The times., 1898-10-03
CAPT. JOHN SMITHS BOOK.
POcahontas's Friend First Printed
Nautical Lore in English

FEitnu
Nautical Lore in English.
Capt John Smith, who is remembered
by Americans chiefly as a pioneer in Vir-
ginia, and for his romantic adventure
said to be mythical, with Pocahontas. the
dusky daughter of Powhatan, wrote the
first book on seamanship and naval gun
merry ever printed in the English Ian
Suase. 1t was published In 1926 and en-
tered in Stationers' Hall. London. as "a
new departure in our literature" The
little book Is rare, and Is today worth
many times its weight in gold 1t is en-
titled "Seaman's Grammar There is a
copy of it in the Navy Department Lii
bTary. which embraces everything nau-
tical and naval from the stranding OF
Noahs ark TO the launching of the latest
battleship. The old skipper recently
looked over the unique volume here and
made a few notes about it. He said:
John Smith was typical English ad-
venturer of his time, and an extensive
traveller by land and sea. He spent the
several years before his death. in 1851. in
recording his exploits. His nautical bro
chure, as he says in its preface, was writ
ten to briefly show the phrases, offices.
and words OF common belonging 10 the
building, rigging. and sailing OF a man-of-
war. The title page of his essay reads:
An Accidence, or the Pathwaye to Ex-
perience Necessary for All Young Sea-
men
The fighting ship OF those days was
essentially military affair, as may be
seen by his description of the various Of
ficers aboard of her:
Captains charge is to command all
and tell the master TO what port he vii.
go In fight he is TO give directions
Tor the managing thereof, and the master
Is 10 see TO the coming of the ship and
the trimming of the sails
Lieutenant is to associate with the
captain. and in his absence TO execute
ms place He Is to see that the marshall
and the corporal do their duties and as
sist them in instructing the soldiers. In
fight the forecastie is his place, as the
captain Is on the half deck ard the
quartermasterS amidships.
:" Marshall is to punish all offenders
and see justice executed according 10 di-
rections, as ducking al Yards arm,
hauling under the keel bound 10 the
capstern or mainmast with a basket of
shot around his neck, setting in the bill
bowes and 10 pay the Cobtie TO cob, or
fog with a fiat board).
"'Sailors are the ancient men for
hauling the sails. getting the tacks
aboard, hauling the bowlInes, and steer
ing the ship. Yonkers are the young
men called foremast men 10 take in the
topsaiis, top the yards, fHrl and sling
the mainsail. bowsing orr trysiIIe, and
take their turn at the helm. Liar is to
hold his place but for week, and ne that
is first taken with lie is so proclaimed
at the mainmast every Monday by a gen
eral cry of a liar! Iiarl a lari He is
made the swabber and only to keep
clean the breakhead and chains.
capt. Smith says: If you have a
divine his pay is most commonly from the
sdventurers and the sailors; so also is
the chirurgion (surgeon). sri1e
''The pathological value OF Capt. Smiths
'AccidG nc1' 10 nautical scholars is obvious.
For the edifcation of young seamen
Smith recites the naval nomenclature of
his day. which, with one or TWO excep-
tions. is Identical with that OF this centu-
~ The forward incline OF ships bow,
which is bounded by the incline Of her
stem. was then designated as the fore
reach Prosaic naval men have displaced
the oId-time. poetic fore reach of the
sailor with fore rake The sailor has al
ways personified his ship, and for the bow
TO reach and the stern 10 rake are
metaphors as consruOus as anything in
the language.
Great ships had in those days two miz-
zen masts the after outer one being
called the 'bonayenture mizzsn-' The old
time head rig. as Smith recites it, was
the boule-sprit. the Pillow, the Stirrup,
the spirit sail. the spirit sail yard. the spirit
sail topmaSt. the sprit-sail top sail yard
The term bowsprit did not come into
vogue until 1884. when it displaced the
term spritsail mast Jibs and forestry
sails were not invented then. Gables.
when they are too short, shoot one into
the other. says Smith. and today a length
of chain cable, between shackles. Is called
a shot He tells the young seaman.
'starboard is the right hand and lar
board is the left
These are some of the terms In the
little book: 'Starboard your helm, Right
your helm a louie, Keep your loufei
Come no nearerI Keep full, POrti
Ware, Bear up the helmi Go royingi
Be you at the helmi \ fresh man at the
helmr Most of these expressions are
used today Ware and BE you are
old English terms for beware, and be
quick Port meant in Capt. Smiths time
to keep the same direction OF. the helm,
upon the starboard or larboard, as was
last ordered Port was not recognized by
the British navy as steering or coming
term until 1915. although merchant ships
had been using il for centuries. but only
when sailing before the wind =
After a hard gale. when the ship has
been lying to- and fair weather comes.
here is Capt Smiths formula: TSet your
foresail! Out with all yehr lsaiE Get
your larboard taeks aboard. Hand aft
your starboard sheetsv and then the ship
is sailing with fair quartering breeze.
The coming orders may be: Go large!
Ware yawing! Laske,' Laske is good
old nautical term that has been lost. 1t
means to sail with the wind about IS de-
grees abaft the beam. Terms such as
The ship is iron sick, 'crank-sided, and
'spews her oakum' were used in Smiths
time. but laying by the lee. and weather
coiing, which he gives as correct nau-
tical phrases, have disappeared from sea
lingo with the topgallant spritsail."