Wichita eagle., 1890-02-04
HOW THEY MAKE SAILS.
TALK WITH A MAN WHO KNOWS
ALL AsOuT THE BUSINESS.

r,.t,rS-How a Craft Is Fitted Out WITH
q Complement of sans-Ths Measuring,
Sewing and Fitting.
..Steam. although it hasn't quite
knocked out sailmaking, has pretty near
Iy given the quietus to once important
and money making business said well
known Bay Ridge sailmaker. "As long
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
il 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
| TINES HAVE CHANGED.
"Those were the times" he continued.
GA suit of sails for ship made big
hole in $4,000 or $1,000. No voyages
were made without the sailmaker being
| called into requiSition, and wages were
| high and profits large. But by degrees,
as 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 max
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 saiimaker,
at least to any extent"
Glow do you manage to measure
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
thew are bent or fastened. With this
data and 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 gaff, 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
now 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 yachtsn1en for
trousers"
"How do you manage to sew such ma
terialT'
.sThere have been sail sewing ma
chimes in use, but / cannot say that they
are success altogether. And SO hand
sewing is the general rule. We use for
this purpose, as you see, stout twine,
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.
a piece of steel about the size of a quar-
ter with toughened surface. In sew
ing the base Of needle rests on this steel,
and it is then pushed through the can
vas. In fact, it acts as a thimble for the
sailmaker.
"The twine, which is made of soft
hemp, comes in 100-yard skeins. and is,
after tarr:ng, wound into big balls. One
of the first duties Of a ssilmaker's ap-
prentice is to tar and wind.
THE STITCHES PULLED "HoME."
SIT must be pretty hard work sewingr
eyes, it is. You see, every stitch has
to be pulled home [ run my needle
through the canvas so, take a turn OF
the loose twine ro'rnd the palm, and
then with 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. Ther
we sew with twine four times doubled
and each stitch is hauled home with s
'fid-a kind of wooden naarlinspike
, When sewing on these ropes each stitch
takes UP 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 aiway:
) found that the bolt rope is some inche:
too short. We then belay the edge o.
the sail between two stout posts, haul il
up taut and set a couple OF boys dane
, ing on the rope; they maintain theil
t balance on it by catching hold Of ropes
suspended from the beams overhead Ii
few minutes they stretch the rope, anc
e with it the sail to the desired length
Sometimes. and especially in cold wealth
, er, this shrinkage will amount to foo
or more. Then ali hands are set to wort
n dancing and it may be a matter of /;
i half an hour before the rope is stretched
to the length required"
How do you manage to get those iron
7 7 rings at the corners of that jib into th,
loop of rope which holds them SC snug
ly?"
. "Those are what we cali ear rings
We fix them SO. The rope is opened b,
!, means of heavy 'id,' and is beatel
: down to point of the tid correspondent;
, in size TO the diameter of the ear ring
When the lid is reversed the loop
: struck OF. and before it has time L
$ shrink up the ear ring is thrust inside Q
t it. In a second or so the loop contract
tightly round the ear ring-so tight.
that there . little danger of its eve
}. coming out again. These small ring
here are called grummets They ar
made by twisting rope yarn and ar
e used for sewing on TO the holes through
i which the reef points go on a sail. -
n Brooklyn Times.