The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1899-03-08
YACHTS OF ANTIQUITY.
Queer and Coatly Pleasure Craft OF
Clansicnl Times

Most historical records dealiny with
the sport Of yachting commence with
the we'll known quotations in EVELYN
and Pepys Reference to Thucydides
and Polybius however. proves beyond
doubt that small craft built for pleasure
purposes only were common enough
with the wealthy Hellcnrs as far back
as five centuries ago. The early t,e-
cadcs of the Nineteenth century nro
but dimly lit ul,. while the previous
centuries are envcloped in almost total
darkness Here and there we come
across occasional data. III old prints and
books. but Il connected history does not
exist, and plenty of scope is left for tho
imagination.
Suctonius is onr authority for tho
statement that the luxurious Romans
well knew and appreciated the pleasure
TO he derived from roaming about tho
seas. This writer describes at somo
length the display of luxury on board
the Emperor Caligula's yachts. Along
the upper decks there were built what
would correspond with the modern
deckhouses. which were fitted most
snmptuously with paintings. statues
and mosaics in the principal apart
ments. while the bath rooms contained
baths Of bronze and marble, and even q
library of books was carried Oh board
| Covered walks ran alongside these deck
houses. with fruit trees and rows of
vines planted III flowcrpots. which leads
one to surmise that the Romans were
fair weather sailors rather than daring
navlgators CT chOppy seas
| OF the earlier Grecian yachts. how
ever. our knowledge is more scanty.
All the existing evidence from written
sources. supplemented in few isolated
cases by evidence from material sources.
still leaves ample room for deduction
and conjecture.
The sails used on Grccian ships were
sometimes made of linen, but more
often of the fiber of the pnpyrus and
various other rushcs. Thus even tho
| American invention of ramic cloth
would appear to have been forestallcd
The edges of tho Grecian sails were
| bound with hide. Il system which if
| adopted nowadays though perhaps not
conducive to speed. would insure ves-
sel sailing with sails of the same di-
mensions az given in the Yacht Racing
| association certificate. The skins of the
hyena and the seal We're in particular
request. since sailors considered these u
sovereign means for keeping off light
ming. Topsails. as part of the ordinary
| rig. apparently came into use about so
A. D. The ancient mariner, who knew
that he increased the ships speed by
carrying sail as high as possible. attain
ed his object by hoisting up the yard.
but seemingly did not understand the
cause Of this phenomenon.
The style Of rigging used on the
earliest Greek vessels can be CLEANED
fairly accurately from the Homeric
poems. The mast (histos) was support
ed ut its foot by prop (hispodede) and
held by two fOrestays (protonoD and a
backstay (epitonos). The mast carried
a yard (epikrion). by means Of which
the sail was hoisted. When the mast
was lowered, the hispodede was obvious
~ kind Of tabernacle-it lay in rest
styled histodoke. The presence Of hal
yards and brailing ropes 10 implied,
while different terms are used for the
running gear. though no definite infor-
nation is given as to its nature. The
mast and yards were generally made Of
liz and occasionally of pine.
The outer planking Of the hull was
covered with mixture of tar and wax,
some paint being usually melted with
the latter. Sometimes a sheathing of
lead covered the outer planking, layers
Of tarred sailcloth being placed between
the wood and the metal. Wooden pegs
and bronze nails were used for holding
together the timbers of n ship, while
girdles of cable fastened horizontally
round the ship wero frequently used to
strengthen the hull externally At the
bottom of the hold gravel or stone bal
last was usually carried. while tho
bilgewater was emptied out by means
Of an Archimedean screw. which was
worked by kind Of treadmill.
Students of Virgil's ''Eneid" will re-
member particularly spirited account
Of race between four Trojan men-of-
war off the coast Of Sicily. But the
earliest recorded yacht race. in the mod
ern sense Of the word. was one in which
Charles II. took part. The Merry Mon
arch had n pleasure boat built for him
after Dutch model (the word yacht or
jaght seems to be Of Dutch origin). but
with improvements. and the little ves-
sci earned the appreciation Of Samuel
Pcpys. the diarist. who. as secretary to
the admiralty. may be supposed to have
been keen judge. and who described
her as Every pretty and az '.one Of the
finest things that ever saw for neat
! ness and room
On Oct. I. 1861, the king sailed her
against his brother. the Duke Of Yorl's
yacht. for 100 guineas. from Greenwich
to Gravesend and back. and won his
wager. Pail Mall Gazette.
Doubtful Sword.