn of
the loose Irvine round the palm, and
then with a jerk pull the stitch taut and
well into the tough material. When sew
ing on the bolt ropes-that is, the ropes
which form the outer edges of the many
sails-the work is much harder. Then
we sew with Irvine four times doubled,
and each stitch is hauled home with a
'fd'-a kind of wooden marlinspike.
When sewing on these ropes each stitch
takes up "A small portion of the canvas,
and the result is that when we reached
the end of the sail. on the measur-
ing rule being applied, it is always
found that the bolt rope is some inches
too short We then Delay the edge of
the sail between two stout posts, haul it
up taut and set a couple of boys dane
ing on the rope: they maintain their
balance on it by catching hold of ropes
suspended from the beams overhead. In
few minutes they stretch the rope, and
with it the sail to the desired length.
Sometimes, and especially in cold wealth
err, this shrnkage will amount to foot
or more. Then all hands are set to work
dancing, and it may be matter of a
half an hour before the rope is stretched
to the length required"
"How do you manage to get those iron
rings at the corners of that jib into the
loop of rope which holds them so snug
ly?"
"Those are what we call ear rings,
We fix them so. The rope is opened by
!. means of a heavy 'fid,' and is beaten
down to point of the fid corresponding
in size to the diameter of the ear ring
: When the lid is reversed the loop il
; struck off, and before it has time &c
T shrink up the ear ring is thrust inside OF