The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-05-28
SAILORS USE QUEER TERMS.
The Curious Lingo Which Passes fO
 Good English Aboard BattleshIps.

The Curious Lingo Which Passes for Good English Aboard BattleshIps. Detroit Tribune.
 The time-worn growl of the dis gruntled bluejacket, Why did l ever sell my farm and go to sea?' shows the trend of the sailors mind toward the peaceful occupation of his rustic brother, and may account for apply ing terms agricultural to things nau- tical.
 The casual visitor to a warship Is all ways mystified by seeing what appears to be a bale of hay in the fore hold, and his curiosity is not abated when told 1t goes to feed the "jackasses." kept, appropriately, in the manager" His shrunken credulity resumes normal dimensions when 1t Is explained that "jackasses" are canvas bags filled with oakum, which are forced Into the hawse- pipes to prevent water from en- tering at sea-
 Neither is a Flemish horse" a rare breed of equine. nor a "bridleport" a place for hitchlng him; the former is footrope for men to stand upon when furling sail. and the latter is an air port in the bows through which towing hawsers used to be led The saddle" of the bowsprit completes the riding outfit of the ship.
 The menagerie of a man-o'-war con- tains "cat" and fish," both of which are used to weigh" the anchor: "cat- heads," where the lookout of sailing ships stands his watch; wildcats" which, with 'whelps," hold the chain on the capstan, and the "bees of the bowsprit" On some days 1t Is pos sible to find a "catspaw"-a sudden puff of wind-and landlubber can easily catch a crab" In pulling a boat; indeed, it is hard to let one go without unshipping the oar.
 Dog watches" are of nightly occur renee between 4 nd 8 o'clock, when the usual four-hour watch is split into two parts. The dog watches are supposed to get their name from the fact that they are "curtailed." and not because | the dog star, Sirius, keeps these hours, When tho gunner orders his mates to ''clean the dashpot," he is not using polite profanity. but directing the
 cleaning of a part of the gun recoil cylinder. The plough" of a Calling | gun may assist In turning the sod" of
 the enemy. but not in a literal sense. | Nor do the "telltales" of the engine
 room give 1t away; instead. they peace | fully record the revolutions of the screws.
 The propellers are usually on a strut" but 1t is not the vulgar par
 lance for saying they are angry; the | strut Is the steel arm that holds them
 in position. Ships masts, like men,
 have partners" which. though wood
 en, strengthen them and make them
 firm. These are paved" with pitch.
 Awnings have "backbones," strong
 backs" sharks mouth," dogs ears" and earrings"
 The" trimming tanks" are huge com
 partments for holding sea water which
 may be let in to change the trim, or |, inclination of the ship, due to the fact that the coal may have been used from one side only. giving the shin Hist" | A queer commodity in the engi- neers' storeroom Is 'loofa," a kind of
 Japanese sea cucumber. used for a fil- l ter fin the boilers. Ground glass Is all l so carried to grind valve seats and bear ings. The wardroom country" Is the | space around the officers quarters | The hammock nettings" are no more
 an affair of thread mesh than is the
 main sheet" a part of the sail. the former being stowage space for the crew's hammocks when not in use, and
 the latter a rope made fast to the clew or corner of the sail. Even anchors have "shanks," rings" crowns,
 arms" and "flukes."