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diff --git a/old/60226-0.txt b/old/60226-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index f4266a8..0000000 --- a/old/60226-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,11148 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's Ships & Ways of Other Days, by Edward Keble Chatterton - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Ships & Ways of Other Days - -Author: Edward Keble Chatterton - -Release Date: September 2, 2019 [EBook #60226] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SHIPS & WAYS OF OTHER DAYS *** - - - - -Produced by deaurider, Charlie Howard, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - -Transcriber’s Note: - -Superscripted characters are indicated by ^ or ^{}; italics are enclosed in -_underscores_; small-caps text is shown here as ALL-CAPS. - - - - - SHIPS AND WAYS - OF OTHER DAYS - -[Illustration: A SHIP OF YESTERDAY - -(A Tea-clipper before the Wind)] - - - - - SHIPS & WAYS - OF OTHER DAYS - - BY - E. KEBLE CHATTERTON - (Author of “Sailing Ships & Their Story”) - - WITH ONE HUNDRED AND - THIRTY ILLUSTRATIONS - - [Illustration] - - LONDON - SIDGWICK & JACKSON, LTD - 3 ADAM STREET, ADELPHI, W.C. - 1913 - - - - -_All rights reserved_ - - - - -[Illustration: SHIPS AND WAYS OF OTHER DAYS - -PREFACE] - - -I desire to acknowledge the courtesy of the Master and Fellows of -Magdalene College, Cambridge, for having permitted me to reproduce the -three illustrations facing pages 212, 228, and 230. These are from MSS. -in the Pepysian Library. The Viking anchor and block tackle are taken -from Mr. Gabriel Gustafson’s _Norges Oldtid_, by permission of Messrs. -Alb. Cammermeyer’s, Forlag, Kristiania. The two illustrations on pages -123 and 132 are here reproduced by the kind permission of Commendatore -Cesare Agosto Levi from his “Navi Venete.” The Viking rowlock and rivet -are taken from Du Chaillu’s “Viking Age,” by the courtesy of Mr. John -Murray. To all of the above I would wish to return thanks. - - E. KEBLE CHATTERTON. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAP. PAGE - - LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xi - - I. INTRODUCTION 1 - - II. THE BIRTH OF THE NAUTICAL ARTS 10 - - III. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MARINE INSTINCT 18 - - IV. MEDITERRANEAN PROGRESS 29 - - V. ROME AND THE SEA 56 - - VI. THE VIKING MARINERS 85 - - VII. SEAMANSHIP AND NAVIGATION IN THE MIDDLE AGES 114 - - VIII. THE PERIOD OF COLUMBUS 150 - - IX. THE EARLY TUDOR PERIOD 169 - - X. THE ELIZABETHAN AGE 186 - - XI. THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY 221 - - XII. THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 249 - - XIII. THE NINETEENTH CENTURY 274 - - GLOSSARY 291 - - INDEX 293 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - - - PAGE - - A Ship of Yesterday (a tea clipper before the wind) - _To face title-page_ - - A Seventeenth-Century Dutch Dockyard _Headpiece to Preface_ - - Spithead in the Early Nineteenth Century 2 - - Old-fashioned Topsail Schooner 8 - - “River sailors rather than blue-water seamen” 13 - - “Mine be a mattress on the poop” 34 - - Cast of a Relief showing Rowers on a Trireme 38 - - Vase in the form of a Trireme’s Prow 42 - - Portions of Early Mediterranean Anchor 44 - - Shield Signalling 49 - - Greek Penteconter from an Ancient Vase 51 - - The Egyptian Corn-Ship _Goddess Isis_ 58 - - The “Korax” or Boarding Bridge in Action 63 - - Sketches of Ancient Ships, by Richard Cook, R.A. 64 - - Ancient Coins illustrating Types of Rams 65 - - Bronze Figurehead of Roman Ship 66 - - Sketches of Ancient Ships, by Richard Cook, R.A. 66 - - Two Coins depicting Naumachiæ 68 - - A Roman Naumachia 68 - - Chart to illustrate Cæsar’s crossing the English Channel 71 - - Hull of Roman Ship found at Westminster 78 - - Details of Roman Ship found at Westminster 80 - - Details of Roman Ship found at Westminster 82 - - Primitive Navigation of the Vikings 89 - - Details of Viking Ships and Tackle 99 - - Vikings boarding an Enemy 102 - - Viking Ship with Awning up 111 - - Thirteenth-Century Merchant Sailing Ship 123 - - Fourteenth-Century Portolano of the Mediterranean 124 - - Prince Henry the Navigator 126 - - Fifteenth-Century Shipbuilding Yard 132 - - A Fifteenth-Century Ship 134 - - The Fleet of Richard I setting forth for the Crusades 139 - - A Medieval Sea-going Ship 146 - - Fifteenth-Century Caravel, after a Delineation by Columbus 158 - - “Ordered the crew ... to lay out an anchor astern” 162 - - Fifteenth-Century Caravel, after a Delineation by Columbus 164 - - Three-masted Caravel 166 - - Sixteenth-Century Caravel at Sea 166 - - Sixteenth-Century Caravel at Anchor 170 - - Sixteenth-Century Astrolabe supposed to have been on board a Ship - of the Armada 172 - - Astrolabe used by the English Sixteenth-Century Navigators 173 - - Sixteenth-Century Navigator using the Cross-staff 176 - - Sixteenth-Century Compass Card 177 - - An Old Nocturnal 178 - - Sixteenth-Century Four-Masted Ship 186 - - Elizabethans boarding an Enemy’s Ship 187 - - Elizabethan Steering-Gear 189 - - Sixteenth-Century Ship chasing a Galley 190 - - Waist, Quarter-deck, and Poop of the _Revenge_ 192 - - Sixteenth-Century Three-masted Ship 192 - - Riding Bitts on the Gun Deck of the _Revenge_ 195 - - Plan of Early Seventeenth-Century Ship 197 - - Sixteenth-Century Warship at Anchor 198 - - Drake’s _Revenge_ at Sea 201 - - Sixteenth-Century Mariners learning Navigation 206 - - Chart of A.D. 1589 211 - - Ship Designer with his Assistant 212 - - Chart of the Thames from the First Published Atlas 214 - - Diagram illustrating the use of the “Geometricall Square” 215 - - Sixteenth-Century Ship before the wind 216 - - Early Seventeenth-Century Warship 218 - - Early Seventeenth-Century Harbour 222 - - Early Seventeenth-Century Dutch East Indiamen 226 - - “The Perspective Appearance of a Ship’s Body” 228 - - “The Orthographick Simmetrye” of a Seventeenth-Century Ship 230 - - Early Seventeenth-Century Dutch West Indiamen 232 - - Fitting out a Seventeenth-Century Dutch West Indiaman 236 - - Seventeenth-Century Dutch Shipbuilding Yard 240 - - Seventeenth-Century First-Rate Ship 244 - - Section of a Three-Decker 246 - - Nocturnal 247 - - Building and launching Ships in the Eighteenth Century 248 - - Collier Brig 250 - - Boxhauling 252 - - Eighteenth-Century “Bittacle” 253 - - Interiors of Eighteenth-Century Men-of-War 254 - - Quarter-deck of an Eighteenth-Century Frigate 255 - - Collier Brig discharging Cargo 256 - - Eighteenth-Century Man-of-War 258 - - Collier Brigs beating up the Swin 259 - - Model of H.M.S. _Triumph_ 260 - - “Compelled to let the ship lie almost on her beam ends” 261 - - An interesting bit of Seamanship 262 - - An ingenious Sail-Spread 264 - - Eighteenth-Century Three-Decker 266 - - Sterns of the _Invincible_ and _Glorioso_ 268 - - Model of an English Frigate, 1750 270 - - A 32-gun Frigate ready for Launching 272 - - Launching a Man-of-War in the year 1805 274 - - Sheer-Hulk 276 - - H.M.S. _Prince_ 278 - - An Early Nineteenth-Century Design for a Man-of-War’s Stern 280 - - Course, Topsail, and Topgallant Sail of an Early Nineteenth- - Century Ship 281 - - Stern of H.M.S. _Asia_ 282 - - A Brig of War’s 12-pounder Carronade 283 - - A West Indiaman in Course of Construction 284 - - A Three-Decker on a Wind 285 - - The Brig _Wolf_ 286 - - A Frigate under all Sail 287 - - Man in the Chains heaving the Lead 287 - - H.M.S. _Cleopatra_ endeavouring to save the Crew of the Brig - _Fisher_ 288 - - H.M.S. _Hastings_ 289 - - Model of the _Carmarthenshire_ 290 - - -PLANS - -(_At End of Volume_) - - I. Body Plan, etc., of Early Nineteenth-Century 74-gun Ship. - - II. A Portable Crab Winch of the Early Nineteenth Century. - - III. Longitudinal Plan of Early Nineteenth-Century 74-gun Ship. - - IV. A 330-ton Merchant Ship of the Early Nineteenth Century. - - V. Shrouds of Mainmast on Early Nineteenth-Century Ship. - - VI. Design of the Stern of Early Nineteenth-Century 330-ton - Merchant Ship. - - VII. Midship section of Early Nineteenth-Century 330-ton Merchant - Ship. - - VIII. Longitudinal Plan of Early Nineteenth-Century 330-ton Merchant - Ship. - - IX. Plans of Early Nineteenth-Century 74-gun Ship. - - X. Iron Clipper Sailing Ship _Lord of the Isles_. - - XI. The Wooden Clipper Ship _Schomberg_. - - - - -“The sea language is not soon learned, much less understood, being -only proper to him that has served his apprenticeship: besides that, -a boisterous sea and stormy weather will make a man not bred on it so -sick, that it bereaves him of legs and stomach and courage, so much -as to fight with his meat. And in such weather, when he hears the -seamen cry starboard, or port, or to bide alooff, or flat a sheet, or -haul home a cluling, he thinks he hears a barbarous speech, which he -conceives not the meaning of.” - - (SIR WILLIAM MONSON’S _Naval Tracts_.) - - - - -CHAPTER I - -INTRODUCTION - - -In “Sailing Ships and their Story” I endeavoured to trace the evolution -of the ship from the very earliest times of which we possess any -historical data at all down to the canvas-setting craft of to-day. -In “Fore and Aft” I confined myself exclusively to vessels which -are rigged fore-and-aftwise, and attempted to show the causes and -modifications of that rig which has served coasters, pilots, fishermen, -and yachtsmen for so many generations. - -But, now that we have watched so closely the progress of the sailing -ship herself, noting the different stages which exist between the first -dug-out and the present-day full-rigged ship or the superb racing -yacht, we can turn aside to consider chronologically what is perhaps -the most fascinating aspect of all. On the assumption that activity is -for the most part more interesting as a study than repose, that human -activity is the most of all deserving in its ability to attract, and -that from our modern standpoint of knowledge and attainment we are able -to look with sympathetic eyes on the efforts and even the mistakes of -our forefathers on the sea, we shall be afforded in the following pages -a study of singular charm. - -For, if you will, we are to consider not why the dug-out became in time -an ocean carrier, but rather how men managed to build, launch, equip, -and fit out different craft in all ages. We shall see the vessels on -the shipyards rising higher and higher as they approach completion, -until the day comes for them to be sent down into the water. We shall -see royalty visiting the yards and the anxious look on the shipwright’s -face lest the launching should prove a failure, lest all his carefully -wrought plans should after months of work prove of naught. We shall -see the ships, at last afloat, having their masts stepped and their -rigging set-up, their inventory completed, and then finally, we shall -watch them for the first time spread sail, bid farewell to the harbour, -and set forth on their long voyages to wage war or to discover, to -open up trade routes or to fight a Crusade. And then, when once they -have cleared from the shelter of the haven we are free to watch not -merely the ship, but the ways of ship and men. We are anxious to note -carefully how they handled these various craft in the centuries of -history; how they steered them, how they furled and set sail, how -these ships behaved in a storm, how they fought the ships of other -nations and pirates, how they made their landfalls with such surprising -accuracy. As, for instance, seeing that the Norsemen had neither -compass nor sextant, by what means were they able in their open ships -to sail across the Atlantic and make America? In short, we shall apply -ourselves to watching the evolution of seamanship, navigation, and -naval strategy down the ages of time. - -[Illustration: - - Frigate. A 74-Gun Ship. Portsmouth Pilot Cutter - -SPITHEAD IN THE EARLY NINETEENTH CENTURY.] - -But we shall not stop at that; for we want to obtain an intimate -picture of the life lived on board these many ships. We would, so -to speak, walk their decks, fraternise with the officers and men, -adventure into their cabins, go aloft with them, join their mess, -keep sea and watch in their company in fine sunny days and the -dark stormy nights of winter. We are minded to watch them prepare for -battle, and even accompany them into the fight, noting the activities, -the perils, and the hardships of the seamen, the clever tactics, -the moves and counter-moves, the customs of the sea and of the ship -especially. Over boundless, deep-furrowed oceans not sighting land -for weeks; or in short coasting voyages hurrying from headland to -headland before impending tempest; or pursued by an all-conquering -enemy, we shall follow these ships and men in order to be able to live -their lives again, to realise something of the fears and hopes, the -disappointments, and the glories of the seaman’s career in the past. - -I can promise the reader that if he loves ships, if he has a -sympathetic interest in that curious composite creature the seaman--who -throughout history has been compelled to endure the greatest hardships -and deprivations for the benefit of those whose happy fortune it is to -live on shore--he will find in the ensuing pages much that will both -surprise him and entertain him. I have drawn on every possible source -of information in order to present a full and accurate picture, and -wherever possible have given the actual account of an eye-witness. -How much would we not give to-day to be allowed to go on board the -crack ship of the second century, for instance, and see her as she -appeared to an onlooker? Well, Lucian has happily left us in dialogue -form exactly the information that we want about the “monster vessel -of extraordinary dimensions” which had just put in at the Piræus. On -a later page the reader will accompany the visitor up the gangway -and go round the ship, and be able to listen to the conversation -of these eager enthusiasts, just as he would listen attentively to -a party of friends who had just been shown over the latest mammoth -steamship. What the captain said of his ship, his yarns about gales -o’ wind, how great were her dimensions, how much water she drew, what -was the average return to the owner from the ship’s cargo--it is -all here for those who care to read it. A thousand years hence, how -interested the world would be to read the first impressions of one -who had been allowed to see over the _Mauretania_, or _Olympic_, or -their successors! In the same way to-day, how amazingly delightful it -is still to possess an intimate picture of a second-century Egyptian -corn-ship! - -We are less concerned with the evolution of design and build of ships -in this present book than with the manner of using these craft. How, -for example, on those Viking ships which were scarcely decked at all, -did the crew manage to eat and sleep? Did the ancients understand the -use of the sounding lead? how did they lay their ships up for the -winter? what was the division of labour on board?--and a thousand -questions of this sort are answered here, for this is just the kind -of information that the reader so often asks for, and so rarely gets, -frequently being disappointed at the gaps left in historical works. -Believing firmly that a knowledge of the working and fighting of the -ships in history is worthy of every consideration, I have for years -been collecting data which have taken shape in the following narrative. -Seamanship, like the biggest sailing craft, cannot have much longer -to live if we are able to read the signs of the times. _Steam_anship -rather than seamanship is what is demanded nowadays; so that before -long the latter will become quite a lost art. It is therefore time that -we should collect and set forth the ways and customs of a fast-dying -race. Seamanship is, of course, a changing quality, but at heart it is -less different than one might at first imagine. I venture to suggest -that if by any wonderful means you could transfer the men of a modern -crack 19-metre racing cutter to the more clumsy type of Charles II’s -_Mary_, she would be handled very little differently from the manner in -which those Caroline seamen were wont to sail her. Similarly, a crew -taken from one of the old clippers of about 1870, and transferred--if -it were possible--to one of the Elizabethan galleons, would very -soon be able to manage her in just the same manner as Drake and his -colleagues. It is largely a matter of sea-bias, of instinct, of a -sympathy and adaptability for the work. And in such vastly different -craft as the Greek and Roman galley, the Spanish carack, the Viking -ship of the north, the bean-shaped craft of medieval England, and so -on down to the ships of the present day, you find--quite regardless -of country or century--men doing the same things under such vastly -different conditions. - -The way Cæsar worked his tides crossing the English Channel when about -to invade Britain in 55 B.C., or the way William the Conqueror a -thousand years later wrestled with the same problem but in different -ships--these and like matters cannot but appeal to anyone who is gifted -with imagination and a keen desire for knowledge. And then--perhaps -some will find it the most interesting of all--there comes that -wonderful story of the dawn and rise of the navigational science -which to-day enables our biggest ships to make passages across the -ocean with the regularity of the train, and to make a landfall with -an exactness that is nothing short of marvellous considering that -the last land was left weeks ago. It is a story that is irresistible -in its appeal for our consideration, firstly because of its ultimate -value to the progress of nations, and secondly because no finer -example could be afforded us of the persistency of human endeavour to -overcome very considerable obstacles. It is a little difficult just -at first to place oneself in the position of those navigators of the -early centuries. To-day we are so accustomed to modern navigational -methods, we have been wont so long to rely on them for finding our way -across the sea, that it requires a great effort of the imagination -to conceive of men crossing the Atlantic and other oceans--not to -speak of long coasting voyages--without chart or compass, sextant or -log-line. There are many names in history which very rightly have won -the unstinted applause of humanity irrespective of national boundaries. -These names are held in the highest honour for the wonderful inventions -and benefits which have been brought about. But there are two among -others which, as it seems to me, the world has not yet honoured -in an adequate manner. These two--Pytheas and Prince Henry the -Navigator--are separated by thirteen or fourteen hundred years, but -their inestimable help consisted in making the ocean less a trackless -expanse than a limited space whereon the mariner was not permanently -lost, but could find his position along its surface even though the -land was not sighted for many a day. Think of the indirect results of -this new ability. Think of the subsequent effects on the history of -the world--the establishment of new trade routes consequent on the -discovery of new continents, the impetus to enterprise, the peopling -of new lands, the rise of young nations, the growth of sea-power, the -spread of Christianity, the accumulation of fortunes and the consequent -encouragement given to the arts and sciences. It is indeed a surprising -but unhappy fact that humanity, because normally it has its habitation -on land, forgets how much it owes to the sea for almost everything -that it possesses. Perhaps this statement may be less applicable to -the European continent, but it is in every sense true of all the other -parts of the world. - -Among the decisive battles of the world, among the discoveries of new -lands, among the vast trade routes, how many of these do not come under -the category of maritime? And yet in many an able-bodied, vigorous man, -who owes most of his happiness and prosperity to the sea in some way or -another, you find a spirit of antagonism to the sea, a positive hatred -of ships, an utter indifference to the progress of maritime affairs. -Hence, too, consistently following the same principle, the world -always treats the seafaring man of all ranks in the worst possible -manner. It matters not that the sailorman pursues a life of hardship -in all climes and all weathers away from the comforts of the shore -and the enjoyment of his own family. He brings the merchant’s goods -through storm and stress of weather across dangerous tracts of sea, -but he gets the lowest remuneration and the vilest treatment. He goes -off whaling or fishing, perhaps never to come home again, performing -work that brings out the finest qualities of manhood, pluck, daring, -patience, unselfishness, and cool, quick decision at critical moments. -Physically, too, he sacrifices much; but what does he get in return? -And then think also of the men on the warships. But it is no new -grievance. - -Throughout history the world has had but scant consideration for the -sons of the sea, whether fighters, adventurers, or freight-carriers. -You have only to read the complaints of seamen in bygone times to -note this. One may indeed wonder sometimes that throughout the world, -and in fact throughout history, men have ever been found knowingly -to undertake the seafaring life with all its hardships and all its -privations. To people whose ideas are shaped only by the possibilities -of loss and gain, who are lacking in imaginative endowment, in romance -and the joy of adventure, it is certainly incredible that any man -should seriously choose the sea as his profession in preference to -a life of comfort and financial success on shore. Indeed, the gulf -between the two temperaments is so great that it were almost useless to -hazard an explanation. The plainest and best answer is to assert that -there are two classes of humanity, neither more nor less. Of these the -one class is born with the sea-sense; the other does not possess that -faculty, never has and never could, no matter what the opportunities -and training that might be available. Therefore the former, in spite of -his lack of experience, is attracted by the sea-life notwithstanding -its essential drawbacks; the latter would not be tempted to that -avocation even by the possibility of capturing Spanish treasure-ships, -or of discovering an unknown island rich with minerals and precious -stones. - -From a close study of those records which have been handed down -to us of maritime incidents and affairs, I am convinced that the -seaman-character has always been much the same. It makes but little -difference whether its possessor commanded a Viking ship or a Spanish -galleon. To-day in any foreign port, granted that both parties have a -working knowledge of each other’s language, you will find that there -is a closer bond between shipmen of different nationalities than there -is between, say, a British seaman and a British landsman. For seamen, -so to speak, belong to a nation of their own, which is ruled not by -kings or governments, but by the great forces of nature which have -to be respected emphatically. Therefore the crews of every ship are -fellow-subjects of the same nationality, no matter whether they be -composed of a mingled assemblage of Britishers, Dagoes, “Dutchmen,” and -niggers. - -[Illustration: OLD-FASHIONED TOPSAIL SCHOONER. - -After E. W. COOKE.] - -So, as we proceed with our study, we shall look at the doings of -different ships and sailors with less regard for the land in which they -happened to be born than for that amazing republic which never dies, -which exists regardless of the rise and fall of governments, which for -extent is altogether unrivalled by any nationality that has ever been -seen. We shall look into the characteristics, the customs, and the -manifold activities of this maritime commonwealth, which is so totally -different from any of our land institutions and which has always had -to face and wrestle with problems of a kind so totally different from -those prevailing on shore. - - “That art of masts, sail-crowded, fit to break, - Yet stayed to strength, and back-stayed into rake, - The life demanded by that art, the keen, - Eye-puckered, hard-case seamen, silent, lean, - They are grander things than all the art of towns, - Their tests are tempests and the sea that drowns.” - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE BIRTH OF THE NAUTICAL ARTS - - -Of all the activities of human nature few are so interesting and so -insistent on our sympathy as the eternal combat which goes on between -man on the one side and the forces of Nature on the other. Conscious -of his own limitations and his own littleness, man has nevertheless -throughout the ages striven hard to overcome these forces and to -exercise his own freedom. But he has done this not so much by direct -opposition as by employing Nature to overcome Nature; and there can be -no better instance of this than is found in the art of tacking, whereby -the mariner harnesses the wind in order to enable him to go against the -wind. - -Winds and tides and waves are mightier than all the strength of -humanity put together. The statement was as true in pre-Dynastic times -as it is to-day. For a long time man was appalled by their superhuman -strength and capabilities; he preferred to have nothing to do with -them. Those nations which had their habitation inland naturally feared -them most. But as familiarity with danger engenders a certain contempt, -so those who dwelt by the sea began to lose something of their awe and -to venture to wrestle with the great trio of wind, wave, and tide. -Had they not exercised such courage and independence the history and -development of the world would have been entirely different. - -It is obvious that the growth of the arts of the sea--by which is meant -ship designing and building, seamanship and navigation--can only occur -among seafaring people. You cannot expect to find these arts prospering -in the centre of a continent, but only along the fringe where land -meets sea. And, similarly, where you find very little coast, or a very -dangerous coast, or a more convenient land route than the sea, you will -not find the people of that country taking to the awe-inspiring sea -without absolute necessity. This statement is so obvious in itself, -so well borne out by history and so well supported by facts, that it -would scarcely seem to need much elucidation. Even to-day, even in an -age which has so much to be thankful for in respect of conveniences, -we actually hear of landsmen looking forward with positive horror to -an hour’s crossing the Channel in a fast and able steamship, with its -turbines, its comfortable cabins, and the rest. If it were possible -to reach the Continent by land rather than water they would do so and -rejoice. So it was in the olden times thousands of years ago; so, no -doubt, it will ever be. - -Strictly speaking, notwithstanding that the Egyptians did an enormous -amount of sailing; notwithstanding that they were great shipbuilders -and that their influence is still felt in every full-rigged ship, yet -it is an indisputable fact, as Professor Maspero, the distinguished -Egyptologist, remarks, that they were not acquainted with the sea even -if they did not utterly dislike it. For their country had but little -coast, and was for the most part bordered by sand-hills and marshes -which made it uninhabitable for those who might otherwise have dwelt -by the shore and become seafarers. On the contrary, the Egyptians -preferred the land routes to the sea. It is true that they had the -Mediterranean on their north and the Red Sea on their east, both of -which they alluded to as the “very-green.” True, also, it is that there -was at least one great sea expedition to the Land of Punt, but this was -an exception to their usual mode of life. - -At the same time, though they were primarily river sailors rather than -blue-water seamen, yet they had used the Nile so thoroughly and so -persistently, both for rowing and for sailing, that on the occasions -when they took to the sea itself they were bound to come out of the -ordeal fairly well, just as a Thames waterman, accustomed all his life -to frail craft and smooth waters, would be likely to make a moderately -good seaman if his work were suddenly changed from the river to the -ocean. From childhood and through generations they had worked their -square-sailed craft on the Nile and acquired a thorough knowledge of -watermanship, and when the crews of Thebes manned those ships which -carried Queen Hatsopsitu’s expedition to Punt and returned in safety -back to their homes, they were able to put their lessons learned on the -Nile to the best of use on the Red Sea. - -[Illustration: “RIVER SAILORS RATHER THAN BLUE-WATER SEAMEN.”] - -So also on the Mediterranean the Egyptian ships were seen. We know that -the galleys of Rameses II plied regularly between Tanis and Tyre. This -was no smooth-water passage, for the Syrian sea could be very rough, -and on a later page we shall give the actual experience of an Egyptian -skipper who had a pretty bad time hereabouts in his ship. Even those -skilful seamen, the Phœnicians, found it required a good deal of care -to avoid the current which flowed along their coasts and brought to -them the mud from the mouths of the Nile. Now it was but natural that -when the Egyptians took to the sea they should use, for their trading -voyages to Syria or their expedition to Punt, craft very similar -to those which they were wont to sail on the Nile. In fact, it was -possible for one and the same ship to be used for river and sea. In my -“Sailing Ships and their Story,” the appearance of the Egyptian ships -has been so thoroughly discussed that it is hardly necessary to go -further into that matter at present. It is enough to state that they -were decked both at bow and stern, that short, narrow benches were -placed close to the bulwarks, leaving an empty space in the centre -where the cargo could be stowed, and that there were fifteen rowers -a side. There was one mast about 24 feet high setting one squaresail -which was about 45 feet along its foot, and in addition to the oarsmen -there were four topmen, a couple of helmsmen, and one pilot at the bow, -who gave the necessary instructions to the helmsmen as to the course to -be taken. Finally, there was an overseer to see that the rowers were -kept up to their work and not allowed to slack. - -On the whole the Egyptians were a peace-loving nation and not great -fighters; but there were times when they had to engage in naval -warfare, and on such occasions the ship’s bulwarks were raised by a -long mantlet which shielded the bodies of the oarsmen, leaving only -their heads exposed. And there were soldiers, too, placed on board -these Egyptian ships in time of warfare. Two were stationed on the -forecastle, one was in the fighting-top high on the mast, whilst the -remainder were disposed on the bridge and quarter-deck, ready to shoot -their arrows into the approaching enemy. - -The navigation of the Egyptian seamen was but elementary. They coasted -for the most part, rarely venturing out of sight of land, fixing their -positions by familiar landmarks. This was by day; but at night they -lay-to until the dawn returned, when they were enabled to resume their -journey. Such methods, of course, demanded a longer time than more able -seamen would have required, but the Egyptians were in no hurry, so it -mattered not. It is patent enough, from the many representations which -we find of craft on the Egyptian monuments which have been unearthed, -that ships and boats played a highly important part in the life and -habits of the Egyptians; but beyond the funereal customs and the -connection which these craft had with their religious ideas, we know -but little, if we except those models and those representations of -their bigger ships seen with sail and mast. It is unquestionable that -the shipbuilding industry was one of the most important activities -which these Nile-dwellers engaged in; and illustrations still exist -which show a shipwright’s yard of the Sixth Dynasty. We can see the -men busily at work, whilst the dockyard manager or superintendent is -carried in a kind of Sedan-chair to see how the work is progressing. -Some are engaged hammering and chipping away at the wood that is to -become a boat; some are fixing the different sections in place; whilst -others are setting up the truss which was employed for preventing the -ship from “hogging.” - -But already by the close of the Third Dynasty, Professor Flinders -Petrie says, the Egyptian shipbuilders were using quite large supplies -of wood for their craft. In one year alone, Senofern constructed sixty -ships and imported forty ships of cedar. When we consider that the -Nile was the great national highway of Egypt, it was but natural that -shipbuilding should be one of the most important trades. There were, -first, the light skiffs which could be easily carried from place to -place. There were also the larger freight-carriers which sailed the -Nile and the open sea; and lastly, there were the houseboats, a kind of -modern dahabeeah. The small skiffs were made of reeds for lightness, -and coated with pitch. They were punted along the shallows with a -pole, or paddled. They could carry only a couple of people, and were -practically ferry-boats or dinghies. But the larger boats were built -of wood, and probably sometimes of acacia. The masts were of fir which -was imported from Syria, the sails being occasionally of papyrus, but -probably also of linen. - -The lotus plant played a conspicuous part in Egyptian shipbuilding. We -see the smaller craft being strengthened by the stalks of this plant, -bundles of which are depicted being carried down to the yard on the -backs of the shipwright’s men. The tail-piece, even of the biggest -sea-going craft, is shown to be in the shape of a lotus bud or flower. -That they knew how to build ships of great tonnage at these dockyards -is evident from the fact that Sesostris had a sacred barge constructed -that was 280 cubits long. And it was doubtless owing to the great -length of the Nile sailing ships, and their consequent inability to -turn quickly, that we find it unusual for the Egyptian ships to have -only a single steering oar; very frequently there was one each side at -the quarter. - -More than this it is difficult to state regarding the manner in which -they employed their ships. There is indeed very much that we should -like to know, and we cannot be too thankful that modern exploration -has actually revealed so many pictorial representations. The Egyptians -were not instinctively seamen as the Phœnicians and the Vikings, and -if there had been no Nile it is probable that the sea and its coast -might have meant even less to them than was actually the case. Nor was -it any different with the Assyrians, whose kings feared the sea for a -long time. They never ventured on its surface without being absolutely -compelled. At a later stage, when their victories brought them to -the shores of the Mediterranean, they were constrained to admire its -beauty, and presently even took a certain amount of pleasure in sailing -on its bosom, but nothing would tempt them far from land or to make a -voyage. - -But then there came a new precedent when Sennacherib embarked his -army on board a fleet and went in search of the exiles of Bit-Iakin. -The only ships that were at his disposal were those belonging to the -Chaldean States. These craft were in every way unsuitable; they were -obsolete, clumsy, heavy, bad sea-boats, and slow. During his wars, -however, he had seen the famous sailors of Sidon, and noted alike the -progress which these seafarers had made in actual shipbuilding, and in -the handling of their craft at sea. These were of course Phœnicians, -and among his prisoners Sennacherib found a sufficient number of -Phœnicians to build for him a fleet, establishing one shipbuilding -yard on the Euphrates and another on the Tigris. The result was that -they turned out a number of craft of the galley type with a double -row of oarsmen. These two divisions of newly built craft met on the -Euphrates not far from the sea, the Euphrates being always navigable. -The contingent from the Tigris, however, had to come by the canal -which united the two rivers. And then, manned with crews from Tyre and -Sidon, and Cypriot Greeks, the fleet went forth to its destination; -Sennacherib then disembarked his men and rendered his expedition -victorious. - -Here, then, is just another instance of a non-seafaring people -taking to the sea not from choice, not from instinct, but from -compulsion--because there was no other alternative; and all the time -employing seafaring mercenaries to perform a work that was strange -to landsmen, just as in later days at different periods (until they -themselves had grown in knowledge and experience), the English had to -import sailors from Friesland in the time of Alfred, or Italians in the -early Tudor period. The sea was still hardly more than a half-opened -book, and few there were who dared to look into its pages. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MARINE INSTINCT - - -But when we come to the Phœnicians we are in touch with a veritable -race of seamen who to the south are in just the same relation as the -Vikings are to the north. Whether they took to the sea because they -longed to become great merchants, or whether they were seamen first and -employed their daring to commercial benefit needs no discussion. They -had the true vocation for the sea, and it was inevitable that sooner or -later they must become mighty explorers and traders. - -They had the real ship-love, which is the foundation of all true -seamanship; they were in sympathy with the life and work, and they -knew how to build a ship well. They furnished themselves with the -finest timber from Lebanon and surpassed the Egyptian inland sailors by -making their craft stronger, longer, more seaworthy, and more able to -endure the long, daring voyages which it delighted the Phœnicians to -undertake. Similarly, their crews were better trained to sea-work, were -more daring and skilful than the Nile-dwellers. They minded not to sail -out of sight of land, nor lay-to for the darkness to pass away. They -were wont to sail the open sea fearlessly direct from Tyre or Sidon to -Cyprus, and thence to the promontories of Lycia and Rhodes, and so from -island to island to the lands of the Acheans, the Daneans, and further -yet to Hesperia. How did they do it? What were their means and methods -for navigation? - -The answer is simply made. They observed the position of the sun -by day. They would watch when the sun rose, when it became south, -when it set, and then by night there was the Great Bear by which to -steer. Their ships they designated “sea-horses,” and the expression -is significant as denoting strength, speed, and reliability. By their -distant voyages the Phœnicians began to open out the world, and they -contributed to geographical knowledge more than all the Egyptian -dynasties put together had ever yielded under this category. Their -earliest craft were little more than mere open boats which were -partially decked. Made of fir or cedar cut into planks, which were -fashioned into craft all too soon before the wood had sufficient time -to become seasoned, they were caulked probably with bitumen, a poor -substitute for vegetable tar. We know from existing illustrations that -the Egyptian influence as to design was obvious in their ships. We -know also that the thirty or more oarsmen sat not paddling, but rowing -facing aft, and that they used the boomless squaresail and shortened -sail by means of brails. - -“The first considerable improvement in shipbuilding which can be -confidently ascribed to the Phœnicians,” says Professor Rawlinson,[1] -“is the construction of biremes. Phœnician biremes are represented -in the Assyrian sculptures as early as the time of Sennacherib (700 -B.C.), and had probably then been in use for some considerable period. -They were at first comparatively short vessels, but seem to have been -decked, the rowers working in the hold. They sat at two elevations, -one above the other, and worked their oars through holes in the -vessel’s side. It was in frail barks of this description, not much -better than open boats in the earlier period, that the mariners of -Phœnicia, and especially those of Sidon, as far back as the thirteenth -or fourteenth century before our era, affronted the perils of the -Mediterranean.” - -At first the Phœnicians confined their voyages to the limits of the -western end of the Mediterranean, but even then, notwithstanding their -superiority in seamanship and navigation, they suffered many a disaster -at sea. Three hundred ships were lost in a storm off Mt. Athos when -they first attempted to invade Greece. And on their second attempt -six hundred more ships were lost off Magnesia and Eubœa. In addition -to this, it must be presumed that the rocks and shoals of the Ægean -Sea, the cruel coasts of Greece, Spain, Italy, Crete, and Asia Minor -would account for a good many more losses of ships and men. In those -days, too, when one ship on meeting another used to ask in perfect -candour if the latter were a pirate, and received an equally candid -answer, there was thus a further risk to be undergone by all who used -the sea for their living. If the ship were in fact piratical and her -commander considered himself the stronger of the two, his crew would -waste little time, but promptly board the other ship, confiscate her -cargo, bind the seamen and sell them off at the nearest slave market. -And be it remembered that a Phœnician ship, inasmuch as she was usually -full of goods recently purchased or about to be sold, was something -worth capturing. Her cargo of rich merchandise was deserving of a keen -struggle and the loss of a number of men. - -Nor were the Phœnicians averse from reckoning slaves among their -commodities for barter; indeed, this was a great and important feature -of their trade. Away they went roaming the untracked seas with their -powerful oarsmen and single squaresail and their hulls well filled -with valuable commodities, “freighting their vessels,” as Herodotus -relates, “with the wares of Egypt and Assyria” for the Greek consumer. -Year after year the ships sailed forth from Tyre to traverse the whole -length of the Mediterranean and out into the Atlantic northwards to -the British Isles, through storm and tempest, to embark the cargoes of -tin. To be able to perform such a voyage not once but time after time -is sufficient proof of the seamanship and navigation of the crews no -less than of the seaworthiness of the Phœnician craft. Even that most -wonderful circumnavigation of Africa by the Phœnicians as given by -Herodotus is regarded by Grote, Rawlinson, and other authorities as -having actually occurred and being not a mere figment of imagination. -The story may be briefly summed up thus. Neco, King of Egypt, was -anxious to have a means of connecting the Red Sea and Mediterranean -by water, but had failed in his efforts to make a canal between the -Nile and the Gulf of Suez, so he resolved that the circumnavigation -of Africa should be attempted. For this he needed the world’s finest -seamen and navigators with the best ocean-going ships available. -Accordingly he chose the Phœnicians, who, departing from a Red Sea -port, coasted round Africa, and after nearly three years arrived safely -back in Egypt. The obvious question which the reader will ask is how -could such craft possibly carry enough food for three years. The answer -is that they did not even attempt such a feat. Instead, they used to -make some harbour after part of their voyage was accomplished, land, -sow their grain, wait till harvest-time, and then sail off with their -food on board all ready for a further instalment of the journey. -And there is really nothing too wonderful in this long voyage when -we remember that in Africa what is to-day called Indian corn can be -reaped six weeks after being sown; and that three years is not such -an excessively long time for a well-manned craft fitted with mast and -squaresail to coast from headland to headland, across all the bays and -bights of the African continent. A great achievement it certainly was, -not to be attempted (unless history is woefully silent) again until -towards the close of the fifteenth century, when Vasco da Gama doubled -the Cape of Good Hope. - -They had for years been wont in the Mediterranean to make voyages by -night. They had steered their course by aid of the Polar star. “They -undoubtedly,” remarks Professor Rawlinson, “from an ancient date -made themselves charts of the seas which they frequented, calculated -distances, and laid down the relative position of place to place. -Strabo says that the Sidonians especially cultivated the arts of -astronomy and arithmetic as being necessary for reckoning a ship’s -course, and particularly needed in sailing by night.” Later on we -shall again call attention to the great surprise which confronted the -dwellers by the Mediterranean when they voyaged into other seas. The -Phœnicians, so long as they cruised only in the former, had no tide -to contend with; but when they set forth into the Red Sea, the Indian -Ocean, the Atlantic, and the English Channel, they found a factor -which, hitherto, they had not been compelled to encounter. But by such -a seafaring race it was not long before even this new consideration -was dealt with and utilised in the proper manner. “They noted,” says -Rawlinson, “the occurrence of spring and neap tides, and were aware of -the connection with the position of the sun and moon relatively to the -earth, but they made the mistake of supposing that the spring tides -were highest at the summer solstice, whereas they are really highest -in December.” - -If we omit the Egyptians from our category as being almost exclusively -inland navigators, we must regard these Phœnicians as historically the -first great seamen of the world, and it is nothing short of remarkable -that in an age such as theirs, when there were so few accessories to -encourage and develop the marine instinct, they should have essayed -so much and succeeded so magnificently in their projects. Remember, -too, that they had something of the instinct of the engineer as well -as of the seaman in their nature. It was the Phœnicians whom Xerxes -employed in 485 B.C. for the purpose of cutting a ship canal through -the isthmus which joins Mt. Athos to the mainland. It was they, also, -who constructed a double bridge of boats across the Hellespont to form -the basis of a solid causeway, and in each of these undertakings they -covered themselves with distinction. - -They were no amateurs, no mere experimenters. It is certain that, -in their own time, they were, even with their primitive ships, very -far from primitive in their ideas of seamanship. Read the following -exceedingly interesting account of one who went aboard a Phœnician -vessel and has left to posterity his impressions of his visit. The -descriptive narrative reads so true and seems so perfectly spontaneous -and natural that we almost forget the many centuries which have elapsed -since it was set down. Here, then, you have the record of no less a -person than Xenophon, a man who was far too discriminating to allow -any flow of careless words, far too observant, also, to allow anything -worth noting to escape his watchful eye. In “The Economist” he makes -one of his characters refer to a Phœnician trireme, and he is speaking -of that nation’s ships when the Phœnicians were under the Persian -system:-- - -“Or[2] picture a trireme, crammed choke-ful of mariners; for what -reason is she so terror-striking an object to her enemies, and a sight -so gladsome to the eyes of friends? Is it not that the gallant ship -sails so swiftly? And why is it that, for all their crowding, the -ship’s company cause each other no distress? Simply that there, as you -see them, they sit in order; in order bend to the oar; in order recover -the stroke; in order step on board; in order disembark.” - -And again:-- - -“I must tell you, Socrates, what strikes me as the finest and most -accurate arrangement of goods and furniture it was ever my fortune to -set eyes on, when I went as a sightseer on board the great Phœnician -merchantman and beheld an endless quantity of goods and gear of all -sorts, all separately packed and stowed away within the smallest -compass. I need scarce remind you (he said, continuing his narrative) -what a vast amount of wooden spars and cables a ship depends on in -order to get to moorings; or again, in putting out to sea: you know -the host of sails and cordage, rigging as they call it, she requires -for sailing; the quantity of engines and machinery of all sorts she -is armed with in case she should encounter any hostile craft; the -infinitude of arms she carries, with her crew of fighting men aboard. -Then all the vessels and utensils, such as people use at home on land, -required for the different messes, form a portion of the freight; and -besides all this, the hold is heavy laden with a mass of merchandise, -the cargo proper, which the master carries with him for the sake of -traffic. Well, all these different things that I have named lay packed -there in a space but little larger than a fair-sized dining-room. -The several sorts, moreover, as I noticed, lay so well arranged, -there could be no entanglement of one with other, nor were searchers -needed; and if all were snugly stowed, all were alike get-at-able, -much to the avoidance of delay if anything were wanted on the instant. -Then the pilot’s mate--the look-out man at the prow, to give him his -proper title--was, I found, so well acquainted with the place for -everything that, even off the ship, he could tell you where each set -of things was laid and how many there were of each, just as well as -anyone who knows his alphabet could tell you how many letters there are -in Socrates, and the order in which they stand. I saw this same man -(continued Ischomachus) examining at leisure everything which could -possibly be needful for the service of the ship. His inspection caused -me such surprise, I asked him what he was doing, whereupon he answered, -‘I am looking to see, stranger, in case anything should happen, how -everything is arranged in the ship, and whether anything is wanting or -not lying handy and shipshape. There is no time left, you know, when -God makes a tempest in the great deep, to set about searching for what -you want or to be giving out anything which is not snug and shipshape -in its place.’” - -There was something, then, so excellent in arrangement in these -Phœnician ships which seemed to Xenophon so superior to the vessels -of his own countrymen; and the sailor-like neatness and systematic -order were to him so striking that even to his disciplined and orderly -mind they were most remarkable. It requires but little imagination to -picture from this scant reference the ship’s company doing everything -according to drill. The seaman-like care for the running gear on the -part of the ship’s husband ready for any emergency is, indeed, highly -suggestive. - -The importance of the Phœnicians is considerable, not merely for their -own sake, but because of their permanent influence on the Greeks. -But the latter were rather fighters than explorers as compared with -the Phœnicians. At a very early date there was the sea communication -between the Mediterranean and the North, and we may date this certainly -as far back as the year 2000 B.C., suggests Dr. Nansen, himself an -explorer and student of the early voyagers. The only places, excluding -China, whence tin-ore was known to be procurable in ancient times, -he asserts, were North-West Spain, Cornwall, and probably Brittany. -It is significant that in the oldest pyramid-graves of Egypt tin is -found, and the inference is that the inhabitants of the Mediterranean -from at least this epoch voyaged north to fetch this commodity from -Western Europe. And with the tin came also supplies of amber as well. -Archæological finds, affirms the same authority, prove that as far -back as the Scandinavian Bronze Age, or prior to this, there must have -been some sort of communication between the Mediterranean and northern -lands. One of the earliest trade routes connecting the Mediterranean -and the Baltic was from the Black Sea up the Dneiper, then along its -tributary the Bug to the Vistula, and down the latter to the coast. By -their sea-voyages to distant lands the Phœnicians contributed for the -first time a great deal of geographical knowledge of the world, and -in many ways influenced Greek geography. Up till then the learned men -who applied themselves to such subjects had but the vaguest idea of -the North. But just as in subsequent centuries the Spanish kept their -explored regions to themselves and continued most cautious lest other -nationalities should learn their sources of wealth, so the Phœnicians -did their best to keep their trade routes secret lest their rivals, -the Greeks, should step in and enrich themselves. In the absence, -therefore, of anything sufficiently definite, there was for a long -period a good deal of wild and inaccurate speculation. - -But it is when we come to Pytheas of Massilia that we reach the -border-line which separates fact from fable. This eminent astronomer -and geographer of Marseilles brought together a knowledge of northern -countries which was based not on premonition, not on speculation, not -on hearsay, but on actual experience. So original, so accurate, and -so far-reaching was his work, that for the next fifteen hundred years -he dominated all geographical knowledge. We can fix his time if we -remember that he flourished probably about the year 330 B.C. He was -the first person in history to introduce astronomical measurements for -ascertaining the geographical situation of a place, and thus became the -founder of the science of navigation--the science which has enabled -seas to be crossed in safety and continents to be discovered; which has -given to the ship of all species a freedom to employ her speed without -sacrificing safety. Indirectly arising from these may be traced the -development and civilising and peopling of the world which have so -entirely modified history. - -By means of a great gnomon, Pytheas determined “with surprising -accuracy” the latitude of Marseilles, and in relation to this laid -down the latitude of more northerly places. He observed that the Pole -of the heavens did not coincide, as the earlier astronomer Eudoxus -had supposed, with any star. What Pytheas did find was that it made -an almost regular rectangle with three stars lying near it. (At that -time the Pole was some distance from the present Pole-star.) And since -Pytheas steered by the stars, the Pole of the heavens was obviously of -the highest importance to him. A gnomon, it may be explained, was the -pillar of projection which cast the shadow on the various Greek forms -of dial. In the case under discussion the gnomon was a vertical column -raised on a plane. - -As to the species of ship in which Pytheas sailed we can but speculate. -Most probably it was somewhat similar to the Phœnician type, with -oarsmen and one mast with squaresail. But what is known is that he -sailed out through the Pillars of Hercules. At that date Cape St. -Vincent--then known as the Sacred Promontory--was the furthest of the -world’s limit in the minds of the Greeks. He was the first to sail -along the coasts of Northern Gaul and Germany. He was the discoverer -of at least most of Great Britain, the Shetlands, and Norway as far as -the Arctic Circle. And as he voyaged he studied the phenomena of the -sea--collected invaluable data as to tides and their origin. Himself -a Greek and unaccustomed to tidal movements, he was the first of his -race to connect this systematic flowing and ebbing of the sea with the -moon. Dr. Nansen, himself the greatest explorer of our times, has not -hesitated to describe Pytheas as “one of the most capable and undaunted -explorers the world has ever seen.” But as so often happens in the case -of a pioneer, Pytheas was ahead of his time, and the description which -he brought back of his travels, of the strange lands and unheard-of -phenomena, was not believed by his contemporaries. There followed, -therefore, a gulf of incredulity for about three hundred years till we -come to the time of Julius Cæsar, and from that point we shall, in due -course, continue to trace the development of navigational science. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -MEDITERRANEAN PROGRESS - - -But before we proceed further, it is essential that we look carefully -into the building, administration, and handling of those fleets of -vessels which made history as they scudded across the blue waters -of the south of Europe. We want to know, also, something of the -composition of their crews, their officers, and the divisions of -control, of the tactics employed in naval warfare, of the limitations -in manœuvring, the methods of working the oars, of rigging the ships, -of steering, and so on. - -Greece had accepted the ship as it had evolved in the hands of the -Phœnicians with certain modifications. We are no longer anxious to -trace that development, but rather to see, in the first place, how the -Greeks availed themselves of their inheritance. In the building of -their ships the Greeks gave neither sternpost nor stempost. The timbers -of the ships were held together by means of wooden pegs (or treenails, -as we should call them), and also by metal nails, bronze being chosen -in preference to iron nails for the most obvious of reasons. But in -those days, as any student of Greek history is aware, not infrequently -craft had to be transported. Therefore the fastenings were so placed -as to allow of the ship being divided into sections for carrying -across land to some distant water. The outer framework of the hull was -found in the keel and ribs. The ship’s planking, which varied from the -somewhat ample 2¼ inches to 5¼ inches thick, was fastened through the -ribs to the beams. - -The warships had most necessarily to be built of the utmost strength to -sustain the terrible shocks in ramming. To prevent the damage incurred -being disastrous, cables--called hypozomata--undergirded the ship. The -Greek word signifies the diaphragm or midriff in anatomy, but in the -plural it is used to designate the braces which were passed either -underneath or horizontally around the ship’s hull. The reader may -remember that in “Sailing Ships and their Story” I called attention to -the Egyptian ships, which used to be strengthened by stretching similar -cables not girth-wise, but direct from stem to stern across the deck -over wooden forks amidships. Primarily, then, these braces on the Greek -ships were to counteract the effects of ramming; incidentally they kept -the ship’s hull from “working” when she pounded in heavy seas. - -And then when the shipwright had finished his construction of the ship -she was coloured with a composition consisting of paint and wax, the -latter serving to give these speedy ships the minimum of skin-friction. -The colours chosen were purple, two whites, violet, yellow, and blue. -Green, for the sake of invisibility, was used for scouts and pirates. -The primitive Grecian ships had only patches of colour at the bows, the -rest of the hull being covered black with tar. Occasionally neither wax -nor tar was employed, but the hull was sheathed with lead outside the -planking, layers of tarred sailcloth being placed in between the two -materials. They made their sails either of linen, or, sometimes, of -papyrus fibre or flax, and there were two kinds of sailcloth which the -Athenian Navy utilised. The bolt-ropes of the sails were of hide, the -skins of the hyena and seal being especially employed. The ropes used -for the different purposes of the ship were of two kinds. Some were of -strips of hide; more frequently they were from the fibre of papyrus or -from flax or hemp. The sails were often coloured--black for mourning, -purple or vermilion for an admiral or monarch. Topsails were sometimes -coloured, the lower sail remaining uncoloured. The green-hulled -scouts also had their sails and ropes dyed to match the colour of the -Mediterranean. And sometimes the interesting sight would be seen of -sails with inscriptions and devices woven in golden thread into the -fabric. - -There is a Greek word _askos_, which signifies a leathern bag or -wine-skin, from which the word _askoma_ is derived. The latter was -the word given to a leathern bag which was attached to the oar so as -to prevent the water from penetrating through into the ship, and yet -allowed, with only slight friction, the oar to be brought backward and -forward. There is something slightly similar to-day in the leather -flap which is found on the Bristol Channel pilot cutters, covering the -discharge from the watertight cockpits, the motion of the ship through -the water causing the flap to be pressed tightly against the hull, and -thus preventing any water from entering. But in the instance of the -Grecian craft the flap was much bigger. There were no rowlocks, but the -oar was fastened by a leathern loop to a thole-pin against which the -rower pulled his oar. - -Bear in mind that, whereas the Greek merchant-ship mostly relied on -sails, the warship was essentially oar-propelled. And because she -must needs carry a large number of rowers they needed supervision. -Hence a gangway was placed on either side of the ship, both for that -purpose and also for the placing of the fighting men. Illustrations on -ancient Greek vases clearly show that some warships were fitted with a -hurricane-deck above, and this extended down the length of the ship, -but not from one side to the other. This hurricane-deck, if we are to -give any credence to contemporary illustrations, was a fairly light -affair raised on vertical supports of sufficient strength. In addition -to the human ballast of the oarsmen, gravel, sand, and stone were used -for trimming the ship. For instance, it might be necessary to get the -bows deeper into the water so that the ram came into operation; or, -after ramming and receiving damage, it might be found advisable to -trim the ship by the stern so as to get the bows well out of water. To -what extent these craft leaked one cannot say; but one can reasonably -suppose that as they were built of unseasoned wood, as the shocks from -ramming were very injurious, and as they had to suffer a good deal -of wear and tear through frequent beaching, they made a fair amount -of water. At any rate, it is certain that they provided against this -in arranging an Archimedean screw, worked by a treadmill, or buckets -for getting rid of the bilge-water. It is probable, also, that the -drinking-water in cisterns or skins would be deposited as low in the -hull as possible. - -The Greeks, in addition to their technical ability, had inherited a -similar sea-instinct to that of the Phœnicians, and this keenness is -by no means absent from Greek literature. What, for instance, could be -more enthusiastic than the following exquisitely poetic extract from -Antipater of Sidon:-- - -“Now is the season for a ship to run through the gurgling water, and -no longer does the sea gloom, fretted with gusty squalls; and now the -swallow plasters her globed houses under the rafters, and the soft -leafage laughs in the meadows. Therefore wind up your soaked cables, O -sailors, and weigh your sunken anchors from the harbours, and stretch -the forestays to carry your well-woven sails. This I, the son of -Bromius, bid you, Priapus of the anchorage.”[3] - -It is an exhortation, at the return of spring, to refit the ships which -had been laid up since the winter, tethered to the “soaked cables.” It -is an invitation to get the ships properly afloat, to step the masts -and set up the forestay in all readiness for getting under way for the -sailing season. - -Or again, listen to Leonidas of Tarentum in a similar theme. - -“Now is the season of sailing,” he says, “for already the chattering -swallow is come and the pleasant west wind; the meadows flower, and the -sea, tossed up with waves and rough blasts, has sunk to silence. Weigh -thine anchors and unloose thine hawsers, O mariner, and sail with all -thy canvas set: this I, Priapus of the harbour, bid thee, O man, that -thou mayest sail forth to all thy trafficking.”[4] - -“Mine be a mattress on the poop,” sings[5] Antiphilus with no less -ecstasy of the life on board a Grecian ship, “mine be a mattress on the -poop, and the awnings over it sounding with the blows of the spray, -and the fire forcing its way out of the hearth-stones, and a pot upon -them with empty turmoil of bubbles; and let me see the boy dressing the -meat, and my table be a ship’s plank covered with a cloth; and a game -of pitch-and-toss, and the boatswain’s whistle: the other day I had -such fortune, for I love common life.” - -Three thousand years, indeed, before the birth of our Lord there were -ships sailing the Ægean Sea, but it was only the progress of time and -experience which made these craft and their crews’ ability anything -more than primitive. As you look through the poems of Homer you -find various significant references to craft, and he speaks of the -“red-cheeked” ships, referring to the vermilion-coloured bows, where a -face was frequently painted, red being the conventional colour in those -early times for flesh. The same idea is still seen in the Chinese junks -and the Portuguese fishing craft. - -[Illustration: “MINE BE A MATTRESS ON THE POOP.”] - -The earliest Grecian ships were crescent-shaped, and the stern so -resembled the horn of a cow that it was called the _korumba_ or point. -There is a reference in the Iliad to the high-pointed sterns of ships. -From Homer, too, we know that the timber employed in shipbuilding -consisted of oak, pine, fir, alder, poplar, and white poplar; that -the masts and oars were of fir, that the woodwork of the hull was -erected on shipbuilders’ stocks. The word used for the latter was -_druochoi_--meaning the props on which the keel (_tropis_) was laid. -The hull was secured by treenails and dowel-joints, the planking being -laid over the ribs. Further, we know also that the ship of Homer had -either twenty or fifty oarsmen. - -The pre-Homeric Greeks did not use thole-pins, but the oars were -fastened to the gunwale by means of leathered hoops. It was not till -a later date that the pins already mentioned came into use. It is -noticeable, too, that Homer uses the word _kleides_ in referring to the -thwarts on which the rowers sat. For the singular of this word means a -hook or clasp, and is used in this sense for the thwart or rowing bench -which locked the sides of the ship together. _Zuga_ is also used in -the Odyssey to signify the same thing. In attempting to piece together -these fragmentary details of the Homeric ship, we must bear in mind -that below the _zuga_ or rowing thwarts the hold was undecked, but that -fore and aft there ran the half-decks--_ikria_, Homer calls them. The -forecastle formed at once a cabin and a look-out post, and helped to -keep the forward end protected when butting into a sea. Right aft, of -course, sat the helmsman, or _kubernetes_, and it is supposed that a -bench here stretched across the poop on which, as he sat on deck, he -could rest his feet and work the _oieion_ or handle of the rudder. A -Greek ship usually had two pedalia or steering oars, one being placed -on either quarter. These were joined together across the ship by means -of cross-bars (_zeuglai_), to which the tiller or handle was attached. -Finally, over the poop rose the tail-piece which is so noticeable -in some of the vase-illustrations of Grecian ships, and had its -counterpart in the lotus-bud seen in the ships of the Egyptians. - -Homer speaks of “stepping the mast” (_histos_), and apparently the -step was affixed as low as possible, its heel being supported by a -prop and capable of being easily lowered before the galley went into -battle under oar-propulsion alone. The forestays, which just now we -saw Antipater urging the sailors to stretch, were two in number. The -Homeric word for these is _protonoi_, though the word was used by -Euripides in speaking of the braces which controlled the yards. On the -yard which stretched at right angles across the mast both merchantmen -and warships set the squaresail, and the use by Homer of the word -_meruomai_ for _drawing up_ or furling sails is sufficiently indicative -that the ancient Greek sailors stowed sail not by lowering it on deck -as in a modern fore-and-after, but after the fashion of a modern -full-rigged ship. - -We find mention also of the halyards--one on each side of the mast is -shown in the Greek vase designs--which supported the yard to the top of -the mast, the sail being reefed by means of brailing lines. The same -word that we have just mentioned, for “drawing up” or “furling” sails, -was also employed for drawing up the cables. And here again there is a -further connection. The plural _kaloi_ is used to mean (1) cables, (2) -reefing ropes (i.e. brails), or even reefs as opposed to the sheets -(_podes_) and braces (_huperai_). Euripides employs the expression -_kalōs exienai_, meaning to “let out the reefs.” And (3) _kaloi_ also -means not merely generally a rope, but also a sounding line, which -again is evidence that these ancient seamen found the depth of water -as the modern sailor feels his way through shoal seas. The word just -given for sheets was applied to the lower corners of the sail--clews -as we nowadays call them--and thus naturally the ropes attached to the -foot (or lowest part) were also called _podes_. The braces were called -_huperai_, obviously because they were in fact the upper ropes. - -As we have just seen from Antipater and Leonidas, the mariner used -cables and hawsers for securing his ship, these being sent out from -both bow and stern. Instead of anchors the early Greeks used heavy -stones for the bow cables, whilst other hawsers were run out from the -stern to the shore and hitched on to a big boulder or rock. If the -former, then there was a hole therein. An endless rope was rove through -this perforated stone, so that thus the ship could be hauled ashore -for disembarking, or when wishing to go aboard again, sufficient slack -of course having been left at the bow cables. A long pole was used for -shoving off, while a ladder, which is seen more than once in Greek vase -illustrations, was carried at the stern for convenience in descending -to the land from the high-pointed sterns. - -There were two sailing seasons. The first was after the rising of the -Pleiads, in spring; the second was between midsummer and autumn. When, -after the setting of the Pleiads, the ship was hauled up into winter -quarters on land, she was supported by props to keep her upright, and -then a stone fence was put round her. This afforded her protection -against wind and weather. The _cheimaros_, or plug, was then taken out -from the bottom so as to let out all the bilge-water. The ship’s gear, -the sails, steering oars, and tiller were then stored at home till the -time came once more for the sailors to “stretch” their forestays. - -About the year 700 B.C. the Greek warships were manned by fifty rowers; -hence these craft were called _pentekontoroi_. With the existence of -a forecastle and a raised horned poop, one can understand perfectly -well how easy was the transition which caused an upper deck to be added -about this century. This gave to the ship greater power, because it -allowed two banks of oarsmen, one on each deck. As far as possible -these rowers were covered in to avoid the attacks of the enemy. Such -shallow-draught vessels as the war-galleys could not possibly be good -as sailing craft. They must be looked upon as essentially rowing -vessels which occasionally set canvas when cruising and a fair wind was -blowing. - -The _pentekontoroi_ were single-banked, and for a long time the Greek -fleets consisted solely of this type. But then came the additional -deck just spoken of which gave two banks, and subsequently the trireme -succeeded the bireme. The trireme was very popular till after the close -of the Peloponnesian War, when the quadrireme was introduced from -Carthage. Dr. Oskar Seyffert[6] asserts that before the close of the -fourth century B.C. quinquiremes and even six-banked craft, and (later -still) even sixteen-banked vessels are supposed by some writers to have -been in vogue. But as to the latter this seems highly improbable. - -And before we proceed any further, let us endeavour to get a clear idea -as to the nature of a trireme. This species of ship had been invented -by those great seamen who hailed from the port of Sidon. About the -year 700 B.C. this type was adopted by the Greeks, and then began to -supersede all other existing types of war-vessels. Themistocles in -483 B.C. inaugurated the excellent practice of maintaining a large -permanent navy. As a commencement he built a hundred triremes, and -these were used at the battle of Salamis. In the Greek word _trieres_ -there is nothing to signify that it was necessarily three-banked, and -it is well to realise this fact from the start. The word just means -“triple-arranged,” neither more nor less. It is when we come to the -question as to the details of this triple arrangement that we find a -divergence of theory. It will, therefore, be best if we state first the -prevailing theory of the trireme’s arrangement, and then pass on to -give what is the more modern and the more plausible interpretation. - -[Illustration: CAST OF A RELIEF IN ATHENS. - -Showing the disposition of rowers in a trireme.] - -The most general idea, then, is that the trireme was fitted with three -tiers of oarsmen. In this case the _thalamitai_ were those who sat and -worked on the lowest tier; the _zugitai_, those who sat on the beams; -whilst the _thranitai_ were the men who sat on the highest tier. (Homer -refers to the seven-foot bench, or _thrēnus_, which was the seat of -the helmsman or the rowers). Each oarsman, it is thought, sat below -and slightly to the rear of the oarsman above him, so that these three -sections of men formed an oblique line. This economised space and -facilitated their movements. A variation of this same theory suggests -that the _thalamitai_ sat close to the vessel’s side, the _zugitai_ who -were higher up being distant from the side the breadth of one thwart, -whilst the _thranitai_, higher still, were the breadth of two thwarts -away. The oar of each rower would pass over the head of the rower below. - -But a better theory of the arrangement of the trireme may be presented -as follows, and it has the advantage of satisfying all the evidence -found in ancient literature and pictorial representation. Banish, then, -from your mind all thought of three superimposed tiers, and instead -consider a galley so arranged that the rowers work side by side. Each -of the triple set of oarsmen sits pulling his own separate oar. But -all three oars emerge through one porthole. In front of each bench was -a stretcher, and the rower stood up grasping his oar and pulled back, -letting the full weight of his body fall on to the stroke till at -its end he found himself sitting on the bench. On either side of him, -at the same bench, was another rower doing the same exertion. In each -porthole there would thus be three thole-pins to fit three oars. In -this case, then, the _thalamitēs_ would be he who rowed nearest the -porthole. Because he worked the shortest oar and thus had the least -exertion he received the least pay. Next to him sat the _zugitēs_, and -next to the latter came the _thranitēs_, who worked the longest oar, -and therefore did the most work, having to stand on a stool (_thranos_) -in order to get greater exertion on to his oar at the beginning of the -stroke. It is supposed that the rowers’ benches were not all in the -same plane, but that the second would be higher than the first, and the -third higher than the second. - -The number of oars in an ancient trireme was as many as 170. These oars -were necessarily very long, and time was kept sometimes by the music -of a flute, or by the stroke set by the _keleustes_, who was on board -for that purpose. This he did either with a hammer of some sort, or his -voice. And there is at least one illustration showing such a man using -a hammer in an oar-propelled boat for that purpose.[7] The inscriptions -which were unearthed some years ago, containing the inventories of -the Athenian dockyards, belonging to the years between 373 B.C. and -323 B.C., have been collected and published. And it is from them that -we obtain such valuable information as the number of oarsmen which -the biremes carried. This number was usually 200, and was disposed -in the ship as follows: There were 54 _thalamitai_, 54 _zugitai_, 62 -_thranitai_, and 30 _perineo_. The exact meaning of the latter word -is supercargoes or passengers, but they were carried perhaps as spare -oarsmen in case any became disabled. - -All oars were worked together against the tholes, and as we know from -the old depictions there was a space left both at bow and stern beyond -the oarsmen, this space being called the _parexeiresia_. The number -of oarsmen just mentioned may seem very large, but having regard to -the speed required for manœuvring and for ramming effectively it is -not excessive. But when a war-vessel was employed on transport duty -so great a host of men was not essential. In the case of a vessel -engaged, for instance, in carrying horses in her hold only sixty -oarsmen were needed. Had you found yourself alongside one of the -war-galleys you would have been struck by its length and leanness more -than by anything else. As you passed round by the bows you would have -observed the two great eyes, one on either side of the hull, through -which in all probability the hawsers passed. Behind these two eyes -were very substantial catheads which projected like great ears from -the ship, and were used primarily for slinging the anchors just as in -the old-fashioned sailing ships of Nelson and after; but, secondly, -for convenience when ramming. Thus, when the terrible shock came, the -catheads would protect the oars of the ship from damage and allow the -utmost speed to be maintained till the last minute--a factor that was -naturally of the highest importance. But also they were sometimes -strengthened with supports so that they might catch in the topsides of -the enemy and do him considerable damage. - -As to the ram, which was the pivot of all the ancient naval tactics, -there was one projecting spur below, but above it was another ram to -catch the attacked ship at a second place. These rams were made of -bronze and had three teeth; or if not made of bronze they were of wood -sheathed with that metal. The stempost in these craft rose high in the -air, and each ship had a distinguishing sign consisting either of a -figurehead or some relief or painting at the bows. Of the two kinds of -sails which these vessels carried, the larger was put ashore prior to -battle, and only the smaller one retained. And as there were two sizes -of sails, so there were two sizes of masts to correspond. Besides the -halyards, brailing ropes, cables, braces, sheets, and forestay already -alluded to, there were also backstays to support the masts. This was -up to about the year 400 B.C., but, at any rate, by 330 B.C. triremes -had simply mast, yard, sail, ropes, and the loops of brailing ropes, a -simplified form of the earlier brails. - -[Illustration: TERRA-COTTA VASE IN THE FORM OF A TRIREME’S PROW. - -Showing eye and both upper and lower ram, each with triple teeth.] - -But additional to the triremes which had been first built at Corinth, -were the quadriremes which first appeared in the year 398 B.C. As to -their nature, their complement, and other details we know nothing. But -it is legitimate to suppose that if the triremes rowed three men to a -bench these were manned by four men on each bench rowing four oars in -a similar manner. In the same year that first saw the quadriremes were -built also quinquiremes. As to their size and complement we know just -this much--that at the battle of Ecnomus the Roman and Carthaginian -quinquiremes carried about 300 rowers and 120 combatants each. -Probably, like the medieval quinquiremes, they rowed five men to each -oar; or, alternatively, the five men each pulled an oar through the -same porthole. - -Some of the later developments of the marine instinct in the -Mediterranean and adjacent seas became grotesque. Personal pride and -a keen sense of rivalry caused the King of Sicily and his brother -sovereigns of Macedonia, Asia, and Alexandria during the fourth and -third centuries B.C. to construct men-of-war on a huge scale. A temple -in Cyprus commemorates the builder of a twenty- and a thirty-fold -vessel. But there was even a forty-fold vessel constructed by Ptolemy -Philopator about the year 220 B.C., which was the size of one of our -big liners of to-day. Two hundred and eighty cubits she measured in -length, thirty-eight she was wide. Her stem rose 48 cubits above the -water with only a 4-cubit draught, while the stern-ornament was 53 -cubits high in the air. Fitted with a double prow which had seven rams, -a double stern with four steering paddles 30 cubits each in length, -the largest of her oars measured 38 cubits in length, but they were -nicely balanced by weighting them with an equipoise of lead near the -handles. Twelve strong cables 600 cubits long girded her together, and -her complement was far greater than any vessel of modern times, four -thousand oarsmen, 400 sailors, 2850 soldiers, to say nothing of the -retinue of servants and the stores which she carried besides. There -was also an enormous Nile barge 280 cubits long, built by Sesostris, -but such craft as the fore-mentioned must be looked upon less as an -opportunity for practising the seaman’s art than as a vulgar display of -wealth. - -The true war-vessel was made in the proportions of length seven or -eight times her width, and drew about 3 feet of water. Light, shallow, -and flat, not particularly seaworthy, they were utterly different -from the round, heavy, strong, decked merchantman. The war-galley’s -triple-spiked ram had come into use as far back as 556 B.C. The galley -was most certainly fast and built of fir with a keel of oak. Competent -modern authorities agree in estimating the speed of the galley and -merchantman in those days as about 7½ to 4 (or 5) knots respectively. - -[Illustration: PORTIONS OF EARLY MEDITERRANEAN ANCHOR IN LEAD FOUND OFF -THE COAST OF CYRENE. - -(In the British Museum.)] - -When stone was discarded and metal anchors began to be adopted -about the year 600 B.C., they were made first of iron. Some idea of -the weight of the holding tackle in vogue may be gathered from the -statement that an anchor weighing less than 56 lbs. was used in the -Athenian navy. (For the sake of comparison, it may be added that this -is about the weight of a modern 10-ton yacht’s bower anchor.) Stone -and lead were affixed to these anchors by iron clamps near the bottom -of the shank. The ships of the Athenian navy carried each a couple -of anchors, while large merchant ships carried several, as we know -from the voyages of St. Paul. Cork floats were employed for buoying -the anchors, as to-day, and also served the purpose of lifebuoys. -Usually the ships rode to rope cables, but sometimes to chain ones. It -can readily be imagined that when these light ships pitched fore and -aft into a sea the two large steering oars at the high stern would be -frequently out of the water, and thus quite easily the vessel would -not be under command. In such instances another pair was placed at the -bows. Like the modern Arabs, the early seamen of the Mediterranean -had to go aloft as best they could by climbing the sail, the mast, or -hanging their weight on any rope they could find. - -“Curiously,” says Mr. Torr in his invaluable little book “Ancient -Ships,” to which I am considerably indebted, “the practice was always -to brail up half the sail when the ship was put on either tack, -the other half being thereby transformed into a triangle with base -extending from the middle of the yard to the leeward end of it, and -apex terminating in the sheet below.” Apparently, when the yard was -braced round the sail was furled on the arm that came aft, but left -unfurled on the arm that went forward. - -It is quite certain that the ancient Mediterranean seamen did perform -voyages at night when they had attained to experience and confidence, -and there is at least one plain reference in Greek literature to a -lighthouse, as in the following passage: “No longer dreading the -rayless night-mist, sail towards me confidently, O seafarers; for all -wanderers I light my far-shining torch, memorial of the labours of the -Asclepiadæ.”[8] - -Some of the early vase paintings show the war-galley not with a ram as -developed subsequently, but a pig’s snout, and the _korumba_ or poop -extremity, shaped like a cow’s horn, could be lopped off by the victor -and retained as a trophy. And in looking at these ancient galleys one -must not forget that they were built not as the English shipbuilders -of, say, the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries laid down ships. -Galleys were built far more quickly and easily--whole fleets of -them--when the first rumour of war arrived. Capable as they were of -being put together with greater dispatch, launched with far greater -ease, and needing many tons less material than one of the famous wooden -walls which in later years were to sail the seas, it required not quite -so much enterprise if the ancients desired ships, and consequently -there was no small inducement for men to become expert in the things -of the sea. How important was the shipbuilding industry regarded by -the Mediterraneans may be seen from the careful arrangements made a -long time ahead for obtaining adequate supplies of timber. About the -year 380 B.C. a treaty was made between Amyntas III and the Chalkidians -regulating the export and import of shipbuilding materials; for it -must not be forgotten that southern Makedon, the Chalkidic peninsula, -and Amphipolis were the chief sources whence Athens derived its _xula -naupegesima_--ship-timber--for her dockyards. This record is found in a -marble which was discovered at Olynthos, and is now at Vienna. - -At Corinth and other places there were all the accessories of a -shipbuilding yard on a big scale, including proper slips, and even -ship-tramways running down to the sea for hauling ships ashore. At such -yards long, narrow rowing galleys and round, broad sailing merchant -ships were put together with all the skill which the Greeks possessed. -Here hulls were built out of pine, cedar, and cypress, while the -interiors were constructed of pine, lime, plane, elm, ash, acacia, -or mulberry. Here we could have watched the masts and yards being -fashioned out of fir or pine, whilst others were busy caulking seams -with tow, or heating the wax and tar over the cauldrons. - -But the picture of the ancient Greek shipbuilding activity is far -from complete owing to the comparatively scant material which -exists. In 1834, when the workmen were digging the foundations for a -building at the Piræus, they came upon a Roman or Byzantine drain, -and discovered it to be lined with slabs of marble which were covered -with inscriptions. These were some of the inventories of the Athenian -dockyards of the fourth century B.C., and will be found published in -August Böckh’s “Corpus Inscriptionum Atticarum,” Vol. II, Part II, p. -158. - -In any consideration of the Greek seamen we must think of them as -existing almost exclusively for one purpose--not for trading or -exploring or fishing, but for fighting. Into the latter was poured -practically all their seafaring energy. Their general naval strategy -consisted of two kinds. The first consisted in reproducing afloat the -principles of fighting on shore. To this end the galleys were massed -with troops as many as they could hold, and so soon as the engaging -combatants could get close enough they attacked each other with spears -and shot arrows from their bows. The victory therefore came to that -floating army which had the most numerous and ablest soldiers. Brute -force rather than tactics: energy rather than skill won the day. - -And thus it continued until about the end of the fifth century B.C., -when another method of fighting was introduced and developed by the -Athenians to its most perfect state. This consisted as follows: The -well-manned, quickly-darting galley shot out against the enemy, -pecked deeply--viciously--with its beak, and then hurried out of -the danger sphere as quickly as it had entered. Connected with the -general strategy of ramming there were two distinct schemes of tactics -employed. The first was called _diekplous_, or sailing through. This -consisted of breaking the enemy’s line. A single line of galleys would -pass between the enemy’s line, make a sharp turn, and then swoop down -on to them from astern, doing the utmost damage with their rams. The -other was technically known as _periplous_, or sailing around, and -consisted in outflanking the enemy’s ships so as to charge them with -the beak against their broadside. Thus it will be seen that neither of -these manœuvres involved a direct prow-to-prow attack, for the reason -that the Athenian ships were too light as to the bows. Prior to a fight -protective awnings of sailcloth or horsehair were spread over the open -spaces on these galleys, and every protection that could be afforded -the essential oarsmen was provided. Everything points to the fact that -the Greek fleets were properly organised and drilled. An admiral’s -ship was distinguished by a flag as well as any purple or vermilion -sail which she might carry so as most easily to be discernible across -the waters. When the fleet was at sea doing a passage before a fair -wind bound for the battle area, the admiral’s sail would in itself be -sufficient for a sign. But, as already emphasised, sails were lowered -before the battle commenced, and it is probable that either the flag -was displayed somewhere about the ship in that case, or that some -other method, such as the colour of the hull, was employed to cause -the discrimination. It is probable that the Greek admiral’s ship at -night, like that of the Roman admiral, carried three lights, the other -warships having one light each, except the transports, which were -distinguished by two. - -[Illustration: SHIELD SIGNALLING.] - -In battle a national flag was used so as to facilitate recognition of -one’s own vessels from those of the enemy. And, as illustrative of -the development of the early naval tactics, it is well to notice that -there existed a signalling code--the displaying of a purple flag, for -instance, being the signal for going into action. Mr. Torr mentions the -interesting fact that attempts were made at semaphoring with a single -flag, and further at signalling by flashing the sunlight from a shield. -In addition to the above, signals were made for getting under way, for -altering the formation of the fleet, for bringing-to, as well as for -disembarking troops. - -Their seamanship was necessarily simple, because their ships had no -complicated gear and were primarily rowing craft. We know that they -used the sounding lead armed with grease, and the numerous landmarks -of the Ægean Sea and the neighbouring waters would be more than well -known to those in command of the ships sailing. When one thinks of -the bare simplicity of the Mediterranean galley, the fighting ship of -Tudor times with all its sails and rigging and running gear points -to a far more elaborate species of seamanship with a corresponding -increase of anxiety. As to the division in supervising the ship’s work, -the officers consisted as follows: The captain of the trireme--called -_trierarchos_--was in supreme command of his ship. Under him came the -_kubernetes_ or helmsman. Then forward stood the officer in command of -the bow--the _proreus_ or look-out man. Under these three officers the -ship was manœuvred in such a manner that either the enemy’s hull might -be pierced or, at any rate, his protruding lines of oars smashed into -splinters, thus rendering him an easy prey. - -For the most part the representations of ancient classical ships have -been so carefully made that they have every appearance of accuracy, -taking into consideration the possibilities of wind, sails, and sea, -but occasionally mistakes are made which show that the artist certainly -was not a seaman. In the accompanying illustration[9] we have an -instructive picture of a penteconter. She sets two sails with a bowline -shown on the mizzen, but interesting as the picture is in many ways, -yet the sails are clearly not set in accordance with the wind. The -steering oar at the side and the flag on the staff at the bows will be -immediately noticed. - -[Illustration: GREEK PENTECONTER FROM AN ANCIENT VASE. - -That the artist was not a seaman is obvious from the ludicrous way in -which the sails are depicted.] - -To sum up, then, the Greek seamen evolved their ships as follows: -Like the Egyptians and Phœnicians before them, they began with a -penteconter, which means that each man pulled an oar and that there was -but one tier of twenty-five on either side of the ship. Next, inasmuch -as they wanted increased power and speed--possibly because the ships -were being built more strongly and thus needed more vehemently to be -rammed--so they had to increase the number of their oarsmen and to -lengthen their ship. This involved a risk of hogging, so the hull was -engirdled; or when that was dispensed with a deck was added to join -forecastle and poop, and gave facilities for a second tier of rowers. -In the next step we get the introduction of triremes, quadriremes, -and quinquiremes, which multiplied the number of men rowing from each -bench, but placed all the men on one bench pulling their oars through -the same porthole. After this come the monstrosities of the powerful -Egyptian, Sicilian, and other kings, in whose ships each oar was -probably pulled by any number of men from six to forty. But luxury -certainly came afloat at no late date. Professor Flinders Petrie -calls attention[10] to the extraordinary analogy between the work of -the Mykenæans and that of the Egyptians in the grandly embroidered -squaresails painted in the frescoes at Mykenæ. Certainly as far back as -232 B.C. there were mosaics to be seen on the magnificent ship of Hiero -II of Syracuse.[11] - -Not less interesting were the ships and ways of ancient Rhodes, which -in like manner had its dieres, trieres, tetreres, penteres, even up to -seven- and nine-fold ships. In addition to these they had a swift type -of their own invention, having one bank of oars, called celoces. They -were wont, also, to use another fast type of craft called triemioliæ, -which had no fighting deck stretching from end to end. The usual -Rhodian naval tactics consisted in endeavouring to run through the -enemy’s line and break the oars of his ships as they passed. Afterwards -the Rhodians would then turn and ram them at the stern or else on the -beam, always carrying away something that was essential for working the -ship unless they could sink her forthwith. - -They were very fond of one device in particular. When they were -positively compelled to ram stem to stem they used to make provision -by depressing their own bows as deep as possible in the water, so -that while the enemy’s ram struck them high above the water-line, the -Rhodian teeth holed the other ship well _below_ the water. After the -impact was over and the two ships fell apart the enemy was in a sinking -condition, whereas the Rhodian could, by removing his ballast and some -of his men aft, elevate his bows well above the water-line. But just as -was discovered in modern ironclads fitted with rams, it was found that -the rammer often came off as grievously as the rammed. At the battle -of Chios in 201 B.C. one galley left her ram in the enemy’s ship, -promptly filled and sank. At the battle of Myonnesos in 190 B.C., when -a Rhodian ship was ramming an enemy the anchor of the former caught -in the latter. The Rhodian ship endeavoured to go astern to clear -herself, but as she did so the cable got foul of her oars so that she -was incapacitated and captured. During this same battle the Rhodians -affixed braziers of fire which hung over the bows. In trying to avoid -these, the Syrian ships exposed their broadsides to the Rhodian rams, -so that it became a choice of two evils. - -The Rhodians were fine, able seamen, and well they needed to be. But -even with the smart handling of their fast little craft they had all -their work cut out to keep off the embarrassing attentions of the -Cretan pirates during the second century B.C. On the biggest of their -galleys the Rhodians erected deckhouses with portholes for their -powerful catapults and archers. The custom of employing fireships, -which remained in vogue for many centuries down to the time of the -Armada and after, was already being employed by about the year 300 -B.C. The Rhodians, too, had their proper organisation in naval matters -as distinct from any desultory measures. In the port of Rhodes they -had their dockyards, which were kept up at a great cost. And there -is something curiously modern in the stringent regulations kept -for preserving the dockyard secrets. Any unauthorised person who -intruded into certain parts thereof was punished with death. And this -strict rule was not peculiar to Rhodes, but obtained at Carthage and -elsewhere. In order to protect their harbours against the assaults -of the enemy, booms were laid across the entrances, and engines were -mounted on merchant ships moored near the harbour-mouth. - -The Rhodians were great shipbuilders, and in their sheds was kept many -a craft ready to put to sea. But as Britain to-day builds warships for -nations other than herself, so it was with Rhodes, and to this end she -used to have brought to her immense quantities of timber, iron, lead, -pitch, tar, resin, hemp, hair (for caulking), and sailcloth. Even human -hair was employed in the service of the ship, and at the time of need -the ladies of Rhodes, Carthage, and Massilia cut off their tresses -and yielded it up for the making of ropes. The Rhodian squadrons were -usually of three ships or multiples of three, and every year a squadron -went forth for its sea experiences. The trieres, which carried as -many as two hundred men, each voyaged as far as the Atlantic. Fine -swimmers, fine seamen, their sea prowess was the cause of the greatest -admiration on the part of the Greeks. “It was a proverb,” says Mr. -Torr in his “Rhodes in Ancient Times,”[12] “that ten Rhodians were -worth ten ships,” and we must attribute their natural instinct and -acquired skill for marine matters to that fortunate accident of being -an island nation--a circumstance which has always, in all parts of the -globe, meant so much to the progress and independence of a nation. -Furthermore, the port of Rhodes was an important point on the line of -commerce, and this fact also must be taken into account in reckoning up -the influences at work for encouraging the marine arts, especially in -inculcating an interest and admiration for the things of the sea. For -those great merchant ships which used to sail to Egypt and come back -to Greece laden with corn were accustomed to make Rhodes their port of -call, and we cannot doubt that the sojourn of these big vessels with -their impressive bulk and remarkable spars would make a powerful appeal -to the imagination of the local sailormen and shipwrights always on the -look-out for new ideas. Then, too, they had their own overseas trade, -for large quantities of wine were exported from Rhodes to both Egypt -and Sicily. Even by the third century B.C. the Rhodians were strong -both as a naval and commercial nation. Their maritime laws were so -excellent that they were afterwards adopted by Rome, and even to-day -much of the world’s best sea law can be traced back to the people of -that Mediterranean island. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -ROME AND THE SEA - - -Marine development under the Romans was largely influenced by Greek -precedent and practice, but there were points of difference. - -The transportation of goods across the seas was conducted by -shipowners, who formed themselves into corporations under the style of -_navicularii marini_, but from the middle of November to the middle of -March navigation was suspended until the finer weather returned. Under -the Republic these shipmen worked for the companies of _publicani_, but -Augustus abolished these financial companies, appointing in their stead -superintendents who dealt direct with the owners of ships. The latter -were regarded as anything but unimportant. On them the victualling of -the capital largely depended, and the early emperors granted them, as -owners of important merchant vessels, special privileges; but this was -conditional on their ships possessing a capacity of 10,000 modii, and -on their carrying corn to Rome for the period of six years. Though they -were not in the permanent employ of the State, yet they were liberally -rewarded for their services. In the corporations of the _navicularii -marini_ there was no clear distinction between the shipowner who worked -“on his own” and those engaged in working for the State. - -From the time of Diocletian, however, the _navicularii_ were all -servants of the State, and it was their duty to transport cargoes -of corn, oil, wood, and bullion from the provinces to Rome or -Constantinople. In their ships the Imperial post was carried. They -received a fixed percentage and were responsible to the State for the -goods placed in their holds. Membership of these corporations was -handed down from father to son. They were allowed to engage in private -trade and enjoyed the additional privilege of passing their cargoes -duty free through the Customs. Similarly, additional to the overseas -traffic, the internal navigation was organised by corporations of -merchants and barge-owners. For example, the State employed them to -handle the consignments of corn from Egypt on the Nile, Tiber, and the -rivers and lakes of Northern Italy, Spain, Gaul, and Germany. So, too, -the Rhone and Saône were navigated by them. - -The reader is aware that we have had necessity to refer more than once -to the corn-ships from Egypt, and in an age that was given up rather -to the development of the fighting galley than to the exploiting of -the cargo ship these trans-Mediterranean grain-carriers stand out -prominently as a class by themselves. It is most unlikely that they -altered much during a space of several hundred years, when even -that much-petted craft, the galley, remained so little modified. -Therefore the following account which has been left to us by Lucian -may be regarded not merely as representative of the corn-ship in his -immediate period, but as characteristic of the ship for probably five -hundred years at least. Lucian lived in the second century, and was -born probably about A.D. 120. In the dialogue from which the following -extract is taken he taunts his friend Timolaus with being ever fond -of a fine spectacle; to which the latter replies that he had had -nothing to do, and being told of “this monster vessel of extraordinary -proportions putting in at the Piræus,” he goes on to explain that “she -is one of the Egyptian corn-ships and bound for Italy.” - -[Illustration: THE EGYPTIAN CORN-SHIP “GODDESS ISIS” (_circa_ A.D. -120).] - -Keenly interested, they went on board her by the gangway, and he goes -on to refer to the ship’s cabins, which he examined, to the shipwright -who conducted them round the ship, calls attention to the lofty mast, -stares in amazement at the sailors “as they mounted by the ropes, -and then with perfect safety ran along the yards holding on to the -halyards.” A hundred and thirty feet long she measured, with 30-feet -beam, whilst from deck to bottom of hold she was 29 feet at her deepest -part. - -“What a mast she has!” exclaims Samippus, one of the friends; “and how -huge a yard she carries, and what a stay it requires to hold it up in -its place! With what a gentle curve her stern rises, finished with a -goose-neck all of gold! At the other end, in just proportion, the prow -stands up, lengthening itself out as it gets forward, and showing the -ship’s name, the _Goddess Isis_, on either side.... The decorations -and the flame-coloured foresail, and beyond these the anchor with the -windlass and capstan, and I must not omit the stern cabins. Then the -number of souls would make one think it was a camp. We were told it -carried enough corn to feed all the people of Athens for a year. And -all we saw had so far been carried safe and sound by a little old man, -using a slight tiller to turn that huge rudder. They showed him to -me--a bald-pated fellow with a fringe of curly hair. Hero, I think, by -name.” - -Then Timolaus still further enriches the narrative: - -“The passenger told me of his marvellous seamanship; in all seafaring -matters he out-Proteused Proteus in skill. Did you hear how he brought -his ship home, and all they went through on the voyage, or how the -star guided them to safety?” Lucian answers that he has not heard, so -Timolaus goes on to inform him. - -“The captain told it me all himself--an honest fellow, and good -company. Seven days after leaving the Pharos they sighted Cape Acamas -without meeting with any very severe weather. Then the west wind -proving contrary, they were swept across as far as Sidon; and after -Sidon they fell in with a heavy gale; and on the tenth day came to -the Chelidonian Islands, passing through the channel, where they had -a narrow escape of going down, every man of them. I know what that -is, for I once passed the Chelidonians myself, and remember how high -the sea runs there, especially when the wind is in the south-west and -backing south. For the result of this is that the Pamphylian Gulf is -cut in two by the Lycian Sea, and the wave is split up by endless cross -currents at the promontory, the rocks there being sheer and worn sharp -by the wash of water, so that the surf becomes really formidable and -the roar overpowering, and, indeed, the wave (not infrequently) is full -as large as the rock it strikes. This, the captain said, was what they -were surprised by in the midst of night and literal darkness; but, he -added, the gods were moved with pity at their cries, and revealed to -them from the Lycian coast the light of a fire, so that they knew where -they were; and at the same time a bright star, one of the Twins, took -his place at the masthead, guiding the ship to the left towards the -open sea, just as it was bearing down on the rock. After that, having -once fallen off from their true course, they at length succeeded in -crossing the Ægean, and beating up in the teeth of the Etesian winds, -only yesterday, seventy days out from Egypt, put in at the Piræus. -They had so long been off their course in the lower seas that they -missed doing what they should have done, keeping Crete on the right and -steering past Malea. Otherwise they would have been in Italy by this -time.” - -Further on in the course of the conversation, Adeimantus, one of the -friends, mentions that after stopping to measure the thickness of the -anchor, “though I had seen everything, I must needs stop to ask one of -the sailors what was the average return to the owner from the ship’s -cargo.” “Twelve Attic talents,” he replied, “is the lowest figure, if -you like to reckon it that way.”[13] - -I make no apology for giving so full a quotation, for there is in -the narrative something so sincere and yet so curiously modern: -the whole picture is so full of sparkling bits of colour that it -is most pleasing, and we can almost see this mammoth ship with her -hefty spars and beautiful curves and “flame-coloured” sails. The -intervening space of nearly two thousand years seems to have made but -little difference in the type of skippers. I am sure that to many a -sailing man to-day the delightful little sketch of the captain of the -_Goddess Isis_ corn-carrier as “the little old man,” “a bald-pated -fellow with a fringe of curly hair” sitting at his tiller, will at -once suggest the very counterpart in the style and appearance of the -skipper of a corn-barge--“an honest fellow, and good company.” And -the account of the bad weather encountered successfully, the use of -stellar navigation, the good seamanship employed, and the proof of -the corn-ship’s seaworthiness are all too interesting to be lightly -dispensed with. In the present days of accurate charts, ingenious -nautical instruments, and big, sound ships, one is a little too apt to -imagine that the ships and the ability of their crews in ancient times -were scarcely worthy of serious consideration--deserving of little more -than ridicule. So many ill-informed artists, who have drawn on their -imagination in the past to depict what they believed to be the ships -of olden times, have been shown to be wrong and misleading, that there -has been such a reaction as to make it difficult to obtain any definite -legitimate picture in one’s mind. It is just such accounts written by -contemporaries as that of the _Goddess Isis_ that enable us once more -to see the ships of the past in their true likeness and proportions. - -But we must return to the warships. Prior to the time of Augustus -there was no fleet in being. Ships were built or fitted out at the -approach of war--a principle that the whole maritime history of the -world has always shown to be the most unmitigated naval heresy. But -by the year 337 B.C. there were certainly docks at Rome--the word -used is _navalia_--so at least there was some provision made for the -accommodation of ships. Knowing what we do of the Romans as magnificent -organisers and soldiers ashore, we are not surprised to find that -the same spirit was manifested in arranging the commands afloat. The -general command at sea was vested in the two consuls. Later on there -were appointed two fleet-masters under the designation, “duoviri -navales classis ornandæ reficiendæque causa.” There was thus a double -squadron consisting usually of twenty ships, ten being under each -duumvir. The coming of the Punic War had this effect, however, that it -caused Rome to think more seriously of her ships and to become in fact -a great naval power. In 260 B.C. there were built 100 quinquiremes and -20 triremes; with these the Romans defeated the Carthaginian fleet of -130 at Mylæ. The method employed was that which thereafter was to be -practised for so many centuries down the history of naval fights; that -is to say, the device consisted in boarding each other and engaging in -hand-to-hand encounter. In the present instance a boarding bridge was -held up against the mast by means of ropes and pulleys and let down -promptly on to the enemy’s deck for the troops of the Roman ships to -rush furiously across. The Greek word for this boarding bridge was -_korax_, the derivative meaning of which was a raven-like beak for -grappling. The Latin word was _corvus_. So powerful had the Romans -become at sea that they also defeated with 330 ships the Carthaginian -fleet of 350 at Ecnomus. Did a violent storm engulf two or three -hundred Roman ships? Then they set to work forthwith to build as -many and more by the aid of voluntary effort. She had such extensive -resources to fall back on that she was destined to win not exclusively -by good seamanship and tactics, but by weight of numbers. The boarding -bridges just mentioned had been found of the greatest value, and yet -prior to their invention boarding tactics had yet been employed. As far -back as 413 B.C. (when they used them against the Syracusans) grapnels -had been in use for hitching on to the enemy and then pouring slaughter -and death into him. - -[Illustration: THE “KORAX” ON BOARDING BRIDGE IN ACTION.] - -During the second Punic War, Rome had appreciated the value of -retaining permanent squadrons with the same commanders. Thus one -squadron was based on Tarraco, another--that of Sicily--on Lilybæum. -The Adriatic squadron was based on Brundisium. These three squadrons -provided a fleet of about two hundred ships. But when war was -threatening, new quinquiremes were built and the old ones were -refitted. But this excellent system of having a standing navy was -subsequently abolished and Rome’s general sea-command disappeared. - -During the first Punic War the fleet was commanded by one or both -consuls in person. Then the separate squadrons were commanded by -prætors or proprætors, though later on by proconsuls or consuls who -sometimes deputed the command to a præfectus. The crews consisted of -three sections--the oarsmen, the sailors, and the marines, designated -respectively _remiges_, _nautæ_, and _milites classici_. It is -important to bear in mind that no Roman ever handled an oar, but that -the rowers and sailors were supplied from the allies and maritime -colonies. This is evidence of the fact that, unlike the Phœnicians or -the Vikings, the Romans were not instinctively seamen, but only took to -the ocean because it was essential for their safety on shore. - -The expression _socii navales_ became the stereotyped phrase for -the crew of oarsmen and sailors. Later on--in the third century -B.C.--libertini were to a great extent employed in the crews. Slaves -were used during the Hannibalian War as oarsmen, and sometimes the -ships were manned by prisoners. When it was necessary, the crews were -sometimes armed and used as soldiers. But the Roman naval service -was never popular, and consequently there were many desertions. The -captain of each galley was designated _magister navis_. He and the -steersman (_gubernator_) were _ingenui_, the steersman ranking with -a centurion. The marines were drawn usually from the Roman proletariat, -and there was an arrangement of some sort for the distribution of -prize-money. Additional to the triremes, quadriremes, and quinquiremes, -there were also scouts--_lembi_, which were but light craft--and -_pentekontors_. - -[Illustration: SKETCHES OF ANCIENT SHIPS. - -By RICHARD COOK, R.A., from Montfarreon’s “Antiquities,” showing -warships with marines and fighting-platform amidships; the lower -sketches show clearly the types of bow and stern.] - -Great importance was clearly attached to the quinquiremes, for in such -craft envoys, commissioners, or messengers of victory were carried. -They fought together with the triremes and quadriremes as the capital -ships of the Roman navy, and whilst the State depended on the treaty -towns and allies for their lighter craft, yet the all-important -quinquiremes were kept under immediate control. The description and -arrangement of the different kinds of Greek warships is generally -applicable to those of the Romans. On the deck of the galley the troops -fought, while below them were the oarsmen. These propugnatores were -protected by means of bulwarks (_propugnacula_) as well as by two -wooden towers (_turres_), carried on supports which could be taken down -from the ship whenever required. - -[Illustration: THREE ANCIENT COINS FROM SCHEFFER’S “DE MILITIA NAVALI” -ILLUSTRATING TYPES OF RAMS.] - -Among the Greeks it was customary to divide ships into _kataphraktoi_ -and _aphraktoi_, according as to whether they were decked in or -otherwise. The corresponding Latin expressions were _navis tecta_ or -_navis aperta_ respectively. The quinquireme, however, was always -cataphract; that is to say, the planking did not end at the gunwale, -but was continued to the upper deck so as to afford protection to -the rowers from missiles. As to the dimensions and tonnage of the -quinquireme it is impossible to make any statement, but they were of -such a size that, with some difficulty, they could be hauled up on -shore at night. - -[Illustration: BRONZE FIGUREHEAD OF MINERVA FROM A ROMAN SHIP FOUND IN -THE SEA OFF ACTIUM. - -(Probably belonging to one of the ships which fought in the battle of -Actium, B.C. 31.)] - -Augustus realised that a Roman fleet in being was essential to police -the seas and keep down piracy so as to ensure the safe passage -of Rome’s corn supply from Egypt. The two fleets which he based -permanently on Misenum and Ravenna respectively to guard the Western -and Eastern seas were of the utmost utility. He even went so far -as to connect Ravenna with the Po by means of a canal. Manned with -crews and captains who were either slaves or freedmen, the ships were -unfortunately allowed to rot and the service to fall into desuetude, -and about A.D. 6 piracy was again rampant, so that it required once -more to be checked. - -During the first century B.C. two new types of warships appeared in -the bireme and the liburnian. The latter was really a lightly built -trireme, and originally was a swift lembos with a ram attached. The -Romans built liburnians also as biremes, which they employed for -scouting and fighting. The name was derived from the Liburnians of -Dalmatia, from whom the shape of the hull was borrowed; but later -on the expression came to denote simply a ship of war. Just before the -dawn of the Christian era the Romans began to build those bigger and -stouter ships, mounting heavy catapults, which were probably not very -different from the tall ships which the Crusaders had to contend with -some hundreds of years later. - -[Illustration: SKETCHES OF ANCIENT SHIPS. - -By RICHARD COOK, R.A., from Montfarreon’s “Antiquities,” showing Roman -Warship under sail; the lower sketches well illustrate species of stems -and sterns.] - -Before the close of the second century A.D. there were afloat not -only the Italian fleets, but also those of the Roman provinces. -There was the Egyptian fleet based on Alexandria, the Syrian fleet, -the Libyan fleet, the Euxine fleet, besides two fleets on the -Danube and the Rhine. Furthermore, there must not be omitted the -Romano-British fleet--the Classis Britannica--which was based on -Boulogne (Gesoriacum), with stations at Dover, Lympne, and Gloucester. -This dated from the invasion by Claudius and assisted Agricola in his -Scottish expedition in A.D. 83. It circumnavigated Britain, discovered -for the Romans the Orkneys, and saw the long line of the outer -Hebrides. The classiarii also on shore helped to build Hadrian’s wall. -But as to the exact nature of such ships we shall speak in greater -detail presently. - -Each of the fleets just mentioned was commanded by a præfectus and -had also a sub-præfectus. The Egyptian fleet-præfect was sometimes -also præfect of the Nile revenue boats. Each ship was commanded by -a trierarch, the classiarii being organised as a century under a -centurio-classicus, or fleet-centurion. Thus whenever the men had to -be put on shore for duty their organisation went with them. The term -of service for the classiarii was twenty-five or twenty-six years. The -Roman fleets illustrated at an early date in the world’s history what -every nation has since been compelled to realise: that a standing navy -cannot be dispensed with among the essential attributes of peace and -self-defence. Rome’s fleets kept off Carthage and Philip and enabled -Rome to be mistress of the sea route between Hannibal and Spain; and, -as is usually the case, the decadence of the Government was promptly -followed by the decadence of the fleet. - -[Illustration: TWO COINS DEPICTING “NAUMACHIÆ.” - -(From Scheffer’s “De Militia Navali.”)] - -The influence of the Roman navy on land was seen in a manner similar -to that in which the Roman army influenced gladiatorial combats. In -Rome there were various “naumachiæ,” which were great reservoirs -surrounded by seats like an amphitheatre and were specially constructed -for holding naval fights. There was one, for instance,[14] built by -Augustus on the trans-tiberine side of the river, and traces of this -naumachia were discovered not many years ago. A naumachia consisted of -an enormous tank or lake excavated in the ground, and measured 1800 -feet long by 1200 feet wide. Within this ample area naval battles -containing thirty beaked ships with three or four tiers of oars, -together with many other smaller ships were engaged, and no fewer -than three thousand fighting men, to say nothing of the rowers, were -engaged. It is interesting to add that naval fights were also held -in a gigantic reservoir on the site now occupied by the Colosseum. - -[Illustration: REPRESENTATION OF A ROMAN NAUMACHIA. - -(See text.)] - -No consideration of the relation of Rome to the sea can be complete -without taking into consideration those important and daring adventures -which Julius Cæsar attempted. Adventures they certainly were, for -here was a land general trying experiments which belonged rightly to -sailormen; and, as was the inevitable result, he made terrible mistakes -as he blundered through towards victory. His expedition against the -Veneti, “the stoutest and the most skilful seamen in Gaul,” taught -him much: taught him that he was matched to play a game whose tricks -he did not understand. But the praise belongs to him, a landsman, for -his ingenuity and resource in toiling with such signal success against -very heavy odds. He recognised quickly that the ships of the Veneti and -their allies were so heavy that no Roman galley with its cruel rams -could have any appreciable effect on them. They were too high out of -the water, too, to enable the legionaries to hurl their missiles with -any telling effect. It has been suggested that the design of these -powerful Biscayan craft had originally been borrowed from the great -Carthaginian merchantmen, “whose commerce in British waters they had -inherited, and their prosperity depended upon the carrying trade with -Britain, of which they possessed the monopoly.”[15] - -It was Cæsar’s opportunity to rise to the occasion, and he availed -himself of the chance. Sending instructions to his officers to have -a fleet built in the ports at the mouth of the Loire, he also raised -oarsmen from the province and collected as many local pilots and seamen -as possible. Thus, when the time came, the Roman fleet included ships -impressed from the maritime tribes between the Loire and Garonne. The -Roman engineers also came to the rescue, and, taking long poles, -they armed them at one end with sharp-edged hooks. There was just one -feature in which the galleys surpassed the stout ships of the enemy: -they were far more mobile. So, when the rival fleets approached, two -or more galleys ran alongside the Biscayan craft, thrust out the sharp -hooks, caught the halyards, rowed hard away, with the result that the -ropes snapped, the yard and sail came tumbling down on to the deck -below and enveloped the crew. Springing smartly from the galleys on -to this confused crowd, the enemy was soon slaughtered and the ship -captured. In principle, though not in detail, the tactic was similar to -that used in comparatively modern times when sailing men-of-war aimed -to blow away the enemy’s rigging, leaving him so much out of control -that complete annihilation was a matter only of time. - -But far more interesting than his expedition against the Veneti was -Cæsar’s invasion of England. Regarded merely as a naval exploit, it is -deserving of great attention; but to those who have had any experience -of winds, waves, and tides it is most instructive. Picture Cæsar, -therefore, in the summer of 55 B.C. at Gesoriacum, better known to -the reader under its modern name of Boulogne. Here was a port that -was important in even those early days. From this spot the merchants -of Gaul were wont to embark their cargoes and carry them across the -Channel to the shores of Kent, and later on it was destined to become -one of the naval stations for the Classis Britannica. Think of it in -the year we are speaking of as a busy place, lined with shipyards along -its banks and many craft in its haven. From the forest above could be -hewn and floated down the trees for the making of ships. Every mariner -to-day knows that when the heavy north-east gales make it impossible -for the cross-Channel packet-steamers to enter Calais, Boulogne can -be entered with safety by even sailing craft. - -[Illustration: CHART TO ILLUSTRATE CÆSAR’S CROSSING THE ENGLISH -CHANNEL.] - -But inasmuch as the prevailing wind along the English Channel is -from the south-west, the reader will observe on consulting a chart -that the position of Boulogne for the Gallic traders bound for Dover -or the Thames was singularly well placed, inasmuch as it gave the -mariner a fair wind outward-bound on most occasions. That fact was -doubtless appreciated by Cæsar when he elected to use this port as his -starting-place for Britain. He therefore gave orders that his fleet -was here to be got in readiness, and then sent forth Volusenus in a -galley to reconnoitre the British coast. The ship was a Roman galley -manned by oarsmen who had been trained by years of work for the task, -and with such a craft as this Volusenus could be independent of wind -and accomplish his task with the utmost dispatch. He was away cruising -about the English Channel for a period of three days, during which -time he had doubtless been able to locate a suitable place where his -master’s troops could be disembarked. He had had the opportunity of -taking soundings, and--perhaps most important of all to one accustomed -almost exclusively to the Mediterranean--of noticing both the range -of tide and the force and direction of the strong tidal streams. -Similarly, he was able to make a note of the cliffs of Dover and other -landmarks. With this knowledge he returned to place himself at Cæsar’s -disposal. - -On August 25, then, the transports came out from Boulogne. The time was -midnight, it wanted five days to full moon, and high water that evening -was at 6 p.m., so that the tides were neaps, or at their weakest. We -can be quite sure that, acting on the experience of Volusenus in the -Channel, it was deliberately intended to avoid spring tides. (It is -high water at Boulogne at new and full moon at 11.28.) The transports -thus came out of the haven with the last drain of the ebb. But in the -offing the tide that night did not make to the eastward till 4 a.m., so -there would be the Channel ebb to contend against for some time. - -So far all had been splendidly arranged, so that by the time the flood -or east-going tide had begun the fleet would all have got clear of -the harbour and the oarsmen have been getting into their stride for -the passage. Gris Nez and the French cliffs were left behind as the -hulls ploughed their way through the heaving sea and sped onwards. -But it was not to be a quick passage. The tide, of course, turned -against them before they were across, and those transports would not -easily be impelled through the waves; but at nine the next morning the -oar-propelled galleys which had got ahead during the night approached -the cliffs of Dover. Far behind followed the sail-driven transports, so -Cæsar let go anchor in Dover Bay, summoned a council of his generals -and tribunes, gave them instructions as to the landing-place, told them -how to handle both ships and men in disembarking, and then between -three and four o’clock that same afternoon the bulky transports -wallowed up to join the galleys. Between four and five p.m. the Channel -stream off Dover turned to the eastward, and as the wind was favourable -Cæsar gave the signal to weigh anchor. Presently the galleys, -transports, and the smaller craft were stretched out running past the -Foreland with wind and tide to help them. It did not take them long to -skirt past St. Margaret’s Bay, and at some point between Walmer and -Deal the transports were beached and the journey accomplished. Thus, -with careful foresight, Cæsar had got safely across the Channel with -his troops and fleet. - -These transports had carried his infantry; now the cavalry were -starting not from Boulogne, but from Ambleteuse, which is about midway -between Boulogne and Cape Gris Nez, and slightly nearer to Dover. -Not till August 30 were these descried approaching the British coast. -A gale from the north-east sprang up and prevented them from keeping -their course, so that some were carried back to Ambleteuse, while -others were swept to the westward down Channel. Some anchored for a -time, but the north-east wind gave them a lee shore, and they had -to put out to sea and make for the Continent. Some scudded past the -gale beyond the South Foreland and the high cliffs of Dover, risking -disaster every minute. Those which had hauled with the wind abeam over -to the Gallic coast managed to heave-to on the port tack, and drifting -past Cape Gris Nez, were in fairly sheltered water, so that they could -carry on and make port. This they did, and re-entered Ambleteuse -without the loss of either a ship or a man. Such a fact proves at once -that Cæsar had been able to get together from somewhere a number of men -who were not novices, but very fine seamen. We must concede that the -Gallic sailors knew their business, at any rate. - -Cæsar and his men had already landed near Deal. They had left their -galleys and the infantry transports, and gone inland before this had -happened. The galleys, as was the Mediterranean custom for centuries, -had been hauled up above the mark for ordinary high water; the -transports, because of their weight and size, had been left at anchor. -Now Cæsar, in spite of what he had gathered regarding tides, had -evidently omitted to bear in mind the fact that at full moon or new -moon--“springs”--the rise of the tide is greater than at neaps. Neither -he nor his officers knew the connection between tides and moon, and -there is a difference of several feet on that coast between high-water -springs and high-water neaps. It was full moon, and every seafaring -man knows that when a gale does occur at that time it is worse than -when the moon is not at full or change. High water was somewhere about -11 p.m. Wind and tide rose in great strength on to this lee shore, so -that the galleys which had been hauled up were dashed to pieces, while -transports broke from their anchors and drove on to the beach. - -We have no concern with any operations on land; it is enough for our -purpose to add that after spending some time in making repairs to those -ships which remained, Cæsar took his ships and men back to Boulogne. -The expedition had proved a failure. But in the following year Cæsar -again invaded Britain. This time he set forth neither from Boulogne -nor Ambleteuse, but from Wissant, which is about midway between the -chalk cliffs of Cape Blanc Nez and the sandstone cliffs of Cape Gris -Nez, and on the charts of to-day you will still find “Cæsar’s Camp” -marked. Wissant was much nearer to the British coast than either of -the other two ports, and the Roman evidently was not anxious to make -the cross-Channel passage any longer than need be this time. The fleet -at Boulogne had been weather-bound for three weeks with a series of -north-west winds. Anyone who has sailed along this portion of the -French coast knows what a nasty sea a wind from that direction sets up, -blowing as it does directly on shore. A north-west wind would have sent -a strong swell into Boulogne harbour; but apart from that, even had the -ships been at Wissant ready to start it would not have been of much -avail, for the course from there to the nearest British shore was about -north-west--a dead “nose-ender.” June, therefore, came and went. - -But about July 6, Cæsar set sail from Wissant about sunset. As the -wind was light from the south-west he had a favourable air. There was -no moon, but the nights are warm and not very dark at the beginning of -July. The tide probably set him down some distance in the vicinity of -Gris Nez, for it did not begin to flow to the north-east till 10 p.m. -Good progress was made this time, and by midnight the leading division -was getting well up to the South Foreland. The wind, as it so often -does on a July night, began to fail and finally dropped utterly, so -that the fleet had barely steerage way. The strong Channel flood took -hold of them, and about 3.15 a.m. Cæsar was abreast of Kingsdown (a -little to the south of Walmer). Eventually he arrived at Sandwich about -noon, having no doubt anchored for six hours, since the Channel tide -was just about to run to the south-west when he had got to Kingsdown. -This time he left his 600 ships not hauled up on the beach, but at -anchor, having disembarked his troops. Yet once more a storm rose which -caused some of the vessels to part their anchors, others to collide -with each other, and others still to be dashed ashore and damaged. -Forty were totally destroyed, but the remainder he managed to patch -well enough. They were hauled ashore, probably by means of windlasses -or capstans, greased rollers being inserted under the keels. They were -then surrounded by earthworks so as to be protected efficiently. About -the middle of September and about nine o’clock at night, Cæsar and his -fleet once more returned from Britain and arrived at Boulogne about -daybreak. - -He took back with him a great deal of invaluable information on the -subject of tides, but the cost of obtaining such knowledge had been by -no means small. It is possible that a critical reader may feel disposed -to remark that the Channel tides in Cæsar’s time were not identical in -direction and force with those of to-day. It is impossible to settle -the point with accuracy. Certain it is that for some centuries the -coast between Sandgate and Dover has altered a good deal, but, speaking -generally, this has not been of much consequence, though a good deal of -alteration has taken place between Hythe and Dungeness, which may or -may not have affected the tidal stream. Similarly, it is a matter for -dispute whether the Channel stream in the neighbourhood of the Dover -Straits began to ebb and flow at precisely the same time as to-day. -It is more than possible that the changes in the configuration of the -coast and of the Goodwin Sands may, during the centuries, have modified -the Channel tides hereabouts. Some say that in Cæsar’s time Thanet -was an island, that Dungeness did not exist, that Romney Marsh was -covered at high water by an estuary 50,000 acres in extent, and that -the estuary of the Thames was far wider than to-day. But even when all -these points have been taken into consideration, two facts remain true: -that the tide ebbed and flowed backwards and forwards along the English -Channel, and that because of the narrow neck through which this huge -volume of water has to rush by the Straits of Dover there must have -been not much difference in strength from that which is experienced -to-day. - -The geographical information which Cæsar brought back concerning Gaul -and Britain after his campaigns cannot be lightly regarded. It was the -knowledge which an explorer bestows on a wondering community. Such -items as prevailing winds, tides, currents, the influence of moon and -the nature of harbours along the coast, the depths of water, and so on, -might have been appreciated still more had the Romans been as eager for -scientific knowledge as they were for organisation and conquest. - -But if the Romans were not great navigators nor even a race of -seamen, at any rate they were very fine shipwrights. Expert opinion -of to-day, arguing from the evidence of the only Roman craft which -are still in existence, gives the highest praise to the art of the -Roman shipbuilder. The relics of the craft found in Lake Nemi were -discussed by me in another volume,[16] and need be referred to now -only slightly. But the other craft which was recently unearthed whilst -excavations were being made in 1910 at Westminster, on the site for the -new London County Council Hall, is far more instructive, because being -above ground it is get-at-able and capable of intimate study. It now -lies among the collection of the London Museum in Kensington Gardens. -This craft was probably one of the fleet of Carausius, who for a time -was admiral under Maximilian and Diocletian, but subsequently rebelled -against the Imperial authority and proclaimed himself emperor of -Britain in A.D. 287. - -[Illustration: Ship of the Roman Period discovered at Westminster. - -SKETCH SHOWING THE INTERIOR OF HULL.] - -This boat was found lying on a shell sand which indicated the original -bed of the Thames. The date is approximately fixed by the three coins -which were found with the boat: one of Tetricus the Elder in Gaul (A.D. -268–273), the second of Carausius in Britain (A.D. 286–293), and the -third of Alectus in Britain (A.D. 293–296). It is possible that there -was some ceremony in placing coins in a Roman boat, just as to-day coin -of the realm is placed at the laying of a foundation-stone. - -She was probably a single-decked war-galley, built in Gaul, but had -been dismantled before being abandoned to sink in the waters of the -Thames. One expert naval architect, who made a careful inspection of -this relic when first discovered, has gone so far as to state that not -only is the craftsmanship excellent, that probably nothing built in our -own time would look so well after seventeen hundred years’ immersion, -but that finer fitting could not be expected to-day. It shows, further, -not merely good workmanship, but good design. - -It is more than likely that this ship was built at Boulogne on one of -the Roman shipyards there, and formed originally a unit in the Classis -Britannica. There is a votive tablet preserved in the Boulogne Museum, -and found in that neighbourhood, depicting two triremes with the stern -steering oar, the beak at the bows, and the banks of oars, which shows -how similar these Romano-British ships were to the Mediterranean model. -The votive offering in question had been made by the crew of a trireme -named the _Radians_. Possibly the Westminster ship was the flagship of -Carausius. - -Her timbers were found to have been cut with the grain, and every -other one ran to the gunwale. A rubbing strake ran along outside the -hull which took the thwart ends, the recesses for the same being still -visible. It would appear as if the frames above turned outwards and -formed a support for that gangway along which the soldiers were wont to -fight. Some think there is evidence to show that the ship had a false -keel, and that she carried a mast. As to the dimensions of the vessel, -one authority, judging by the run of the stringer, suggests that when -she was whole she measured about 90 feet long by 18 feet beam. The -material was oak; the treenails, which were perfectly made and fitted, -measured 1¼ inches in diameter.[17] - -[Illustration: DETAILS OF ROMAN SHIP FOUND AT WESTMINSTER.] - -The two vessels buried at the bottom of Lake Nemi--from the fragments -which have been brought to the surface--belong to the time of Caligula -(A.D. 37), and equally demonstrate the first-class workmanship of the -Romans. Of these two pleasure craft one measured 208 feet long by 65 -feet beam, whilst the other was 227 feet by 80 feet. The planking -was of white fir, and the frames were probably of oak. All the metal -fastenings below the water-line were of bronze, but above water they -were iron. The nail heads were cemented over and the planking canvased, -and finally a lead sheathing was laid on with copper nails. It has -been ascertained that the builders had been careful to cut out any -faulty timber, and to fill up the space with sound material. The metal -fastenings connecting the timbers and planking were put through, the -points being laid over and turned back into the wood. The planking in -the first of the Nemi wrecks was of two thicknesses of 1½-inch stuff. -In the larger of the two, three thicknesses of planking were found -to exist, the beams for the decks being found to be attached to the -gunwale as in the method seen on the Westminster ship. - -Even if we allow a great deal for the knowledge in shipbuilding which -the Romans acquired from the Veneti and from Gallic shipbuilders, yet -everything points to the fact that Italy knew how to build and how -to fight ships to such perfection that we cannot but feel for them -the keenest admiration. If they were not great explorers such as the -Phœnicians, they accomplished a great deal in other spheres of the -maritime art, and sometimes in the teeth of great obstacles. - -[Illustration: DETAILS OF ROMAN SHIP FOUND AT WESTMINSTER.] - -Here and there Virgil gives us delightful little sea-cameos which -show how keenly the ancients exulted in their ships, and raced them -against each other past rock and cliff, through wind and spume. What, -for example, could be more interesting than the account of the race -of the four galleys in the fifth book of the Æneid? He gives you the -names of the swift _Pristis_, the huge _Chimæra_, which with her triple -arrangement of oars was so big that she seemed like a floating town, -the _Centaur_, and the dark blue _Scylla_. He draws for you the picture -of the captains standing at the sterns, the crew taking their seats at -the oars and waiting in eager breathlessness for the trumpet to start -them on their race. Almost you can see the strong arms being drawn up -to the breast and thrust smartly away again. The blue _Scylla_ wins, -but it is a splendid struggle. The little touches of the ship which -was “swifter than wind or flying arrow speeds towards land,” and of -the disabled galley which moves slowly (like to a snake which has been -run over), yet hoists her canvas and enters the harbour’s mouth “with -full sails,” are pencilled in by a man who must have often watched -a galley doing her work. He speaks of the lofty sterns which these -galleys possessed, of Palinurus the pilot bidding his men to reef the -sails at the gathering of a “dark storm of rain, bringing with it -gloom and foul weather,” and gives orders to “labour at their strong -oars, and sidewards turn the sails to meet the wind.” Evidently with -the squall came a shift of wind, so that instead of being able to run -with the breeze free, under sail power alone, they were now compelled -to come on a wind, shorten canvas, and get out oars to prevent such -shallow-draught vessels from drifting to leeward. - -And in a later passage Æneas, after the sea has calmed down, “bids -all the masts quickly to be raised, and on the sailyards the sails to -be stretched. All at once veered the sheet, and loosened the bellying -canvas to right, to left; at once they all turn up and down the tall -ends of the sailyards; favouring breezes bear the fleet along. Foremost -before them all, Palinurus led the close line; with an eye to him the -rest were bid to direct their course. And now damp night had just -reached the centre of its course in the heavens; the sailors, stretched -on their hard seats beneath the oars, had relaxed their limbs in quiet -repose.” - -There is some indication in the Georgics of the manner in which the -ancient seamen made use of stars and weatherology. “As carefully must -the star of Arcturus, and the days of the Kids, and the bright Dragon -be observed by us on land, as by those who, homewards bound across the -stormy seas, venture to the Euxine and the straits of oyster-breeding -Abydos.” ... “Hence we can learn coming changes of weather in the -dubious sky, hence the days of harvest and the season of sowing, and -when ’tis meet with oars to cut the faithless sea, when to launch our -rigged fleets, and when at the proper time to fell the pine tree in -the woods: nor will you be disappointed, if you watch the setting and -rising of the heavenly signs, and observe the year fairly divided by -four distinct seasons.” ... “Straightway, when winds arise, either the -straits of the sea begin to swell with agitation, and a dry crash is -heard on the high hills, or far in the distance the shores are filled -with confused echoes, and the murmur of the woods thickens on the ear. -The wave can but ill forbear to do a mischief to the crooked keels, -even when gulls fly swiftly back from the high sea, sending their -screams before them.... Oft too, when wind impends, you will see stars -shoot headlong from the sky.... But when it lightens from the quarter -of grim Boreas, and when the home of Eurus and Zephyrus thunders, then -are the dykes filled and all the country is flooded, and every mariner -out at sea furls his dripping sails.... The sun also, both when rising -and when he hides himself beneath the waves, will give you signs; -infallible signs attend the sun ... a blue colour announces rain, or -fiery winds; but if the spots begin to be mixed with glowing red, then -you will see all nature rage with wind and stormy rain together. On -such a night let no one advise me to venture on the deep, or pluck my -cable from its mooring on the shore.” - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -THE VIKING MARINERS - - -War has always been a great incentive to shipbuilding. But this -statement requires modification by excluding both civil war and the -merchant ship. Of the former, no better instance could be found than -the disastrous Wars of the Roses. Of the latter, the manner in which -the Romans and others developed the war-galley at the neglect of the -merchant ship is a clear example. - -The Vikings, too, were great warriors; hence the wonderful development -of their ships was for hostile purposes. But, unlike the Romans, they -were equally distinguished as maritime explorers. And it is with their -methods on the sea that we are now about to deal. They were so vigorous -in their activities, so dauntless and daring, such genuinely strenuous -shipmen that they were bound to do great things, or fail where none -could have succeeded. “They had neither compass nor astronomical -instruments,” as Dr. Nansen reminds us, “nor any of the appliances of -our time for finding their position at sea; they could only sail by the -sun, moon, and stars, and it seems incomprehensible how for days and -weeks, when these were invisible, they were able to find their course -through fog and bad weather. But they found it, and the open craft of -the Norwegian Vikings, with their square sails, fared north and west -over the whole ocean, from Novaya Zemlya and Spitzbergen to Greenland, -Baffin’s Bay, Newfoundland, and North America, and over these lands and -seas the Norsemen extended their dominion. It was not till five hundred -years later that the ships of other nations were to make their way to -the same regions.”[18] - -That being so, how did these men succeed in making such long passages? -The lodestone or compass did not reach Norway until the thirteenth -century. I think that before we attempt a more definite answer we -should make a great allowance for that sea-sense which is partly inborn -and partly obtained by the experience of long years. I remember once -asking a man who had been skipper of a coaster, whose family had lived -their lives on the sea or by it, whose brothers had gone down with -their ships to the port whence there is no returning--how the captains -of such craft managed. Had they any real knowledge of navigation? -“No, sir,” my friend answered, “they’re all mostly self-reliant.” In -other words, they have a rough knowledge of the problems, and the rest -is instinct. Only the other day I was talking to yet another plain, -seafaring man. I asked him how he and his mates managed to find their -way in by night through a certain very tricky and unlighted channel -that was full of dangers and scoured by a strong tide. It was the same -answer. “They managed as best they could,” relied on their instinct, -sometimes made mistakes and got picked up, but on the whole succeeded -in getting through. - -I suppose it was much the same with the Vikings. But with this -exception: that, being unfettered by book-learning, they possessed -the instinctive faculty more thoroughly. They knew the Scandinavian -coast-line thoroughly well; and long coasting voyages had taught them -the configuration of other nations’ shores. The rising and setting of -the sun would assist them in clear weather, and the Pole-star at night. -They were wont to carry in their ships a number of ravens, and when -they were expecting soon to make a landfall and it was useless to climb -the mast, they released these birds, which, flying high, spotted the -distant shore and flew towards it. The Viking mariner could thus set -his course to follow their direction of flight. - -Of course, with such rough-and-ready methods they made egregious -mistakes and sometimes found themselves sailing in exactly the opposite -direction to that desired, like some amateur yachtsmen who have sailed -through the night by the wind and not known that the wind had veered -several points. Dr. Nansen gives as an instance of a Viking’s mistake -that of Thorstein Ericson, who in starting from Greenland arrived off -Iceland instead of America. And, be it added, there are plenty of -well-found ships to-day, both sail and steam, which, in spite of all -their sextants, their patent logs, and deep-sea sounding leads, have -made landfalls miles off their course. - -Their sense of time, too, was another instinct which few of us possess -to-day. “Several accounts show,” says the same Scandinavian authority, -“that on land the Scandinavians knew how to observe the sun accurately, -in what quarter and at what time it set, how long the day or the night -lasted at the summer or winter solstice, etc. From this they formed an -idea of their northern latitude.” It is just possible that they may -even have understood how to take primitive measurements of the sun’s -altitude at noon with a species of quadrant. But it is not likely -that during those long, early voyages they could have been able to -take observations of this kind from their ships. Nor can they have -understood how to reckon the latitude from such measurements except at -the equinoxes and solstices. - -From the narrative of a voyage north of Baffin’s Bay, about the year -1267, it appears that they endeavoured at sea to get an idea of the -sun’s altitude by observing where the shadow of the gunwale, on the -side nearest the sun, fell on a man lying athwartships when the sun was -in the south. This shows, at any rate, that the Norsemen did at least -observe the sun’s altitude. Even in thick weather they could get along -satisfactorily provided that the wind did not shift and send them off -their course. But if the breeze veered or backed a few points they -would be heading unconsciously in the wrong direction. - -The observations of birds were of no little assistance. If the haze hid -the land off whose coasts they imagined themselves to be, they could -observe the kind of bird which was flying around them. A flight of -wild-fowl, a particular breed of sea-bird, the difference in the fauna, -and so on, when off such coasts as Scotland, Ireland, Iceland, and -Norway, could not fail to assist them greatly. It is true, also, that -in their sailing directions they took notice of the whale. Thus, when -sailing from Norway to Greenland one should keep at such a distance -to the southward of Iceland as to have birds and whales from thence. -Similarly, the drift-ice, icebergs, driftwood, floating seaweed, the -colour of the sea were all separate units in the whole method which -enabled them to perform what they did. The Gulf Stream water, being of -a purer blue than the greenish-brown water of the coastal current, must -also have assisted them in their long voyages. Like the ancient seamen -of the Mediterranean, they relied largely on the sounding lead, and -there is a record that Ingolf and Hjorleif found Iceland “by probing -the waves with the lead.” - -[Illustration: PRIMITIVE NAVIGATION OF THE VIKINGS. - -Finding the ship’s latitude by the shadow of the gunwale.] - -As to the primitive method, referred to above, for finding the ship’s -latitude by observing the shadow of the gunwale, it has been suggested -that they might have measured the length of the shadow of the gunwale -by marks on the thwart, and determined when the boat lay on an even -keel by means of a bowl of water. They could thus obtain a fairly -trustworthy measurement of the sun’s altitude. It has been thought -possible that the Norwegians might have become acquainted with the -hour-glass either from their voyages to Southern Europe, or else by -plundering the monasteries. This would enable them to measure the -length of day approximately, and so, taken in conjunction with the sun, -be able to tell fairly correctly the direction of the cardinal points -of the compass. - -There are some who scoff at the idea that the Vikings discovered North -America. But there are first-rate authorities, among whom may be -reckoned Dr. Nansen himself, who are quite convinced that these men did -sail across the sea and land there. Certain incredulous people would -have us believe that an open craft such as the Viking type would never -last out a voyage like that across the Atlantic. But this supposition -is immediately refuted by the Norse craft which was built on the lines -and to the exact dimensions of the Gogstad Viking ship discovered in -1880. Rigged with a squaresail, with a jib added and without any other -ship as convoy, this replica was sailed from Bergen to Newport, Rhode -Island, in the year 1893. The voyage began on May 1, and the United -States were reached on June 13. She was commanded by Captain Magnus -Andersen, who had already, in 1886, crossed the Atlantic in an open -boat. Although bad weather was encountered, yet Captain Andersen and -his crew of eleven men reached Newport in safety. His ship proved that -the Viking type made a very fine seaboat, and furthermore that she was -fast even in the deep furrows of the ocean; for she did an average of -nine knots easily, but when the seas fitted her exactly she could reel -off her eleven knots. - -For these old Vikings, intrepid mariners and pioneers of the sea, had -by their skill and experience been able to develop an improved type -of ship which combined the advantages of speed and seaworthiness. -In such craft they voyaged to places as far apart as Palestine and -Greenland. By their travels they completely changed the existing -ideas of geography. When they ceased to make merely coasting voyages -and took to the blue water, they were doing more than perhaps they -realised. They crossed the North Sea to the Shetlands and Orkneys, to -Britain and Ireland, to the Faroe Isles, to Iceland, to Greenland, and -finally to America. Just exactly when first the Northmen crossed the -North Sea cannot be determined; but some authorities believe that it -was undertaken before the Viking age. As early as the third century -of the Christian era, the Eruli sailed from Scandinavia over the seas -of Western Europe and ravaged Gaul and Spain, and even penetrated -during the fifth century to the Mediterranean as far as Italy. During -the sixth century the Vikings voyaged from Denmark to the land of the -Franks, but the first Viking expedition began in A.D. 793. In the year -999, Leif, the son of Eric the Red, sailed from Greenland via the -Hebrides to Norway. This is the first recorded time that such a lengthy -sea voyage was attempted, for prior to this the journey had been made -via Iceland. But it is also clear, from the sailing directions which -have come down to us for navigating the northern waters, that voyages -were made direct from Norway to Greenland. It was this same Leif who, -in the year A.D. 1000, discovered America. - -The question must necessarily occur (as in the case of the -circumnavigation of Africa by the Phœnicians) as to the means of -provisioning these Viking ships for such lengthy cruises. If Captain -Andersen and his men in 1893 were able to last out, there is no reason -why the ancient Norsemen should not, even if we make some allowance for -the modern advantages of preserved foods. We know very little as to -the methods adopted to ensure adequate food-supplies, but we do know -that bronze cooking vessels have been found which belonged to these -craft. They used salt meat and salt fish, and these they could obtain -by hunting and fishing in the neighbourhood of Iceland, Scotland, -Greenland, and so on. Nansen asserts that they certainly took cattle -with them on some voyages; and they could also catch seals to keep the -pot from running empty. In sheltered waters, such as the Norwegian -fjords, when at anchor, the crew erected a triangular awning over the -ship and turned-in in leather sleeping bags. - -But it is by making a careful study of the Sagas that we are able to -get a true idea of the life and methods of these magnificent seamen, -and from this source I propose to extract the following interesting -data. In these heroic narratives there is much to interest the lover of -the sea and ships. There is a continual clashing of shield and sword, a -slatting of canvas and a splashing of oars, as the long-ships leap over -the cold, silvery seas. The air is full of the deep-throated shouts of -the sea-kings; the horizon is bright with the coloured sails and the -gilded prows. Every man is a picked fighter and seaman; every craft a -thing of beauty and of strength. There are the dark, cruel rocks, and -the crimson blood of the vanquished, the sound of the waterfalls coming -down from the cliffs, the fluttering of pennants, the hammering of the -shipwrights’ men ashore, the cries of the women-folk as they behold the -distant battles. There is nothing subtle in the picture; the colours -are laid thickly, and the tones are crude as a modern poster. But there -is bravery and seamanship, and above all the sweet sea smell which -pervades these accounts and stirs the enthusiasm of the reader to its -full extent. You feel as you read them that ships and men both seem to -have been of the right stuff, that in those days there was a grandeur -about the sea which not easily can be forgotten. - -The Scandinavians to this day remain, perhaps, the hardiest race of -sailors to be found anywhere. They have penetrated to the neighbourhood -of both poles, and they put to sea in such leaky, ill-found merchant -ships year after year, that it makes you nervous to think of them -battling against a breeze of wind in craft which have been condemned -by most other nationalities. Even in the Viking days they were great -seamen, without fear, unfaltering. But, like the South Europeans, they -used to leave the sea alone during the winter, hauling their ships by -rollers up the beach in the autumn, and then make them snug in their -shed till the spring tempted them again to fit out. But Harald Hairfair -is recorded as having set the example of remaining all winter afloat in -his warships, a proceeding which was quite contrary to the prevailing -custom. - -But there were other times when it was fortunate that this type of -ship could be moved about so easily. For example, when King Harald had -learnt that King Svein “was come before the mouth of the firth with a -great host of ships,” the former rowed his vessels in the evening to a -narrow slip, and when it became dark he had the vessels unloaded and -dragged them over the low land-neck before daybreak, and had “arrayed” -the ships again, so that he was able to sail away to the nor’ard -past Jutland, and thus escape out of the Danes’ hands. And there are -occasions on record when the Vikings dragged their ships for two miles -over ice. They loved their ships, these men of the biting north, and -even in the time of personal peril dreaded that their craft should -fall into the hands of the enemy. When Sigurd was being pursued by -King Ingi he was careful to scuttle his ship before abandoning her. He -“hewed off stem and stern of his ship, and sheared rifts therein and -sank it in the innermost Ægis-firth.” So, too, they would treat an -enemy’s ship. Thus Erling Askew “fared away from the land,” “arrayed -them for a Jerusalem-faring and fared west over sea to Orkney,” -and so to the Mediterranean, where they lighted upon a dromon and -attacked her by cutting rifts in her side below, as well as above, the -water-mark--“hewed windows” in her, as the old Saga realistically has -it. - -They were masters of cunning, too. Harek of Thiotta was coming along -one evening with his fleet “with the wind blowing a breeze. Then he let -strike sail and mast, and take down the vane, and wrap all the ship -above the water in grey hangings, and let men row on a few benches fore -and aft, but let most of the men sit low in the ship.” This somewhat -puzzled King Knut’s men, who wondered what ship it could be, for they -saw only few men and little rowing. Moreover, she seemed to be grey and -untarred, “like a ship bleached by the sun, and withal they saw that -the ship was much low in the water. But when Harek came forth into the -sound past the host, he let raise the mast and hoist sail, and let set -up gilded vanes, and the sail was white as snowdrift, and done with red -and blue bands.” - -And here is another instance where the ships kept afloat during the -winter. The passage is interesting as showing that they shortened sail -by taking in a reef: “On Thomas-mass [December 21], before Yule, the -King put out of the haven, there being a right good fair wind somewhat -sharp. So then they sailed north coasting Jadar; the weather was wet, -and some fog driving about.” But Erling Skialgson sailed after him, and -because his long-ships went faster than the others, “he let reef the -sail and waited for his host.” But Olaf’s ships “were very water-logged -and soaked.” “He let call from ship to ship that men should lower the -sails and somewhat slowly, and take one reef out of them.” They slacked -away the halyards, then tucked in a reef, and then doubtless sweated up -the yard again. - -In reading these Sagas, it is necessary to understand the different -species of craft which the Norsemen employed. Firstly, there were the -warships or dragons. Secondly, there were the long serpent or snake -class, which also were men-of-war. Thirdly, there were ships of burden, -ocean-going merchantmen, fishing boats, and small fry. The long-ship, -which was a man-of-war, was not suitable for freight-carrying on -those trading voyages to Ireland and elsewhere. But the kaupskip, -broad of beam and with ample freeboard, was built for service on the -island-sheltered waters of Norway and the Baltic. So also the knörr, -which was used for both ocean trading and overseas warfare, was wont -to sail as far away as to the Orkneys. Such a type was so big that -she could carry 150 men. It should be borne in mind that this was -essentially a sailing ship, while the long-ship was more for rowing. -The smallest of the long-ships were of twenty-five benches, i.e. for -a crew of fifty oarsmen; in other words, about the same as a Roman -penteconter. Some, however, were fitted with only twenty benches for -forty oars. The skuta type of warship rowed from fifteen to twenty oars -aside, but the snekkja, or long serpent class, carried from twenty -to thirty aside, and the skeid from thirty to thirty-five aside. -The word “skeid” signifies originally that it was a craft built of -split wood, or strake-built. This expression was used doubtless in -contradistinction to the craft which were merely hollowed out from the -tree. Sigurd, after scuttling his ships, caused Finns to build him two -cutters sinew-bound, which had no nails therein but had withies for -knees. These craft could each row a dozen men a side. They were so -fast that no ship could overtake them. The dragon type was so called -from the dragon’s head at the stem-head, and the animal’s tail which -ended the ship as the lotus-bud was wont on the ancient Egyptian craft. -The earliest mention of the dragon type dates from A.D. 868. - -There was a craft named the _Crane_, which was a long-ship of the -snekkja type. She was high in the stem, not beamy, carried thirty -benches for her rowers, and had been constructed for the use of King -Olaf Tryggvison during the autumn of 998. But the ship which became -a prototype and was the envy of all that beheld her, was a vessel -presently to be named the _Long Worm_. Let me tell the story thus: One -winter King Olaf gave the order for her to be constructed, and there, -under the Ladir cliffs in the cold, bracing air, the shipmen set to -work. “Much greater it was than other ships,” records the Saga, “that -were then in the land, and yet are the slips whereon it was built left -there for a token[19]; seventy-and-four ells of grass-lying keel was -it.[20] Thorberg Shavehewer was the master-smith of that ship, but -there were many others at work: some to join, some to chip, some to -smite rivets, some to fit timbers.... Long was that ship, and broad of -beam, high of bulwark, and great in the scantling. But now when they -were gotten to the freeboard Thorberg had some needful errand that took -him home to his house, and he tarried there very long, and when he came -back the bulwark was all done. Now the king went in the eventide, and -Thorberg with him to look on the ship, and see how the ship showed, and -every man said that never yet had they seen a long-ship so great or so -goodly: and so the king went back to the town.” - -But early next morning, when the king and Thorberg returned to the -ship, and the smiths were already there, the latter stood doing -nothing. They exclaimed that the ship was spoilt, for some man had -evidently gone round from stem to stern cutting notches with an axe -along the gunwale. The king was exceedingly angry, and promised -punishment if the offender should be found out. Thereupon, to the -surprise of all, Thorberg instantly owned up as being himself the -culprit, and he set about planing all the notches out of the gunwale. -He went round the side which had been notched with his pattern, but -when he had done so, it was generally agreed that the notching, far -from being a disfigurement, was in fact an ornament. The king decided -that Thorberg’s pattern was an improvement, so his anger ceased, and he -bade him to do the same ornamentation along the other side. - -This dragon-ship, built after the manner of the _Worm_ which the king -had got from Halogaland, was a far more excellent and larger ship than -the model; so he named one the _Long Worm_ and the other the _Short -Worm_. On this great vessel were thirty-four benches for the oarsmen. -She was most beautifully finished off with all the affectionate care -and pride which only a Viking could bestow on a ship. Done all over -with gold, with bulwarks as high as on a ship built for sailing the -“main sea,” this _Long Worm_ was the marvel of her age. “The best -wrought and the most costly was that ship of any that have been in -Norway.” Wolf the Red was the man who had the honoured post of bearing -King Olaf’s banner in the prow of that ship. Around this valiant -standard-bearer were four men to fight for that flag. And the crew -were as notable as their ship. As she excelled all other craft, so -they excelled all other men. They were picked men, every one of them, -reputed to be famous for “godliness and might and stout heart.” With -their gleaming shields and fine stature they took up their allotted -positions. Looking down the ship from bow to stern, there were the -standard-bearer and his company in the prow. Then abaft of them were -a dozen forecastle men ready to resist any enemy who thought he might -board the Norse ship at that critical part. Next came the thirty -forehold men, astern of whom were another company in the mainhold. -“Eight men there to a half-berth in the _Worm_, all chosen man by man.” -At the poop was the commander, and immediately below him was the ship’s -arsenal, where the arms were kept ready for immediate service. - -But the coming of the _Long Worm_ was not to be taken lightly. There -was some other whom she had moved to jealousy. “King Harald sat that -winter in Nidoyce,” says the Saga. “He let build a ship that winter out -at Eres that was a buss-ship. This craft was fashioned after the waxing -of the _Long Worm_, and done most heedfully in all wise. There was a -drake-head forward, and a crooked tail aft, and the bows of her were -all adorned with gold. It was of thirty-five benches, and big thereto, -and the bravest of keels it was. All the outfit of the ship the king -let be made at the heedfullest, both sails and running-tackle, anchors, -and cables.” - -[Illustration: ANCHOR OF OSEBERG VIKING SHIP. - -PRIMITIVE BLOCKS AND TACKLE EMPLOYED ON VIKING SHIPS. - -ROWLOCK ON A VIKING SHIP. - -A leather thong was passed through the hole to keep the oar from -unshipping. - -FASTENINGS OF A VIKING SHIP.] - -And there were others whose ships were a source of wonder and of -admiration. King Knut “himself had that dragon, which was so mickle -that it told up sixty benches, and on it were heads gold-bedight. Earl -Hakon had another dragon that had a tale of forty benches. Thereon -also were gilt heads; but the sails of both were banded of blues and -red and green. These ships were all stained above the water-line.” -Very keen were these North-men in using the sea as well for pleasure -as for service. “Now on a fair day of spring tide was Harek at home, -and few men with him at the stead, and the time hung heavy on his -hands. So Sigurd spake to him, saying that if he will, they will go -a-rowing somewhither for their disport. That liked Harek well: so they -go down to the strand, and launch a six-oarer, and Sigurd took from -the boathouse sail and gear that went with the craft; for such-wise -oft they fared to take the sail with them when they rowed for their -disport. Then Harek went aboard the boat and shipped the rudder.... Now -before they went aboard the craft they cast into her a butter-keg and -bread basket, and bare between them a beer-cask down to the boat. Then -they rowed away from land; but when they were come a little way from -the isle, then the brethren hoisted sail and Harek steered, and they -speedily made way from the isle.” - -Both ships and gear were frequently stored in sheds. There is an -account of a man who “went down to the water and took the ship of -burden which he owned, and King Olaf had given him, and ran out -the craft; but all the gear appertaining to it was there in the -ship-house.” And again, one of the North-men remarks: “The ship of -burden which I have had this while, and here stands in her shed, -methinks it is now become so ancient that she rots under her tar.” They -hauled these great ships ashore to the sheds by means of rollers: - - “... heard how the boardlong - Dane-ships o’er the well-worn rollers - In the south were run out seaward ...” - -so sings one of the Sagas. “After Easter,” runs another of these -narratives, “the king let run out his ships, and bear thereto rigging -and oars. He let deck the ships, and tilt them and bedight them: he let -ships float thus arrayed by the gangways.” For it was the fitting-out -season, you will realise. The word _tilt_ signifies tent. “He let deck” -does not mean quite what it would convey to modern minds; all that it -indicates is that he replaced the floor-boards, which had been removed -at the end of the previous season so that the air could get down below -to the ship. Nor does gangway convey the exact definition. It means -nothing more than the pier or jetty alongside which the ships were -moored after fitting out. - -The naval tactics of these men consisted in laying their craft -alongside the enemy, boarding him, and then slashing away at the latter -and hewing off the figurehead or the tail of his ship as trophies. As -they approached, they threw grappling anchors into the other vessel, -just as they were wont to fight in the Mediterranean. Thus there is a -reference to the incident when “the forecastle men of the _Long Worm_ -and the _Short Worm_ and the _Crane_ cast anchors and grapplings on -to the ships of King Svein.” And this method survived in Northern -Europe right through the Middle Ages. When they boarded a ship they -did their best to “clear” the ship by cutting down the defenders, or -driving them overboard or else into other ships. That was their main -objective--to get the ship to themselves. “Now in those days,” says one -of the Sagas, “the wont was when men fought a-shipboard, to bind the -ships together and fight from the forecastle.” “Now the most defence on -the _Worm_, and the most murderous to men was of those of the forehold -and the forecastle, for in either place was the most chosen folk and -the bulwark highest.” And again--“Erling Askew set upon the ship of -King Hakon, and shoved his prow in betwixt it and Sigurd’s ship, and -then befell the battle. But the ship of Gregory was swept aground, and -heeled over much, so at first they gat them not into the onset.” - -[Illustration: VIKINGS BOARDING AN ENEMY.] - -The flagship of King Olaf at the battle of Nesiar, in the year -1016, had on the stem a carved head of the king which he himself had -fashioned. “That head was long sithence in Norway used on ships which -chieftains steered.” At this battle the king had a crew of a hundred in -his ship, and most of them carried white shields “with the holy cross -laid thereon in gold, while some were drawn with red stone or blue; -a cross withal he had let draw in white on the brow of all helms. He -had a white banner, and that was a worm. Thereafter he let blow the -war-blast, and they set off out of the harbour, rowing in search of the -earl.” ... “The king’s men caught the beaks of the [enemy’s] ships with -grapnels, and thus held them fast. Then the earl cried out that the -forecastlemen should hew off the beaks, and even so they did.” - -Ten years later this same Olaf was the owner of a vessel named the -_Bison_, which was “the greatest of all ships,” “which he had let make -the winter before.” On her prow “was a bison-head dight in gold.” Aft -there was a tail, and the head, the tail, and both beaks were all laid -with gold. She was a big craft, for she rowed more than sixty men. -Arrows and swords were the weapons with which the Norsemen fought, and -the chests or lockers were kept well filled for the fray. “King Olaf -Tryggvison stood on the poop of the _Worm_, and shot full oft that -day, whiles with the bow and whiles with javelins, and ever twain at -once.... Then went the king down into the forehold, and unlocked the -chest of the high-seat; and took thence many sharp swords and gave -them to his men.” For the poop consisted of a section of the ship with -a floor above the ordinary deck, and commanded a view over the whole -of the ship. Valiant were the fights often enough, but there were -occasions when the contest was so unequal that there was no alternative -but to flee. They would then throw overboard rafts with clothes and -precious articles heaped on the top in hopes that, by attracting the -cupidity of their pursuers, they themselves would succeed in getting -away scot-free. - -The capture of the ship _Worm_--this was the _Little Worm_, and not her -bigger sister--happened on this wise: King Olaf stood to the northward -sailing with the land abroad. Wherever he went ashore he christened -the unbaptised. The time came when he turned his ships to the -southward, but it came to pass that then he was harassed by “a driving -storm with brine spray down the firth.” Finally, he spoke to Bishop -Sigurd, and asked him if he knew of any remedy. The bishop answered -that he would do what he could, provided God would strengthen his hands -to overcome the might of these weather fiends. The picture which the -Saga suggests is one that I believe has never yet been attempted by -any artist, but there is a fine subject for anyone who could depict -the northern blue mists, the high rocks, the sea, the great assembly -of Viking ships and men, the bright colours contrasted with the sombre -hues of atmosphere, the bishop in his vestments surrounded by these -stalwart storm warriors. “So took Bishop Sigurd all his mass-array -and went forth on to the prow of the king’s ship, and let kindle the -candles, and bore incense. Then he set up the rood in the prow of the -ship, and read out the gospel and many prayers, and sprinkled holy -water over all the ship. Then he bade unship the tilt and row in up -the firth.” Thereupon all the other ships followed the lead, and lo, -as soon as the men in the _Crane_ began to row, the crew felt no wind -whatever. The driving storm was gone. In that sudden calm the fleet -rowed quietly the one ship astern of the other, and so they arrived at -God Isles. There they came upon Raud the Unchristened, and he was put -to death with little enough mercy. His dragon-ship was captured, and -Olaf called her the _Worm_--the _Little Worm_--“because when the sail -was aloft then should that be as the wings of the dragon. The fairest -of all Norway was that ship.” - -The Viking ships had no use for head winds. “But when they sought -east into the Wick,” runs the narrative elsewhere, “they got foul -winds and big, and lay-to in havens wide about, both in the out-isles -and in up the firths.” Dr. Eirikr Magnusson[21] believes that the -Halogalanders were in the art of navigation far ahead of the more -southerly Norwegians about the year A.D. 1000; and interprets the -following to indicate this much. For myself, I have a vague suspicion -that it may signify not so much navigation as seamanship, and that it -means that Raud understood the art of beating to windward. No doubt -these squaresail craft would not haul any nearer to the wind than seven -points, but these ships were in no great hurry to make quick passages. -They could go about on the other tack and so have--to quote the Saga’s -expression--the wind “at will.” This is the statement under discussion: -“Raud rowed out to sea with his dragon, and so let hoist sail; for ever -had he wind at will whithersoever he would sail, which thing came from -his wizardry.” It seems to me that this is exactly explained by beating -to windward when the breeze headed them. - -The squaresail was hoisted by the halyard, and the yard was kept to the -mast by means of parrals (_rakki_). The sail when hoisted was said to -be “topped,” while its straining at the halyard was poetically alluded -to as “wrangling with the tackle.” “Topped sails with tackle wrangled,” -is a sentence found among the Heimskringla. There is more than one -illuminating reference to the sails of the Norsemen which can claim our -attention. “But as they hauled up the sail the halliard broke asunder, -and down came the sail athwart the ship, and a long while Thorir and -his must needs tarry there, or ever they got up their sail a second -time.” It is true that the Vikings relied considerably on their oars, -but for long passages it is unquestionable that their large squaresail -was their main means of propulsion. Thus, for example, a fleet might -sail to the fjord under sail-power to meet their enemies, but the sail -would be lowered before the fight. The oar was kept in position against -the thole-pin, and prevented from slipping along the gunwale by means -of a strap, and the sixty odd rowers, with their fine physical strength -and healthy endurance, could make these easy-lined craft leap across -the waves with a speed fully equal to that which their coloured sails -could give to them. There is more than one reference, too, to the -different hues of these sails then prevailing in Northern Europe, the -“English king Knut” having blue sails on the yard of each of his ships. - -When they voyaged there was nothing of the modern hurry of seafaring -life. They were not compelled to perform a certain passage within -a specified number of days, and they could wait as long as their -commanders wished for a fair wind to spring up. “After that King Sigurd -fared to his ships, and made ready to leave Jerusalem-land. They sailed -north to that island which hight Cyprus, and there King Sigurd dwelt -somewhile and fared sithence to Greekland, and laid-to all his host -off Angelness, and lay there for half a month. And every day was a -fair breeze north along the main; but he willed to bide such a wind as -should be a right side-wind, so that sails might be set end-long of the -ship, for all his sails were set with pall, both fore and aft: for this -reason, that both they who were forward, as well as they who were aft, -would not to look on the unfair sails.” The meaning of this expression -is quite obvious to a seaman. Sigurd clearly wanted to make his voyage -with the wind in such a direction that it was abeam rather than dead -aft. The logical inference from this extract is that his ships sailed -best on a broad reach rather than when running free. And if we may -judge from the lines and dimensions of those Viking ships which have -been unearthed in Scandinavia in such wonderful preservation, it is -quite certain that these long, straight-keeled craft would be very fast -on a wind. - -And how were they steered? The rudder was placed on the starboard -side, the round top of it being secured to the gunwale by means of -a loop which one may call the rudder-strap. At a proper distance -down, says Dr. Magnusson, a cone-shaped piece of wood was nailed -to the side of the boat, the top of the cone being plumb with the -outside of the gunwale. Through the rudder, where it took the form -of a broad oar-blade, a hole was made corresponding to one through -the cone-shaped piece of wood which went right through the side of -the boat. A cord drawn through the hole in the rudder and the conic -piece of wood, and made fast within board, gave to the rudder a fixed -position. By loosening the cord the rudder could be lifted at will -and taken inboard. Through the neck of the rudder a square hole was -made, into which fitted the end of the tiller, by means of which the -helmsman moving it towards him starboarded the rudder, and ported it by -performing the exact opposite. - -There was a plank at the back of the seat of the helmsman against which -he could steady himself in handling the helm, just as many a steersman -on small craft to-day get support for controlling the tiller in a -seaway. This was known as the “staying board.” Thus “Einar shot at Earl -Eric, and the arrow smote the tiller-head above the head of the earl, -and went in up to the shaft binding. The earl looked thereon, and asked -if they wist who shot; and even therewith came another arrow so nigh -that it flew betwixt the earl’s side and his arm, and so on to the -staying-board of the steersman, and the point stood far beyond.” - -We must picture in our minds the Norse steersman sitting with his face -to the starboard side, his hand on the tiller. The _stjornbordi_--or -steering side--was the starboard. The _bakbordi_ was the port side. -Why _bakbordi_? Because it was the board at the back of the helmsman -when he sat looking to starboard or steering side. And so to this -day, although no longer a ship has her rudder at the side, yet the -right-hand side of a ship is always the starboard. - -Notwithstanding the curious fact that in certain parts of Europe, at -an extraordinarily early date, chain cables were actually in use, yet -it is quite clear that those of the Viking ships were of rope. These -cables were twisted round the beaks of the ships, the beaks consisting -of pieces of timber placed upright in and about the prow of the ship. -They were similar to the bitts such as you see in a modern lifeboat or -yacht. So, whenever the Viking vessel was at anchor, or she was lashed -alongside her enemy in pitched battle, the cable of the anchor or the -grapnel was made fast to these timbers. In the account of the flight -of Earl Svein, it is recorded that “when the earl saw to how hopeless -a pass things were come, he called upon his forecastle men to cut the -cables and let loose the ships, and even so they did. Then the king’s -men caught the beaks of the ships with grapnels, and thus held them -fast. Then the earl cried out that the forecastlemen should hew off -the beaks, and even so they did.” And again: “Einar Thambarskelfir had -laid his ship on the other board of that of the earl, and his men threw -an anchor into the prow of the earl’s ship, and thus they all drifted -together into the firth; and after that the whole host of the earl took -to flight, and rowed out into the firth.” - -Ships might not bring-up where they liked. There was decided precedence -among the Norsemen, as will be observed from the following incident: -“On a summer Earl Hakon had out his fleet, and Thorleif the Sage was -master of a ship therein. Of that company also was Eric, the earl’s -son, who was as then ten or eleven winters old. So, whenever they -brought-to in havens at night-tide, nought seemed good to Eric but to -moor his ship next to the earl’s ship. But when they were come south to -Mere, thither came Skopti, the earl’s brother-in-law, with a long-ship -all manned; but as they rowed up to the fleet, Skopti called out to -Thorleif to clear the haven for him, and shift his berth. Eric answered -speedily, bidding Skopti take another berth. That heard Earl Hakon, how -Eric his son now deemed himself so mighty that he would not give place -to Skopti. So the earl called out straightway, and bade them leave -their berth, saying that somewhat worser lay in store for them else, to -wit, to be beaten. So when Thorleif heard that, he cried out to his men -to slip their cables; and even so was it done. And Skopti lay in the -berth whereas he was wont, next to the earl’s ship to wit.” - -There were a number of small row-boats employed by the Vikings, the -size of which did not allow of more than six oarsmen. No doubt these -were employed for going ashore when the big ships lay some distance -from the shore. But often the Viking craft lay alongside piers. -“Gunnstein said that now was the turn of the tide, and it was time to -sail. Therewith they drew in their cables.... In this they fared on -until they came to Geirsver, the first place where, coming from the -north, one may lie at a pier. Thither they came both one day at eve, -and lay in haven there off the pier.” The mention is also made of -gangways for getting on board from the shore. - -But sometimes they lay moored stem and stern in much the same fashion -as the ancient Greeks were wont. They let go their bow anchors in deep -water, veered out cable, took a line ashore from the stern, and then, -each ship having done this, the whole fleet were lashed up together -side by side just as to-day you often see a whole fleet of fishermen -tethered in a small harbour. There are several passages in the Sagas -which call attention to the manner in which their ships were moored. -“Forthwith when Karli, and his, got aboard their ship, they swept off -the tilts, and cast off the moorings; then they drew up sail, and the -ship soon sped off into the main.” Or again ... “said they had seen -King Hakon’s host, and all the arrayal thereof; said that they were -lying up by the stakes and had moored their sterns to the stakes; they -have two east-faring keels, and have laid them outermost of all the -ships; on these keels are masthead castles, and castles withal in the -prow of them both.” - -This last quotation, belonging to the twelfth century, has reference -to the mode of fighting which was in vogue during the Middle Ages, -when the fighting tops, the castellated structures at both bow and -stern, were such significant features on these long, narrow ships. The -word “keel” is used not, of course, in reference to any particular -portion of the ship’s structure, but to the ship as a whole. The word -is still in active use to-day on the Humber as applied to a species of -craft which, with its large squaresail as its only canvas, bears some -similarity to the old Norse _ceols_ or keels. - -[Illustration: VIKING SHIP WITH AWNING UP READY FOR THE NIGHT.] - -The crews of these ships slept under those “tilts” or awnings which -were spread across the ship in an inverted V-shape. In harbour the -tilts were spread over the entire vessel. But in less sheltered -anchorages, and when at sea, tilts were rigged over only portions of -the ship to afford sufficient protection to the men. But in all cases -these _tilts_ or _tjalds_ were struck before the ship went into action, -for the obvious reason that it was desirable to have the entire ship -clear for fighting. The food-supplies, both solid and fluid, were -carried in casks, and the mess system is well described in one of the -Sagas entitled “The Story of the Ere-Dwellers.” “In those days,” runs -the narrative, “was it the wont of chapmen to have no cooks, but the -messmates chose by lot amongst themselves who should have the ward of -the mess day by day. Then, too, was it the wont of all the midshipmen -to have their drink in common, and a cask should stand by the mast with -the drink therein, and a locked lid was over it. But some of the drink -was in tuns, and was added to the cask thence as soon as it was drunk -out.” - -We know nothing as to whether these Norse ships possessed bilge pumps. -The probability is that they did not, but a bailing butt was certainly -part of their inventory. Evidently there was a well some distance aft, -into which any water shipped was allowed to drain and thence bailed -out, as the reader shall presently see from the following quotation. -The description refers to the time when King Harald manned his new -dragon-galley. “The said dragon he manned with his court-guard and -bareserks,” runs the Saga. “The stem men were the men most tried, -because they had with them the king’s banner; aft from the stem to the -bailing place was the forecastle, and that was manned by the bareserks. -Those only could get court-service with King Harald who were men -peerless both of strength and good heart and all prowess; with such -only was his ship manned.” - -Each oarsman had about three and a half feet to work in. There is more -than one reference in these Sagas to the beds and berths on the Viking -ships. “When the ship of Magnus was much ridded, and he was lying in -his berth,” etc. In the ships of war the rowing benches did not stretch -right across the vessel, as this would interfere with the mobility of -the fighting men, who must needs be left free to rush forward or aft as -the case might be during the battle. The oarsmen therefore had each a -bench just roomy enough to sit down and do their work whilst pulling at -the oar. Little enough is told us of the commander, but we know that -in the ship’s inventory was included his mess-table or “meat-board.” - -They were strong of body, these Norsemen, like their ships, brave and -valiant fighters, and they were not altogether bereft of wit, as for -instance when, wishing to convey an insult, someone fashioned an anchor -from a piece of cheese, and said that “such would hold the ships of -Norway’s king.” They were adaptable, too, as in such cases when they -readily took their anchors ashore, bound them to long staves, and -employed them for razing an enemy’s wall to the ground. But, most of -all, they were seamen of the very finest type which the world has ever -seen. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -SEAMANSHIP AND NAVIGATION IN THE MIDDLE AGES - - -When we consider all the wondrous achievements on the part of the -Ancients, when we consider how many centuries they were engaged in -maritime matters, it is a matter for some surprise that, with the -exception of what was done by the Phœnicians, there was practically no -maritime discovery made by them. They were content with the limitations -of the Mediterranean, and beyond the Gaditan Straits they did not -venture. - -At first sight it certainly is a little strange. But the reason -is quite obvious. Their seamanship was good enough, but their -navigation was of an inferior order. The Romans, for example, were not -geographers, and without some knowledge of geography even the crudest -navigational methods lose their value. Among the Greeks and Romans -there existed curious and uncertain ideas concerning the earth. Some -thought that it floated on the water like a bowl. Some believed that -it was like to a column or stone pillar; others that it was hollow as -a dish. Some said it was as flat as a table; some that its shape was -similar to a drum. So with all these conflicting ideas there was no -accurate knowledge of the world. - -Further, though there were astronomers, yet they were incompetent and -of little value from a practical point of view. Lastly, the ancients -had yet to learn the essential value of the loadstone. Hence their -mariners were not fitted for such long voyages as were to be made later -on by the Portuguese. The early Mediterranean mariners were efficient -so long as they kept within the confines of their own enormous lake, -for their voyaging was practically coastal. Even when they had to -sail North and South they had such places as Rhodes to enable them to -break their journey and make a good departure from. They could never -lose themselves for long, for they knew the aspect of the various -promontories and bays. They could “smell” their way through most -channels even when the light failed them. And remember, too, that -theirs were not big ships if compared with the caravels which were to -come later. There were plenty of oarsmen in the warships if it became -necessary to claw off a lee shore, and these shallow-draught vessels -could float in the most shallow channels. - -But if they had been called upon to cross the Atlantic or, rounding -the South of Africa, traverse the Indian Ocean, they would have soon -lost themselves when out of sight of land for many days; so they kept -to their own sea and left the discovering of the world to others who -should come centuries later. Hipparchus had been the first to make a -catalogue of the stars about the year 150 B.C. Pass over a somewhat -barren interval till you come to the year A.D. 150 and you find Ptolemy -correcting the tables of Hipparchus. In Ptolemy we have the summit -of classical knowledge as reached during the times of the ancients. -His account of the universe and the movements of the heavenly bodies -had a great influence on the seafarers in the Middle Ages, and so on -the world’s discoveries. Now Ptolemy’s geography was based for the -most part on “itineraries.” These, in modern parlance, were simply -guide-books for travellers: that is to say, they consisted of tables -and routes showing the stopping-places. Such data as these afforded had -been obtained for the most part from military campaigns--especially -Roman--and from the voyages made by sailors, but also from merchants. - -Ptolemy made a wonderful improvement in cartographical representation -by introducing correction with converging meridians, this method having -been commenced by Hipparchus. But Ptolemy was singularly fortunate to -have been living at the time when the Roman Empire was at its height, -and so enabled to obtain a mass of geographical details through the -extensive administration of this far-reaching dominion. - -In Northern Europe the mists had not yet cleared. It was a long time -before they did. It is not till the eighth century of our era that -there is any certain mention in literature concerning the voyaging to -the Arctic Circle. This was when the good monks from Ireland discovered -the Faroe Isles and Iceland after setting forth across the sea, and -settled down there, baptising the inhabitants and teaching them -Christianity. Indirectly, they were doing more than this: they were -linking up one portion of world that was unknown to or by the other. -Already King Arthur, by his conquest of Scandinavia, Ireland, Gothland, -Denmark, and other northern territories, had caused an addition to -geographical knowledge by intercommunication. “Now at length,” to -quote Hakluyt, “they are incorporated with us by the receiving of our -religion and sacraments, and by taking wives of our nation, and by -affinitie, and mariages.” - -Add to these the northern voyages of Octher, King Edgar, together -with the frequent raids of the Norsemen and the increasing number of -missionaries, and it is easy to see the world’s geographical knowledge -accumulating. But these, again, were mostly coasting voyages; or, at -any rate, the voyagers were not out of sight of land for many days. -The Norse discoveries are, in fact, the first great achievement of the -western maritime world between the time of Constantine and the first -Crusade. We have already alluded so fully to their seamanship that it -remains only to remind the reader that as early as A.D. 787 they had -landed in our country; in 874 had begun to colonise Iceland; in 877 -had sighted Greenland; and in 888, or thereabouts, had reached the -White Sea. In Southern Europe there was nothing comparable to this. -Notwithstanding that the workmanship of the Italian shipbuilders was as -good as, if not better than, the work of the Norsemen; notwithstanding, -also, that the latter were further away from civilisation and -scientific knowledge, yet for all that the Vikings were peering into -the Unknown World, while the Southerners were content to leave the -curtain to hide a little longer the wonders of the universe from the -eyes of mankind. - -As we look at the manner in which the world has been opened out, -discovered, revealed, linked up, we shall find that this was brought -about as follows: The Southerners, then, were too content with their -Mediterranean to leave it in quest of other seas, while the Vikings -were exactly the reverse in their own sphere. Then comes the influence -of Christian devotion. Not merely the missionaries, but the bands -of pilgrims begin for the first time in their lives to travel long -distances. The Crusades astound the Crusaders themselves. They marvel -at the possibilities of the world. A permanent link is forged between -the North and the near East. The Bay of Biscay and the Mediterranean -are accomplished in safety. Why should they not come back again, after -their vows have been filled, to trade? They have fought, they have said -their prayers. Why might they not buy and sell? Thus there is formed a -connection between the Levant and England which time was to develop. - -We see, then, the merchants of the world getting restless for greater -wealth: anxious for new markets for their wares, new places whence to -gather fresh imports. Owing to the natural dread of the sea the land -routes were frequently patronised in preference to the sea lanes, -though this was not always. Now the great treasure-house of the world -in men’s estimation lay in India. There was to be found a rich store of -commodities, so thither merchants repaired by the long overland routes. -But there was a growing feeling among the Genoese, the Venetians, and -the Spanish that there ought to be a sea path to India just as there -was to Northern Europe. There was a great risk attached to the present -method of bringing goods across from India by land. There was the risk -of pilfering or of bandits, besides the great cost of transportation. -Furthermore, these sons of the Catholic Church longed to crush the -power of Islam, longed to place the ruling of the world in the hands -of a Christian Empire. It is necessary to bear in mind this potent -desire to find a sea route to India, because by this desire was given -an impetus which not only revealed India to seamen, but unfolded the -New World in the Western Hemisphere. As far back as the year A.D. 1281, -Vivaldi set forth from Genoa in his fruitless endeavour to reach the -Indies via the west coast of Africa; so also Malocello had sailed as -far as the Canary Isles about the year 1270; and there were numbers of -other gallant adventurers who had started forth optimistically. But the -sea route to India had not yet been ploughed by the ships of men. - -Meanwhile there arrived on the scene the best friend mariner ever -had. Up till now the compass had not been used. It is possible and -extremely probable that from very early times the Chinese understood -the communicating of the magnetic fluid to iron, and the marvellous -and mysterious power which that iron possesses when thus magnetised. -One may take it that the Chinese introduced this notion to the famous -Arabian seamen sailing between the Far East and the east coast of -Africa. Thus, via the Red Sea, this information of the utility of the -magnetised needle for the use of seamen was brought into Europe. Prior -to the tenth century the invention had gone no further than placing a -bar of magnetised iron in the arms of a wooden figure on a pivot. In -China the South took the place of North, and the former was indicated -by the outstretched hand of the little man erected on the prow of the -vessel, or by the bar of pulverised iron which the image held like a -spear in its hands. With such magnetic indications the Chinese from the -third century A.D. voyaged from Canton to Malabar and the Persian Gulf. - -By the second decade of the twelfth century the Chinese were using the -water-compass. It was not seen in Europe till about the year 1190; or -rather it is not mentioned till about that date. What is most probable -is the suggestion that the sailors of Northern Europe first saw it -at the time of the Crusades, and took back to their own ports the -idea which the Arabian dhow skippers had employed for so many years -in navigating the Indian Ocean. There is a clear reference in an old -French ballad of the late twelfth century to the Pole-star and magnet:-- - - “By this star they go and come - And their course and their way do keep: - They call it the polar star. - This guide is most certain. - All the others move - And change positions and turn; - But this star moves not. - An art they make, that cannot deceive, - By the power of the magnet: - A stone ugly and brown, - To which iron spontaneously is drawn, - They have: observing the right point. - After they have touched it with a needle - And in a straw have placed it - They put it in water without other support, - And the straws keep it afloat.” - -This ballad was afterwards known as “The Song of the Compass.” -Doubtless this crude compass was used only when the sailors could not -see the sun in cloudy weather, or it may have been also used when -making night passages. It certainly cannot have been more than a frail -aid in stormy weather, when these clumsy ships were pitching and -rolling in the trough of the sea. Still, excepting this innovation, -there is not between the time of the ancient Greeks and that of the -fourteenth century more than the slightest advance in the seaman’s art. -Frankly, they hardly needed the compass in their coasting voyages, -and when its utility was demonstrated they declined, for a long time, -to put to sea in any ship having such an infernal and superstitious -article on board. Although the date 1190 has just been given as -the approximate period when the lodestone was employed in European -navigation, yet it was not till the beginning of the fourteenth century -that a Neapolitan pilot suspended the needle on a fixed pivot in a -box, though some authorities deny that this man accomplished so much. -The origin of the fleur-de-lys, which the reader still sees on every -compass card to this day--flower-de-luce, as the rude Elizabethan -sailors used to call it--is variously attributed to the fact that -this pilot was a subject of the King of Naples, who was of the -junior branch of the Bourbon family. Or it is possibly a conventional -representation of the dart which the Arabians called the needle. - -Let us then sum up. Thanks to the Vikings and Crusaders, the warriors -and the traders, there was a greater knowledge of the world’s -geography. And now also men had the instrument which would enable -them to find their way across trackless oceans and reach home again -in safety. Concerning those places which they had never seen, they -had much hopeful curiosity, but there was little actual information. -All the time the East was calling in its magical way to the European -adventurers. The land travellers of the twelfth, thirteenth, and -fourteenth centuries had drawn back the veil hiding the golden harvest -of the East. Those who had been and seen related such wondrous yarns -that men of action and ambition longed to be away thither at once. The -effect of the Crusades had not yet passed away. The desire for travel -which has spread so enormously till it has reached the present-day -obsession was growing rapidly. - -Understand, that since the time when those Phœnicians circumnavigated -the Continent there had been no repetition of this achievement, -and in fact no serious attempts. In 1270 Malocello had found the -Canaries. Ten or twenty years later the Genoese had made some sort of -effort to find a sea route to India, but they only reached Gozora in -Barbary. Various other explorers also found their way to the islands -of the Atlantic adjacent to the West African coast. In the history of -exploration there are plenty of instances where one man in a certain -century has discovered a new region. Many years later, after this has -been forgotten, some other explorer lands on this territory and claims -to have been there first. In other instances the secret of the first -adventurer has been well kept and well utilised by those who lived long -after the first man had died. - -Take Madeira as a case in point. This was discovered not by a Genoese, -a Venetian, or a Portuguese, but by an Englishman of the name of -Macham. He eloped from England with a certain lady, went on board his -ship, reached Spain, and then arrived “by tempest” in Madeira, “and did -cast anker in that haven or bay, which now is called Machico after the -name of Macham. And because his lover was sea-sicke, he went on land -with some of his company, and the shippe with a good winde made saile -away, and the woman died for thought.” This was about the year 1344. -For years after, Madeira remained unknown to men’s minds. But Prince -Henry the Navigator knew of the Macham incident, and he put it to good -use. - -It is true that before the close of the Middle Ages the tendency of -the Italian seamen-traders was to emerge from the limits of their -Mediterranean Sea. The voyages to the Canaries and to Barbary are -instances of this growing enterprise. They had for years established an -overseas trade also with Northern Europe, and every year the Venetians -made a voyage to Flanders and back. We have not space to deal in detail -with the voyage of the two Venetian brothers Zeno to Greenland in the -fourteenth century, though the record is still in existence for those -who wish to read. - -[Illustration: THIRTEENTH-CENTURY MERCHANT SAILING SHIP.] - -But still, in spite of the voyages of Viking and Venetian, the -Crusading expeditions, and the enterprising travels which had been -undertaken, yet the real progress in navigation, as a science and an -art, was made not by the sailors of Christendom, but by the Arabians. -The latter had calculated their tables of latitude and longitude by -astronomical observations. They had produced rough coast-charts; and -what was more, they had been using the compass and other nautical -instruments for some time. But thanks to the travel craze which had -set in, the Christian ships which were seen in the Mediterranean about -the beginning of the fifteenth century were supplied with the compass, -an astrolabe, a timepiece, and charts just as you would have found on -board an Arabian trading to the Indian Ocean. At length the Christian -seamen overcame their prejudice, and were glad to avail themselves of -the magnetised needle; but its use was by no means universal. - -Bear in mind, also, the wave of the New Learning that was spreading -over Europe. Mathematics and astronomy had already begun to be studied -in Portugal at the beginning of the fourteenth century. And with regard -to cartography, or map-making, something new was happening. Already -by 1306 a Venetian map had been made which put into form the ideas -which inspired the first Italian voyages in the Atlantic. These charts -were made for the purpose of recording the discoveries of the great -contemporary seamen. It is indeed surprising to note how accurate -these charts really are. The Italians with all their artistic ability -were now the great map-makers, and they managed to produce a number of -portolani which were of the greatest use to the mariners and merchants -of the Mediterranean. These were made by means of the knowledge and -assistance of seamen, and were intended to be of service to the latter -in their navigation. - -[Illustration: FOURTEENTH-CENTURY PORTOLANO OF THE MEDITERRANEAN. - -Showing vague idea of the shape of Africa] - -A portolano was nothing more or less than a plan or map-sketch. That -which is here given is from a reproduction in the Map Room of the -British Museum. When we consider that this was made as far back as the -year 1351, or one hundred and thirty-five years before the Cape of -Good Hope was rounded, it is wonderfully accurate, and the shape given -to Southern Africa is a curiously clever guess. But it should be -remembered that though the continent had never been rounded (except -in Phœnician times), yet there was a vague idea of the probable shape -of the west coast from those who had been to Barbary; and it is most -probable that by the information received from the Arabs, who knew the -East African coast intimately, this side of the continent would be -described to them. Thus a not wholly incorrect idea was conveyed of the -shape of the whole of Africa’s coast-line. - -But if we examine the configuration of the portions depicted as being -in Europe, notably the northern shores of the Mediterranean, this -portolano is most pleasing and accurate, and cannot have failed to have -saved the skippers of that time many an anxious moment. That which is -here reproduced dates from the year 1351, but portolani were in use -as far back as the twelfth century as practical guides to seamen. The -next improvement occurred when the compass began to be used in the -Mediterranean, and so the portolani began to be drawn with this aid. -Gradually, with practice, they were beautifully finished, and contained -practically no large error or any wrong proportion, while the mariner -had very full details given him regarding the coastlines, rivers, -mouths, headlands, bays, and so on. - -But everything that we have written in this chapter has been leading -up to a consideration of the most important epoch in the whole history -of seamanship or navigation. It is necessary to have in mind that -south-west extremity of Portugal which is now so well known to students -of naval history as Cape St. Vincent. On this strip of territory were -to dwell a community that would, so to speak, dictate the maritime -policy of the world. Here was to be the finest naval college which -ever existed even to this day. Here were brought together the pick -of the world’s seamen and navigators of that time. From here were to -issue both great explorers and the influence which caused all those -other navigators to open up the world as a man opens a closed book. -To this day civilisation has not realised one tithe of what it and -the seafaring nations especially owe in respect of shipbuilding, -navigation, and overseas commerce to that small stretch situated at the -end of the Spanish peninsula. The success which followed was the result -of a wonderful personality. It was the triumph of a man who possessed -in one combination the gifts of a far-seeing imagination, a scholarly -mind, and a genius for organisation allied to a passion for the sea and -the finding of new lands. - -This man was Prince Henry, the third son of King John I of Portugal and -nephew of Henry IV of England. His life is the old story of a man who -wishes to do good work, and in order to bring out the best which is in -him, finds it essential to retire from the world. Just as the monastic -finds it desirable to withdraw from the hurly-burly of his age; just -as the scientist in search of some new invention applies himself to no -other study and lets every other consideration slide, so Prince Henry -the Navigator, as he came to be called, thrust aside the attractions of -Court life and wedded himself to a work which has benefited humanity -to an extent that it does not yet and perhaps never will appreciate. -It is not too much to say that it is entirely owing to Prince Henry’s -influence that ships now sail backwards and forwards to India, South -Africa, America, Australia, and elsewhere. If only people understood -half they owed to this man they would commemorate his name in every -important seaport of the world. - -[Illustration: PRINCE HENRY THE NAVIGATOR. - -After a print by SIMON DE PASSE.] - -By nature a student and seaman, he retired (as his biographer, Mr. -Raymond Beazley, appositely remarks) “more and more from the known -world that he might open up the unknown.” That exactly sums up his -life. In olden times, what is now called Cape St. Vincent was known -as the Holy Promontory. Just to the right of this comes Sagres, and a -little further east is Lagos. In the year 1415 Prince Henry settles -at Sagres, a cold, barren, dreary, inhospitable promontory, but one -singularly suitable for quiet study and research, with the whole -extent of the Atlantic to look out upon, and the fresh sea breezes to -invigorate the mind away from the insincerities of civilised life. The -fifteenth century has always been regarded as the last of the “Dark -Ages,” but few more wonderful things happened either then or after than -the activities which emanated from the Sagres community. For here the -Prince had brought and sifted all the geographical knowledge inherited -from the ancients. Here were studied the subjects of mathematics, -navigation, cartography in a manner and on such a scale as had never -before been attempted. From Italy and Spain were sent the practical -men--the boldest and most experienced seamen and navigators that could -be found. - -Sagres was a kind of international bureau created for the future -development of the world, but especially and primarily it had for its -object the reaching of India. Henry’s countrymen who had been about -over the continent of Europe had encountered in the markets of Bruges -and London travellers and merchants from other parts of the world, and -in course of conversation managed to pick up a good deal of information -regarding the overland trade to India and the Far East. Henry’s -chief-of-staff was his own brother Pedro, who also had travelled -extensively and had visited all the countries in the west of Europe. -He, too, had come back not empty-handed, but with maps and plans, books -and much verbal information regarding the places visited. All this -information went to swell the general geographical knowledge which -Henry was accumulating and systematising. - -Close to Sagres was the naval arsenal of Lagos, over which the Prince -was governor. Here he built those caravels which were to carry out -the theories that he had worked out for his captains. On their return -he set to work to sift the data which his ships and men had brought -back with them, to correct the maps according to this new information, -to readjust the instruments, to compare the accounts of travellers -ancient and modern, and then to hand the conclusions of all these -to the captains of the next ships that went forth to explore. Thus -the Sagres naval college was at once highly theoretical and highly -practical. It was also founded on a strong religious basis. Besides the -palace, observatory, and study which he built for himself, Henry had -erected a chapel, a village for his helpers, and among the instructions -to those whom he sent out to explore was the admonition to bring -Christianity into all new territory. Here were men engaged in teaching -navigation to seamen; here were others instructing pupils how to draw -maps and nautical instruments. Even Arabians and Jews were imported -to give the Portuguese the benefit of their learning in astronomical -and mathematical subjects. It was indeed a cosmopolitan crowd which -collected at this Atlantic village. Orientals and Portuguese, veteran -pilots from Italy, shipbuilders, seamen, and students of all kinds, -cartographers and instrument-makers. But they were assembled there -for one purpose. Led by the example and patience and single-hearted -enthusiasm of their governor, who guided their labours with prudence -and forethought, this little band was to be the nucleus which should -form that magnificent race of Portuguese seamen who were to achieve so -much during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. - -We cannot but admire Prince Henry for his admirable enthusiasm, for his -patience, his wisdom, and his solid hard work. Nevertheless we respect -him possibly even more for having begun at the right end. Instead of -sending out his fleets to blunder their way along, they set forth more -adequately fitted both as to ships and men than any which had ever put -to sea since the beginning of the world. In the schools of Sagres, the -shipyards of Lagos, and the voyages of Prince Henry’s ships, we have -one of the finest combinations of theory and practice which the mind -of man could ever devise. It must indeed have been a most fascinating -institution. From this school graduated a fearless race of sailors, -who for their daring and enterprise have never been surpassed either -in Elizabethan or Nelsonian times when we consider the limitations of -their equipment. - -Here at last, then, the seaman’s art, for the first time in the history -of the world, had a chance of being taught properly. From 1415 to 1460, -with the exception of brief intervals, Prince Henry remained here doing -this splendid work till death released him from his labours. What then -was the aim of his life’s labour? What, in fact, were the results which -accrued? Let us see first of all his aims. - -He wished to find a way round Africa to India partly for the love of -the new knowledge itself, just as any scientist shares the world’s -delight in having discovered some invaluable invention. But also it -would mean greater dominion, and Portugal would add to her distinctive -position among the nations of the world. Already at least a century -before his time it had been suggested by Raymond Lulli, a famous -Majorcan alchemist, who lived from 1235 to 1315, that India might -probably be reached by rounding Africa on the west and east, and it -is curious how that idea persisted without any apparent reason or -justification before it was actually proved to be correct. Secondly, -Henry wanted to find out what was the shape of the world, and to put an -end to the rival theories which existed. Marco Polo had done something -for the southern coast-line of Asia, and the shape of Africa had been -fairly guessed by the portolano, as already seen. On the east coast -of Africa there were the Arab settlements, and there was a vague sort -of knowledge concerning the west coast so far south as Guinea. This -information had been obtained through the Sahara caravan trade. - -But there was a third reason for Henry’s enterprise. The research -work, the education of his seamen, the making of maps, the providing -of instruments, the building and fitting out of ships and so forth -could not possibly go on without some sort of financial basis. Such -a project, however philanthropic, could not be allowed to continue -without some means of sustenance. Henry’s idea was to make the overseas -trade pay for all of this. There were riches enough in India and -elsewhere to cover handsomely the cost of making Portugal a race of -sailors, the leader of the world in maritime exploration. The land -route across Asia along which were brought such rich commodities of -eastern goods alone proved that India was worth aiming at. If only -these goods could be brought by water, then not only would delay, -pillage, and money be saved, but Portugal would become the owners of -the Indian carrying trade, and the richest of the eastern merchants. -One cannot emphasise too strongly the fact that in the minds of the -people of the Middle Ages India was the prize of the world, the -depository of the greatest wealth. India, then, was the inspiration, -Sagres the medium by which the countries of the globe outside Europe -have been discovered and developed. - -And there was another reason. The political power of the Catholic -Church was very considerable. A Portuguese seaman was a true son of -the Church, whether skipper or deck-hand. Wherever he colonised, -wherever he discovered or traded, he was anxious to spread the Catholic -religion. He hated Islam, he wanted to add the territory of the world -to the great Christian empire. In no heart did such aspirations -flourish so strongly as in Prince Henry the Navigator. India was to -become not merely the means of encouraging seafaring, but an invaluable -possession. - -But what were the results of Henry’s great organisation and activities? -Indirectly he was the cause of Columbus finding the New World when -looking for India in 1492; of Da Gama reaching India in 1498; of -Magellan encircling the globe in 1520–2: less directly still to him -may be traced the round-the-world voyages of Drake and Anson. To -Prince Henry the Navigator may be ascribed at least half the honour in -conquering the islands of the Atlantic and the western coast of Africa, -the doubling of the Cape of Good Hope, the founding of transoceanic -empires and magnificent cities. To his genius may be traced the opening -up of the Western Hemisphere, and the sea path to India and the Far -East, the discovery of Australia, and other voyages embraced within the -limits of a century. In fact, but for Henry the Navigator we should -have remained for a much longer period ignorant of one-half of the -world. The fifteenth and sixteenth centuries are essentially a sea -epoch more than any age in history, and their influence was felt in -all subsequent periods even down to the present day. Sagres focussed -all the world’s knowledge of the nautical arts, and shed a powerful -searchlight which revealed to nations the wonderful possibilities that -lay by way of the sea. It led to India and America, to gold mines and -rich plantations, to wealth, to prosperity, to power. The seamanship, -the navigation, and the shipbuilding in that narrow strip of Portugal -were the best which existed anywhere. - -[Illustration: FIFTEENTH-CENTURY SHIPBUILDING YARD] - -Hence Prince Henry’s pupils, even at such a late date in the world’s -history, were the first to break through all the superstitious ideas, -the ignorance, the myths, and even terror with which the African -unknown was regarded. If his own men did not actually reach India, at -any rate they prepared the way thither by sailing for two thousand -miles to the southward where no other ships and sailors had been -before, with the sole exception of the Phœnicians. Thus they went -half the way to the Indian peninsula; in fact, we may add, the most -important half. For when at last Vasco da Gama had got round the -south of Africa from west to east he was in an ocean that had been -regularly traversed by Arabian seamen for centuries. But it is not -so much the exploits of Henry’s direct pupils which really matter; -it is the influence which he began to exert in the fifteenth century -and continued to exert even after his death. He created a new school -of nautical thought and practice. All maritime progress prior to the -fifteenth century leads up to Henry the Navigator: from him radiate all -the wondrous improvements which followed after the date when his Sagres -school was inaugurated. There is not a man or woman to-day who ought -not to feel grateful to this illustrious and able man. The expansion -of Christendom, the increase of national wealth, the development of -the colonial idea--these are but a few of the achievements which -belong to him. From Portugal to Spain the excellent idea spread of -carefully instructing the nation’s seamen. It was Charles V who founded -a lectureship at Seville on the Art of Navigation. Such authoritative -men as Alonso de Chavez, Hieronymo de Chavez, and Roderigo Zamorano -are referred to by Hakluyt as among those who, by word of mouth no -less than by published treatise, were wont to instruct the Spanish -mariners. Not only did Charles V establish a lectureship, but owing to -“the rawnesse of his Seamen, and the manifolde shipwracks which they -susteyned in passing and repassing betweene Spaine and the West Indies, -with an high reach and great foresight, established ... a Pilote Major, -for the examination of such as sought to take charge of ships in that -voyage.” - -Similarly, owing doubtless to this influence, Henry VIII, recognising -something of the importance of the naval side of a nation, founded -three seamen’s guilds or brotherhoods on apparently somewhat similar -lines at Deptford-on-Thames, Kingston-on-Hull, and Newcastle-on-Tyne. -The object was that English seamen might become more apt in seamanship -and navigation both in peace and war. And following up the same idea, -we find his successor, Edward VI, promoting Sebastian Cabot to be Grand -Pilot of England. - -Before we pass on, it may be advisable to run briefly through the -different stages which led to the final opening up of the sea route to -India from European ports. The whole project is so intimately bound up -with the development of seamanship and navigation, that we cannot well -afford to omit this sketch from our purview. It was not by one single -effort, but by a series of attempts that the task was performed. The -doubling of the Cape of Good Hope by Vasco da Gama in 1497 was notable -not merely in itself--not merely because of the long voyage and the -attainment of Africa’s southern cape--but because it showed that that -ancient instinct was right: there was a sea route to India for those -who had the daring to venture. - -In the year 1415 the furthest south reached was Cape Nun, which is -at the south-west extremity of Morocco. Three years later, thanks to -the secret which Henry possessed of Macham’s early voyage, two of -the Prince’s courtiers were able to rediscover Madeira. In 1433 Cape -Bojador, which is on the west coast of the Sahara to the south-east -of the Canaries, was doubled by Gillianez. Thus these voyagers -were gradually getting nearer to the Equator. The doubling of the -last-mentioned headland made such an impression on Pope Martin V that -His Holiness bestowed on the King of Portugal all that might thereafter -be discovered in Africa and India. This concession led to international -disputes in later years. - -[Illustration: A FIFTEENTH-CENTURY SHIP.] - -In the year 1441 still more southing was achieved when Gonzales and -Tristan reached Cape Blanco on the same West African coast. Three -years later and the River Gambia was discovered, and in 1446 the Cape -Verde Islands were visited. All this shows the considerable amount of -activity which went on during those years when the Prince was at the -head of his naval school. We can see, by referring to a map, how -steady and persistent was the advance along the west coast of this -unknown continent. But then there comes Henry’s death, and there -follows a gap in this chain of discoveries. Still, before long this -series of southerly voyages was resumed. The aim was ever in the same -direction, but the cause of failure is unknown; whether they feared to -go too far, whether their provisions ran out, whether their crews were -diminished by sickness and death, whether they were not too sure of -the condition of their ships one cannot say. Their intention seems to -have been to proceed with caution, and possibly they aimed at a more -detailed exploration than some of their successors. Perhaps this was -owing to the instructions of the Prince. - -At any rate, with the invaluable data which they brought back, each -expedition made it easier for the next, so that by the year 1470 -the Portuguese were able to reach as far south as almost to the -Equator, and fourteen years later the Congo River was attained. But, -with so much successfully accomplished, the impetus to do very much -more became strong, and in 1486 the King of Portugal sent forth two -expeditions, having for their object the discovery of an eastern route -to India, and also to find if possible the whereabouts of a mysterious -personality, Prester John. The latter was not discovered. One of these -two expeditions proceeded through Egypt, then down the Red Sea, and -so across the Arabian Sea. Its members encountered many a hardship, -but they did succeed in making Calicut in the south-west of India. -The other expedition was under the leadership of Bartholomew Diaz. It -was of no great size, consisting merely of a couple of caravels and -one store-ship. This little squadron did not reach India, but made a -wonderful advance on all those previous voyages which had never got -further south than the Equator and the Congo. Diaz sailed south beyond -the latitude of the Cape of Good Hope, and doubled it without knowing -it. He coasted for a thousand miles along African shores which had -never been seen by European sailors hitherto. And although he was not -lucky enough to reach across to India, yet, when he returned, he had -the great happiness of realising that he had passed at last that cape -which is the southern African extremity. Probably you know the story: -how that Diaz, mindful of the bad weather for which this region is -famous, had called it the Cape of Torments, and how that the Portuguese -king would not suffer this to be the name, but rather that it should be -called the Cape of Good Hope, since the discovery was so promising. - -And then we come to that ever memorable year of 1497, when all these -preliminary voyages sink into insignificance before that of Vasco -da Gama, who doubled the cape on November 20, then sailed to the -northward, discovered Mozambique, Sofala, and Melinda; and finally, -with the help of an Indian pilot, crossed the ocean from Melinda to -Calicut in twenty-three days, so that this Vasco da Gama had the -supreme honour of being the first seaman in the world’s history, so -far as any record has been preserved to us, to make the entire lengthy -voyage from Western Europe to the land of the Indian treasure. - -With the seamanship and navigation of Columbus we shall proceed to deal -presently. Although he comes within the fifteenth century, and his -famous voyage was really concerned with a desire to find India, yet it -will be more convenient to be able to watch his methods with greater -detail in the following chapter. He is the connecting link between -the fifteenth-century Henry the Navigator and that wonderful epoch of -sixteenth-century seamen. It would not be inaccurate to describe him -as the last of the medieval sailors and the first of the moderns. But -our present aim is, now that we have seen the wonderful improvement in -navigation which had set in, to obtain some idea of the contemporary -seamanship in the Middle Ages. - -From the coming of the Viking type of craft to the universal adoption -of the caravel class of vessel there was but little variation in the -kind of seamanship. In the Mediterranean the lateen sail involved a -knowledge of fore-and-aft seamanship, but while this was used chiefly -on the smaller craft, yet the bigger ships carried a squaresail forward -and the lateen aft. This was the beginning of the caravel, which was -to develop into a three- and even four-masted ship, with always a -lateen at the stern. But in Northern Europe, where the single (square) -sail type of ship and the Viking-like hull had continued without -intermission and with only slight alterations such as the addition of -stern- and fore-castles, the seamanship was practically identical with -that of the Norsemen. - -In what did this seamanship consist? It was exceedingly simple, and -may be summed up briefly thus: The ships were made fast by big anchors -and thick cables. This is evident from the pictures of the Bayeux -tapestry. They quanted themselves off into deep water by pushing from -the stern with a pole. The men then rowed with their oars, and as soon -as clear of the shallows up went the mast and sail, the latter with -its yard being fixed permanently to the former. A number of the crew -would haul on to the backstays aft as the mast and sail were brought -into position, the mast being inserted in its step and tabernacle. -Apparently there were no braces, but the sail was controlled with a -sheet from each clew. Similarly when making land and about to bring up -or beach the vessel, sail and mast were bodily lowered and allowed to -come forward, part of the crew remaining aft to steady the mast and -sail as they came down to the deck. The steering was done by a single -paddle or side-rudder placed on the starboard side. As a protection -for the oarsmen a line of shields--doubtless those which they actually -wore in battle--ran round the gunwale overlapping each other. A small -jolly-boat was sometimes towed astern for landing from the bigger type -of craft, while for greater convenience a look-out man was sent to the -top of the mast. This is distinctly shown in the Bayeux tapestry. - -It is more than likely that North European seamanship had not reached -a very high stage of perfection, excepting among the Norsemen, at -this time. Otherwise William the Conqueror would probably not have -lost part of his fleet in a summer’s gale off the French coast when -preparing for his invasion of England. Nor, some years later, would -the _Blanche Nef_ have been handled so negligently among the rocks -round Cape Barfleur as to founder. It is pretty clear that there were -too much drink and frivolity on board; but a careful skipper would -scarcely have allowed such a dereliction of duty if he realised fully -what sort of a task it was to take a ship through such tricky waters -as the Race of Catteville. But the finest and, in fact, the only way -to make good seamen is to take them for long voyages. And so, in spite -of the fact that less than a century and a half later the type of -ships had scarcely changed, yet there is an evident improvement in the -seaman’s skill. For everyone must concede that to take a fleet of over -a hundred twelfth-century ships on such a long voyage as from Dartmouth -to the Holy Land was in itself a very fine feat of endurance and skill. -Considering the nature of these craft, the absence of navigational -facilities, the crowded condition of their hulls, the bad weather they -had to encounter, the sufferings of their crews, and a host of minor -difficulties which had to be borne, one can only wonder that they ever -reached their destination and returned to their native country. Richard -I was certainly a seaman. You will remember that on that terrible night -of Easter Eve, April 13, 1190, his fleet were in the Mediterranean and -caught in a heavy gale. His mariners were prostrate with sea-sickness, -some of his ships were ungovernable, the horses in the holds of others -would be causing the crews endless anxiety in addition to the troubles -of the wind and wave. But not a ship was lost. They all came through -the ordeal. All night long Richard kept a light burning at his masthead -and hove-to, waiting for his chickens to gather round the mother hen. - -[Illustration: THE FLEET OF RICHARD I SETTING FORTH FROM DARTMOUTH -BOUND FOR THE CRUSADES] - -If ever a fleet of ships was tried it was this expedition from the -Devonshire village. They were not many days out and had not yet -said farewell to the Bay of Biscay before they were caught in bad -weather and the fleet scattered. But it is certain that this fleet -accomplished what it did partly owing to the fact that every day at sea -gave them greater experience, and partly because they were well found, -or as well found as ever ships of that period could be. We can note -the mind of a far-seeing man in the care with which these craft were -fitted out. Thus, for example, in bad weather there was every chance -of the steering oar being carried away or being broken into half. To -guard against such an awkward possibility each ship went forth from the -cliffs of Dartmouth with a number of spare steering oars. Another very -likely article to carry away on a long voyage, involving bringing-up in -all sorts of places, was the anchor. Each principal ship, therefore, -carried no less than thirteen of such, though it should be added that -of these some consisted of grapnels used in getting alongside the enemy -and fighting hand to hand. There were spare oars also, two spare sails, -three sets of halyards, stays, and other ropes--everything, in fact, -except the mast and the ship’s boat was carried in duplicate. There -were knights in armour, infantry, horses, and victuals for a whole year -to be stowed away in these ships, so a great deal of thought had to be -expended. - -If we had been able to look down on to the harbour of one of the Cinque -Ports of the thirteenth century and watched some of the contemporary -ships getting under way, we should have been struck with the extreme -simplicity of their seamanship. And in the fewest words I propose -now to sketch very roughly the manner in which such craft would put -to sea. I am assuming nothing which cannot be verified by actually -existing historical data. Picture, then, a modified Viking type of ship -with good freeboard, high stem- and stern-posts, with a castellated -structure at each end, and a mast stepped about midships and supported -by shrouds and backstays. The crews go on board. These consist of the -masters or “rectores.” Under them come the steersmen or “sturmanni,” -who were responsible for the piloting of the ship. They would possess -more knowledge than anyone else of their own waters and adjacent havens. - -The crew consisted of three classes. First of all were the “galiotæ” -or galley-men. These I understand to be the men who did the rowing as -in the Viking ships. The second class consisted of “marinelli,” who -may have been the fighting men of the ship; and the third division was -found in the “nautæ” or sailors, who were obviously the men that went -aloft, got up anchor, set and furled sail, worked the sheets, and did -the deck work. On these ships there were usually about forty hands -carried; but there are instances of seventy being the full complement. -In such cases as the last-mentioned there was a superior officer -carried in addition to the usual officers and crew. Life on board these -ships was certainly very different from that which the modern seaman -finds on the sail-less steamship. But these rude, virile seamen were -well paid for their work; they had plenty of excitement to keep up -their spirits, they were given their food and wine, even though their -clothes were scanty and probably had to be found by themselves. But -when they were wounded they had the satisfaction of being pensioned off. - -Having repaired on board, then, we see the “rector” at the helm, while -some of the crew are forward hauling up the ship’s cable by the bows. -This cable leads aft, where it passes round a windlass that is turned -by other members of the crew with handspikes. Meanwhile one of the -crew by the aid of his hands and knees climbs up the backstays to -let loose the lashing which keeps the squaresail furled to the yard. -Note that the sail is not lowered or raised to or from deck, but kept -permanently aloft. Before he has allowed the canvas to be unfurled, -and before the anchor has been broken out from the ground, a couple of -trumpeters mount the top of the stern-castle and blow their notes to -warn any incoming craft that they are emerging. It is exactly analogous -to the blowing of a modern steamship’s syren when the big liner is -clearing from her port. - -The thirteenth-century ship, then, puts to sea. She has both oars and -a sail, she has an able crew, she has a good, strong hull of a healthy -seaworthy type. She is ready for anything that comes along. If the wind -fails, then she can send a man aloft to furl the sail and her crew can -get out their oars. If it comes on to blow very hard indeed, she can -take in one, two, or three reefs by means of reef-points as to-day. -And then when the enemy is espied and the time comes for battle, the -fighting men can prepare swords, axes, bows and arrows, lances, and -engines for throwing heavy stones, while some of the men go aloft and -climb into the fighting top, from which they are ready to hurl down -those heavy stones which crashed through an enemy’s decks. For it is -certain from contemporary illustrations that these ships were now no -longer mere open craft. - -In their fighting methods brute force was chiefly relied upon; but -not always. That deadly mixture known as Greek fire, which was some -sort of mixture containing principally pitch and sulphur, was a very -efficacious method of routing the enemy when the methods of grapnels, -swords, arrows, and stones were not all-availing. As soon as this -Greek fire was exposed to the air it became ignited, and there flowed -a stream of fire over ships and sea creating wholesale panic. It could -not be extinguished by water; only vinegar or sand or earth could -put it out. Wherever it went it burnt up hulls, spars, and sails, -suffocating the terrified crews in a very short time. Ramming, as a -naval manœuvre, was far from obsolete in the Middle Ages, as we know -from actual incidents in literature and pictorial representation. - -It would not be correct to assert that there was a total disregard -of tactics in medieval times. When Richard was cruising with his -fleet in the Mediterranean at the time of the Crusades, he caused -his ships to sail in eight separate lines, each line being within -trumpet call of the other. Richard himself was in the eighth line as -commander-in-chief. Treatises on naval tactics had been written by -Mediterranean experts, but I do not think that there is any evidence -for supposing that the English seamen ever learnt such a thing until -Richard’s ships went to the Mediterranean. So much happened for -improving maritime matters subsequent to that Crusade that we need not -be surprised to find, less than thirty years later, the English seamen -for the first time in northern waters exhibiting an appreciation of all -that tactics meant in battle. We have not space here to go into the -battles, but you will find the first instance of this new knowledge -in that naval encounter which took place in August of 1217 off the -South Foreland. Notwithstanding that the fleet of Eustace the Monk was -numerically far stronger than ours, yet by clever tactical manœuvres -our ships and men not only prevented his from landing, but inflicted -a heavy slaughter and defeat upon the invaders. The English commander -was Hubert de Burgh, and to his cleverness the success was due. Sixteen -large, well-armed craft were his ships, with twenty smaller ships; -or a total of thirty-six. Eustace had eighty, or more than twice as -many. The key to the victory was simply this. When the enemy’s ships -were seen to be sailing with a fresh southerly breeze from the French -coast, the English fleet put to sea, stood on till they were well to -windward, and then easing their sheets bore down on to the invaders -with a fair wind, hooked on to them with grapnels, shot at them with -arrows and threw unslaked lime at the Frenchmen, with the result that -the breeze carried both arrows and lime exactly where the English had -wanted--to leeward. With this confusion the English boarded them and -hacked away at the halyards so that mast and sail came down, burying -many on the confused deck. After that the victory was easy. - -Now such a well-thought-out plan of fighting shows that naval warfare -had in England already reached the scientific stage. If the reader -will take his chart of the Straits of Dover and work out the manœuvres -which I have given in greater detail elsewhere,[22] he will see that -the English admiral displayed a perfect knowledge of the Channel tides, -seamanship, and naval tactics in thus outwitting a force twice his own -strength. And again, at the battle of Sluys, the victory was won by the -superior tactics of the English, which showed excellent seamanship, -perfect knowledge of the Flemish tides, and sound judgment in the -problems of the sea. The English in 1340 played the same game as they -had in 1217. They confused the enemy, who wondered why the English -fleet were apparently going away from them. They wondered still more -when, after standing out to sea, the English went about and came down -on them like a pack of sea-monsters eager to devour them and successful -in the attempt. So also exactly ten years later, in that very -interesting battle of Les Espagnols sur Mer, which is unknown to many a -modern layman, when Edward II commanded in person, we find everything -being done by system and plan. He comes down with his Court to lodge -near the sea. He himself goes afloat, spends a long time in training -manœuvres, keeps a look-out man at the masthead who suddenly spies -the enemy coming down Channel, when, to quote the words of Froissart, -he ordered the trumpets to be sounded and the ships “to form a line -of battle.” The rest is merely a narrative of collisions between ship -and ship, with masts and sails falling, chains and grapnels straining, -the hurling of stones and iron bars from the castle at the masthead, -the felling of one another’s masts, the cutting adrift of the enemy’s -halyards and shrouds, the heaving overboard (a favourite and regular -habit in war) of every man and boy of the enemy they could lay their -hands on, and finally victory to the English. - -Even coasting voyages during the Middle Ages were risky proceedings, -with no charts of the English coast--at any rate, none that were -of much good--and with no regular lighthouses to warn the mariner -off outlying dangers: only through the charity of the monastic -establishments, such as that on St. Albans Head, were lights kept -burning at night on a few promontories. It may be that it was out -of gratitude for such kindness that the mariner lowered sail when -he passed a monastery on the shore. As to the ships themselves of -this time, we know that the planking was fastened not by iron and -copper nails, but by wooden pegs called treenails. The hulls were -painted with pitch, tar, oil, and resin. In these early accounts there -is a reference to the “seilyerdes,” and the sail itself consisted -of twenty-six cloths. The latter was painted red, possibly tanned -something like the modern sailing trawlers, and the canvas was fitted -with “liche-ropes,” “bolt-ropes,” and “rif-ropes.” From Viking times -bonnets were laced to the foot of the sail to give increased canvas for -use in fine weather. - -When it was that the word reef was first employed cannot be -ascertained, but it is found in literature (“Confessio Amantis”) in -the year 1193, or three years after Richard’s fleet set out to the -Mediterranean. Here the word “ref” or “rif” clearly denotes something -that could be slacked off. But there seems to be some possibility of -confusion between the device by which sail can be shortened and that -“bonnet” by which the sail’s area can be increased. During the early -part of the fourteenth century the rudder began to disappear from the -quarter where it had been since the times of the Egyptians, and to be -placed astern in the position it occupies to-day. This necessitated the -use of chains, the iron for which, as also for the anchors, was fetched -from Spain. But there is reference concerning these medieval ships to -such items as “steyes” and “baksteyes,” “hempen cordage,” “cranelines” -for securing the forestay at its foot, “hauceres” (hawsers), -“peyntours” (painters, derived from the French word signifying a -noose), “boyeropes,” for the cables, “seysynges,” “botropes,” “schetes” -for the clews of the sail, “boweline,” “saundynglyne” for the use of -the pilot-leadsman, “shives” and “polives,” tallow, hooks, and so on. - -The anchors of the king’s galleys were 7 feet long, and his great ship -carried five cables. Under the “rectores” were the “sturmanni” or -steersmen, who were responsible for the supervision of the seamanship -on board. Next in order came the “galiotæ” or galley-men, and finally -the “marinelli” or mariners and the “nautæ” or common sailors. Later on -the “rector” became “magister,” a constable was chosen to look after -the arms, and there were added also a carpenter, a clerk who presently -became purser, and a boatswain. - -[Illustration: A MEDIEVAL SEA-GOING SHIP.] - -But if we would wish to get an insight into the life and conditions -on board an English sailing ship of the Middle Ages, we can find no -more illuminating information than is contained in a MS. now in the -possession of Trinity College, Cambridge. This depicts the troubles -and tribulations on board a pilgrim ship of the time of Edward III, -written by a contemporary. In explanation of this poem given below, -it should be added that the carrying of pilgrims to the shrine of St. -James was a regular branch of the shipping trade. In those days no less -than in the present century the miseries of sea-sickness and general -discomfort associated with sea-travel were a nightmare to the landsman. -But this quaint poem, which is the earliest sea-song in existence, so -well portrays the life of the seafaring man that it is most probably -the composition of a sailor accustomed to pursue his calling on one of -these merchant ships. Alternatively the author was a landsman who had -kept his eyes and ears open during the voyaging and noted accurately -the work on shipboard. The poem begins gloomily enough and describes -the getting under way, the hoisting of the ship’s boat, the setting -sail, trimming sheets, and the accommodating of the passenger-pilgrims. -In spite of the archaic spelling and phraseology it is surprising -how modernly this sea-song reads and how truly it seems to depict -contemporary ship life. - - “Men may leve all gamys - That saylen to Seynt Jamys: - For many a man hit gramys[23] - When they begyn to sayle. - - “For when they have take the see, - At Sandwyche, or at Wynchylsee, - At Brystow, or where that hit bee, - Theyr herts begyn to fayle. - - “Anone the mastyr commaundeth fast - To hys shyp-men in all the hast[24] - To dresse[25] hem sone about the mast, - Theyr takelyng to make. - - “With ‘howe! hissa!’ then they cry, - ‘What, howe! mate, thow stondyst to ny[26] - Thy fellow may nat hale the by’: - Thus they begyn to crake.[27] - - “A boy or tweyne anone up-styen,[28] - And overthwart the sayle-yerde lyen:-- - ‘Y how! taylia!’[29] the remenaunt cryen, - And pull with all theyr myght. - - “‘Bestowe[30] the boote, bote-swayne, anon, - That our pylgryms may pley thereon: - For som ar lyke to cowgh and grone, - Or hit be full mydnyght.’ - - “‘Hale the bowelyne! now, vere the shete! - Cooke, make redy anoon our mete, - Our pylgryms have no lust to ete, - I pray God yeve hem rest.’ - - “‘Go to the helm! what, howe! no nere![31] - Steward, felow! a pot of bere!’ - ‘Ye shall have, sir, with good chere, - Anone all of the best.’ - - “‘Y howe! trussa! hale in the brayles! - Thou halyst nat, be God, thow fayles![32] - O se howe well owre good shyp sayles!’ - And thus they say among. - - “‘Hale in the wartake!’[33] ‘Hit shall be done.’ - ‘Steward! cover the boorde anone,[34] - And set bred and salt thereone. - And tary nat to long.’ - - “Then cometh oone and seyth, ‘be mery: - Ye shall have a storme or a pery.’[35] - ‘Holde thow thy pese! thow canst no whery,[36] - Thow medlyst wondyr sore.’ - - “Thys menewhyle the pylgryms ly, - And have theyr bowlys fast them by, - And cry aftyr hote malvesy,[37] - ‘Thow helpe for to restore.’ - - “And som wold have a saltyd tost, - For they myght ete neyther sode ne rost[38]: - A man myght sone pay for theyr cost, - As for oo day or twayne. - - “Some layde theyr bookys on theyr kne, - And rad so long they myght nat se: - ‘Allas! myne hede woll cleve on thre,’[39] - Thus seyth another certayne. - - “Then cometh oure owner lyke a lorde, - And speketh many a royall worde, - And dresseth hym to the hygh borde - To see all thyng be well. - - “Anone he calleth a carpentere - And biddyth hym bryng with hym hys gere[40] - To make the cabans here and there, - With many a febyll cell. - - “A sak of strawe were there ryght good, - For som must lyg[41] them in theyr hood: - I had as lefe be in the wood, - Without mete or drynk. - - “For when that we shall go to bedde, - The pumpe was nygh our beddes hede, - A man were as good to be dede, - As smell thereof the stynk.”[42] - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE PERIOD OF COLUMBUS - - -It is curious to observe, as one reads history, that many an invention, -or a practical idea belonging to modern times, has really existed for -century and century, though in an undeveloped condition. The modern -liquid compass is an excellent instance. - - “Ere men the virtue of the magnet found, - The ocean scarcely heard a human sound.” - -But inasmuch as the ship is at the mercy of the sea, and since the -sea is a continually undulating entity, a compass which does not have -a corresponding adaptability is inadequate. This fact, as one might -naturally suppose, was appreciated by the early navigators. Ford[43] -quotes Bailak Kibdjaki, an Arabian writer of A.D. 1242, and shows that -at least a crude kind of liquid compass was in use by the Oriental -navigators. “The captains navigating the Syrian Sea,” says Kibdjaki, -“when the night is so dark as to conceal from view the stars, which -might direct their course according to the position of the four -cardinal points, take a basin full of water; they then drive a needle -into a wooden peg or cornstick, so as to form the shape of a cross, -and throw it into the basin of water, on the surface of which it -floats. They afterwards take a loadstone of sufficient size to fill -the palm of the hand, or even smaller, bring it to the surface of the -water, give the hand a rotary motion towards the right, so that the -needle turns on the water’s surface. They then suddenly and quickly -withdraw the hand, when the two points of the needle face north and -south. They have given me ocular demonstration of this process during -our sea voyage from Syria to Alexandria in the year 640 of the Hegira.” - -By the thirteenth century the people dwelling along the Mediterranean -littoral had long since become skilled seamen if not consummate -navigators. There is in the British Museum a volume by Francesco da -Barberino, entitled “Documenti d’Amore.” The author was born in 1264, -and in the ninth lection of this volume has so much to say about -nautical service that this forms what is really the first work on -seamanship that was ever written. Space will not allow more than a -cursory reference to this, but it contains evidence of the system into -which the Mediterranean sea-service had developed. The old custom which -was in vogue during classical times of limiting the sailing season -to certain months was retained. Thus Barberino remarks that the time -for navigation was from April to the end of September. Furthermore it -was not custom merely, but actual law. For maritime legislation had -originated during the twelfth century, and was continued in the “Loi de -Trani,” the “Code Navale des Rhodiens,” the “Code de la Mer,” and the -famous Laws of Oleron. In fact only the lawless, avaricious merchant -captains ventured to put to sea in the other six months of the year; -none but these cared to venture forth sailing through the long dark -nights, and the fogs, storms, and snow. - -Before the Iberian peninsula became so intimate with the problems of -navigation, Venice was, of course, the great medieval home of the -southern sailor, and those in authority saw that the marine affairs -were properly looked after. The captains of all commercial ships -sailing under the Venetian flag were, in 1569, forbidden to leave -Alexandria, Syria, or Constantinople any time between November 15 -and January 12. Such was the motherly care displayed for the State’s -shipping; but it is only fair to add that before very long such -restrictions on navigation were removed. - -Very interesting, too, is the advice which Barberino gives to pilots. -Remember, if you please, that the Mediterranean was the happy hunting -ground of professional pirates, and never a merchant ship put to sea -on a long voyage but she ran the risk of encountering these corsairs. -Therefore all pilots of trading craft were advised to make their ships -as little visible as possible. It is well for them to lower the white -sail when clear of the land and to hoist a small black one. Especially -at break of day is it unsafe to lower sail until out of sight of the -shore. “Then,” suggests Barberino, “send the top-man aloft to see if -an enemy be in sight.” Many another useful “wrinkle” is given, as, for -instance, how to act when the rudders carry away. Apparently the old -classical custom of a rudder affixed to each quarter, and both a small -and large mast and sail, was still retained. That smaller black sail -just mentioned was known among the Venetian seamen by the nickname of -“wolf,” from its colour and cunning. The mainmast being carried away, -then the smaller one, usually employed for the “wolf,” was stepped and -used. And if, in turn, that also went by the board, then the lateen -yard was to be used until dawn returned. There are directions, also, to -make a jury-rudder by towing a spar astern. - -During the night, as these ships sailed along over the heaving -Mediterranean and Adriatic with a great belly of canvas reaching down -from the massive lateen yard, strict silence was maintained on board. -After dark not even the boatswain was allowed to use his whistle, nor -were bells to be sounded--not an avoidable noise of any kind was to be -suffered lest the presence of the richly laden trading ship should be -suddenly revealed to some pirate hovering in the vicinity. The earliest -Venetian statutes affecting ships belong to the year 1172, and these, -after being considerably amplified in the thirteenth century, were -again added to in the fifteenth, after the conquest of Constantinople. -Every possible detail seems to have been regulated in connection with -these merchant ships. The general supervision was attended to with -the most meticulous care. The construction of these merchant ships -themselves, the quantity and quality of their cargo, the number of -their crew, their anchors, ropes, and gear generally, all came under -this control. - -Additional to the crew there were carried a couple of scribes on each -of these trading ships, for the purpose of keeping an exact account -of the freights. The skipper, or _padrone_, was compelled to be on -board his ship by the hour of departure, and was not allowed to quit -his ship till she reached her port. The accommodation for passengers -and crew was probably but primitive, and they apparently catered for -themselves; for each man, whether one of the crew or the passengers, -was suggestively permitted to bring with him a mattress and cushion, -a trunk for his belongings, a flask of wine, a flask of water, -together with flour and biscuit. Even in the early seventeenth century -the men on the Spanish warships used to cook each for himself, in -contradistinction to the English seamen, who had their meals prepared -by the ship’s cook. Though the Venetian ships up till the fifteenth -century did not dare to venture out into the “Green Sea of Darkness,” -as the Arabs termed the Atlantic, yet we cannot afford to despise ships -and men who regularly traded between the Adriatic and the Levant. Even -a modern sailing ship would have some difficulty in beating the passage -which one of these craft made in the year 1408, when she sailed from -Venice to Jaffa in thirty-three days, calling at various ports on the -way. - -Venice might have continued to hold the supreme position on the -sea had not Portugal and Spain taken to the ocean, and studied the -problems of navigation on a much grander and more scientific scale. -The discovery of America, and the doubling of the Cape of Good Hope, -the opening up of a sea route to India, all combined to take away -from Venice her commercial prestige, at any rate afloat. Relying -partly on the newly adopted magnetised needle, partly on their crude -astronomical instruments and tables of the movements of sun and moon; -trusting also to the most careful observations of weather, colour of -the sea, seaweed, tree branches and other objects found floating on -the surface of the ocean; noting carefully by night, as mariners for -centuries before them had been careful to notice, the north star and -other stellar bodies; but at the same time lacking reliable knowledge -of ocean currents and trade winds--the Portuguese discoverers were able -to keep the sea for months, independent of and out of sight of land, -an achievement which had not been brought about since the days when -the Phœnicians circumnavigated Africa. Venice had had her day; just as -Egypt, Phœnicia, Greece, and Rome before her, just as Spain, England, -Holland, and France later on were to become great maritime Powers. - -And so we come to that prince of navigators, that consummate seaman, -that greatest of all maritime discoverers, Columbus, and we shall -proceed to learn from contemporary accounts the kind of seamanship -and navigation which he employed on his memorable voyages, the life -which he and his companions lived in those historic cruises into the -unknown. Happily Columbus’s log is still preserved to us. Even though -it is somewhat mutilated, yet it is full of illuminating information, -and must be regarded as “the most important document in the whole -range of the history of geographical discovery.” The methods, the -instruments, even the ships employed by Columbus were merely typical of -the best which then were used. Emphatically they were not otherwise. -Therefore if we note carefully the ways of the _Santa Maria_, the -_Pinta_, and _Nina_, we are really focussing the most expert seamanship -and navigation of the fifteenth century. There were certainly ships -afloat as good as, if not better than the _Santa Maria_; but what is -to be remembered is that those illustrious explorers of the fifteenth -and sixteenth centuries were really expert navigators, and not merely -daring seamen, astute traders, or courageous soldiers. Columbus, Drake, -Davis, and so on were, according to their times, really scientific -men. I wish to emphasise this because the world is wont to admire -their valour and enterprise while forgetting their mental abilities -and achievements. As we shall see presently, Columbus’s navigation was -always better than that of the skippers of the _Nina_ and _Pinta_. -Drake was an excellent navigator, especially in regard to astronomical -navigation. Davis, as anyone who cares to read his works may see for -himself, was most learned in the theory of finding one’s way across the -trackless sea. - -In the light of modern knowledge, modern practice, and modern nautical -instruments, some of the errors in navigation of those days may -seem to us ridiculous, until we recollect that these men were really -fumbling in the darkness with nothing to guide them except moderate -knowledge, inefficient aids, and their own natural instincts. Long -before Christopher Columbus set out to the westward he had studied -cosmography and astrology at the University of Pavia. He had also -visited Lisbon, whither the fame of the achievements of Prince Henry -the Navigator’s illustrious captains had attracted other capable -seamen, among whom were such men as Da Gama, and his own elder brother -Bartolomeo. At this time Lisbon was still the centre of all nautical -and geographical enterprise. Here Bartolomeo was working as the head of -a school of cartography, and here Christopher had every opportunity for -studying the charts and logs of the greatest living sea captains after -Bartolomeo had returned home. He had the dual advantage of learning -all that both Genoa and Lisbon could teach him. Furthermore, he was a -practical seaman, and had already sailed as far to the north as Iceland. - -We need not stop to inquire whether Columbus was aware that already -many years before his time the Vikings had discovered North America. -It is at least most improbable that he was aware of this fact. What is -certain is that, fortified with all the nautical lore obtainable from -the greatest living Peninsular sea captains, he set out with a firm -conviction that the world was a sphere, and he was hoping to prove that -conviction. Himself a gifted cartographer, he would make his charts as -he went along. From Palos, then the most flourishing port of Andalusia, -a village that contained little else among its inhabitants than some -of the finest seamen-explorers in the world, he set sail with a fair -wind on August 3--a Friday--1492, in the _Santa Maria_. Accompanying -her were the two smaller craft _Nina_ and _Pinta_. “Carabela” was -not then applied to a particular species of ship, but only to certain -vessels of medium tonnage suitable for the diverse purposes of fishing, -coasting, and exploring.[44] In the Columbine Library at Seville there -is a map of Española drawn with a pen. In two places are seen outline -sketches of three sailing craft. Competent critics affirm that these -sketches were made by Columbus, and depict his squadron of three during -his first voyage to the West in 1492. If this opinion be correct, -then it is certain that the first ship was three-masted, so was the -second--doubtless the _Santa Maria_, the biggest of the three--but the -third ship is only two-masted. The first and second ships have a small -square foresail on the foremast; square mainsail and topsail on the -main, with a lateen on the mizzen. But the third ship has a lateen on -both masts. - -The _Santa Maria_ carried a crew of seventy, together with artillery -and stores enough for one year. In addition she had a large amount of -merchandise, which she could barter with the natives. Her displacement -has been estimated as about 200 tons, and some modern writers have -suggested that this was all too small a ship to cross the Atlantic. -Columbus, however, thought otherwise; for on his second voyage he had -demanded smaller vessels, his reason being that those of his first -expedition, on account of their size and draught, had caused him so -much anxiety. As to the canvas which the _Santa Maria_ carried, this -matter is instantly settled by reference to Columbus’s own log. If -we refer to his entry dated Wednesday, October 24, we find that: “I -remained thus with little wind until the afternoon, when it began to -blow fresh. I set all the sails in the ship, the mainsail with two -bonnets, the foresail, spritsail, mizzen, maintopsail, and the boat’s -sail on the poop.” (The bonnets were additional pieces of canvas laced -on to the foot of the sail)[45]. - -The time on board was evidently kept by hour-glasses of half or a -whole hour. Thus under date of Tuesday, January 22, when homeward -bound, his log reads: “They made 8 miles an hour during five glasses -... afterwards they went N.E. by N. for six glasses.... Then during -four glasses of the second watch N.E. at six miles an hour.” But the -reader must be cautious not to accept the speed given as conclusive. -One of the greatest drawbacks to navigation in those days was the -absence of any instrument which would record the speed through the -water. The log had yet to be invented, and the mariner could only make -a conjectural estimate of the ship’s speed by looking over the side and -noting the time it took the bubbles to come aft from the bow, or by -throwing a piece of wood overboard from the bows and noticing how long -it took for the stern to be abreast of that object. Many a steamship -traveller gambling on the ship’s speed does the same thing to-day; many -a fore-and-aft sailorman with no patent log still employs a similar -method. - -Columbus’s journal shows the kind of helmsman which he had to put up -with. On September 9, when the ship’s course was west, the narrator -on board wrote: “The sailors steered badly, letting the ship fall off -to N.E., and even more; respecting which the Admiral complained many -times.” On September 13 Columbus observed a variation in the compass. -“On this day, at the commencement of the night, the needles turned a -half point to N.W., and in the morning they turned somewhat more N.W.” -For up till then no one had observed the variation of the needle. - -[Illustration: FIFTEENTH-CENTURY CARAVEL. - -Drawn from a woodcut after a delineation by Columbus in the Latin -translation of his letter dated March 1, 1493, to Don Raphael de Sanxis -(Treasurer of the King of Spain), in the Library at Milano. - -(See next plate.)] - -No navigator could have been more careful than Columbus. Ever on the -alert, he was far too anxious about the safety of his fleet to neglect -one single precaution. As they voyaged, the difference in the saltness -of the sea was noted; and though for eleven days the wind blew steadily -from aft so that the sails required no trimming, yet all the while -Columbus was busy with astrolabe and sounding lead endeavouring to fix -his position in regard to the land which they had long since left. From -Wednesday, February 13, till the following Saturday, he never slept -a wink, being far too anxious to leave the navigation to others. The -pilots of the _Nina_ and _Pinta_ on the voyage out used to work out -their positions for themselves. On September 19 the _Nina_ made the -Canaries to be 440 leagues astern, the _Pinta_ estimated the distance -as 420, but on board Columbus’s ship the reckoning was 400 leagues, -and this was the most correct of the three. (It should be added that -Columbus used Italian miles, reckoning four Italian miles to one -league.) He compared notes with the pilots under him, and manœuvred -his ship so that the captain of the _Pinta_ was able to pass his chart -on board the _Santa Maria_ at the end of a line. Columbus, after -conferring with his own pilots and mariners, plotted on the chart the -position of the ship. Here and there all the way through Columbus’s -journal, both in those lines written by his own hand and in those in -another handwriting, there rises up, quite clearly, evidence of the -knowledge which this man had been collecting before setting out. “The -admiral was aware,” says the Journal, “that most of the islands held by -the Portuguese were discovered by the flight of birds.” Just as the -Viking seamen had discovered land in exactly the reverse manner--by -letting loose birds from the ship. - -Nor are there lacking plenty of references to the seamanship of these -times--the kind of seamanship, we may not unjustly assume, that was -employed alike by the Spanish traders who crossed the Bay of Biscay, -and sailed up the English Channel to Flanders, and those who went -exploring to the southward. No one better than these medieval and -Elizabethan sailormen appreciated the importance of having a ship -that would heave-to in bad weather or at night. You will remember -that dramatic incident at the end of Columbus’s first voyage across -the Atlantic, when the distant light, as of a candle going up and -down in the hand of someone proceeding from one house to another, -indicated that at last the new land had been found. “At two hours after -midnight,” says the log, “the land was sighted.” Then (continues the -narrative), “they shortened sail, and lay by under mainsail without the -bonnets. The vessels were hove-to waiting for daylight.” - -And again, when on the homeward voyage after the loss of the _Santa -Maria_ the _Nina_ was caught in a heavy gale of wind, we find from her -log that she stowed canvas, but “carried the mainsail very closely -reefed, so as just to give her steerage-way, and proceeded thus for -three hours, making 20 miles.” During that same dreadful night, when -they all but foundered, Columbus kept showing lanterns to the _Pinta_, -which answered back by the same method. “The want of ballast increased -the danger of the ship, which had become light owing to the consumption -of provisions and water,” so they filled with sea water the barrels -which had contained wine and drinking water, and employed these to -steady the vessel. “Afterwards,” continues the same narrative, “in the -showers and squalls, the wind veered to the west, and they went before -it, with only the foresail, in a very confused sea for five hours. -They made 2½ leagues N.E. They had taken in the reefed mainsail, for -fear some wave of the sea should carry all away.” And when the weather -presently moderated, Columbus “added the bonnet to the mainsail.” - -The _Santa Maria_, with her high poop and forecastle, was not a -particularly dry ship. On September 8, when outward bound, her log -admits that near Teneriffe she “took in much sea over the bows.” But -whether that was through bad seamanship or bad luck one cannot say. It -is certain that, at any rate, the crew were very far from perfect in -their art; otherwise the _Santa Maria_ would never have been wrecked -in that totally inexcusable manner. It was not the fault of Columbus. -He had not had any rest for two days and a night, and those of us who -have been ceaselessly on watch for that time, know how great a strain -it puts on a man’s eyes and nerves and physical endurance. So, as -the wind was very light, Columbus went below at eleven o’clock that -night. It was so beautifully fine, and the sea was so calm, that the -steersman also was tempted to sleep; and, giving the tiller in charge -of a boy, he shut his eyes and dozed off. This was distinctly contrary -to Columbus’s orders, for the boys were forbidden ever to touch the -helm. At midnight, you will remember, there was a flat calm, but still -imperceptibly the poor _Santa Maria_ was being carried on to a sandbank -by the current. Very gently she took the ground, but when the boy -noticed that the helm refused to move, but that the tide was rushing -by the ship and tumbling over the shoal, he became alarmed and cried -out. Up came Columbus from his cabin under the poop, who, taking in -the situation at a glance, began to give his orders in a cool and -seaman-like manner. The first command showed that he knew his business, -when he had ordered a boat on the poop to be lowered, and the crew to -“lay out an anchor astern,” as the log states, to haul her off. But the -men in the boat, being less anxious for the safety of the ship than for -their own bodies, paid no regard to the kedging of the _Santa Maria_, -but rowed off to the next ship. Then, finally, Columbus was compelled -to order the masts to be cut away, and the ship to be lightened; but -it was of no avail. The water rose inside, and her timbers opened. But -right to the end Columbus the discoverer showed that he was every bit -as fine a seaman as he was a clever navigator. - -[Illustration: “ORDERED ... THE CREW TO LAY OUT AN ANCHOR ASTERN.”] - -If we would endeavour to fill in the details to our mental picture -of the _Santa Maria_, we can find much that is interesting. We have -already been thinking of her as a three-masted caravel. Let us step -on board and tread her single deck at the waist between the foremast -and main. As we examine the gear we shall find it rough but strong. -The cordage is of hemp, the masts are serviceable, but only rudely -finished. The mainmast measures 2½ feet in diameter, whilst the -yards--like the yard of the lateen-rigged craft--follow the historic -custom of the Mediterranean of being made of two pieces lashed together -at the centre. Aloft flies the admiral’s flag of Columbus, and this -he always carried in his hand when going ashore to take possession of -newly discovered territory. - -The hull seems to have been constructed somewhat roughly, and iron -nails are already showing their rusty contact with the sea water. -There is precious little ornamentation, too, for there was not much -decoration expended on ships in those days, and certainly not on a -Flemish merchantman. The hull was painted with tar, whilst below the -water-line it was greased so as to minimise the friction through the -water. To do this it was customary to beach the ship, and on two -occasions during his voyage Columbus saw that this was done. On deck -a couple of hatchways led to the hold. The quarter-deck extended from -about midships to the stern, and above this rose the poop-deck. On the -latter were the quarters of the admiral. We know from this journal that -Columbus’s bed was draped in red, and that there was certainly room -for several persons to be seated in this cabin. There was a press for -his clothes, a stool, a couple of chairs, and a dining-table for two -persons, the furniture being all fashioned in the Gothic style which -was then prevalent. Add to this inventory charts and books, as well as -an astrolabe, and you have the picture of his cabin complete. - -When getting under way, the _Santa Maria_ shipped her anchor by means -of the fore yard-arm. In those days there was of course no steering -wheel, but the tiller came right in under the quarter-deck, and a bar -was attached to the forward end of the tiller. There is and has been -for so many centuries such a close relation between ships and hammocks -that it is interesting to observe that hammocks were introduced by -Columbus and his companions after contact with the West Indians, who -were accustomed to use them. We cannot, indeed, envy the life of the -seamen on these Columbine ships. There was certainly a galley made of -brick with an iron cross-piece, but the food, which consisted of bacon, -beans, salt fish, cheese, and bread, was, thanks to the heat and damp -of the hold, in a very bad condition. - -We shall speak in greater detail on a later page concerning the -astrolabe, but whilst we are considering these fifteenth-century ships -and the surprisingly good landfalls which Columbus made, it is worth -while to remember that observations were frequently made only with -great difficulty. “The North Star,” says the log, “appeared very high, -as it does off Cape St. Vincent. The Admiral was unable to take the -altitude either with the astrolabe or with the quadrant, because the -rolling caused by the waves prevented it.” We cannot be positively sure -of all the crew which sailed on board the _Santa Maria_, for some of -the papers which could have helped the historian are missing. But, in -addition to Columbus, she carried one master, two pilots, a surgeon, -a quartermaster, a clerk, an interpreter, a carpenter, a caulker, a -cooper, a steward, a gunner, and a bugler, as well as the gentlemen -adventurers, their servants, and the seamen. - -[Illustration: FIFTEENTH-CENTURY CARAVEL. - -This is the same ship as in the preceding plate, but shows mizzen set.] - -There was a never-failing fear of fire on these ships, and stringent -rules forbade lights after dark, except one for the helmsman and -one below deck when carefully protected by a lantern. Columbus’s -ship carried a lantern at the stern, mica being used at first and -subsequently glass. There was a strong religious atmosphere that must -not be lost sight of in considering the ship life as exhibited on board -Columbus’s fleet. Dominating the whole expedition was the intention to -glorify God, to spread His kingdom on earth. As you read through this -log you find the crew mustering to sing the “Salve” before the statue -of Our Lady--“Stella Maris.” On her festivals, and on such historic -occasions as when he made land, Columbus was wont to dress ship. So, -too, before the expedition left the mother-land for the Indies, every -man made his will and went to confession and communion, so that he -might come on board in a state of grace. And there were stringent rules -on board to prevent blasphemy, excessive gambling, or doing anything to -the dishonour of the king. - -Equally illustrative of the ways and methods of the seamen at the end -of the fifteenth and the beginning of the sixteenth centuries are -Columbus’s letters dealing with his subsequent voyages. One of these -letters he concludes thus: “Done on board the caravel off the Canary -Islands,” and signs himself “The Admiral.” Some idea of the speed of -his ship during his second voyage to the West Indies may be seen from -the letter addressed to the Chapter of Seville by Dr. Chanca, physician -to the fleet, in which he states that in two days, with fair wind and -weather, they made fifty leagues. But the _Capitana_ was such a slow -sailer that many times the others had to shorten sail. On the first -voyage the _Nina_ similarly had to wait for the _Pinta_ to catch her -up, and this lack of homogeneity in the fleet certainly lost them much -time. - -In order to ensure a careful look-out being kept, a handsome reward had -been promised to the first man sighting land. This was claimed “on the -first Sunday after All Saints, namely, the third of November, about -dawn,” when a pilot of the _Capitana_ cried out: “The reward! I see the -land.” Of all the ship’s company, Columbus himself excepted, the pilots -were the smartest and most skilful men, who “could navigate to or from -Spain” “by their knowledge of the stars.” We see Columbus on his third -voyage displaying all those characteristics of the cautious manner -which had distinguished him already. There was little enough that he -left to chance. When he was entering a strange haven, he used to send a -boat out ahead in order to take soundings. (His ship the _Santa Maria_ -had a large boat about 30 feet long which was usually towed astern, and -a smaller boat about 10 feet long which was hoisted on deck.) “I passed -thirty-three days without natural rest,” he writes in connection with -his second voyage. - -Speaking of his navigation during the third voyage, he tells us that -“at the end of these eight days it pleased our Lord to give me a -favourable east wind, and I steered to the west, but did not venture to -move lower down towards the south, because I discovered a very great -change in the sky and stars.... I resolved, therefore, to keep on the -direct westward course in a line from Sierra Leone, and not to change -it until I reached the point where I had thought I should find land.” -On the return journey he writes: “As to the Polar Star, I watched it -with great wonder, and devoted many nights to a careful examination of -it with the quadrant, and I always found that the lead and line fell -to the same point!” And as he sailed he wondered in his mind. Where -never a ship, never a man had voyaged before Columbus had gone. What, -after all, was the shape of this earth? “I have always read,” he says, -“that the world comprising the land and water was spherical, and the -recorded experiences of Ptolemy and all others have proved this by the -eclipses of the moon, and other observations made from east to west, -as well as by the elevation of the pole from north to south. But ... -I have come to another conclusion ... namely, that it is not round as -they describe, but of the form of a pear.” - -[Illustration: THREE-MASTED FIFTEENTH-CENTURY CARAVEL. - -Drawn from a woodcut after a delineation by Columbus in the Latin -translation of his letter dated March 1, 1493, to Don Raphael de Sanxis -(Treasurer of the King of Spain), in the Library at Milano.] - -[Illustration: SIXTEENTH-CENTURY CARAVEL AT SEA. - -After the woodcut of Hansen Burgmair, in the History of Emperor -Maximilian the First, compiled by Marx Freithsauerwein in the year -1514.] - -For his fourth voyage he had most favourable weather. He got from -Cadiz to the Canaries in four days, and thence to the West Indies in -sixteen days. But then a great storm came down and lasted eighty-eight -days, during which “my ships lay exposed, with sails torn, and -anchors, rigging, cables, boats, and a great quantity of provisions -lost.” Finally, on January 24, his ship broke both her cables and -her bollards. “I departed in the name of the Holy Trinity, on Easter -night, with the ships rotten, worm-eaten, and full of holes” ... “and -in this condition I had to cross 7000 miles of sea.” “My ships were -pierced with worm-holes, like a bee-hive.” “With three pumps, and -the use of pots and kettles, we could scarcely with all hands clear -the water that came into the ship, there being no remedy but this -for the mischief done by the ship worm ... the other ship was half -under water.” But Columbus never lost heart, never failed to believe -in scientific navigation. Where had he got to; whither had his ship -attained? “I ascertained, however, by the compass and by observation, -that I moved parallel with the coast of terra firma.” “There is a mode -of reckoning,” he observes, “derived from astronomy which is sure and -safe, and a sufficient guide to anyone who understands it.” - -And there are two very interesting comments which he makes as a seaman -rather than a navigator that ought certainly to be noticed. The first -occurs in his initial voyage across the Atlantic; the second in a -letter dealing with this last cruise. “Many times the caravel _Nina_ -had to wait for the _Pinta_,” runs the narrative, “because _she sailed -badly when on a bowline_,[46] the mizzen being of little use owing to -the weakness of the mast.” ... “The India vessels do not sail except -with the wind abaft, but this is not because they are badly built or -clumsy, but because the strong currents in those parts, together with -the wind, render it impossible to sail with the bowline, for in one -day they would lose as much way as they might have made in seven; for -the same reason I could make no use of caravels, even though they were -Portuguese lateens.” - -It will be remembered that the _Nina_ had started out originally as a -lateener, but this triangular-shaped sail was changed at Grand Canary -to a squaresail before crossing the Atlantic. To “sail on a bowline” -was to sail on a wind. In those days, when the cut of the squaresail -was very bad, bowlines were really necessary for stretching the sails -so that they set a flat surface without too much belly. The _Pinta_ was -apparently all right when running before the wind, but not much good -close-hauled, owing to the fact that the mizzen-mast could not endure -the strain. And similarly with reference to the second statement, -Columbus makes it perfectly clear that these vessels had to be sailed -“ramping full,” as we should say nowadays; it was useless to try to -“pinch” them. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE EARLY TUDOR PERIOD - - -I make no apology to the reader for having taken up so much of his time -in a consideration of the methods which obtained during the time of -Christopher Columbus, not merely because by his splendid seamanship and -navigation a new world was revealed to the old, but because of the two -arts in question at the time when the Middle Ages were beginning to ebb -into obscurity, he was one of the finest if not the very best exponent. -Not that he was very amply rewarded for his wondrous achievements. -Although it is true he did receive other remuneration, yet his pay was -only at the rate of 1600 francs per annum, and that of his two captains -was but 960 francs. The crew’s wages were from 12 to 25 francs a month -in addition to their mess allowance. - -But now we find ourselves in the sixteenth century. Thanks to the new -interest in nautical matters which had been aroused by Prince Henry the -Navigator, thanks to the marvellous and true yarns which ocean-going -skippers brought back of their discoveries, there began a new sort -of profession for men who were at all attracted to the sea. It was a -profession which, obviously, could not exist for many, nor last for -many centuries. But for those who were wearied of shore monotony, who -had ambition and dash and loved adventure, there was a keen fascination -in becoming one of that great band of “new land seekers.” Charles V, -you will remember, became King of Spain in the year 1517, while the -period of 1485 to 1547 was covered by the reigns of Henry VII and Henry -VIII of England. Not till the year 1555 did Charles V retire into the -monastery of Yuste. Besides the influence of these three remarkable men -at a critical time of the world’s history, there was also roaming over -Europe that Renaissance movement which, checked here and there, could -not be utterly constrained when it spread itself over shipping. Or, to -change altogether the metaphor, spring was in the air: the buds were -about to burst forth into the glorious flowers of new colonies. - -[Illustration: SIXTEENTH-CENTURY CARAVEL AT ANCHOR. - -After the Woodcut of Hansen Burgmair.] - -And since it was obvious that discovery had to be made by traversing -long expanses of ocean, and that this could only be done by a sound -knowledge of navigation, those in authority were not slow to realise -that lectures and instruction on this subject at home meant presently -an increase of territory and wealth across the seas. Prince Henry on -his promontory had been the first to grasp this. Now also Charles V not -only established a Pilot Major for the examination of those who sought -to take ships to the West Indies, but also founded a lecture on the art -of navigation which was given in the Contractation House at Seville. -Those anxious to qualify as pilots had to learn thoroughly the use of -the astrolabe and quadrant, and obtain a thorough grasp of the theory -and practice of sailing a ship from one port to another out of sight of -land. For this instruction they had to pay fees, but it more than -repaid them many times over when they were able to bring back such -valuable commodities. Furthermore, as experience gains knowledge, so -every voyage taught them something of their art which hitherto they had -not known--the direction of a current, the state of the moon when high -tide occurred at such and such an hour, the depth of those new harbours -they had entered, the position of the outlying shoals, the landmarks on -shore, the temper of the natives, the kind of commodities which could -be obtained in the districts, and so on. The pilots brought all these -details home at the end of every voyage, made the necessary corrections -in the charts (and this not by choice, but by compulsion), so that -always there was being compiled a set of sailing directions and an ever -improving bundle of charts which were simply invaluable to State and -seamen alike. - -Thus also there came to be published treatises and manuals on the -seaman’s art, for the instruction of a community that numbered very -few sailors in proportion to its landsmen. Such authors as Martin -Cortes, Alonso de Chavez, Hieronymo de Chavez, Roderigo Zamorano in -time wrote these works, and their influence not merely on Spain, but -upon England, was considerable, until the English seamen of the time -of Elizabeth had produced such nautical experts of their own that they -were able to write better books themselves. But even prior to that -time England had begun to see the wisdom of Spain; and Henry VIII, -following the example of Charles V, “for the increase of knowledge in -his Seamen, with princely liberalities erected three severall Guilds or -brotherhoods, the one at Deptford here upon the Thames, the other at -Kingston upon Hull, and the third at Newcastle upon Tine.” So, indeed, -states Hakluyt. That at Deptford was licensed in 1513, “in honour of -the Holy Trinity and St. Clement in the Church of Deptford Stronde for -reformation of the Navy lately much decayed by admission of young men -without experience, and of Scots, Flemings, and Frenchmen as loadsmen.” -Navy is used here in its literal sense, meaning shipping as a whole. -The word “loadsmen”--otherwise “leadsmen”--was the customary expression -in the North of Europe for pilot. To this day the Dutch word for pilot -is “loods,” “lood” being the Dutch for lead. What does this signify? -It shows--does it not?--that until, thanks to Spain, the astrolabe -began to be used in Northern Europe, the pilot was not so much he -who found his way by fixing his position from the heavenly bodies, -but he who felt his way by the sounding of the lead. In a sentence, -then, whilst of course the lead and line are essential even to modern -navigation, yet historically they belong to the Middle Ages and right -back to Greece and even earlier; while the astrolabe and the finding of -a ship’s latitude are essentially the beginning of that new order of -things which we have already noted. So long as ships were content to -do little more than coasting they had no need of an astrolabe; but as -a lead and line are not much good to one who navigates the Atlantic to -the West Indies, so the new species of voyaging coincided with the new -instrument for ascertaining a ship’s position. - -[Illustration: A SIXTEENTH-CENTURY ASTROLABE. - -This instrument, in the S. Kensington Museum, is supposed actually to -have been on board one of the ships of the Spanish Armada.] - -[Illustration: ASTROLABE USED BY THE ENGLISH NAVIGATORS OF THE -SIXTEENTH CENTURY.] - -What, then, was the astrolabe? It was an instrument used for taking -the altitude of the sun and stars. For two hundred years before it was -used by the Christian seamen of the Mediterranean, it had been employed -by the Arabian pilots in the eastern seas. The derivation of such a -curious word is not without interest. The Arabic is “asthar-lab,” and -this in turn came from the two Greek words, ἀστήρ and λαμβανω, meaning -“to take a star.” It consisted of a flat brass ring, some 15 inches -in diameter, of which an excellent illustration can here be seen. -It was graduated along the rim in degrees and minutes, fitted with -two sights. There was a movable index which turned on the centre and -marked the angle of elevation. When the mariner wished to take the -height of the sun with this instrument he proceeded as follows: The sun -being near the meridian or south, the pilot observed the same until -it reached its greatest height. Then, holding the ring on one of his -fingers, he turned the alhidada up and down until he saw the shadow -of the sun pass through both the sights thereof, being sure that the -astrolabe hung upright. The astrolabe was best for taking the height -of the sun when the sun was very high at 60, 70, or 80 degrees; for -the sun, coming near “unto your zenith,” has great power of light for -piercing the two sights of the alhidada of the astrolabe, and then it -was not good to use the cross-staff (reference to which will be made -below), because the sun hurt a man’s eyes and was also too high for the -cross-staff. Furthermore the astrolabe, was a more correct method than -that of the cross-staff. - -It was thanks to the aid of Martin Behaim, a distinguished cosmographer -who came to Lisbon to co-operate with the learned men there assembled, -that an improved _sea_ astrolabe was adapted for the purpose of -determining the distance from the Equator, by means of the altitude of -the sun or stars at sea. There had, indeed, been in use for some time -a _land_ astrolabe for finding the latitude of a place, and it was but -a natural advance that this instrument should be adapted for use on -board ship, so that the mariner might be able to ascertain his position -on the vast expanse of trackless ocean. We are all most ready to -admire and extol the men and the ships which made such daring voyages -and discoveries in the past; but I submit that nothing like adequate -recognition has been paid to the essential value of the astrolabe and -cross-staff, or their successor, the modern sextant. Even if in those -days which marked the close of the Middle Ages there had suddenly been -invented and built a whole fleet of turbine steamships with capable -crews, yet still without the instrument of finding latitude they could -have had only vague ideas as to their position and would only have been -able to produce unsatisfactory charts. Indeed, as a modern writer has -remarked, it was this improved sea astrolabe which “removed the last -doubt in Columbus’s mind as to the possibility of carrying out his -plans of discovery.” - -Thus it came about that the man who could work an astrolabe was a -person of some importance. He was held in high honour by the crew, -since he alone was able to state the ship’s position and her course -thence to her nearest port. Naturally, therefore, those Arabian pilots -and Oriental astronomers who had been brought to the Iberian peninsula -would go swaggering along the streets of Lisbon wearing these sea-rings -conspicuously both as their badge of office and as indicative of their -dignity. It was Behaim’s astrolabe which was used by Columbus, by Vasco -da Gama, by Diaz, and others in their stupendous voyages: and still -more valuable was it with the addition of the tables of the sun’s -declination, first reduced by Behaim also. Nevertheless, we must not -omit to bear in mind that as far back as the eighth century Messahala, -a learned Rabbi, had already written a treatise on the astrolabe, and -that even earlier still--in the sixth century B.C.--the astrolabe for -use on shore had been invented by Hipparchus. But had the achievements -of the ancients much influence, do you ask, on the cosmographers and -astronomers of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries? The answer is -most certainly in the affirmative; and the greatest experts of this -period had a very complete knowledge of the work of their predecessors. - -But for the same purpose of taking the height of the sun there was -employed an instrument called the cross-staff; of which the Spanish -word (adapted from the Greek) was the “balla stella.” The drawback to -the astrolabe was that it was difficult to use it with accuracy owing -to the rolling and pitching of the ship. Therefore the cross-staff, -being more steadily held in the hand, began to supersede the astrolabe. -Bourne, the famous Elizabethan navigational expert, insisted that -because the sea “causeth the shippe to heave” the best way to take the -sun’s height was with the cross-staff: furthermore, the degrees on -this instrument were marked larger than on the astrolabe. Also in a -larger instrument an error was seen sooner. The method of use in taking -the height of the sun, he explained, was as follows: Note with your -compass the sun when the latter approaches the meridian. When it has -arrived at S. by E. then begin to take the sun’s height thus: Put the -“transitorie” (or cross-piece) on the long staff, set the end of the -long staff close to the eye, “winking with your other eye,” and then -move the transitory forwards or backwards until you see the lower end -of it (“being just with the horizon”) and the upper end of it (“being -just with the middle of the sun”), “both to agree with the sunne and -the horizon at one time.” Observe the same until you see the sun at the -highest and beginning to descend. You have then finished. - -[Illustration: A SIXTEENTH-CENTURY NAVIGATOR USING THE CROSS-STAFF.] - -[Illustration: A SIXTEENTH-CENTURY COMPASS CARD.] - -It is not my intention to digress from the path of historical -continuity, but let the reader bear in mind how very little the -navigator of this period had to help him. He had the compass for -indicating the direction of the ship’s head, and he had the astrolabe -and cross-staff for showing him his altitude. But two intensely -important data he could not yet obtain accurately: (1) his longitude, -and (2) the distance run by the ship in any given time. Very great -errors were made in both of these. It was not until the introduction -of the log-line in the seventeenth century that a ship could tell -with even approximate accuracy her daily run. For many a long year -all the cunning Jews and Arabs, all the philosophers, the astronomers -and physicians, all the cleverest men out of Portugal, Spain, Genoa, -Venice, and the Balearic Isles had tried but failed to solve this -proposition. And the coming of the perfect chronometer for finding the -longitude was delayed even longer still. - -Every modern deep-sea navigator is familiar with what is known as Great -Circle Sailing. For the landsman it may be sufficient to explain that -this principle seems to contradict Euclid’s assertion that the shortest -distance between any two points is a straight line. In the case of a -globe this statement of Euclid does not apply. Every steamer between -Liverpool and New York to-day sails on a great circle for the most part -of her passage. “Great circles” are those whose plane passes through -the centre of the earth: for example, the Equator is a “great circle.” -Now as far back as the year 1497 Pedro Nunez made the startling but -true announcement that in sailing from one port to another the shortest -course was along an arc of a great circle of the terrestrial sphere. -And this fact was appreciated by such Elizabethan navigators as John -Davis in his voyaging across the North Atlantic. - -[Illustration: AN OLD NOCTURNAL. - -In the S. Kensington Museum.] - -The training of a navigator such as went on in Seville was very -thorough, so that it formed an excellent precedent for all who had at -heart the education of the complete navigator. The training in the year -1636 was a three-year course, and the following curriculum is given for -that year by Sir Clements Markham in his “Sea Fathers”:-- - -First Year: (1) The sphere of Sacrobosco. (2) The four rules of -Arithmetic: Rule of three, extraction of square root, cube root, and -fractions. (3) The theory of Purbach, or planets and eclipses. (4) The -spherical trigonometry of Regiomontanus. (5) The Almagest of Ptolemy. - -Second Year: (1) The first six books of Euclid. (2) Arcs and chords, -right sines, tangents and secants. (3) To complete Regiomontanus and -Ptolemy. - -Third Year: (1) Cosmography and navigation. (2) Use of astrolabe. (3) -The methods of observing the movements of heavenly bodies. (4) The use -of the globe and of mathematical instruments. (5) The construction of a -watch. - -It must not be forgotten that the life on board a Tudor ship was, even -for rough, rude, untutored seamen, full of hardships, even if full -of adventure. Anyone who cares to look through the records of the -voyages can see this for himself. We are accustomed to regard that as -a romantic age; but the romance is only visible through the avenue of -distance which now separates us from those times. The victualling was -disgracefully mismanaged at the beginning of the sixteenth century. The -crews of ships were actually allowed to fight in the English Channel -for their country in a condition that was almost sheer starvation. -Actually the commissariat department was so bad that ships had to -return home from the region of battle to fetch supplies. There was -nothing very romantic, either, in having to serve on ships which exuded -a terrible stench from their holds. A horrible mixture of bilge-water -and decayed food, coupled with the heat of the galley, helped to make -the health of the Tudor sailorman anything but good. - -Henry VII had done his best to encourage enterprising shipbuilders by -giving them a bounty on the tonnage built, and there is a record of -at least one ship’s smith being given an annuity for his services to -the king’s ships. This, like many other customs, had been derived from -Spain. Still, for all that, the warships put to sea with so many leaks -that “the water cam in as it wer in a seve.” And there was no dry dock -until Henry VII built the first at Portsmouth with timber gates and -“one ingyn to draw water owte of the seid dokke.” When they went forth -to the naval wars of this period they fought with bows, arrows, spears -and demi-lances, morris-pikes, halberds, bills, guns (including falcons -and harquebuses). There were rammers and powder for the guns, and shot -of iron, stone, and lead, artillery having been recently introduced. -Portholes had also been introduced in the reign of Henry VII, and the -passing of the Viking type of ship to that of a bigger, more seaworthy -type, with high-charged stern and bow, was the beginning of a new order -of things. Gradually the merchantman became separated from the pure -warship, and cannon took the place of the hand-to-hand encounter. But -these changes came only by slow stages. - -In the time of Henry VIII England was still leaning on the work of the -foreign shipwright. Spain, Genoa, Venice, and the Hanseatic League all -helped. The arsenal at Venice at this time was a wonderful depôt for -shipping--wonderful in its completeness and systematisation. There was -everything always ready here for the ship to be used at a moment’s -notice. Over a hundred ship-houses were there, containing all the -component parts of craft. Armouries, foundries, rope-works, workshops, -stores of timber, provisions, and munitions of war--it was all done -on a big scale. Such was the perfection of organisation that the -master-carpenters and their men actually demonstrated their ability to -put together all the detached parts of a galley--rigging included--in -less than a couple of hours. - -Spain supplied a good deal of the iron for the anchors and guns of -England until our forefathers quarried for themselves. Thanks to -Continental influence, a knowledge of artillery was growing up in -England and employed usefully on board our ships of war. Had you met -any of these craft at sea you would have been struck by the painted -sails, bearing the picture of a saint or whatever device the admiral -preferred. Those high forecastles and poops were also most splendidly -decorated, so likewise the shields round the upper part of the castles -were emblazoned with the arms and devices of the admiral. There were -flags bravely flying on the forecastle, on the poop, and amidships; -from the main-top a broad swallow-tailed standard flew bearing the -admiral’s devices and reaching down to the water. Every mast had its -bunting, and for celebrating a triumph the ship was still further -draped with rich cloth. Thus she looked, with her many flags fluttering -in the wind, more like a fair-ground than an instrument of war. - -Such a ship as the famous _Great Harry_ (1500 tons) carried quite -a big company--400 soldiers, 260 sailors, and 40 gunners. Admirals -and captains were still rather military officers and courtiers than -sailors, though the masters were responsible for the handling of the -ship. On this same vessel there were below the rank of master the -following ratings: master’s mate, four pilots, four quartermasters, -quartermasters’ mates, boatswain and boatswain’s mate, cockswain and -his mate, master-carpenter and his mate, under-carpenter, two caulkers, -purser, three stewards, three cooks, cooks’ mates, two yeomen of the -stryks (ropes) and their mates, and two yeomen of the ports with their -mates. Some sort of uniform was worn by the officers, consisting of -green and white coats--the Tudor colours. - -In Henry VIII’s time dockyards were established at Woolwich, Erith, and -Deptford, as well as at Portsmouth. Originally the custom was to lay -up the ships in the autumn and fit out in the spring; but at this time -the excellent practice of keeping some ships cruising the Channel in -the winter months was developed. The rate of pay in Henry VIII’s navy -allowed the admiral ten shillings a day and a captain one and sixpence -a day, while the wages of each soldier, mariner, and gunner were five -shillings a month plus five shillings a month for victuals. Conduct -money for those who had to travel long distances to join their ships -was at the rate of sixpence a day, twelve miles being reckoned as one -day’s journey. - -Copper and gilt ornamentations were added to the end of the bowsprit -on Henry VIII’s ships, says Mr. Oppenheim, whilst gilt crowns for the -mastheads had been the practice for centuries. Before going into action -a ship would sometimes coil her cable round the deck breast high and -hang thereon mattresses and blankets as a kind of protection. And here -we must say a word concerning the development of naval tactics. As in -other maritime departments, so in regard to this England owed a great -deal to Spanish influence. Naval warfare in the Mediterranean was -already a science, and learned treatises had been written thereon. If -the Spaniards were not a race of seamen by nature, at least they had -developed the scientific side of the sailor’s life in advance of the -English. The awakening from medievalism in marine matters which had -spread to our own shores not unnaturally aroused an interest in the -proper manner of controlling a fleet. The earliest set of fleet orders -in English was that which appeared about the year 1530, written by -Thomas Audley, and still preserved in a Harleian MS. This Thomas Audley -wrote “A Book of Orders for the War both by Land and Sea,” at the -command of Henry VIII. In effect these orders are the final expression -of English medieval ideas before the introduction of artillery and the -practice of broadside fire had started a new school of modern tactics. -Audley’s fleet orders, based on the practice of previous centuries, -insisted on the importance of getting the weather-gage of the enemy, -laid down how to board an enemy--boarding in those days meaning, of -course, engaging him in combat alongside--and denoted the sphere of an -admiral’s action. - -In 1543 appeared the “Book of War by Sea and Land,” written by Jehan -Bytharne, Gunner in Ordinary to the King. This contained a number of -regulations for governing the fleet, for ornamenting and painting -the ships, and for the use of flags both for celebrating a triumph -and--this is important--for the purpose of signalling, as, for example, -informing the flagship when the enemy had been espied. Bear in mind -that in the Spanish Navy flag signalling had, following the Spanish -advance towards science, become already a fine art. It is true that -even in England this had been in vogue for centuries, and the earliest -code is to be found in the “Black Book of the Admiralty,” and dates -from about 1340. But the Spanish system was less crude and elementary. - -By the middle of the sixteenth century naval tactics in England had -advanced even further still, as the instructions issued in connection -with the Battle of Shoreham indicate. They are too long to detail here, -but it is noticeable that they show both a knowledge of the handling of -ships and a mind that has escaped from medieval muddle. The arranging -of the fleet in proper divisions, each with its own work to perform, -the exact position which was to be maintained, and so on, are well -worth consideration. And each division was to wear the St. George’s -ensign at a different place for purposes of recognition. Those in the -first rank were to fly it from the fore-topmast, those in the second -rank to wear it on the mainmast, and so on. - -During the latter half of the sixteenth century, when the autumn came -round each year and most of the royal ships had ended their cruising -till the following spring, it was customary to take these vessels round -to the Medway. Even ships from Portsmouth were hither brought, and they -lay moored in Gillingham Reach. This made a convenient and sheltered -anchorage, and yet was not too far from the Tower of London. When the -time arrived again for fitting out, the ammunition was put on board -barges at the Tower and these, taking the ebb down the Thames and the -flood up the Medway, discharged their load when tied up alongside the -warships at Chatham. - -The great achievements of the Elizabethan seamen could not have -occurred unless the English had been engaged in the seafaring life for -years, since it is impossible to make a landsman a sailor except after -much training. The Armada would never have been defeated except for -the superior seamanship and gunnery of our forefathers. Slowly, but -surely, since the history of our country began, there had been growing -up a nucleus of professional seamen. In Tudor times had there been no -race of freight-carriers and fishermen, there would have been no virile -body of men to fall back on in the hour of danger on the sea, for the -merchant sailor often enough had an exciting passage before he landed -his cargo safely in port. Both he and the simple fisherman were liable -to be assaulted on the sea by hordes of pirates. In the North Sea, the -English Channel (especially in the vicinity of the Scilly Isles, where -they swarmed), and off the Irish coast these sea-rovers were a terror -to the peaceful, honest seaman. - -In addition to this, however, there sprang up what is nothing better -than a legalised piracy. By a proclamation of 1557, any Englishman -could fit out a squadron of ships against the enemies of the Crown, -and when he had located these enemies on the high seas, could attack -them and confiscate their ships and contents. Now this afforded a -fine outlet for those imaginative seafarers who yearned for something -more adventurous than catching fish. It was just the kind of life for -those who gloried in adventure and wanted it on sea. It helped to turn -the fisherman into a fighting man; it was a training school for those -who were presently to become the great sea captains and admirals, the -gunners and able seamen of the great Elizabethan age. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -THE ELIZABETHAN AGE - - -The seamanship, the navigation, and the gunnery of the Elizabethan -age will ever be memorable, not merely because they attained such -excellence after centuries of imperfection, but because by a -combination of these three arts the whole future of England was mapped -out, her supremacy assured, and her colonial expansion begun. - -A four-masted warship of her reign was not a handy creature to control. -She could fight and she could ride out an Atlantic gale, but she was -clumsy; she was--even the best of her class--much addicted to rolling, -owing to the fact that she possessed such immense weights above the -water-line. She was certainly an improvement on the ships of Henry -VII and VIII, but she was too cumbrous to be considered in any degree -satisfactory. Before we proceed to discuss the way they were handled, -let us briefly survey the principal types of vessels on board which the -men of this reign had to serve. - -[Illustration: SIXTEENTH-CENTURY FOUR-MASTED SHIP. - -By a Contemporary Artist.] - -[Illustration: ELIZABETHANS BOARDING AN ENEMY’S SHIP.] - -There was, firstly, the “high-charged” man-of-war with her lofty poop -and forecastle. A contemporary illustration shows such a vessel with -guns protruding from the stern and two tiers of guns running along -either side of the ship. There were light guns in the forecastle as -well. That portion on the main deck between the break of the poop and -forecastle was the waist, where the crew moved about and the ship’s -boats were stowed. In those days, when so much of the fighting was -done at close quarters, and the enemy endeavoured so to manœuvre -his ship as to come alongside and pour his men on the other’s deck, -dealing out slaughter to all who should bar his way, it was the aim of -the attacked ship to catch the invaders between two fires. The poop -and forecastle being so well guarded and, by reason of their height, -so difficult to assault, the enemy might possibly board the ship at -the waist. But inasmuch as the after bulkhead of the forecastle and -the forward bulkhead of the poop were pierced for quick-firing guns, -the boarding party was likely to meet with a warm reception. As an -additional obstacle to boarding, it was customary before a fight to -stretch long red cloths over the waist. These cloths were edged on -each side with calico, says an Elizabethan writer, and were allowed to -hang several feet over the side all round the ship, being sometimes -ornamented with devices or painted in various colours. Wooden barriers, -called “close-fights,” were also built across the ship’s deck for -repelling boarders, and were loopholed like the bulkheads. Furthermore, -nettings were stretched across the ship to prevent any falling spars -from dealing death to the crew. - -The tumble-home on these ships was excessive, but since they carried -so many decks it was essential that the topmost should be as light -as possible. But just as on a modern steamship the master can survey -everything forward from the eminence of his bridge, so the Elizabethan -captain, standing on the poop, was able to command the whole ship, to -see ahead and to keep an eye on his men. There was no uniform colour -for painting the Elizabethan hulls, Mr. Oppenheim says. Black and -white, the Tudor colours green and white, red, and timber colour were -all used. Sometimes a dragon or a lion gilded was at the beak-head, -with the royal arms at the stern. On either side of the stern was a -short gallery, on to which the captain could emerge from his cabin -under the poop. The long tiller from the rudder came in under the poop, -and was controlled by a bar or whipstaff attached to this same tiller. -“The roul,” says James Lightbody in his “Mariner’s Jewel,” published -in 1695, “is that through which the whipstaff goeth, which is a piece -of wood the steersman holdeth in his hand to steer withal.” The man -received his orders, as a rule, from the master of the ship, but when -entering port the pilot would instruct him how to steer. - -[Illustration: ILLUSTRATION TO SHOW AN ELIZABETHAN HELMSMAN STEERING A -SHIP BY MEANS OF WHIPSTAFF. - -(Sketched on board the replica of the _Revenge_ at Earl’s Court.)] - -There was not very much room in the fo’k’sle--just enough to sleep a -few of the crew and for stowing coils of rope and the like. The galley -was erected at the bottom of the hold on a brick floor. Below the -upper deck came the main deck. Here were disposed the heavier guns, -and here the crew were berthed. Between this and the hold was a false -orlop, where the bread-room and the cabins of the petty officers were -placed. But what was perhaps especially noticeable about these ships -was the extent to which the poop and the beak projected away from the -hull. Consequently, not only did these craft roll, but they pitched -considerably as well. The interiors of the cabins were painted green, -and there was a certain amount of carving externally both at beak and -stern. So much for the “high-charged” type of ship. - -But there was also the pinnesse or flush-decked species, such a craft -as brought home to England the body of Sir Philip Sidney, and such a -craft as often formed a unit in those long, perilous transatlantic -voyages of discovery. These craft had no raised forecastle other than a -small platform, and only a short quarter-deck. There was no such thing -as triangular sails on the full-rigged ships of those days. There was, -indeed, a spritsail, which was a squaresail set on a yard depending -from the long, steeved bowsprit, and this was the only headsail. -The foremast and mainmast each set a course and topsail, while the -mizzen and bonaventure each carried a lateen fore-and-aft sail. The -fore-topmast and main-topmast could be struck if necessary. Elizabethan -prints show, situated just above the lower yard on the bigger ships, -a round top or platform from which quick-firing guns and arrows could -be fired. At the yard-arms were sometimes fitted hooks, which, catching -the enemy’s rigging and sails, would do him considerable damage. - -[Illustration: SIXTEENTH-CENTURY SHIP CHASING A GALLEY. - -By a Contemporary Artist. The lead of the ropes, the parrals round the -masts, the rigging and other details are here most instructively shown.] - -The following represent the different types of “great ordinance” -carried by a ship of war at this period:-- - -ARMAMENT OF AN ELIZABETHAN SHIP - - Weight Shot - Ordnance. in lbs. in lbs. - - Cannon 8000 63 - Demi-cannon 6000 32 - Culverin 5500 18 - Demi-culverin 4500 9 - Saker 3500 5¼ - Minion 1500 4 - Falcon 1100 2¼ - Falconet 500 1¼ - -But it was seldom that any ordnance greater than a demi-cannon was used -on board ship. - -The guns were made of brass or iron, and were mounted on wooden -carriages which had four wheels. They could be run in and out by means -of tackles. In his interesting little book, “The Arte of Shooting in -Great Ordnance,” by William Bourne, published in 1587, the author -significantly speaks of “this barbarous and rude thing called the -Art of Shooting in great Ordnaunce.” This was the period, you will -remember, when arrows, bills, and pikes had not yet lost their -admirers. He tells you in his preface that he has written this book -because “we English men haue not beene counted but of late daies to -become good Gunners, and the principall point that hath caused English -men to be counted good Gunners hath been for that they are hardie or -without fear about their ordnaunce: but for the knowledg in it other -nations and countries haue tasted better therof, as the Italians, -French, and Spaniardes, for that the English men haue had but little -instruction but that they haue learned of the Doutchmen, or Flemings in -the time of King Henry the eight.” - -[Illustration: WAIST, QUARTER-DECK, AND POOP OF THE “REVENGE.” - -(Elizabethan period.)] - -[Illustration: SIXTEENTH-CENTURY THREE-MASTED SHIP. - -By a Contemporary Artist. The date on the stern is 1564. Notice the man -in the maintop dowsing maintopsail.] - -He goes into the subject with great thoroughness and points out that -allowance must be made for the wind, and how to secure good aim. The -cannon are to be placed so as to be right in the middle of the ports of -the ship, and care is to be taken that the wheels of the gun-carriage -are not made too high. He advises that when shooting from one ship -at another, if there is any sea on it is essential to have a good -helmsman “that can stirre steadie.” The best time to fire at the other -vessel is when the latter is “alofte on the toppe of the sea,” for then -“you have a bigger marke than when she is in the trough.” If the ship -rolls, “then the best place of the ship for to make a shotte is out of -the head or sterne.” The shorter ordnance is to be placed at the side -of the ship because they are lighter, and if the ship should heave -“wyth the bearyng of a Sayle that you must shutte the portes,” then you -can easily take the guns in. - -“In lyke manner,” he proceeds, “the shorter that the peece lyeth oute -of the shyppes syde, the lesse it shall annoy them in the tacklyng of -the Shippes Sayles, for if that the piece doe lye verye farre oute of -the Shyppes syde, then the Sheetes and Tackes, or the Bolynes wyll -alwayes bee foule of the Ordnaunce, whereby it maye muche annoy them in -foule weather.” Therefore the long guns are best placed so that they -are fired from the stern. But a gun so placed must be “verye farre oute -of the porte, or else in the shooting it may blowe up the Counter of -the Shyppes sterne.” - -In another equally delightful volume entitled “Inventions or Devises,” -the same author tells his reader how to “arme” (i.e. protect) a “ship -of warre.” You are to keep your men as close as you may, and have -the bonnet off the sail or other canvas stretched along the waist -and decks, as I have shown on an earlier page. The forecastle and -poop, Bourne says, you may “arm” with “manlets or gownes” “to shaddow -your men”; so also the tops, “but now in these daies,” he adds, “the -topfight is unto little effect, since the use of Calivers or Muskets in -Ships,” for the latter could do so much damage. He therefore advises -against having many men in the tops. After alluding to the netting, -which I explained just now, Bourne suggests that the captain must send -the carpenter “into the holde of the Ship” “to stop any leake if any -chance. And also to send downe the Surgion into his Cabin, which ought -and must be in the holde of the ship.” - -The supreme head of the ship was the captain, who was not necessarily -a navigator nor even a seaman; but he was the wielder of authority and -discipline. He it was who had to keep under control a crew that was -prone to swearing, blasphemy, violence, mutiny, and other sins. Sir -William Monson has left behind in his most interesting “Naval Tracts” -many an entertaining detail of sea life during the Elizabethan period, -and tells that a captain might punish a man by putting him in the -“billbows during pleasure,” ducking him at the yard-arm, hauling him -from yard-arm to yard-arm under the ship’s keel (otherwise known as -keel-hauling), fastening him to the capstan and flogging him there, -or else fastening him at the capstan or mainmast with weights hanging -about his neck till his poor heart and back were ready to break. -Another brutal punishment was to “gagg or scrape their tongues for -blasphemy or swearing.” - -Elizabethan captains, says Monson, “were gentlemen of worth and -means, maintaining their diet at their own charge.” In a fight the -lieutenant had charge of the forecastle. It was not till the latter -part of Elizabeth’s reign that the rank of lieutenant was created for -the training of young gentlemen destined ultimately for command. He -came aboard quite “green” in order to learn what seamanship he could, -and to assist the captain in the discipline of the ship; but he was -not allowed to interfere with the navigation, which was entirely the -work of the master. Not unnaturally there was a good deal of friction -between the lieutenant and the master. Even the common seaman had an -ineradicable contempt for this landlubber, more especially in the -seventeenth century during the Anglo-Dutch wars. - -[Illustration: RIDING BITTS ON THE GUN DECK OF THE “REVENGE.” - -(Elizabethan period.)] - -In his “Accidence, or The Path-way to Experience necessary for all -Young Seamen,” written by Captain John Smith, the first Governor of -Virginia, we have a great deal of information which tells us just what -we should wish to know. Of the captain and master we have already -spoken. The latter and his mates are to “commaund all the Saylors, -for steering, trimming, and sayling the Ship.” The pilot takes the -ship into harbour, the Cape-merchant and purser have charge of the -cargo, the master-gunner was responsible for all the munitions, -while the carpenter and his mate looked after the nails, pintles, -saws, and any caulking of seams as well as the splicing of masts and -yards. The boatswain had charge of the cordage, marlinespikes, and -sails, etc., while his mate had command of the longboat for laying -out kedge anchors and warping or mooring. The surgeon had to have a -certificate from the “Barber-surgeons Hall” “of his sufficiency,” and -his medicine-chest must be properly filled. The marshal was to punish -offenders, and the corporal was to see to the setting and relieving -of the watch. Every Monday the boatswain was to hear the boys box the -compass, after which they were to have a quarter can of beer and a -basket of bread. - -The men messed in fours, fives, or sixes, and the steward’s duty was -“to deliuer out the victuall.” The quartermasters had charge of the -stowage, while a cooper was carried to look after the casks for wine -and beer, etc. The large ships had three boats, viz. (1) the boat, (2) -the cock, and (3) the skiff. These were respectively put in charge of -(1) the boatswain, (2) the cockswain, and (3) the skiffswain. Hence -the origin of these designations. A cook was carried, and he had his -store of “quarter cans, small cannes, platters, spoones, lanthornes,” -etc. The swabbers’ duties were to wash and keep clean the ship. But the -first man that was found telling a lie every Monday was indicted of -the offence at the mainmast and placed under the swabber to keep the -beak-head and chains clean. The sailors were the experienced mariners -who hoisted the sails, got the tacks aboard, hauled the bowlines, -and steered the ship; while the younkers were the young men called -“foremast men,” whose duty it was to take in topsails, furl and sling -the mainsail, and take their trick at the helm. - -[Illustration: LONGITUDINAL PLAN OF AN EARLY SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY SHIP. - -This contemporary design conveys an excellent idea of the interior -of an ocean-going vessel. Notice the pilot’s place at the stern; the -tiller and whip-staff; the capstan; the lower deck; the holds, etc.] - -In those days the custom of dividing a ship’s company into watches was -already in vogue. “When you set sayle and put to sea, the Captaine is -to call up the company; and the one halfe is to goe to the Starreboord, -the other to the Larboord, as they are chosen: the Maister chusing -first one, then his Mate another, and so forward till they bee diuided -in two parts.” In those days the reckoning by tonnage was far from -reliable as indicating the true size of a ship. Columbus, after his -second voyage across the Atlantic, writes to Captain Antonio de Torres -of the ship _Marigalante_, and refers to the freighting of ships by the -ton “as the Flemish merchants do,” and this, he suggests, would be a -better and less expensive method than any other mode. But when after -the capture of a prize the division of shares was made, it was to the -advantage of the crew to make the tonnage as big as possible. The -custom was to allot the share in proportions. The ship took a third, -the victualler took another third, and the remaining third was divided -up among the crew. Of this latter third the captain received nine -shares, the master seven, and so on down to the boys who had one share, -and there was a reward given to the man who first descried the sails of -the ship ultimately captured. A reward was also paid to the first man -who rushed on board the enemy. - -According to Monson, every man and boy was allowed 1 lb. of bread a day -and a gallon of beer a day, viz. a quart in the morning, a quart at -dinner, a quart in the afternoon, and a quart at supper. On flesh-days -each man could have 1 lb. of beef or else 1 lb. of “pork with pease.” -Flesh-days were Sundays, Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. The other -days were fish-days, and on these every mess of four men was allowed a -side of salt fish, “either haberdine, ling, or cod,” 7 oz. of butter, -and 14 oz. of cheese. Fridays were excepted, for on these days they -had but half allowance. Monson was naturally prejudiced against the -Spanish ships, which he accused of being badly kept--“like hog-sties -and sheep-coats”--and of giving an allowance of diet far too small. -Every man cooked for himself and there was no discipline, although they -carried more officers than the English ships. In the latter the captain -inspected his ship twice a day to see that she was kept sweet and clean -“for avoiding sickness,” but the holds were so badly ventilated, dark, -and smelly, the beer was so frequently bad, the food so often putrid, -and the crew themselves so lacking in habits of cleanliness, that -scurvy, dysentery, and other diseases frequently broke out and men died -in large numbers. One has only to look through the logs of some of the -Elizabethan voyages of discovery to see this for oneself. - -[Illustration: A SIXTEENTH-CENTURY WARSHIP AT ANCHOR. - -By a Contemporary Artist. Showing method of embarkation and many -fascinating details.] - -In addition to the officers already mentioned must be given two more. -These were first the ship’s chaplain, who celebrated the Holy Communion -on Sundays, read prayers two or three times on week-days, preached, and -visited the sick and wounded. And secondly a trumpeter, who blew on his -silver instrument when the ship went into action, at the changing of -the watches, and at the coming and going of a distinguished guest. His -place was on the poop, and it was customary for “himself and his noise -to have banners of silk of the admiral’s colours.” The watch was set at -eight, and so on through the night and day. When on these occasions the -trumpeter sounded his blast he was to “have a can of beer allowed for -the same.” - -And now that we have got some idea in our minds of the details of the -seaman’s life on board an Elizabethan ship, let us be rowed off from -the shore in one of her three boats which is bringing water and wood -and provisions. The good ship is lying to her anchor in the roadstead -about to get underway. Transport yourself, then, in imagination to that -epoch when England’s seamen made such wonderful history, and endeavour -to believe that the cock-boat actually bumps up alongside the English -galleon. You clamber up the ship’s side and find yourself on her deck, -where the crew are standing about ready to hear the commands of the -master. And now let us watch them get under way. I shall quote not from -fiction of to-day, but from an account written by an Elizabethan, this -same Captain John Smith, as he wrote it for the edification of young -seamen. - -“Bend your passerado to the mayne-sayle, git the sailes to the yeards, -about your geare on all hands, hoyse your sayles halfe mast high, -make ready to set sayle, crosse your yeards, bring your Cable to the -Capsterne. Boatswaine, heave a head, men into the tops, men upon the -yeards. Come, is the anchor a pike? Heave out your topsayles, hawle -your sheates. What’s the Anchor away? Yea, yea. Let fall your fore -sayle. Who’s at the helme there? Coyle your cable in small slakes. -Hawle the cat, a bitter, belay, loufe (= luff), fast your Anchor with -your shanke painter, stow the boate. Let falle your maine saile, on -with your bonnets and drablers, steare study before the wind. - -“The wind veares, git your star-boord tacks aboord, hawle off your ley -sheats ouerhawle the ley bowlin, ease your mayne brases, out with your -spret-saile, flat the fore sheat, pike up the misen or brade (= brail) -it. The ship will not wayer, loure the maine top saile, veare a fadome -of your sheat. A flown sheate, a faire winde and a boune voyage! The -wind shrinks. Get your tacks close aboord, make ready your loufe howks -(= luff hooks) and lay fagnes, to take off your bonnets and drablers, -hawle close your maine bowline. - -“It ouervasts. We shall have wind. Sattle your top sailes, take in the -spret sayle. In with your topsayles. Lower your main sayles, tallow -under the parrels, in with your maine sayle, lower the fore sayle. -The sayle is split, brade up close all your sayles, lash sure the -Ordinances, strike your top masts to the cap, make them sure with your -sheepes feete. A storme, hull,[47] lash sure the helme a ley, lye to -try out drift.[48] How capes the ship? Cun the ship, spoune before the -winde. She lusts, she lyes under the Sea. Trie her with a crose jacke, -bowse it up with the outlooker. She will founder in the Sea, runne on -shore, split or billage on a Rocke, a wracke. Put out a goose-winge, or -a hullocke of a sayle. - -[Illustration: DRAKE’S “REVENGE” AT SEA.] - -“Faire weather! Set your fore sayle. Out with all your sailes. Get your -Larboard tackes aboord, hawle off your Starboord sheats, goe large, -laske, ware yawning. The ship’s at stayes, at backe-stayes. Ouer-set -the ship, flat about, handle your Sayles, or trim your sayles. Let -rise your tacks, hawle of your sheats. Rock-weede, adrift, or flotes! -One to the top to looke out for Land. A ship’s wake, the water way, -the weather bow, weather coyle. Lay the ship by the Ley, and heave the -lead, try the dipsie (= deep-sea) line. Bring the ship to rights, -fetch the log-line to try what way shee makes. Turne up the minute -glasse, observe the hight. Land, to make land, how beares it. Set it by -the Compasse. Cleare your leach-lines, beare in, beare off, or stand -off, or sheare off, beare up. - -“Outward bound, homeward bound, shorten your Sailes, take in your -Sailes, come to an Anchor under the Ley of the weather shore, the Ley -shore, nealed too, looke to your stoppers. Your anchor comes home, -the ship’s a drift, vere out more Cable. Let fall your sheat Anchor, -land locked, mo(o)re the ship. A good Voyage, Armes, arme a skiffe, a -frigot, a pinnace, a ship, a squadron, a fleete. When you ride amongst -many ships, pike your yards. - -“To the boat or skiffe belongs oares, a mast, a saile, a stay, -a halyard, sheats, a boat-hook, thoughts (= thwarts), thoules -(thole-pins), rudder, irons, bailes, a trar-pawling or yawning, -carlings, carling-knees, for the David (davit), the boates-wayles, a -dridge. To row a spell, hold-water, trim the boate, _vea, vea, vea, -vea, vea_, who saies Amen, one and all, for a dram of the bottle?” - -Impressionist-writing you describe all this? Yes, certainly. But it -has the effect, has it not, of conveying just what we are attempting, -a general idea of the life of Elizabethan sailors at sea? “Many -supposeth,” writes this same author, “any thing is good enough to serve -men at sea, and yet nothing sufficient for them a shore, either for -their healthes, for their ease, or estates, or state.” ... “Some it may -bee will say I would have men rather to feast than fight. But I say the -want of those necessaries occasions the losse of more men than in any -English fleet hath bin slaine in any fight since (15)88: for when a man -is ill sicke, or at the poynt of death, I would know whether a dish -of buttered Rice, with a little Cinamon and Sugar, a little minced -meate, or roast beefe, a few stewed Prunes, a race of greene-ginger, a -flap Jacke, a can of fresh water brued with a little Cinamon, Ginger -and Sugar, be not better than a little poore John, or salt fish, with -oyle and mustard, or bisket, butter, cheese or oatemeale pottage on -fish dayes, salt beefe, porke and pease. This is your ordinary ship’s -allowance, and good for them are well, if well-conditioned, which is -not alwayes, as seamen can too well witnesse: and after a storme, when -poore men are all wet, and some not so much a cloth to shift him, -shaking with cold, few of those but will tell you a little Sacke or -Aquvitæ is much better to keepe them in health, then a little small -beere or cold water, although it be sweete.” - -The sea literature of the Elizabethan period is rich in illustrations -of the ways employed. Shakespeare, whom some critics verily believe -to have been a sailor--so unfailingly accurate are his numerous sea -terms--here and there, and especially in “The Tempest,” reflects a good -deal of the life on board ship. In such logs as the voyages of the -great Arctic explorer John Davis, there is many a nautical expression -that cannot fail to arrest our attention. And in order to complete the -impressionistic sketch of Captain John Smith, permit me here to bring -to the reader’s notice some of the phrases which I have collected from -other sources of this period. - -There were various expressions used to mean heaving-to: thus “strake -suddenly ahull” to signify “suddenly hove-to.” So also “tried under our -maine course, sometimes with a haddock of our sail,” as Davis has it, -or “a hullocke of a sayle,” as Smith expresses it. Perhaps it was thus -that the synonym “try-sail” originated, signifying a small handkerchief -of canvas with which to lie comfortably hove-to. “The third day being -calme, at noone we strooke saile, and let fall a cadge anker.” “Cadge” -is spelt “kedge” nowadays. They used to “let slippe” their cables--made -of hemp--from the “halse” or hawse-pipe. But sometimes “the cable of -our shut (= sheet) anker brake.” “For the straines (= strands) of one -of our cables were broken, we only road by an olde junke!” (Junk is -still sailor’s slang for worn-out rope.) In those days when there was -no such thing as telegraph or post, when ships traversing the ocean -were so few as unlikely to meet except rarely, months and years went by -without news of mariners. But sometimes when an outward-bound English -ship met a fellow-countryman homeward-bound, an effort was made to send -letters back. There was an instance of this during Davis’s third voyage -when two days out from Dartmouth. They met the _Red Lion_ of London -sailing home from Spain. So they hailed the latter and asked her master -to carry letters back to London. “And after we had heaved them a lead -and a line, whereunto wee had made fast our letters, before they could -get them into the ship, they fell into the sea, and so all our labour -and theirs was also lost.” - -Happily there still exists the “Traverse-Booke,” which Davis made -during his third voyage, when he set out to discover that north-west -passage which was only found in the present decade by Captain Roald -Amundsen, who also was the first to reach the South Pole. And I -cannot believe that even a brief extract of Davis’s sailing will fail -to be of the greatest interest to modern seamen, whether amateur or -professional. I have therefore thought fit to append the following, -which covers the first nine days beginning from the time when his -little fleet of three, consisting of the “barke” _Elizabeth_, the -“barke” _Sunneshine_, and the “Clincher” _Helene_, weighed their -anchors and set sail from Dartmouth. - -A Traverse-Booke made by M. John Davis in his third voyage for the -discoverie of the North-West passage, Anno 1587. - - ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Moneth. | | | |ELEVATION | THE | - |HOURES.|COURSE. |LEAGUES.| OF THE | WINDE. | - DAYES.| | | | POLE. | | THE DISCOURSE. - | | | | | | - MAY. | | | |Deg.|Mins.| | - ---------+-------+---------+--------+----+-----+--------+-------------------- - 19 | | W S W | | 50 | 30 | N E |This day we departed - | |Westerly | | | | | from Dartmouth at - | | | | | | | two of the clocke - | | | | | | | at night. - 20 | | | | | | | - 21 | 35 | W S W | 50 | 50 | | N E |This day we descried - | |Westerly | | | | | Silly N W by W - | | | | | | | from us. - | | | | | | | - 22 | 15 | W N W | 14 | | |N E by E|This day at noone - | | | | | | | we departed - | | | | | | | from Silly. - 22 | 6 | W N W | 6 | | |N E by E| - 22 | 3 | W N W | 2 | | | | - 23 | 15 |N W by W | 18 | | | N E | - | 39 | W N W | 36 | 50 | 40 | |The true course, - | | | | | | | distance and - | | | | | | | latitude. - | 3 | W N W | 2 | | | N N E | - | 6 |N W by W | 5 | | |N E by N| - | 3 | W N W | 3 | | | N N E | - | 12 | W N W | 12 | | | N E | - Noone the| 24 | W N W | 25 | 51 | 16 | |The true course, - 24 | |Northerly| | | | | distance, and - | | | | | | | latitude. - | 3 | W N W | 3 | | | N N E | - | 3 | W N W | 2½ | | | N by E | - | 6 | W by N | 5 | | | N | - | 6 | W by N | 5 | | | N | - | 2 | S | ½ | | | N |Now we lay upon the - | | | | | | | lee for the - | | | | | | | Sunshine, which - | | | | | | | had taken a leake - | | | | | | | of 500 strokes in - | | | | | | | a watch. - | | | | | | | - | | | | | | | - ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- - -The phrase “lay upon the lee” is just another way of saying they -hove-to. “A leake of 500 strokes in a watch” was identical with saying -that they had to work the pumps to that number in such a period. -It should be added, further, that by “elevation of the pole” is, of -course, meant the ship’s latitude. - -Some of the vessels of the sixteenth century were terribly slow -creatures. There was a nickname given to those lethargic coasters -which, because they could not do much against the current and had to -proceed from one roadstead to another and there anchor till the tide -turned, were known as “roaders.” No one who has made himself familiar -with their long and trying voyages could ever accuse the Elizabethan -seamen of cowardice in bad weather. Once, Davis relates, when his ship -was fighting her way through a storm, her mainsail blew right out of -her; whereupon the master of the ship crept along the mainyard, which -had now been lowered down to the rails, and gathering the sail as it -was hauled out of the sea, gallantly fought with it and succeeded in -bending it again to the yard, “being in the meane while oft-times -ducked over head and eares into the sea.” - -The reader will remember just now in the extract from Smith the -expression “she lusts” for “she lists.” Among hundreds of our English -seamen in this twentieth century “lust” is still used to mean “list.” -Smith, as we saw, also wrote “spoune before the wind.” Davis, too, -related that “we spooned before the sea,” the exact meaning being that -they drove before the gale under bare poles. The latter also uses the -expression “a mighty fret of weather” to mean “a mighty squall.” Those -who are familiar with the language of the fishermen on the north-east -coast of England will call to mind their word “sea-fret” to denote a -fog approaching the land. - -[Illustration: SIXTEENTH-CENTURY SEAMEN STUDYING THE ART OF NAVIGATION. - -After a Contemporary Artist. - -Notice the compass, the hour-glass, globes, cross-staff, charts, etc.] - -Few nautical words are so well known to us as “skipper.” Before the -sixteenth century was ended the Dutch seamen had fraternised a good -deal with the sailors of England. The Low Countries were fast -becoming great shipbuilders and navigators, and not unnaturally some -of their phrases began to be used by our men. The Dutch word to this -day which is used to mean captain is still “schipper,” and among the -English seamen at the end of the sixteenth century the equivalent -“shipper” was employed to refer to the same personage. There were -other slang phrases prevalent, such as a “light-horseman” to mean -a fast-pulling gig. So also Davis speaks of a “trade” wind to mean -regular and steady. “The wind blowing a trade,” he remarks. But some -of these phrases employed by seamen of those days are a little less -obvious. “Tressle-trees,” for example, might puzzle many a modern -sailorman. “This night we perished our maine tressle-trees, so that -wee could no more use our maine top-saile.” These trestle-trees were -just a couple of strong pieces of wood, or of iron, and were fitted one -on either side of the lower masthead so as to support the heel of the -topmast. Such expressions as “ground-tackle” are as frequently employed -to-day as then, but over and over again we find that a ship “came -roome,” “bare roome with her,” to mean that the former came to leeward, -put up her helm and bore away. - -Anxious as he naturally was concerning a thousand matters, the life -of the captain at sea was many degrees happier than that of his crew. -At least he had a decent cabin and bed in which to sleep and take his -meals and sip his punch, otherwise known as “Rosa Solis,” consisting -of brandy, spices, and hot water. But the seamen’s comforts were -disgracefully neglected, with the result that they died in dozens. Some -more humane captains such as John Smith did their best for the men; -but this was exceptional. And yet it was a thoroughly unsanitary age. -Davis himself admits that many of his crew were “eaten with lice” as -big as beans. Monson includes among the causes of the discouraging of -seamen the inexperienced commanders who were put over them, the bad -victuals which they had to endure, the dishonesty in serving them--the -beef, for instance, given so that five men had to partake of four -men’s allowance--and the delay which was made in paying their wages. -Especially were these abuses noticeable during the early years of -the seventeenth century. Men were impressed into the service even in -those days, though there were volunteers as well. At the time of the -Armada our sailors received as wages fourpence a day, but this was paid -quarterly. In addition, of course, there was sometimes prize money -in the proportions already mentioned. In Monson’s time complaint was -made of the kind of foremast men who were pressed into the service “to -pleasure friends.” Such men as “taylors, porters, and others of that -rank, unworthy of the hatches to lie on,” were brought aboard and given -no less than £1 11s. a month. And yet, when opportunity allowed, the -captain used to send his crew ashore in the ship’s boats “to walk in -the fields ... to take the air.” But among the officers there was too -much “excessive banqueting on board” and a great waste of powder, as, -for instance, when guns were fired at the drinking of a man’s health. - -And the same authority has something very interesting to tell us -concerning the ceremonial wearing of the flag on board ship. I have -no intention of confusing our chronological sequence, but I must ask -the reader for a moment to recall that incident which was one of the -indirect if not the real causes of the first Anglo-Dutch wars. It will -be remembered--which English schoolboy does not remember it well?--that -when Captain Young, one May Day in 1652, was bound down Channel -and met a convoy of Dutchmen coming up, he was angered to find the -foreigner declined to salute, and an engagement immediately followed. -Now, writing long before that incident had ever occurred, Monson -definitely states that if a foreign fleet should pass on our seas -and meet our admiral’s ship, the former were expected to acknowledge -our sovereignty by coming under the lee of the admiral, by striking -their topsails and taking in their flag. “And this hath never been -questioned,” he adds, except out of ignorance, as in the case of Philip -II, when he met the Lord Admiral of England when the former was sailing -to England in order to marry Queen Mary. The custom was that if any -foreign ship were to arrive in one of our ports or to pass a fort or -castle, she must, as she entered, and before coming to anchor, take in -her flag three times “and advance it again.” But should the English -admiral be in the harbour, the foreigner was not to display his flag at -all. - -Prior to the reign of James I, all admirals wore the St. George’s flag -at the topmast head. But when the Union of Scotland had been effected -there was added the cross of St. Andrew. An admiral at anchor took in -his flag in the evening and fired a gun and set the watch. “The flag -carried under the poop of a ship,” he remarks, “shews a disgrace,” and -is never used except when it is won or taken from an enemy. - -Jealousy of Spain and greed of gold had as much to do with the impetus -given to English seamanship and navigation during Elizabethan times as -any inherent love of the sea. To meet this new zeal various writers, -some of whom we have already mentioned, set to work to write treatises -that would turn raw agricultural labourers and tavern-haunters into -fighting sailors and navigators. William Bourne, from whom we have -already quoted, in his “Regiment for the Sea” was the first to give -a book on navigation written by an Englishman. This was in the year -1573, and a rare example of this little work is still preserved in -the British Museum. In it he pointed out the various ways for finding -the variation of the compass, exposed the errors of the plane charts, -and advised mariners in sailing towards high latitudes to keep their -reckoning by the globe, as in those regions the plane chart was most -likely to land them into trouble. - -In 1594 John Davis, the Arctic explorer, published his “The Seaman’s -Secrets.” This book became very popular, and took the place of the -Spanish Martin Cortes’ handbook, which had been used in the English -translation. There is a vast amount of matter in Davis’ “Secrets” which -is worth perusing even by the modern navigator. He speaks of “great -Circle navigation,” and gives a whole host of valuable practical hints. -“The Instruments necessarie for a skilfull seaman,” he explains, “are -a Sea Compasse, a Cross staffe, a Quadrant, an Astrolabe, a Chart, an -instrument magneticall[49] for the finding of the variation of the -Compasse, an Horizontall plaine Sphere, a Globe, and a paradoxall -Compasse”[50] ... “but the Sea Compasse, Chart and Crosse staffe -are instruments sufficient for the seaman’s use, the astrolabie and -quadrant being ... very uncertaine.” In this book he gives instruction -as to tides, stars, and how to use the astrolabe. And it is worth -noting that he speaks of the English Channel after the fashion of our -Gallic neighbours, who still refer to “La manche.” “Our Channell,” he -explains, “commonly called the Sleue” (sleeve). - -[Illustration: CHART OF A.D. 1589. - -Showing the dividing line between the Old World and the New. - -It will be recollected that the Pope had drawn an imaginary line North -and South, a hundred leagues west of the Azores, leaving all that lay -east thereof to the Portuguese, and all that lay west to the Spanish.] - -Everyone knows that longitude is the distance east or west of a given -meridian. In those days Greenwich did not enter into the matter: the -observatory there had still to be founded. When Davis wrote in the year -1594 there was no variation at St. Michael’s in the Azores, and so the -longitude was reckoned from there. “Longitude,” he defines, “is that -portion of the Equator contained betweene the Meridian of S. Michel’s, -one of the Assores, and the Meridian of the place whose longitude is -desired: the reason why the accompt of longitude doth begin at this Ile -is, because that there the compasse hath no variety.” - -Be it remembered, also, that it was Davis who improved the cross-staff -and superseded the clumsy astrolabe for taking meridian altitudes at -sea. It was commonly spoken of as Davis’s quadrant, and was afterwards -improved by Flamstead with the addition of a glass lens. Subsequently -it was further improved by Halley, and as such was used almost -exclusively till the year 1731, when it was in turn superseded by -Halley’s quadrant. When we read again the entrancing narratives given -in Hakluyt and elsewhere of the Elizabethan voyages into the unknown, -let us note that reposing somewhere in the high poop of these ships -there were most probably all the following instruments for navigating -the trackless seas. There was a calendar, an astrolabe, a cross-staff, -a celestial globe, a terrestrial globe, a universal horloge for knowing -the hour of the day in every latitude, a nocturne labe for telling the -hour of the night, one or more compasses, a navigation chart, a general -map, and a printed chart. - -[Illustration: SHIP DESIGNER WITH HIS ASSISTANT. - -This illustration belongs to the latter half of the sixteenth century, -or the beginning of the seventeenth, and is among the Pepysian MSS. in -Magdalene College, Cambridge. Pepys’ own title for this is “Fragments -of Ancient English Shipwrightry.”] - -It was in 1599 that Edward Wright published his “Haven-finding Art.” In -his volume “Certaine Errors in Navigation,” he complains of the errors -in the proportions of the existing charts. These consisted in wrongly -showing the distances of places. He speaks also of sailing “by a -great Circle, which is to bee drawne by those two places,” and asserts -that this is a better method than sailing always at right angles to -the meridian. In practically all the charts of this age the surface -was ruled with rhumb-lines from the thirty-two points of the compass, -as is still the case to-day on certain Dutch charts. The origin of the -word “rhumb” was Portuguese, and doubtless these lines appeared on the -earliest Portuguese charts. In the first of these two books, Wright -also furnished a table of variations of the compass in different parts -of the world. - -As to the practical side of navigation, Bourne exhorted his mariners to -remember that the earth is a globe and not a “platforme,” as “generally -the most parte of the seamen make their account.” The meridians, he -reminded them, grow narrower towards the two poles. If one had occasion -to voyage northward it were better to sail by the globe, he suggested. -Therefore you should keep a perfect account of the ship’s course. Then -resort to your globe and consider what place and parallel you are in -(by means of the sun at day and the stars at night). Knowing where you -are, set your globe to the elevation of your pole, and then turn to the -place of your zenith and seek the opposite of it in your parallel, for -then you know that in the same parallel is your east and west line. -Then the just quarter of that circle to the pole must be divided into -the eight points of your compass, doing so likewise on the other side. - -From the southern voyages the “plats or cardes for the sea” were -recommended. Bourne strongly advised against painting their compasses -with so many colours on these charts and so many flags on the land, but -bade them use the vacant places left on the paper for better objects, -such as the time of high water at certain states of the moon, and the -elevation of the land, in order that the appearance of the latter -might not be mistaken. The use of sea cardes for navigating during long -voyages he regards as very necessary for three reasons: they show you -(1) how one place bears from another; (2) the distances between the -places; (3) in what latitude any place is. But the master or pilot of -the ship is also to bear in mind the effect of tides, currents, the -surging of the sea or scantiness of the wind, which might put the ship -to leeward of her course. Also in long voyages the wind might shift -ahead, so the mariner must keep a perfect account of his courses and -mark each new course on the chart, and pay regard to the “swiftnesse” -or “slownesse” of the ships. If the weather be clear he was to take the -true altitude of the pole, which will correct the ship’s course and -give “a very neare gesse” how the port of destination bears and how far. - -The compass was variously known in the Elizabethan age as the -“sea-directorie,” the “nauticall box,” and the “sea-compasse.” -Lightbody describes the bittacles as “little wooden pins for nailing -the compass-box withal.” The first atlas was published in Dutch at -Leyden in 1585 by Wagenaer. In this are to be found excellent coloured -charts of the Narrow Seas. It is evident from these that there was -a system of buoyage even in those days. There are barrel buoys, for -instance, and basket beacons such as you can still find in use to-day -in different parts of Holland. The sands on the port hand of the Swin -Middle at the entrance to the Thames Estuary are shown marked by -staff-and-triangle marks. This excellent atlas was soon translated into -English, so that the elaborate sailing directions and the admirable -little contours of the coast--crude but useful--could be placed at -the service of English mariners. This English version was known -as Wagenaer’s “Mariner’s Mirrour,” and there was also “The Sea -Mirrour,” translated from the Dutch of William Johnson Blaeu by Richard -Hynmers in 1625, which was another of the numerous nautical books of -this time, containing instruction in practical navigation, sailing -directions, charts, and contours. - -[Illustration: A CHART OF THE THAMES ESTUARY. - -(Dover to Orfordness.) This is taken from the first Atlas ever -published, viz., in 1585.] - -[Illustration: “HOW YOU MAY AT ONE STATION MEASURE UPPON AN HEIGTH WITH -A GEOMETRICALL SQUARE A LONGITUDE UPPON PLAINE.” - - This is from Lucar’s sixteenth-century treatise on gunnery, and - illustrates the use of the “geometricall square” for finding the - distance between the galley and the ship, viz. 300 yards. This - instrument was made of metal or cypress, the quadrant being divided - into 90 degrees. It was used for measuring “altitudes, latitudes - and profundities,” and so very valuable for all gunnery work. -] - -The hourly or half-hourly glasses used on board were turned by the -sentry, who struck the ship’s bell at every half-hour just as on -shipboard to-day. The only means of keeping correct time in those days -was by observing the heavenly bodies, and this gave time at ship. But -frequently the navigators were many miles out in their longitude, since -the latter is found by comparing the exact time at ship with the time -by a chronometer showing the time at the prime meridian. - -Nicholas Tartaglia, in his “Three Bookes of Colloquies concerning -the Arte of Shooting,” published in the year of the Armada, gives -an interesting illustration to indicate how one could know by the -help of a gunner’s circle the number of miles or feet any ship lying -in the roadstead was distant; and also how to measure height with -a geometrical square. And Bourne, in his “Treasure for Traueilers” -(1578), had a method for ascertaining the “waight of any shyp swimmyng -on the water.” The reader will remember that when we were discussing -Columbus we pointed out the lack of that useful instrument, the log and -line, for indicating the distance which a vessel sailed. It was William -Bourne who first published an idea for overcoming this difficulty in -a somewhat ingenious manner. In his “Inventions and Devices” (1578), -he gives a method whereby “to know the way or going of a ship, for -to knowe how fast or softly that any ship goeth.” The idea is too -complicated to be given here in detail, but practically it amounted to -towing astern a tiny boat containing a paddle-wheel which revolved, -and so by a species of clockwork registered the speed. Excepting that -the patent log of to-day is helicular, there is much resemblance -between the old and the new in at least the bare idea. But a little -later--in the year 1637--Richard Norwood published, in his “Seaman’s -Practice,” a whole chapter on the subject “Of dividing the Log-line and -reckoning the Ship’s way.” The log-line was to be used in conjunction -with the glass, and this method was little altered until the -nineteenth-century invention of the patent log had to be brought about -owing to the great speed of steamships. - -[Illustration: SIXTEENTH-CENTURY SHIP BEFORE THE WIND. - -By a Contemporary Artist. Notice the square lids over the portholes.] - -Before we conclude this chapter we must not omit to say something of -the improvement in naval strategy, tactics, and discipline during -the Elizabethan period. You will remember that important campaign of -1587, when Drake took an expedition out to Cadiz, sunk and burnt an -enormous quantity of the enemy’s tonnage, repulsed the attacks of the -Mediterranean galleys--completely beating this type of craft at her -own special game and in her own waters--captured large quantities of -supplies intended for the Armada, and demonstrated himself to be no man -of medieval conceptions, but a modern strategist by waiting at Cape St. -Vincent, where he held the real key to the situation--able to prevent -the fleets from Cartagena and Cadiz from reaching Lisbon. You will -remember, too, that after terrorising the Spaniards and their galleys -he set a course for the Azores, captured the mammoth _San Felipe_, -homeward bound from the East Indies with a cargo that, reckoned in the -money value of to-day, was worth over £1,000,000; and what was more, -discovered from the ship’s papers the long-kept secrets of the East -Indian trade. Finally, during that same historic voyage, when friction -broke out between the modern strategist Drake and his medieval-minded -vice-admiral William Borough, the latter was promptly court-martialled, -tried on board the flagship by Drake, Fenner, and the other captains, -and deposed from his command. - -Now, what was the net result of all this? We may sum the matter up -in the following statement. It gave the death-blow to the medieval -methods of fighting and inaugurated the scientific idea of strategy. -It demonstrated the fact that even in those circumstances when the -big sailing ship was at her worst, viz. fighting in sheltered waters -and in a flat calm, when the galley was certainly at her very best, -yet the former could annihilate the latter. Contrariwise, the capture -of the _San Felipe_ showed that even the biggest ship afloat could be -made a prisoner if only the captor went about the matter in the right -way. And, finally, it inaugurated real naval discipline, even for the -highest placed officer, and instituted the Court Martial. - -And yet during the time of Elizabeth, though her admirals realised the -value of strategy, yet they failed to understand fleet tactics. There -was no regular order of battle. Howard’s fleet against the Armada in -1588 had been in action twice before it was organised into proper -squadrons. During that nine days’ fighting the old idea of boarding, -that had continued from the Greek and Roman days, through Viking and -medieval times till the sixteenth century, was clearly giving way -to the practice of broadside gunnery. But what is important to note -is the fact that though the Elizabethan admirals were realising the -superiority of the gun to the boarding pike, yet they had not become -sufficiently logical to devise a battle order for enabling their guns -to be used to the best advantage. Nevertheless, there was a partial -appreciation of this important principle. The idea of fighting in -line-ahead was certainly in their minds, and there was a tendency -for the fleet to break up into groups, each group delivering its -broadsides in succession on an exposed part of the enemy’s formation. -A contemporary chart depicting the Armada and the English fleet at the -different stages of fighting in the English Channel unquestionably -shows the Queen’s ships standing out in line-ahead formation from -Plymouth Sound, getting the weather gage of the enemy, and then -firing into them from the windward side. Spanish evidence admits that -the English were “in very fine order.” And it is quite curious -to observe that though Spain and Portugal had led the way towards -scientific seamanship and navigation, and England had followed, yet the -Spaniards still looked upon gunnery as a dishonourable practice, still -retained the medieval idea that gentlemen would fight only with swords; -and therefore these South Europeans, unable to fight at a distance, -used their best endeavours to close with our ships and carry on the -contest after the manner of the tactics which Greek and Roman and -Viking and Crusader had adopted. - -[Illustration: EARLY SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY SHIP OF WAR. - -By a Contemporary Artist.] - -It is true, also, that the Portuguese showed no little courage and -enterprise in their shipbuilding. Some of their fifteenth-century -caracks were four-deckers, of fifteen hundred and two thousand tons, -with forty guns and a thousand sailors, soldiers, and passengers. -And, even if they were not by disposition and natural endowment great -sailors, yet they were splendid navigators. But they were never great -shipbuilders in the scientific sense, since they built by rule of -thumb. The Portuguese had, indeed, done much for cartography, and -yet until the Dutch Gerard Mercator introduced his “Mappemonde” in -1569, containing a new method of projecting a sphere upon a plane, -the problem of how to sail in a straight line over a curved figure -still lacked solution. The Dutch Wagenaer, of whom we spoke just now, -historically certainly owed a great deal to the achievements of the -Portuguese and Spanish, but already by the year 1577 he had written on -navigation. His charts of Dutch harbours and of the Narrow Seas were, -for their limited purpose, of more value than any charts which had come -from the South of Europe. - -It has been well said by a careful writer that British seamanship has -been historically the cause of British supremacy, and that most British -sea fights have been decided by bringing single ships to close action, -laying ship against ship. If this statement is true, it is especially -applicable to the Elizabethan period, when seamanship was our strong -point and tactics our weakest. Never before had English sailors reached -such a high degree of proficiency therein; never in so short a time had -it done so much to mould national history, and to lay the foundations -of an Empire. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY - - -The only danger attaching to a fine achievement is lest the next -may appear insignificant by its side. The dramatist who has created -a splendid climax has little to fear except that his effect may be -utterly spoiled by some anti-climax. Transfer the simile to the region -of wars, and how often all through history do you not notice that part -of the grandeur has been robbed by the number of ex-fighting men who, -no longer needed for the safety of their country, find themselves at a -loose end? There has scarcely been one recorded war that has not shown -the soldier and sailor almost happier in fighting than in surviving. - -So it was, then, that after all those years of fighting on sea, after -all those expeditions towards the West Indies and Spain, after the -Armada fights and lesser campaigns had at last brought settled peace to -our land, there was no employment for those numerous crews which had -fought with such zest and daring. And so they turned their minds to -something else, according to their circumstances. “Those that were rich -rested with that they had; those that were poore and had nothing but -from hand to mouth, turned Pirats; some because they became sleighted -of those for whom they had got much wealth; some for that they could -not get their due; some that had lived bravely would not abase -themselves to poverty; some vainly, only to get a name; others for -revenge, covetousness, or as ill; and as they found themselves more and -more oppressed, their passions increasing with discontent, made them -turne Pirats.” - -So wrote Captain John Smith in his “Travells and Observations.” “The -men have been long unpaid and need relief,” wrote Hawkyns to Walsyngham -on the last day of July, after they had succeeded in driving the -Spanish Armada out of the English Channel, and his own gallant crew had -fought like true sailormen. “I pray your Lordship that the money that -should have gone to Plymouth may now be sent to Dover.” “The infection -is grown very great in many ships,” wrote Howard, three weeks later to -Elizabeth, “and is now very dangerous; and those that come in fresh are -soonest infected; they sicken one day and die the next.” And so we can -easily understand that after all these privations and disappointments -the ill-treated bands of seamen drifted into piracy as the most -profitable life and profession. - -Even during Elizabeth’s time there were, of course, plenty of these -rovers in the English Channel, the most notorious of whom was a man -named Callis, who cruised about off the Welsh coast. For companions he -had a man named Clinton and one whose surname was Pursser. These gained -great notoriety until the Queen had them caught and hanged at Wapping. -And there was a man named Flemming, who was as big a rascal and as much -“wanted” as the others; but inasmuch as he performed a fine deed for -his country and was a patriot more than a pirate, he received not only -his pardon, but a good reward as well. For he was roving about in -the Channel when he discovered the great Spanish Armada sailing up. -Then, heedless of the fact that his own country was anxious to see -him dead, he sailed of his own accord into Plymouth, hastened to the -admiral, and warned him of the momentous sight which his own eyes had -beheld. - -[Illustration: AN EARLY SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY FORTIFIED HARBOUR. - -By a Contemporary Artist. Showing the galleys moored on one side, and -the ships on the other.] - -Afterwards there still remained some few pirates, so that it was -“incredible how many great and rich prizes the little barques of the -West Country daily brought home.” But now, after peace had come and -the men who had fought the Spaniards were not needed, they betook -themselves to help the Moorish pirates of Tunis, Algiers, and the -north coast of Africa, and many became their captains. There they were -joined also by the scum of France and Holland, but very few Spaniards -or Italians came with them. Some were captured off the Irish coast and -hanged at Wapping: others were pardoned by James I. They wandered in -their craft north and east; to the English Channel, Irish Sea, and the -Mediterranean, causing panic everywhere; and this notwithstanding that -they had against them warships sent out by the Pope, the Florentines, -Genoese, Maltese, Dutch, and English. There were seldom more than -half a dozen of these piratical craft together, and yet they would -invade a seaside town, carry off property and persons, attack ships -and confiscate their freights with the greatest impudence. But after -a while factions grew, and “so riotous, quarrellous, treacherous, -blasphemous, and villainous” a community became “so disjoynted, -disordered, debawched, and miserable, that the Turks and Moores -beganne to command them as slaves, and force them to instruct them in -their best skill.” It was after these pirates had committed frightful -atrocities as far north as Baltimore, carried away men, women, and -children into slavery and been a terrible menace to shipping, that -James I’s navy performed the only active service of his reign when it -was sent in 1620 to the Mediterranean. However, though it contained -six royal ships and a dozen merchantmen and was away from October to -the following June, yet it did little good as a punitive expedition. -It was not until 1655 that Blake settled the Tunisian pirates, set -fire to all the nine ships of the enemy, and came out of the harbour -again with but small loss. And though even in this twentieth century -the north coast of Africa still possesses a few pirate ships which have -been known to attack a sailing yacht when becalmed, yet ever since -Admiral Lord Exmouth, in August, 1816, with a small fleet of British -and Dutch warships, exterminated the pirates at Algiers, silenced their -five hundred guns, captured the Dey of Algiers, and released twelve -hundred Christians, this relic of medieval piracy has been practically -non-existent in European waters. - -If the sixteenth century forms the climax of English seamanship, it is -the seventeenth century which unfortunately is the anti-climax. Abuses -crept into the Navy, so that by the year 1618 a complete reorganisation -had to be undertaken, and the bribery, embezzlement, and general -corruption had to be stopped so far as was possible. And yet, for all -that, there was still being made important progress both in navigation -and in shipbuilding. John Napier, in the year 1614, provided his -tables of logarithms, which simplified the intricate calculations of -navigators. In 1678 was published “The Complete Ship-Wright,” by Edmund -Bushnell, which I believe to be the earliest treatise on shipbuilding -printed in English. The way the London shipwrights were wont to measure -their ships was as follows: They multiplied the length of the keel -“into the breadth of the ship, at the broadest place, taken from -outside to outside, and the produce of that by the half breadth. This -second product of the multiplication they divide by 94 or sometimes by -100, and according to that division, 60 the quotient thereof, they are -paid for so many Tuns.” - -For example, take the case of a ship 60 feet long and 20 feet broad:-- - - 60 - 20 - ---- - 1200 - 10 - ----- - 100)12000(120 Ans. 120 tons. - -But, says this same writer, the true way to measure must be by -measuring the body and bulk of the ship underwater. He also gives some -of the rule of thumb standards to which they worked. For instance, the -mainmast of small ships was three times as long as the breadth of the -ship. Thus the ship just mentioned with a beam of 20 feet would have a -mainmast 60 feet high. The topmast, in like manner, was two-thirds the -length of the lower mast in all cases. The mainyard was two-thirds of -the mainmast plus one-twelfth of the mainmast. - -There is an illustration in “The Mariner’s Jewel,” by James Lightbody, -published in London in the year 1695, that shows the method which was -employed in launching a ship at that time. It is demonstrated that the -vessel was allowed to rest her weight on a cradle and then hauled into -the water by means of a crab winch. As there was a paucity of dry docks -in those days it was usual, when any painting of, or repairs to, the -bottom of a ship had to be carried out, to careen the ship. She was -hove down on one side by a strong purchase attached to her masts, the -latter having been properly supported for the occasion to prevent their -breaking under so great a strain. This was in vogue until about the -beginning of the nineteenth century, when the custom of sheathing ships -with copper, and thereby keeping a clean bottom for several years, -superseded careening. - -There is many an item in Lightbody’s work which is worth our notice. -He tells us that can buoys were employed in those days “for shewing of -danger,” and stuns’ls were already in use on board ship. They still -used the word “davids” for “davits,” and employed a drabler to lace -below the bonnet of the squaresails. “Drift-sail” was the name still -given to a species of sea-anchor, which was used for riding by in heavy -weather. The “sail” was veered right ahead by sheets, he says, to keep -her head right upon the sea. Old hawsers were made up into fend-offs. -The heavy guns were hauled out by means of a guy from the foremast to -the capstan. A ship’s bottom was graved with a mixture of tallow, soap, -and brimstone, which preserved her caulking and made her fast. There -was a rope called a horse which was made fast to the foremast shrouds -and spritsail sheets to keep the latter clear of the anchor-flukes, for -in those days, as one can see from old prints, the anchor was stowed at -the side of the ship close to the foremast shrouds. - -[Illustration: EARLY SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY DUTCH EAST INDIAMEN. - -By a Contemporary Artist. On the left of the picture the ship is still -being built. Her hull is being caulked and her decks not yet finished. -On the right a fully rigged ship has been careened so as to allow of -her bottom being painted.] - -Monson’s “Naval Tracts” are full of information regarding the seaman’s -life at the beginning of the seventeenth century. He tells us that -there were shipyards in his time at Chatham, Deptford, Woolwich, and -Portsmouth; and that every time a ship returned from sea the Surveyor’s -duty was “to view and examine what defects happen’d in the hull or -masts.” The Grand Pilot was “chosen for his long experience as a pilot -on a coast, especially to carry the King’s great ships through -the King’s channel, from Chatham to the narrow seas: as also for his -knowledge to pass through the channel called the Black Deeps.” As to -the life on shipboard, “first and above all things you are to take care -that all the officers and company of ships do offer their best devotion -unto God twice a day, according to the usual practice and liturgy of -the Church of England.” During a fight, if a ship chanced to receive -damage near her bilge the leak was to be stopped with salt hides, sheet -lead, plugs, “or whatsoever may be fit.” To guard against the worm -eating into the wood, one way was to sheathe the hull with an outer -plank and then burn the upper plank “till it come to be like a very -coal in every place, and after to pitch it.” Ships of 400 tons were -built of 4-inch planking; ships of 300 tons had 3-inch; small ships had -2-inch, “but no less.” - -The system of signalling in vogue during the first half of the -seventeenth century was of three kinds. By day topsails were lowered -and raised. By night lights were shown: while the shooting of ordnance -was used both by night and day. At night, too, an admiral showed two -lights on his poop, the vice-admiral and rear-admiral being some -distance astern, and each with one light on the poop. Every morning -and evening the vice- and rear-admirals manœuvred their ships so as to -speak with the admiral and take their instructions, weather permitting, -and then fell back into line again. If an admiral went about on the -other tack at night, he fired a cannon and showed two lights, one above -the other, and the rest of the fleet were to make answer. If he was -forced to bear round, the admiral showed three lights on his poop, and -the other ships replied with the same. If he shortened sail in the -night for foul weather, he showed three lights on the poop one above -the other. If in foul weather the ships of the fleet lost company and -afterwards came in sight of each other, then “if in topsail gale, you -shall strike your foretopsail twice; but if it be not topsail gale, -you shall brail up your foresail and let it fall twice.” There were no -fog-horns in use at this time on ships, but in thick weather they made -a noise with a drum, trumpet, or would ring a bell and sometimes shoot -off a musket. One man was kept continually on watch at the topmast head. - -A gunner had to provide himself at sea with powder, shot, fire-pikes, -cartridges, case-shot, crossbar-shot, etc., and a horn for powder, -priming iron, linstocks, gunner’s quadrant, and a dark lantern. The -types of guns now in use consisted--reckoning from the largest to the -smallest--of the cannon royal, cannon, cannon serpentine, bastard -cannon, demi-cannon, cannon petro, culverin, basilisk, demi-culverin, -bastard culverin, saker, minion, falcon, falconet, serpentine, and -rabanet. The cannon royal had a bore of 8½ inches, shot a 66-lb. shot -a distance of 800 paces; whilst the rabanet had a 1-inch bore, shot a -1-lb. shot 120 paces. - -A capital ship of the time of James I carried two guns in the gun-room -astern and two in the upper gun-room, which was “commonly used for a -store-room, lodgings, and other employments for a general or captain’s -use, and his followers.” Above these two gun-rooms was the captain’s -cabin, with the open galleries astern and on the sides. Fowlers and the -smaller guns were thrust out from here. - -The author of “The Light of Navigation,” published in 1612, remarks -that among other things the “seafaring man or pilot” ought to know how -to reckon tides, “that he may knowe everie where what Moone maketh an -high water in that place, that when he would enter into any Haven or -place, where he can not get in at lowe water, then he may stay till it -be half flood.” He ought to know also the direction of the tide, and -complains that some “upon pride and unwillingnes, because they would -keepe the art and knowledge to themselves,” “will not suffer the common -saylers to see their work.” - -[Illustration: “THE PERSPECTIVE APPEARANCE OF A SHIP’S BODY, IN THE -MIDSHIPS DISSECTED.” - -This ingenious drawing, which gives the reader a good idea of the -interior of a seventeenth-century ship, is among the Pepysian MSS. -in Magdalene College, Cambridge, and entitled “Mr. Dummer’s Draughts -of the Body of an English Man of War.” Edward Dummer was assistant -shipwright at Chatham. Pepys described him in 1686 as an “ingenious -young man.”] - -In the seventeenth century the lieutenant was still not necessarily -a seaman. He was a well-bred gentleman, knowing how to entertain -ambassadors, gentlemen, and distinguished visitors received on board. -He was capable of being sent as a responsible messenger to important -personages, and was, in short, of far more use as a social instrument -than as a naval officer. During the Commonwealth soldiers again -became sea-commanders, and the names of Blake, Monck, and Popham will -instantly leap to the mind. Up till the time of Charles II the sea -service had not always enjoyed the dignity of being deemed a profession -worthy of gentlemen. There were, of course, exceptions; but as a -general rule this was the case. But, thanks to the example of the Duke -of York, afterwards James II, the Navy during the time of his brother -Charles II became fashionable--too fashionable, in fact; for numbers of -gentlemen got themselves promoted to the rank of ship’s captain while -knowing very little indeed about ships and their ways. One has only to -read through some of Mr. Pepys’ remarks to appreciate this unfortunate -condition of affairs. - -The reign of James II gave a still greater impetus to the English naval -service. There was an improvement in administration and organisation -generally, thanks partly to the personal inclination of James towards -maritime matters, and partly to the lessons which he and others had -learned during the Anglo-Dutch sea fights. But as to placing naval -education on a sound basis, there was no such thing in England till -the end of the Stuart period, although across the Channel the French -were seeing to it that their sailors obtained not only a thoroughly -practical, but also an adequate theoretical training. The English -midshipman came aboard for his first cruise a complete landsman with -no training. He managed to learn the rudiments of seamanship from the -boatswain, and to get a smattering of elementary navigation; yet it was -anything but a satisfactory training. There was little enough science -in the sailor’s work, and hundreds of ships were wrecked through -lack of proper instruments, until, in the year 1676, the founding of -Greenwich Observatory enabled nautical astronomy to be developed to -the great advantage of ships and men. Thanks to the English overseas -colonies and the Newcastle colliers, to which Boteler refers in -his famous “Dialogues,” published in 1685; to the numbers of other -coasters; and last, but most important of all, to the long protracted -Dutch wars which had taught many a greenhorn how to use the sea, there -was a large and growing body of seamen, many of whose descendants were -to fight under Rodney, Hawke, Jervis, Nelson, and other famous admirals -at a later date. - -[Illustration: THE “ORTHOGRAPHICK SIMMETRYE” OF A SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY -SHIP. - -Being another of “Mr. Dummer’s Draughts.”] - -At the end of the seventeenth century, captains in the Navy were being -paid £1 10s. a month during the time of peace, but during war this was -raised to £3. The idea of a naval uniform originated in France in the -year 1669, but the practice of all grades of naval officers wearing -uniform did not become general until the time of the first Empire. -During the reign of our Charles II, ships of the English Navy carried -as officers, captains, lieutenants, masters, pursers, surgeons, and -chaplains. The seventeenth-century French Navy owed a very considerable -debt to the far-sighted enterprise of Colbert, but _directly_ it owed -a very great deal to the labours of its chaplains, who instructed -the pilots in their work and taught naval aspirants the mysteries of -astronomy and navigation. During the first part of the seventeenth -century the finest shipbuilders had been the Dutch, for, thanks to -their East Indian and other colonies, Holland had every reason for -building big ocean-going ships. No one in Spain, England, or France -could for a time build ships like theirs. And so it was but natural -that the zealous French went to Holland, lived there for some time in -order to learn shipbuilding, translated the best Dutch authorities -on this subject into French, and returned home to build on even more -scientific lines. Therefore in the eighteenth century the French could -build vessels as no one else in the world. It was from the latter, in -turn, that the English at last acquired so much skill that the old -rule-of-thumb methods of ship construction were for ever banished and -the era of scientific shipbuilding entered upon. In such scientific -matters as the improvement of gunnery, the log, the stability and -better under-water design of ships, France led the way for those vast -reforms which were subsequently to follow. - -In the whole history of shipbuilding there is no name which stands -out so prominently as Pett. From the time of Henry VIII right down -till that of William and Mary, one or more members of this family were -busy building ships for the State. At the beginning of the seventeenth -century the finest and largest ship which had ever been in the British -Navy was the _Prince Royal_, of 1200 tons. She was designed and built -by Sir Phineas Pett, and her keel was laid down in 1608, and the first -attempt to launch her was made on the 24th of September in 1610. Among -the Harleian manuscripts in the British Museum is a quaint volume of a -hundred and thirteen pages, entitled “The Life of Phineas Pette, who -was borne Nov. 1^{st}, 1570,” and the account continues down to the -year 1638. It is a curious record, in which the most intimate domestic -matters are mixed up with the most interesting facts concerning the -building of ships. For example: “In the beginning of August, I was -summoned to Chatham with my fellow master shipwrites there to take a -survey of the Navy according to the yearly Custom.... The 6th. of this -Month of Aug^t. my wife was delivered of her 5th. son at Woolwich.” - -However, this MS. attracts our attention, because it gives us a -most interesting and detailed account of the way ships in England -were launched only twenty-two years after the Armada was fought and -vanquished. There is, I believe, in existence no such satisfactory -a picture of the time-honoured ceremony of sending a ship for the -first time into the water that is to be her abiding support. I will, -therefore, ask the reader to be so good as to accompany me down to -Woolwich a few days before the end of September in that year 1610. -Here, at last, after two years’ worry, work, and anxiety, Pett has -finished his master-work, the biggest craft which even a Pett had ever -fashioned. Even to-day, as then, the shipbuilder feels never so much -anxiety as the day on which the launching of a great ship is to take -place. A hitch--a difficulty in persuading the ship and water to become -acquainted--may spoil the labour of many a month, besides being a -source of great depression to all concerned, from the builder downwards -and upwards. - -[Illustration: EARLY SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY DUTCH WEST INDIAMEN. - -By a Contemporary Artist. These were the merchant ships which used to -bring back to Holland the rich cargoes from across the Atlantic. Notice -the exquisite carving.] - -However, here we are arrived at the Woolwich yard, where the great -_Prince Royal_ is seen towering high above other craft, and the last -touches are being given alike to the ship and to the arrangements, for -Royalty are coming to grace the launching ceremony. There was a great -“standing sett up,” Pett informs us, “in the most convenient place -in the yard for his Majesty, the Queen and the Royal Children, and -places fitted for the Ladies and Council all railed in and boarded.” -All the rooms in Pett’s own lodgings had been “very handsomely -hanged and furnished.” “Nothing was omitted that could be imagined -anyways necessary both for ease and entertainment.” Pett had been round -the dockyard on Sunday, September 23, and then in the evening came a -messenger to him with a letter ordering him to be very careful and have -the hold of the _Prince Royal_ searched lest “some persons disaffected -might have board some holes privilly an’ the ship to sink her after she -should be launched.” Pett, however, was far too wide-awake not to have -foreseen any such possibility. - -On Monday morning, then, he and his brother and some of his assistants -had the dock-gates opened. Everything was got ready for the approach -of high tide and the time when the _Prince Royal_ was to be floated. -But matters were not going to be quite satisfactory. It was, of course, -a spring tide, but unfortunately it was blowing very hard from the -south-west, and this kept back the Thames flood so that the water -failed to come up to its expected mark, and the tide was no better than -at neaps. This was a great disappointment, for presently arrived the -King and his retinue. Pett and the Lord Admiral and the chief naval -officers received James as His Majesty landed from his barge, but it -was with a heavy heart. The King was conducted to Mr. Lydiard’s house, -where he dined. The drums and trumpets were placed on the poop and -forecastle of the _Prince Royal_, and the wind instruments assigned -their proper place beside them. But still the tide was behind-hand. - -So Pett thought out a device. About the time of high water he had a -great lighter made fast at the stern of the _Prince Royal_ so as to -help to float the latter. But it was of no avail, for the strong wind -“overblew the tide, yett the shipp started, but yet the Dock gates pent -her in so streight that she stuck fast between them by reason the ship -was nothing lifted with the tide as we expected she should, and ye -great lighter by unadvised counsel being cut of(f), the sterne of the -ship settled so hard upon the ground that there was no possibility of -launching that tide.” Furthermore, so many people had gone aboard the -ship that one could hardly turn round. It was a terrible contretemps -that the ship remained unyielding, for here were the distinguished -visitors on board waiting. “The noble Prince himself accompany with -ye Lord Admirall and other great Lords were upon the poope where the -standing great guilt Cupp was ready filled with wine to name ye shipp -so soon as she had been on floate according to ancient Custome and -ceremoneys performed at such time by drinking part of the wine, giving -the ship her name and heaving the standing cup overboard.” - -But time and tide wait on no man, prince or shipbuilder. It was no -use to expect a launch that day. “The King’s Maj^{tie},” Pett adds -sorrowfully, “was much grieved to be frustrate of his expectation -comeing on purpose tho very ill at ease to have done me honour, but -God saw it not so good for me, and therefore sent this Cross upon me -both to humble me and make me to know that however we purposed He would -dispose all things as He pleased.” Thus, at five that afternoon, the -King and Queen departed. When the last guest had gone, Pett, pathetic -but plucky, set to work with his assistants “to make way with the sides -of the gates,” and, plenty of help being at hand, got everything ready -before the next flood came up. The Lord Admiral had sat up all night -in a chair in one of the rooms adjoining the yard till the tide “was -come about the ship.” It was a little past full moon--when the tides, -of course, are at their highest--and the weather was most unpropitious. -It rained, it thundered and it lightened for half an hour, during -which Prince Henry returned to the yard and went aboard the _Prince -Royal_ together with the Lord Admiral and Pett. It was now about 2 -a.m., or an hour before high water. Another attempt was made to launch -the great ship, and happily this time she sped into the water without -any difficulty or the straining of screws or tackles. As she floated -clear into the channel, the Prince drank from the cup and solemnly -named the ship the _Prince Royal_. Thus, at length, this glorious ship -that was to be so much admired presently with her fine carvings and -decorations, with her elaborate figurehead at the bows representing her -namesake on horseback, kissed the waters of the Thames. Soon, fitted -with three lanterns at the poop and her yards and masts, her fifty-five -guns and her spread of canvas, she would go forth to the open sea, the -proudest ship flying the British ensign. But though this ship contained -many of the improvements which had been made recently in the art of -shipbuilding, yet there had been a scandalous excess of expense, for -the Commissioners discovered that more than double the loads of timber -had been used than had been estimated for. - -It is undeniable that the Stuart seamanship was inferior to that of the -Elizabethans. They could not handle their vessels with such dexterity -as the contemporaries of Drake. The sailors who had not become pirates -were not the equals of those who had fought against the Spaniards; -and this for two reasons: firstly, the fisheries had become so bad as -to discourage putting to sea; and, secondly, the voyages of discovery -were now far fewer. As already stated, one of the happy results of the -Anglo-Dutch wars was that they gave experience to inexperienced men. -Often enough, too, as in the fleet that was sent in 1625 to Cadiz, -the ships were leaky, cranky, and fitted with defective gear and the -scantiest supply of victuals. Add to these drawbacks the incapacity of -the officers and the diseases of the men, and you may rightly pity the -lot of the sailor in those times. They were even put ashore at Cadiz -fasting, so that they promptly filled their poor bellies with the wine -of the country and became drunk. - -Can you wonder, therefore, that during the Civil War, after there had -been a series of mutinies during the reign of Charles I, the whole of -the Navy, with the exception of one ship, deserted the royal cause as -a protest against the bad food, the irregular pay, and the incapable -officers? After that the victuals were improved, their wages were -paid at a fair scale and with punctuality, and their affairs better -regulated. But not even then were matters entirely satisfactory. As -one reads through the correspondence of this period one can see that -discipline was woefully lacking. Even Blake, keen disciplinarian that -he was, found it necessary to write on the 1st of December, 1652, -to the Admiralty Commissioners to the following effect soon after -the encounter with the Dutch fleet off Dungeness: “I am bound to let -your Honours know in general that there was much baseness of spirit, -not among the merchantmen only, but many of the State’s ships, and -therefore I make it my humble request that your Honours would be -pleased to send down some gentlemen to take an impartial and strict -examination of the deportment of several commanders, that you may know -who are to be confined and who are not.” Captain Thomas Thorowgood--is -not the surname suggestive of the Puritan period?--also wrote to -complain that his crew had actually refused to accept their six months’ -pay as being inadequate. “On Saturday night they were singing and -roaring, and I sent my servant to bid the boatswain to be quiet and go -to their cabins; but they told me they would not be under my command, -so I struck one of them, and the rest put out the candle and took -hold of me as though they would have torn me to pieces, so that I am -almost beside myself, not knowing what to do.” - -[Illustration: FITTING OUT AN EARLY SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY DUTCH WEST -INDIAN MERCHANTMAN. - -By a Contemporary Artist. Observe the elaborate stern gallery.] - -When Blake wrote to Cromwell in August, 1655, from on board the -_George_, he complained of various matters. When he had wished to blaze -away at the Spanish fleet there was a little wind “and a great sea,” -so that he could not make use of the lower tier of guns. This arose -from the old mistake of having the gun-ports too near the water’s edge. -Furthermore, “some of the ships had not beverage for above four days, -and the whole not able to make above eight, and that a short allowance; -and no small part both of our beverage and water was stinking.” ... -“Our ships are extreme foul, winter drawing on, our victuals expiring, -all stores failing, and our men falling sick through the badness of -drink and through eating their victuals boiled in salt water for two -months’ space. Even now the coming of the supply is uncertain (we -received not one word from the Commissioners of the Admiralty and Navy -by the last); and, though it come timely, yet if beer come not with -it, we shall be undone that way.” Again he writes from the _George_, -“at sea, off Lagos,” in 1657: “The _Swiftsure_, in which I was, is so -foul and unwieldy through the defects of her sheathing laid on for -the voyage of Jamaica, that I thought it needful to remove into the -_George_.” - -The importance of the Anglo-Dutch wars consists, _inter alia_, in the -display of tactics that must now be mentioned, for this, if you please, -represents the period of transition. We dealt some time back with the -lack of tactics of the Elizabethan period, and saw that at least there -was in existence a yearning after the line-ahead formation. The object -of this is, of course, to enable each ship to fire into the enemy her -very utmost, and give her opponent the benefit of a broadside. But -it was not till the seventeenth century that this theory got a real -foothold. Between 1648 and 1652 certain fighting instructions were -issued for the English Navy, and may be summed up as follows: The fleet -was not to engage the enemy if the latter should seem more numerous. -On sighting the enemy, the vice-admiral and rear-admiral respectively -were to form wings with their ships, to come up on either side of the -admiral and to keep close to him. When the admiral gave the signal, -each ship was to engage the hostile ship nearest to him, the admiral -tackling the admiral of the enemy. Care must be taken not to leave any -of their own ships in distress, and commanders of all small craft were -to keep to windward of the fleet and to look out for fire-ships. - -There was no instruction enjoining line-ahead as a battle formation, -but it was understood, and when Blake had his first encounter with -Marten Tromp the English ships formed into single-line ahead. So much -for the moment with regard to tactics. What was the strategy displayed -at the commencement of the Anglo-Dutch wars? Consider a moment what -would most probably be that strategy employed by the British Navy -to-day at the beginning of hostilities between ourselves and Germany. -We should assuredly do three things: (1) We should close up the Straits -of Dover and intercept German liners homeward bound. (2) That being so, -the only possible chance of the enemy’s ships reaching their Fatherland -would be to go round the north of Scotland: so we should have a -squadron off the north-east coast of Scotland to thwart that intention. -(3) And, lastly, we should send some of our warships across the North -Sea to blockade German ports. - -Now except for a comparatively slight coast erosion and the shifting of -minor shoals, Great Britain in the twentieth century is geographically -the same as in the seventeenth. Instead of a German enemy, imagine -that Holland is the foe; instead of the German liners, substitute -the Dutch Plate ships; instead of the modern steel steam warriors, -substitute sail-propelled warships. Otherwise you have exactly similar -conditions. The strategy is the same: only the century and the type -of ships are different. For what happened? Ayscue with his squadron -remained in the Downs to catch the Dutch Plate ships bound home to -Holland. Blake was sent with sixty or seventy ships to the north-east -of Scotland and captured a hundred of the Dutch fishing fleet, and then -proceeded further north to intercept the Dutch merchantmen between the -Orkneys and Shetlands. He then came in contact with the Dutch fleet and -prepared for war, but a gale sprang up and dispersed Tromp’s ships. -It was only the lack of good charts that made the English sea general -reluctant to cross the North Sea into the shoal-strewn Dutch waters, -though in fact they did cross later and blockade. Thus we may say that -at any rate by the beginning of the first of these Anglo-Dutch wars -there is the surest evidence that naval strategy was appreciated at its -full value, and that it was modern and not medieval strategy. - -And now let us pass to the year 1653, after the English fleet had come -in from the English Channel to Stokes Bay for a refit. Important new -orders were now issued which insisted that ships were to endeavour to -keep in line with their chief so as to engage the enemy to the best -advantage. When the windward line had been engaged, the English ships -were to form in line-ahead “upon severest punishment.” Now please -note two points: that this line-ahead tactic was not of foreign but -English origin, and that following this order a general improvement in -tactics followed. The second Dutch war showed the progress which had -been made since the new type of Fighting Instructions had been issued. -Earl Sandwich, the Lord High Admiral, had issued orders just a month -before war was declared, to provide for the formation of line-abreast, -and for forming from that order a line-ahead to port and starboard. -The principle, too, of sailing close-hauled in single-line ahead is -conspicuous after the Commonwealth period. During the first year of the -third Dutch war still further progress was observed by the officers -being instructed as to how they should keep the enemy to leeward and -how to divide the enemy’s fleet if the latter were to windward; and -the regulations once more insisted on the commanders maintaining their -line-ahead and avoiding firing over their own ships. Two distinct -schools of tactics arose: one purely formal, the other allowing room -for personal initiative as occasion suggested. In the end the former -won, and this continued till the end of the eighteenth century. - -[Illustration: AN EARLY SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY DUTCH SHIPBUILDING YARD. - -After a Contemporary Artist. Painting the hull of an ocean-going -merchantman] - -There is among the seventeenth-century MSS. in the British Museum still -to be found a great deal of interesting data which well illustrates -the experiences of ships and men in these times. Notwithstanding the -incompetency of some of the captains who owed their position less to -their ability as seamen than to influence, yet there were others who -had been at sea most of their lives and had had command of merchant -ships for years. Such men as these were of the highest value to their -country during the Anglo-Dutch wars. You will remember that battle -off Portland in 1653, during the first Dutch war. Richard Gibson, who -was purser on board the _Assurance_ at the time, has left behind his -reminiscences of this fight. In the beginning of February the English -fleet was sailing from Dover down Channel with a fair easterly breeze. -“Gen^{rl} Blake and Deane in the _Tryumph_, S^r John Lawson Vice -Adm^{ll} of the Redd in the _Fairfax_, Cap^{tn} Houlding Rear Adm^{ll} -of y^e Redd in the _Ruby_, Gen^{rll} Monck Adm^{ll} of the White in -y^e _Vanguard_, S^r W^m Penn Adm^{ll} of the Blew in the _Speaker_ -(now named the _Mary_), and the Whole Fleet about 52 Saile spread -their Colours of Redd White and Blew, and their Flaggs Ensignes and -Pendants (as now) according to their Division of Squadrons, and Sayled -to meet the Dutch Fleet.... Upon our first Sight of the Dutch all the -English had their Starbord tacks aboard; Gen^{rll} Blake Espying the -Dutch Fleet to bare down before the Winde upon him got his Shipp ready, -haled his Main Sayle up the Brailes, and braced his foretopsaile to -the Mast.... The Dutch Fleet in a Boddy bore downe upon the Generalls, -and pressed upon the _Tryumph_ with as many Shipps as could well lay -about her. Upon which S^r W^m Penn Tacked and his Division with their -larboard Tacks (as soon as they could) stood thorow the Dutch fleet -one way: as S^r Jo^n Lawson (with his division) did the other.... -Upon which such of the English Friggotts as Sailed well Stered out of -Gunn Shot of the Dutch Fleet to Windward on the larbord side, untill -they had got a head of severall Dutch Shipps of Warr: then set their -Starbord Tacks and stand right with them, and boarded the first Dutch -Shipp they could.” - -It seems strange to us in these modern days, when excellent and -reliable charts can be had for a few shillings, to read in the official -dispatch signed by Monck and Blake to Cromwell that they supposed they -would have destroyed the Dutch fleet off the Lowland coast, “but that -it grew dark, and being off of Ostend among the sandes, we durst not -be to bold, especially with the greate ships; soe that it was thought -fitt we should anchor all night, which we accordingly did about 10 of -the clock.” The way these ships manœuvred in battle so as to get to -windward of their enemy was as pretty a sight as a fleet of racing -yachts to-day manœuvring for the same ambition at the starting-line. -At the battle of Lowestoft in June, 1665, at sunrise, the Dutch fleet -“bore up to V(ice) A(dmiral) Minnes, and gave him a broadside, who -received them accordingly, and so,” says a Harleian MS. of that date, -“their whole Fleet passed by ours, firing at every Ship as they went, -and receiving returnes from them, not one of either side being out -of play at their first encounter: immediately upon which his R(oyal) -H(ighness) made his Signe of the Tacking, that we might still keep the -wind of them, which was as happily executed, notwithstanding that the -Ennemy also strove for it.” - -Yet again we have proof of the importance which the English Navy -attached to falling into line of battle. The occasion was the four -days’ battle off the North Foreland in June, 1666. When de Ruyter’s -fleet had been sighted to leeward, our “General calld immediately a -Council of Flag officers: which being done, ye signe was put out to -fall into ye ligne of batle ... about 1 of ye clock ye fight began, Sir -G. Askue with ye white squadron leading ye van.” In the official report -of the battle of Solebay (May, 1672), Captain Haddock, in command of -Lord Sandwich’s flagship the _Royal James_, shows that orders during -battle were sent by means of the ship’s boats. “I had sent our Barge -by my Lord’s command ahead to Sir Joseph Jordaine to tack, and with -his division to weather the Dutch that were upon us, and beat down to -Leeward of us, and come to our Assistance. Our Pinnace I sent likewise -astern (both Coxswains living) to command our ships to come to our -Assistance, which never returned.” And there are other instances of -falling into line, as, for instance, at the battle on the 11th of -August, 1673. “His H(ighnes)s Pr. Rupert seeing us come with that -faire wind,” says the Stowe MS., “gave us the Signall to beare into his -wake.” And again in the evidence of the Dutch Rear-Admiral Schey at the -court-martial on Torrington after the battle of Beachy Head: “On the -10^{th}, being Munday morning, y^e Admirall Torrington made a signe for -y^e ranging ourselves in a line, and our fleete being got into a line, -y^e signe for engaging by a bloody flag from y^e Admirall’s foretopmast -head being putt up.” - -We spoke just now of the absence of good charts. It was Charles II -who, being himself greatly interested in navigation and finding that -there were no sea charts of the British Isles except such as were -Dutch or copies of the Dutch--and very erroneous at that--gave a man -named Greenville Collins command of a yacht for the purpose of making -a sea survey, “in which service,” says Collins, “I spent seven years’ -time.” James II, himself a great admiral, encouraged this work till -its completion, and so good and accurate were the charts that they -were in active use at any rate till the end of the eighteenth century. -As to the lighting of the coast, this was still in a very primitive -condition. The first navigation light in this country was that of the -Roman Pharos at Dover, a day-mark which mariners still see to-day as -they come bound up Channel. In monastic times probably St. Aldhelm’s -(better known as St. Albans) Head showed a light to warn ships from the -land, and it is also thought that there was a light at Flamborough[51] -and in Flintshire. In 1685, Lowestoft, Dungeness, the North and South -Forelands, Orfordness, Flamborough, Portland, Harwich, and the Isle -of Man were all lighted by beacon fires of wood and coal. These coal -fires continued in some of the lighthouses round our coast even till -well into the reign of William IV. But the Argand lamp, which was -invented during the reign of James II, gradually and surely took the -place of the older-fashioned beacon. And if we may, whilst we are -on the subject, anticipate a few years, we may add that though in -William IV’s time lights were more numerous and the system of buoys was -well established, yet lightships were practically non-existent. The -first lightship dates from 1732, when Robert Hamblyn and David Avery -established such a ship at the Nore. - -We may pass now to consider the conditions which regulated the work -of Stuart seamen on board one of the ships such as fought against the -Dutch. We have to think of a type of warship that was nothing else than -a slightly developed specimen of the Elizabethan period. The difference -between the Tudor and Stuart ships at their fullest development is -merely that the latter had become much bigger and carried additional -sails and guns and crew. As a broad statement, this sums the matter up -in the fewest words. Had you passed one of the biggest of the Stuart -ships at sea you would have seen a three- and sometimes a four-masted -craft with topsails and t’gallants above her courses. On such a ship -as the _Sovereign of the Seas_, if we are to judge by a perfectly -authentic engraving, royals were also set sometimes. On the mizzen you -would have observed the lateen sail still in existence. What especially -would have struck you would have been not merely the elongated beak, -but the very long bowsprit. The sailors had to creep out along this -spar, keeping themselves, by hanging on to a stay or spreader, from -slipping into the ocean every time the vessel rose or fell to the -motion of the waves. It was a pretty wet job to lay out along there in -a breeze of wind when the beak-head was dipping well down into the sea -every time she pitched and hurling a veritable cascade over them. There -was one squaresail bent to a yard underneath the bowsprit, and this -water-sail had a couple of round holes--one at either side low down -near the foot--the object being to permit the water, which this low -sail scooped up, to escape. The sheets of this sail led aft and came on -board abaft the fore shrouds. In fine weather a bonnet was sometimes -laced to this spritsail. But in these Stuart ships there was also a -square spritsail hoisted on a sprit-topmast. To hoist this sail the -men had, of course, to go right out to the extreme forward end of the -bowsprit. Above this topmast flew the Union Jack. - -[Illustration: A SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY FIRST-RATE SHIP. - -Embarkation was made by means of the “Entring Port,” which is clearly -shown amidships.] - -Had you gone aboard such a vessel you would have found she had three -decks and a forecastle, a quarter-deck, and a “round-house.” The -lowest tier had thirty square-ports for demi-cannon and cannon. There -were thirty ports also on the middle tier for demi-culverin and -culverin. But her upper tier had twenty-six ports for lighter ordnance. -Her forecastle and her half-deck had twelve and fourteen ports -respectively, and there were thirteen or fourteen more ports “within -board for murdering pieces,” as well as a good many holes for firing -muskets out of the cabins. Right forward and right aft respectively she -carried ten pieces of chase-ordnance. - -As you paced her spacious decks you would have realised that you were -on board some better finished article than belonged to Elizabethan -days. The workmanship and decoration would have struck you as of a -higher class. From her great ensign flying over the poop to the smaller -Union Jack on the sprit-topmast; from her royal standard, flying at -the main, to her keel, she would have appeared a massive, substantial -creature of wood and able to withstand a good deal of battering even -from the Dutch ordnance. You would have noted, too, the many carved -emblems pertaining to land and sea which decorated her--the angelic -figures holding up devices, the cupids, and “symbols of navigation,” -all done in gold and black. You would have wondered at the elaborate -figurehead representing a royal personage on horseback prancing over -the waves. And finally, when you came round to the stern, you would -have remarked the elaborate allegorical picture of Victory, or some -other suitable subject, and the five great poop-lanterns--one of them -so big that “ten people could stand upright in it”--crowning the whole -thing. Seventy-five feet, you would have been told, as you looked over -the side, she measured from the keel to her lanterns. - -The poop-deck ended some distance abaft the mizzen-mast: the -quarter-deck came just as far forward as the mainmast. Below the -quarter-deck was the upper deck, which ran the whole length of the -ship. Next below came the main deck, where the heaviest guns were -kept. The forecastle was really a substantial fortress which rose -from the upper deck, and, by the aid of its guns already mentioned, -could look after itself even when the enemy had boarded the ship -and obtained possession of the rest of the decks. Sometimes a light -topgallant forecastle was erected above the forecastle. Additional to -the guns already mentioned, swivels were also mounted on quarter-deck -and poop, and would be very useful in case one of the enemy’s ships -came alongside for boarding. The cable of such a ship would be about a -hundred fathoms long of 21-inch hemp, her anchors being respectively of -430 lbs., 150 lbs., and 74 lbs. weight. Davis’ quadrant or backstaff -was still used, and the log-line was an appreciable assistance. - -[Illustration: SECTION OF A THREE-DECKER. - -Showing construction and gun tiers.] - -[Illustration: NOCTURNAL. - -Employed at sea for finding the hour of the night by the North Star.] - -Below you might have found the dull red everywhere a monotonous colour. -But there was a reason: it prevented the human blood spilt in an -engagement from being too conspicuous. So also the gun-carriage was -painted the same hue. All the ports were square except on the upper -and quarter-decks, where the ports were circular, and surrounded with -gilt wreaths. Externally the upper works of the hull above the line of -the upper decks were painted dark blue with gilt decorations. Below -this the ship was painted yellow down to the lower deck ports, with -a broad band of black along the water-line. Her bottom was painted -white, with the anti-fouling composition. Various experiments were -tried for sheathing the ships with lead, but eventually a fixed method -was adopted for about a century, which consisted of hammering numerous -broad-headed nails close together along the ship’s bottom, and then -paying thereon a composition of tallow and resin. - -The nocturnal was still used for finding the hour of the night by the -North Star, and the moon-dial for finding the time of high water. -Spherical and plane trigonometry, the use of charts and globes, the -application of Gunter’s scale and Briggs’ logarithms, the use of -Mercator’s chart--these were the subjects which a seventeenth-century -navigator was expected to learn if he were a genuine “tarpaulin,” and -not an ignorant, swaggering land-lubber promoted by influence only. - -[Illustration: BUILDING AND LAUNCHING SHIPS IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. - -The vessel on the left is in process of being launched into the water. -The ship on the right is still on the stocks.] - - - - -CHAPTER XII - -THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY - - -The lot of the modern seaman is of a vastly different order of things -from that of the eighteenth-century sailor. Hardships though there may -be in this twentieth century, yet they are not to be mentioned when -we remember the hard-swearing, bullying days of Queen Anne. Morals, -both ashore and afloat, were at a particularly low ebb; irreligion and -blasphemy were rampant. On board ship there was very rarely Divine -worship, even on the large East Indiamen, although this neglect was -certainly contrary to orders. But the managers themselves, in order to -save the expense of having to carry a chaplain, used to rate their big -ships as of only 499 tons, and so keep themselves within the law. - -One of the most interesting personalities of this period was William -Hutchinson, who for some time was a famous privateer. As an instance -of the kind of tyrannical captains of his day, he mentions one whom he -remembered in the Jamaica trade. The latter used to make his ship a -veritable floating hell for all concerned. He was an excessive drinker, -he was a notorious gambler, always seeking a quarrel, and much addicted -to heavy swearing. He never got the best out of his people, for the -reason that when he was not maltreating his men he was damning his -officers. If during a heavy squall the officer of the watch offered to -take in sail or to bear away, this virulent skipper would regard such -a suggestion as an act of piracy. And yet he himself was so heedless -of what was prudent, that he would sometimes run his ship before the -wind and carry on till she was overpressed and could not be controlled -by the helm. And there came a time when this skipper and his ship put -forth to sea and never came back at all. - -Hutchinson wrote one of the most interesting books on seamanship which -it has ever been my pleasure to read. His complaint was that too many -men were so devoted to the methods which they had been accustomed -to, that they could not be prevailed upon to try others which were -better. There certainly was a good deal of ignorance about in this -eighteenth century. Some men, he says, endeavour to make ships perform -impossibilities, as, for instance, backing their craft astern to clear -a single anchor when the wind is right aft against the windward tide; -or trying to back a ship with sails so set as to prevent her shooting -ahead towards a danger when laid-to; or driving broadside with the -wind against tide, not knowing that a ship driving on either tack will -always shoot forward the way her head lies, in spite of any sail set -aback. He complained, too, of the neglect of sea officers’ education. -One may add that the only training which naval officers received -at this time was by going to sea. They came from the shore to the -quarter-deck and picked up what knowledge they could. It is true that, -in 1727, George II established a Naval Academy at Portsmouth. But it -was a very exclusive institution, and open to only a few of the sons of -the nobility and gentry. Therefore it languished through neglect before -very long, but in 1806 was raised to the dignity of a Royal Naval -College. - -[Illustration: COLLIER BRIG. - -As seen by E. W. Cooke at the beginning of the nineteenth century. In -the time of Hutchinson these collier brigs were slightly different and -carried spritsails. But on the whole the brigs of both periods were -very similar.] - -The eighteenth-century midshipman of the Royal Navy was a man of low -social standing. His age varied from ten to forty-five, the older -men having been promoted from before the mast. Mere boys, who knew -but little about the ways of a ship, and in any case had had but -little training, were given the rank of lieutenant. The country had -so much fighting on hand that it badly needed men. Forty thousand -men were voted in 1705, justices of the peace being authorised to -seek out seamen and deliver them to the press-gangs. Whilst penalties -were threatening for those who concealed seamen, rewards were held -out to those who should discover and help to arrest them. Landsmen -being eligible, it was not surprising that a raw, incompetent lot -of gaol-birds had to do service for their country on the seas. But -they were not even healthy of body. One has only to read Anson’s -“Voyage Round the World.” Among the men that were sent to him by the -authorities, thirty-two out of one batch of 170 were straight from the -hospital and sick-quarters. Of the soldiery he was to carry, all the -land forces that were to be allowed him were 500 Chelsea pensioners, -consisting of men invalided for age, wounds, or other infirmities. - -But there were some very fine fellows in two branches of the merchant -service. Hutchinson calls attention to these: “Those seamen in the -coal and coasting trade to the city of London, are the most perfect in -working and managing their ships in narrow, intricate, and difficult -channels, and in tide ways; and the seamen in the East India trade are -so in the open seas.” “The best lessons for tacking and working to -windward in little room,” he remarks elsewhere, “are in the colliers -bound to London, where many great ships are constantly employed, -and where wages are paid by the voyage, so that interest makes them -dexterous.” The mainmast of such craft stood further aft than was -customary. Therefore they had a strong tendency to gripe, and so they -often used their spritsail and all head sail for going to windward and -making them manageable. In narrow channels, when the wind was blowing -so strongly that all hands could not haul aft the fore sheet, this had -to be done by the capstan. These little brigs had no lifts to the lower -yards, no foretop bowlines, but short main bowlines, and snatch-blocks -for the main and fore sheets. The main braces led forward so that the -main and maintop bowlines were hauled and belayed to the same pin. “We -have ships,” he says, “that will sail from six to nine miles an hour, -upon a wind, when it blows fresh and the water is smooth, and will make -their way good within six points of the wind, in still water, a third -of what they run by the logg.” - -The accompanying illustration shows the well-known manœuvre of -boxhauling, which Hutchinson was most anxious to teach his brother -seamen. For the benefit of the non-nautical reader, I may explain -that this is a method of veering a ship when the sea is so bad that -she cannot tack, and is dangerously near the lee shore. Boxhauling, -insisted Hutchinson, is the surest and best method of getting a ship -under command of helm and sails in a limited space. “There is a saying -amongst seamen,” he adds, “if a ship will not stay you must ware her; -and if she will not ware, you must box-haul her; and if you cannot -box-haul her, you must club-haul her--that is, let go the anchor to -get her about on the other tacks.” Every maritime officer to-day has -written across his mind in imperishable letters the five L’s--“log, -lead, look-out, latitude, and longitude.” In Hutchinson’s day the -sailor had only three of these, and he quotes the great Halley -as emphasising the importance of the three L’s--lead, latitude, and -look-out. For the difficulty of the longitude was still unsolved. - -[Illustration: BOXHAULING. - -Hutchinson relates that on one occasion he saved his ship from -foundering in Mount’s Bay only by boxhauling, as here indicated. Fig. -2 shows that as soon as the ship ceased coming round in stays, the -foresheet was hauled aft, the headsails trimmed flat, whilst the sails -were slacking, and the helm put hard alee. She then made a stern board. -Thus gathering way, she turned short on her heel till she filled main -and maintopsails the right way. The helm was then put hard aweather, so -that the ship got headway with the sails trimmed, as in Fig. 1. Later -on she was able to turn to windward, as in Fig. 3, far enough off the -lee shore so as to weather the Lizard.] - -[Illustration: EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY “BITTACLE.” - -There was a compass on either side, and the lamp was placed in between.] - -Briefly, the history of this problem is as follows. Longitude is, -of course, the distance which a ship makes east or west. These -eighteenth-century navigators had their quadrant for finding their -latitude, and they used the log-line, log-ship, reel, and half-minute -glass to tell them roughly and inaccurately the distance sailed by -the ship. These, by the way, were kept stowed in the “bittacle” -(binnacle), which in those days was a wooden box arrangement containing -a compass on each side with lights in between. There were usually -two of these “bittacles” on board, viz. one for the steersman and -one for the “person who superintends and directs the steerage,” says -Moore, “whose office is called conning.” The accompanying illustration -will indicate quite clearly the appearance of an eighteenth-century -“bittacle.” Throughout history all sorts of efforts had been made to do -for longitude what the quadrant and cross-staff had done for latitude. -The great voyages of discovery in the early sixteenth century had -especially given this research an impetus. In 1530 and again in 1598 a -means had been sought. Philip III of Spain offered a thousand crowns to -him who should discover the instrument for finding longitude. All sorts -of prizes were offered by different Governments at different dates. The -States of Holland held out an offer of 10,000 florins. The melancholy -wreck of Sir Cloudesley Shovel on the Scillies with his squadron caused -the English Parliament, in 1714, to offer £20,000 for any method which -could determine the longitude. Two years later the French Government -offered 100,000 livres, and so the impetus continued without avail. The -whole civilised world was crying out for something which no scientist -could give. - -And then, in 1765, the English prize was at last won by John and -William Harrison, who were able to make instruments most suitable -for this purpose, and received the £20,000. This was that invaluable -little article the chronometer, which means so much to the modern -mammoth steamships. Dr. Maskelyne, the Astronomer Royal, had, in 1754, -discovered the method of finding longitude by lunar observations on -shore. After navigators at last began to employ chronometers the -dawn of modern methods had already occurred. In 1767 came the first -publication of the “Nautical Almanac,” Hadley’s quadrant was made known -in 1731, and the sextant in 1761. Perhaps, as the sailing masters in -the Navy had to provide their own nautical instruments, there was -not such an incentive to accustom themselves to new methods as might -otherwise have been the case. - -[Illustration: INTERIOR OF AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY THREE-DECKER.] - -[Illustration: INTERIOR OF AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY MAN-OF-WAR. - -Showing decks, cabins, holds, etc.] - -Till the time when Hadley’s quadrant was adopted, masters had always -stuck to Davis’. The ship’s time was still kept by half-hour glass. The -quartermaster, when the sand had run down, capsized the glass again and -struck the ship’s bell--on eight occasions during the watch. All -the different courses sailed during a watch of four hours were marked -by the quartermaster on a circular disc of hard wood. This was called -a traverse board, and thereon were marked the different points of the -compass. On the line of each point radiating from the centre were eight -little holes, just as one sees in a cribbage-board. One at a time, pegs -were placed into these holes to register the various courses sailed in -every watch. And then, later on, the courses were entered on a log-book -or slate, and the course and distance made good reckoned out. - -[Illustration: QUARTER-DECK OF AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY FRIGATE. - -Showing the steering wheels in use.] - -I have not been able to find any authority which would settle the -date when wheels for steering a ship were first invented; but I am -convinced that it was somewhere about the middle of the eighteenth -century. Hutchinson, whose “Practical Seamanship” was published in -1777, speaks of the steering wheel in the following terms: “The great -advantages experienced from steering a ship with this excellent machine -has occasioned it to become more and more in use; even small ships that -have their tillers upon deck frequently now steer with a wheel.” And he -states that most of these wheels have eight spokes, though large ships -have a ten-spoked wheel. - -The Newcastle colliers, of which we were speaking just now, had -anything but good charts to guide them, and their methods of coasting -are certainly worth noting. About two-thirds of their voyage from -Newcastle-on-Tyne to the Pool of London will be found to have consisted -of navigating in the region of dangerous shoals. And yet in that -eighteenth century, even though they had not a really reliable chart -between them, hundreds of these little brigs used to sail backwards -and forwards between the metropolis and the north with scarcely ever a -shipwreck. Indeed, so few were the losses that the owners very rarely -had their craft insured. That meant that they could afford to carry -their coal, iron, timber, hemp, flax, or whatever it might be, at -low freights. There was keen competition to get their goods first to -market, and some very sportive passages were made. The last of these -interesting old craft, so cleverly handled, so fascinating as they must -have been to watch, I believe ended her days in a North Sea gale not -very long since. - -[Illustration: COLLIER BRIG DISCHARGING HER CARGO. - -After E. W. COOKE.] - -Hutchinson’s enthusiasm for these is infectious. He has no literary -power of expression, but in the plain, staccato language of a hard -merchant sailor and privateer he makes one jealous of the sights which -he saw with his own eyes and can never be seen again. There is not -to-day--certainly as regards British waters--any such craft as a brig, -unless there is one small training ship still cruising about Plymouth -Sound. But in his day one sometimes saw a fleet of 300 of them all -turning to windward, having every one of them come out of the Tyne on -the same tide. The sight of so many fine little ships crossing and -recrossing each other’s bows so quickly, and with such little room, -made a distinguished Frenchman hold up his hands, and remark “that it -was there France was conquered.” - -In going through such shallow and narrow channels as Yarmouth Roads -the fleet collected themselves for mutual safety. In the absence of -good charts and efficient buoyage--it was not till 1830 that the -singular distinction of producing the worst charts passed away from -England--it was essential to use great caution in such strong tideways. -The procedure was, therefore, as follows: The fleet being now together, -each ship had a man in the chains heaving his lead. He sung out the -soundings loud enough for his neighbours to hear. This happened in -every ship; so that those vessels announcing shoal water would be -recognised as getting too near the sands; that other bunch of craft -declaring consistently deeper water would be in the channel, and the -rest could follow their lead. In this manner the best water was always -found. - -Anyone who has navigated up or down the Swin Channel at the entrance to -the Thames Estuary knows that the region is full of shoals, made still -more dangerous by the strong tides which set athwart them. In clear -weather the excellent modern buoyage makes the passage easy. But in the -eighteenth century, and in thick weather, when the fleet from Newcastle -came to the Swin, they hoped to have a head wind, and not to be able -to lie their course. Why? Well, they smelt their way by continuous -soundings, and if they were beating to windward they would find as they -prolonged each tack the water began to shoal; it was then time to ’bout -ship, and they stood on the other tack till the shallow water warned -them once more. But if they had had a fair wind and been able to keep -straight on, they ran the risk, they said, of getting piled up on the -wrong side of the sand-spits in some swatch-way. Therefore the fleet -adopted clever tactics. The lesser draught ships endeavoured to wait -till the bigger vessels passed ahead. The former would then follow -close behind, knowing that if the largest craft could float, so also -could they. But when the bigger ships found the water shoaling, they, -too, would let go anchor and let the smaller ships go ahead. Then the -tide having flooded still more, and the small fry having been observed -to be all right, up came the cables and the procession went on its -way. It was just because these vessels had to experience such a great -deal of anchor work that they held the record of any ships afloat for -breaking out their hooks with their windlass in the shortest time. -Whenever an ex-collier’s crew shipped aboard another vessel, it was -found that the windlass needed half the men to do the work. - -[Illustration: AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY MAN-OF-WAR. - -The illustration shows a three-decker in a shipbuilder’s yard ready for -launching.] - -[Illustration: COLLIER BRIGS BEATING UP THE SWIN.] - -Those were the days of real seamanship of all kinds and sorts, so we -can afford in these modern times to admire a lost art. “Nice managers -of sloop-rigged vessels,” says this fine old skipper, “turning to -windward in narrow channels, when they want but little to weather a -point, rather than make another tack, have a practice of running up -in the wind till the headway ceases, then they fill again upon the -same tack; this they call making a half board.” But Hutchinson had -no great faith in “weather-glasses,” and even doubts “their being of -any great service to seafaring people.” However, he does admit that -on one occasion he had warning of an approaching storm in the English -Channel from Tampion’s portable barometer. About seventy sailing ships -had got under way from the Downs with a moderate south-east breeze. In -the morning the quicksilver fell from 29½ inches to 28½. He had all -his small sails up, and ordered all hands to set to work and take -in the small sails and lower the t’gallant yards. About eight in the -evening the storm came on, the ship being now abreast of the Lizard, -the wind having shifted to south-south-east. Suddenly it flew round -to north-north-west, blew very strongly, and though he had no canvas -aloft except the foresail in brails, yet it laid the ship more down on -her broadside than ever he had known her. Later on they passed a ship -bottom upwards, which had obviously foundered in the same squall. - -Hutchinson, who himself preferred squaresails cut deep and narrow -rather than shallow and broad, alleging that thus they stood better on -a wind, opined that because of this superior shape the colliers and -timber-carriers already mentioned sailed so well and required so few -hands. And we get just a brief reference to the hardy Liverpool pilots -of those days. Perhaps the reader is aware of the heavy sea which gets -up among the sands at the mouth of the Mersey, and that in those waters -it was and is often a most difficult undertaking to put a pilot on -board an incoming ship. In such weather that it was impossible for the -pilot-sloop to get alongside the incoming ship the two craft would get -as near to each other as they dared, and then the bigger craft would -throw a small line aboard the sloop, which the pilot would quickly -hitch round his body, leap overboard, and so be pulled on board--more -drowned than alive, one would have thought. Sometimes the incoming -craft would veer out a rope astern which the sloop would pick up, and -the same business followed as before. But even the Liverpool pilots -were not so brilliant as those whose duty it was to take ships out from -the Tyne across the treacherous bar, when sometimes they were compelled -to let the ship lie almost on her beam ends so as to float out into the -North Sea without hitting the shoals at the river’s mouth. - -[Illustration: MODEL OF H.M.S. “TRIUMPH.” - -A two-deck, 74-gun line-of-battle ship. Launched 1764, having been -designed on the lines of the _Invincible_, captured from the French by -Lord Anson in 1747.] - -[Illustration: “COMPELLED TO LET THE SHIP LIE ALMOST ON HER BEAM ENDS.”] - -We have not much room to deal with the glorious fights of the -privateers of those days. Those who are interested in the subject -will find what they require in Captain Statham’s “Privateers and -Privateering.” But we cannot pass on without at least a reference -to these adventurous craft. Handsome enough were the prizes which -sometimes they gained; but many were the times they failed for the -reason that, after some years of peace, their crews were undisciplined -and untrained. But about the middle of the eighteenth century -improvements had been made in the metal, the casting and the boring -of the cannon, which were now made not quite so heavy, and therefore -of less inconvenience to a ship. Bags of horsehair were employed for -protection against musket shot, whilst a rail, breast high, was affixed -each side with light iron crutches and arms and netting to hold the -men’s hammocks and bedding long-ways. Rope shakings and cork shakings, -too, were also employed as a further protection from the enemy’s fire. -But the powder that was served out in those scandalous days was often -enough disgustingly weak and lacking in velocity. - -In the golden days of the privateer, so soon as she had got out to -sea all hands would be called to quarters and officers sent to their -stations; there would be a general exercise of guns and small arms, -everything made ready for action, and the general working of the ship -thoroughly well drilled. Chasing and fighting had been brought down -to the condition of a fine art, and there were recognised tactics -according as to whether your opponent were as big, bigger, or smaller -than yourself. If your enemy were your superior, it was better not to -bring your ship right alongside, but, before the attack opened, get on -his weather quarter, luff your ship into the wind with the helm alee, -until your after lee gun, which you fired first, could be pointed on -to the enemy’s stern. Then batter away with your lee broadside. They -endeavoured also to rake the enemy fore and aft with their biggest guns -as they passed, their object being, if possible, to smash the rudder -head, the tiller, tiller ropes and blocks--in fact, to destroy any of -the steerage tackle so that the ship might become unmanageable, and -thus readily fall into the hands of the privateer. - -[Illustration: AN INTERESTING BIT OF SEAMANSHIP. - -Hutchinson remarks that it often happens there is no room to turn a -vessel to windward through a crowd of ships, so she has to let the tide -drive her through stern first. In Fig. 1 below, the yards are braced -sharp up, and she is driving astern to windward. In Fig. 2 the ship is -being put on the other tack so as to clear the shore in the bend of the -river. In Fig. 3, the tide having slacked, the ship has come to anchor -with wind against tide.] - -One or two devices which have since passed away, but were in use during -the eighteenth century, may be mentioned before we pass on. I wonder -how many “seamen” now serving on steamships would know what “fothering” -meant? It was a device that in the days of the old wooden sailing -ships saved both lives and ship on more than one occasion. This was -an ingenious means of stopping a leak below the vessel’s water-line -when at sea and unable to beach or dry-dock. It was employed at least -once during Captain Cook’s voyages at a critical time after the -ship had struck on a rock, and the sea was pouring in so fast that the -pumps were of little avail. Moore, in his “Midshipman’s Vocabulary,” -published in 1805, describes the method as performed by fastening a -sail at the four corners, letting it down under the ship’s bottom, and -then putting a quantity of chopped rope-yarns, oakum, wool, cotton, -etc., between it and the ship’s side. By repeating this operation -several times the leak sucks up a portion of the loose stuff, and so -the water ceases for the most part to pour into the ship. Hutchinson -also mentions that once when cruising the step of their foremast -carried away in a gale of wind, and made so great a leak that pumping -was little good. They were far from the nearest land, and matters were -critical; so they unbent the spritsail, stitched it over one side with -oakum, then with ropes to the clews and ear-rings they applied it to -the leak, and so effectually stopped the hole that before long the -pumps had freed the ship of water. - -There is nothing new, apparently, even in sea-sayings. Probably there -is not an officer to-day in the Merchant Service who has never heard -the maxim, “Better to break owners than orders.” Well, Hutchinson knew -this phrase, and used it not for trading, but for privateering. The -owners’ orders were usually “to proceed with all possible expedition -to the designed station to take prizes.” And he had a very ingenious -device, which, if I mistake not, was actually resurrected and tried -with modifications in Southampton Water three or four years ago. -Hutchinson’s idea was to scrub ships’ bottoms while at sea instead -of having to bring them to dock or careen them. He had himself used -this new method, which could easily be performed while at anchor or -on the ocean in a calm. The device consisted of a frame of elm-boards -enclosing a couple of 10-gallon casks with square spaces each side -filled with birch-broom stuff that projected and was to come in contact -with the ship’s bottom. To use this a block was lashed under the -bowsprit, and another at the stern on the driver boom. A single rope -was rove through these blocks just long enough to haul the scrubber, -which did its work fore-and-aftwise underneath the ship. - -The accompanying illustration may seem to the reader a fanciful -picture, but it is nothing of the kind, and was made from a sketch -done on the spot. In this will be noticed a ship with no fewer than -thirty different sails. Hutchinson declares that in a light air--when -he needed all the canvas he could spread--he turned to windward with -all the sail drawing. As an ingenious piece of seamanship it is worthy -of note, and surpasses the achievements of the clippers with their -reputation for skysails and moonrakers. He speaks of the sail on the -aftermost mast as the mizzen, and that curious-looking canvas right at -the stern as a large driver with a light boom to make it set properly. -There were two tail blocks at the outer end thereof, lashed to the -rail; and in order that it might set better a bowline was attached. -Below this will be observed the strange sight of a water-sail _aft_ as -well as forward. It was really a foretopmast stuns’l, and was hauled -out to the end of the boom of the driver. As an example of what an -ingenious skipper could do to get way on his ship in light airs, I -think this illustration will be impossible to beat. - -[Illustration: AN INGENIOUS SAIL-SPREAD. - -Every one of these thirty sails was actually drawing. (See text.)] - -There is an interesting volume entitled “A Mariner of England,” which -gives an account of the career of a William Richardson, who from -cabin boy rose to the rank of warrant officer between the years 1780 -and 1819, a record that gives one a real insight into the life of a -seaman at that time. When he joined H.M.S. _Minerva_, in 1793, as a -bluejacket, there were no slop-chests, but the purser at stated -periods served out as many yards of dungaree as were required to each -man for jackets, shirts, and trousers. Needles and thread were also -served out, and then the men made the garments for themselves. He gives -you, also, some idea of the mismanagement that went on; the crews made -up of raw, ignorant, and stupid men, commanded by a young post-captain -who only three or four years ago had been midshipman. In tacking and -wearing, however, the strictest discipline was enforced. Not a word -was allowed to be spoken; only the voice of the commanding officer was -to be heard on those occasions, and the boatswain’s pipe was just loud -enough to be heard. Swearing was checked by putting down the names of -the delinquents on a list, and these men were subsequently punished -with seven or eight lashes at the most. The launch was stowed on the -main deck under the booms; and on certain nights a lantern was hung up -on deck, and a fiddler seated on the topsail-sheet bitts, and there -would be dancing for those who cared. - -The reader will remember we called attention some time back to those -spritsails which seem so curious to us moderns. They were also known -as “water sails” and as “Jimmy Greens,” both appellations being due, -obviously, to the unhappy knack they possessed of scooping up the sea. -They are now long since obsolete, but they were retained for a long -time for veering the ship’s head round to leeward in the event of -her foremast being shot away. But they were also used even when the -foremast was standing--both on a wind and off. If on a wind the yard -could be topped, and the sail could also be reefed diagonally. - -When Hood sent his dispatch to the Controller of the Navy announcing -the victory of the British fleet at the Battle of the Saints in 1782, -he made reference to some of Rodney’s signals, e.g. for a general -chase; to steer more to starboard or port; to shorten sail; to set more -canvas; and if the admiral should wish to order his ships to cease -firing, “the white flag at the fore topgallant masthead, before dark, -calls every ship in.” There were also night signals in use in the Royal -Navy about this time. Thus, for instance, when the admiral wished to -order his fleet to unmoor and ride short he hung out three lights, -one above another, in the main topmast shrouds above the “constant” -light in the maintop, and fired two guns, which were answered by the -flagships, each private ship hanging out a light in her mizzen shrouds. -So also when the signal was being given to weigh anchor, the admiral -hung out some light on the maintopmast shrouds and fired a gun, which -was answered by the flagships and private ships as before. - -[Illustration: AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY THREE-DECKER.] - -Apart altogether from the unsatisfactory kind of seamen which often -made up the crews of the English Navy, matters were far from ideal -among their officers. There was a spirit of decadence even here. When -Benbow was sent to the Spanish Main to seize Cartagena, and fell in -with the French, his own captains disobeyed orders, kept out of action, -and allowed Benbow to fight the enemy practically single-handed. -Similarly, when Matthews was in the Mediterranean attacking the -combined Spanish-French fleets, he was basely betrayed by Lestock, who -kept astern out of action. As the result of an inquiry, not only was -Lestock not punished, but Matthews, who happened to sit in Parliament -on the side of the Opposition, had his name struck off the Navy List. -There are, unfortunately, too many instances of this kind of thing on -record during this century. Some were loyal and straightforward, but -none the less inefficient. The captains, wrote Admiral Keppel to Lord -Hawke in August, 1778, “are indeed fine officers, and the ships -are fine. Some of them, indeed, want more experience in discipline to -do all that can be expected from them, but a complete fleet cannot -be formed in a day. Our greatest want is petty officers, and that -deficiency is general.” And then, you will remember, all the discontent -among the seamen culminated in the year 1797, when a series of mutinies -broke out. The first was at Spithead, when Lord Bridport was about to -take his fleet to sea. He had made the signal to unmoor, when suddenly -every ship’s company gave three cheers and refused to go until their -pay was increased. They made one exception, however; if the French -fleet were out then they would put to sea to fight them, otherwise -they declined to go. Lieutenant Philip Beaver, who was serving on the -_Monarch_, writing to his sister two days after this event, admits that -with one exception all the crews behaved “with great prudence, decency, -and moderation ... and obey their officers as before in the regular -routine of ship’s duty--saying that they are not dissatisfied with -their officers or the service, but are determined to have an increase -of pay, because it has not been increased since the time of Charles the -First, and that everything since that period has risen 50 per cent, -that no attention had been paid to their petitions.” Eventually the -statements of the men were found to be well substantiated, and they -were pardoned. But there was another mutiny on May 7; six days later -another broke out at the Nore, and in the same month among the men of -Admiral Duncan’s fleet off the Texel, and even in Jervis’ fleet off -Cadiz. - -In no respect is the canker of the eighteenth century better shown -than in the condition of tactics displayed by the admirals of this -time. During the Anglo-Dutch wars, many a valuable and wholesome -lesson had been learned by the English Navy, but the Battle of Malaga -in 1704 showed that instead of tactical progress being made, the age -had become--to quote an apt expression of Admiral Mahan--“the epoch -of mere seamanship.” As soon as inspiration deserts art, we all know -how valueless becomes mere technique. It was much the same with -eighteenth-century tactics. There was not a breath of inspiration; it -was a period of formality, of stiff insincerity both ashore and afloat. -The curse of our policy in fighting naval battles was the fetish of -the cast-iron tactics which no officer dared to modify. It was not -till Hawke came swooping down that these lifeless, formal affairs -began to improve. Till his time there was far greater respect for the -letter than the spirit of tactics, so that a naval battle between the -English and her enemy was just this: the English fleet came along in -line-ahead, and then each ship laid herself alongside the corresponding -ship of the enemy’s line, with the result that there was a series of -duels. - -Hawke’s idea was not that, but to concentrate his whole force against -a part of the enemy’s fleet, and this idea was carried out by Rodney, -when he defeated the French at the Battle of the Saints in 1782. It -is true that the signal book then in use in the Royal Navy, plus the -inefficient state of the service generally, caused Rodney’s signal to -be misunderstood. But it turned out better than it might have done. -In medieval times, the great idea was to lay your ship aboard the -other ship and fight her to a finish. Then, the reader will remember, -came the Cromwellian period, which altered all this. But instead of -continuing this progress, the eighteenth century actually reverted to -the medieval method, and this was the practice against which Hawke and -Rodney set their faces determinedly. - -[Illustration: THE “INVINCIBLE” AND “GLORIOSO.” - -Showing the highly decorated sterns and poop-lanterns of the eighteenth -century.] - -In the matter of tactics, as in shipbuilding, the French were decidedly -our superiors. And our officers--or, at any rate, those who were keen -and zealous for the service--recognised this. “I believe you will, -with me, think it something surprising,” wrote Captain Kempenfelt to -the Comptroller of the Navy, “that we, who have been so long a famous -maritime power, should not yet have established any regular rules for -the orderly and expeditious performance of the several evolutions -necessary to be made in a fleet. The French have long since set us the -example.... Oh, but ’tis said by several, our men are better seamen -than the French. But the management of a private ship and a fleet -are as different from each other as the exercising of a firelock and -the conducting of an army.... The men who are best disciplined, of -whatever country they are, will always fight the best.... In fine, if -you will neither give an internal discipline for your ships, nor a -system of tactics for the evolutions of your fleet, I don’t know from -what you are to expect success.... We should, therefore, immediately -and in earnest set about a reform; endeavours should be used to find -out proper persons, and encouragement offered for such to write on -naval tactics, as also to translate what the French have published on -that subject. They should also enter into the plan of education at our -marine academies.” The date of this letter was January 18, 1780, and -in saying what he did Captain Kempenfelt was placing his finger on the -real point of the matter. - -It was two years after this that John Clerk published his “Essay on -Naval Tactics.” British officers of this period had a supreme contempt -for book learning, just as the simpler sort of seaman has to-day. But -it was not till Clerk published the above book that officers began -to change their mind. Up till now works on tactics had been French. -Clerk’s was the first volume on this subject in the English tongue. -It is not too much to assert that this completely revolutionised -British naval tactics, and that to its teaching were largely due the -victories of Rodney, Howe, Duncan, and St. Vincent. And the interesting -fact was that it was written not by an officer, but by a layman; not -by a seaman, but by a Scotch laird. Those who are attracted by the -subject of tactics will find much in this book that is instructive, -even though steam and steel ships and our present-day weapons never -entered into Clerk’s contemplation. And the numerous plans criticising -actual contemporary sea fights will be found most helpful to a complete -understanding of the nautical events of this period. - -One of the most memorable battles in the whole of our naval history -was that which is known as the “Glorious First of June,” 1794. The -tactics which Howe employed on this occasion are interesting, because, -although he formed his fleet in line-abreast, and was able to disable -the enemy’s rear, forcing their van and centre to break away to support -their rear, yet there was such a ship-to-ship mode of attack that it -may seem to have been a reversion to the olden days of medievalism. But -the reason for this was that Howe was well aware that, crew for crew, -the English were superior to the French. The result proved that his -belief was well grounded, for at this time the crisis in the British -Navy had just passed, the improvement in tactics had taken place, and -the decadent ebb had already run its course. - -[Illustration: MODEL OF AN ENGLISH FRIGATE, 1750. - -She carried 24 nine-pound guns, and had a crew of 160. She was of 511 -tons, and measured 113 feet on the gun-deck.] - -The kind of fighting instructions which had been issued by Russel in -1691 and continued till after the Battle of the Saints in 1782, was -superseded very shortly after the latter date. It was Lord Howe who -made this change, so that the basis of the new tactical code was no -longer the Fighting Instructions, but the Signal Book. Instead of the -signals being secondary to the instructions, the position was now -exactly reversed. In 1790 these fighting instructions took a second -form, in the shape of a new code of signals, and upon this tactical -system were based all the great actions of the Nelson period. The -code continued until the year 1816, when an entirely new signal book -appeared, which was based on Sir Home Popham’s code, the latter having -been in use for a number of years for “telegraphing.” It was Popham’s -code that was used for making Nelson’s famous signal at Trafalgar. - -Howe’s tactics at the Glorious First of June were illustrative of the -ideas which were then rooted in the minds of British admirals. By -sailing in line-abreast instead of adhering rigidly to the eternal -line-ahead, Howe showed that he was conscious of the modern progress -in tactics. But there his appreciation ended. For, as you peruse the -events of this battle, you find that the rest of the contest became -confused and haphazard, the British admirals throwing over the lessons -of Clerk and employing just their own ideas and initiative. The credit -of the Battle of St. Vincent belongs to the daring of Nelson in taking -upon himself a heavy responsibility when he saw that Jervis had made a -tactical mistake. We have no room to deal with this here; but I wish -to remind the reader that the line-head formation was that adopted by -Jervis. Just before the battle, when he perceived how the Spaniards -were disposed in two divisions, he resolved to pass between them in -single line-ahead, separate them thoroughly, and then _concentrate on -the one division which was much larger than the other_. Thus, clearly, -he belonged to the same school of tacticians as Rodney and Howe. - -It was in the middle of the reign of George II that a regular uniform -was first adopted for the officers of the English Navy. Hitherto they -had worn the same kind of clothes which their contemporaries wore in -the streets ashore. Every man dressed in the manner he preferred. But -in the year 1747 the question of a uniform colour and pattern was being -discussed when the King himself settled the point. It happened on this -wise. A certain admiral had been sent to the Admiralty on an entirely -different matter by the Duke of Bedford, who was then First Lord. He -was ushered into an apartment surrounded by various dresses, and was -asked to state which of these he considered the most appropriate; to -which the admiral answered that he thought blue or red, _or_ red and -blue, since these were our national colours. “No,” replied the Duke, -“the King has determined otherwise; for having seen my Duchess riding -in the Park a few days ago, in a habit of blue, faced with white, the -dress took the fancy of His Majesty, who has appointed it for the -uniform of the Royal Navy.”[52] Since that time, as the reader is -aware, these two colours, blue and white, have remained the colours of -our Navy, although the cut of the clothes has altered from time to time. - -[Illustration: A 32-GUN FRIGATE READY FOR LAUNCHING. - -This shows H.M.S. _Cleopatra_ (built in 1779) in her cradle, ready to -go down the ways. She measured 126·4 feet on gun-deck, 35·2 feet wide, -depth 12·1 feet, and was of 689 tons.] - -We alluded just now to the introduction of wheels on board sailing -ships, and endeavoured to fix the date as approximately the middle of -this century. The following account of the Great Storm on November -27, 1703 (in which no fewer than thirteen men-o’-war were lost, many -more seriously damaged, and the Eddystone lighthouse destroyed), shows -that tillers, as in Elizabethan days, were still used, and the wheel -not yet invented. The following is the autograph report by Admiral -Sir Cloudesley Shovel, commanding a squadron of eight ships in the -Downs. The fact that the ships drifted all the way from the Downs to -the Galloper (in the North Sea) gives some indication of the fury of -that autumn hurricane. This dispatch is among the MSS. preserved in the -British Museum:-- - - “On Saturday last soone in the morning wee had a most miserable - Storme of Wind, which drove us to some Streights, for after wee had - veerrd out more than three Cables of our best bower that Anchor - broke, soon after our Tillar broke, and before we could secure our - Rudder it broke from our Sterne, and has shaken our Stern Post - that we prove very leakey, and had our four Chaine Pumps and a - hand Pump goeing to keep us free. We lett go our Sheete Anchor, - and veered out all the Cables to it, butt that did not ride us, - butt wee drove near a sand called the Galloper, of which we saw the - breach; I directed the Maine Mast to be cutt by the Board, after - which we ridd fast. Of eight Ships that came out of the Downes - four are missing, the _Association_, _Russell_, _Revenge_, and - _Dorsettshire_; pray God they drove cleare of the sand.... - - “P.S. I doubt it has farr’d worse with the four Ships that have - drove away than it has done with us: I have some hopes that some - of them have drove to Sea; but if so they are without Anchors or - Cables and may be without Masts: I judge it will be of Service if - some Frigg^t were sent out to looke for them.” - -And yet there was at least one ship which had the wheel invention in -the year 1747. In Hawke’s dispatch to the Secretary to the Admiralty, -recording the action off Rochelle, in August, 1747, after relating -that he kept his wind as close as possible so as to help the _Eagle_ -and _Edinburgh_, which had lost her foretopmast, he relates that “this -attempt of ours was frustrated by the _Eagle’s_ falling twice on board -us, having had her wheel shot to pieces.” We may, therefore, fix the -date of the first steering wheel as not earlier than 1703, and not -later than 1747. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - -THE NINETEENTH CENTURY - - -The first sixty or seventy years of the nineteenth century saw the -art of the seaman at its highest state of perfection. There was never -anything to equal it either before or since in the achievements -rendered by the sailors who manned the famous “wooden walls” of -Nelson’s time, who took the stately East Indiaman backwards and -forwards with so much ceremony and safety, or hurried along the tea -clipper at a continuous rate which has never since been surpassed by -any fleet of sail-propelled ships. - -At the beginning of the nineteenth century there were royal dockyards -at Chatham, Portsmouth, Plymouth, Deptford, Woolwich, and Sheerness; -and here His Majesty’s ships were generally moored in the piping times -of peace. The first three of these yards were governed by a resident -commissioner, who superintended all the musters of the officers, -artificers, and labourers employed in the dockyard. He controlled -the payments, examined the accounts, contracts, etc., and generally -regulated the dockyard. Large ships, such as those mighty wooden walls -which could carry a hundred guns, were usually built in dry dock, -with strong flood gates to prevent the tide from coming in. When -the time came for launching, and it was spring tides, the gates were -opened and the ship floated out. But small craft, such as frigates -and corvettes, were built on the slips, and then launched by means of -a cradle which sped down the ways, the latter having been previously -greased with soap or tallow. - -[Illustration: LAUNCHING A MAN-OF-WAR IN THE YEAR 1805.] - -The oak of which these craft were built usually came from the Forest -of Dean, Gloucestershire, and the New Forest, Hants. But as ships -were built out in the open, the weather got into the wood and rotted -it, so that sometimes a ship was condemned before she was ever put in -commission; and, in any case, the life of some wooden walls was under -ten years. Others lasted for a long period, as, for instance, Nelson’s -_Victory_, which was built in the year 1765. The method of building -was curiously medieval, and almost Viking-like in its simplicity. The -timbers were secured by treenails to the planking. They were preferred -to spike-nails or bolts, as the latter were liable to rust with the sea -water and get loose. The thickness of the treenail was proportioned to -the length of the ship, one inch being allowed to every hundred feet. -In the Royal Navy and in the East India Service ships were always -sheathed with copper to protect the hull against worms. The copper was -quite thin, brown paper being inserted between the sheathing and the -oak. Other ships than these two classes had thin deal boards nailed -over the outside of the bottom for the same purpose. - -After the new ship had been floated out of her dock she was taken -alongside a sheer-hulk. The latter was an old man-o’-war, which had -been dismantled and refitted with one very high mast, strengthened with -shrouds and stays to secure the sheers which served as the arm of a -crane for hoisting ships’ masts in or out, and getting the yards on -to the new vessel. Her sails were bent, her guns and ammunition taken -aboard, and away she went for her first commission. Not one of these -“wooden walls” carried any canvas above royals. They could not travel -fast through the water even on a wind, for they were bulky, clumsy, -and cumbrous. Their lines were not sweet, they had a huge, heavy body -to drive through the water; they were slow in stays, and they were -not easy to handle. They rolled so badly, that in heavy weather they -sometimes rolled their masts out. - -With a hundred guns aboard and most of a thousand men, a three-decker -was certainly an interesting sight. Her guns were arranged in rows -along her decks. The lower gun-deck was little above the water-line. A -100-gun ship in Nelson’s time cost over £67,000, and these three decks -ran from stem to stern, besides a forecastle and a quarter-deck, the -former of which extended aft from the stem to the belfry, where the -ship’s bell was suspended under a shelter. The quarter-deck extended -from aft to the mainmast. There was also a poop-deck, and another deck -below the lower gun-deck, called the orlop, where the cables were -coiled and the sails stowed. The gun-room was on the after end of the -lower gun-deck, and partly used by the gunner; but in frigates and -smaller vessels, where it was below, it was used by the lieutenants as -a mess-room. The ward-room was over the gun-room, where the superior -officers messed and slept. - -[Illustration: SHEER-HULK. - -After the etching by E. W. COOKE.] - -In action the guns were run out, by means of side tackles, till their -muzzles were well outside the port, so that the flash of the gun might -not set the ship’s side on fire. These ports were fitted with heavy -square lids. In bad weather it was impossible to open the lower-deck -ports lest the sea should swamp the ship. There was a kind of shutter -also, called a half-port, with a circular hole in the centre large -enough to go over the muzzle of the gun, and furnished with a piece of -canvas nailed round its edge to tie on the gun and prevent the water -entering the port, although the gun remained run out. These were used -chiefly on the main deck. Ropes were made fast to the outside of the -lids attached to a tackle within, by which the port-lids could be drawn -up. - -There was but little light ’tween decks in these ships even by day, and -the glimmer of a purser’s dip was the only illumination. The magazines, -however, were lighted through what was termed a “light-room.” The -latter was a small apartment with double-glass windows towards the -magazine. No candle could, of course, be taken into the latter, so the -gunner and his assistants filled their cartridges with powder by the -candles shining through the windows. In the bigger men-o’-war there -were two light-rooms; one attached to the after magazine, and the other -which gave light to the fore or great magazine. The after magazine -contained just enough supply of cartridges for the after guns during -action, but the great magazine had enough powder for the ship for a -long period. - -The cables were usually of 120 fathoms and made of hemp, bass, or -Indian grass, though the biggest ships used hemp exclusively for their -heavy anchors. The change from hemp to chain cables came in 1812, and -these were much appreciated as saving a great deal of valuable space -below. For the hemp cables when coiled down in a frigate’s cable-tier -filled nearly a quarter of her hold, and when it is remembered that -a 1000-ton ship had a cable measuring over 8 inches in diameter, and -that a 2⅛-inch chain was just as strong--the breaking strain exceeded -65 tons--but took up less space, we can well understand that hemp was -not altogether an advantage, notwithstanding that in bad weather these -heavy, bluff ships would ride far easier to the rope than the chain. -The largest anchor used weighed five tons. It had a wooden stock and -broad palms. - -Because these hemp cables were so thick there must needs be very -large hawse-pipes. Now these ships not only rolled; they pitched -in a sea-way, and consequently they took in a great deal of water -through these pipes. In order to prevent the water getting adrift all -over the ship, there was a large compartment fitted up just abaft -the hawse-pipes and called the manger. This stretched athwart the -deck, separated on the after part by the manger-board, which was a -strong bulkhead, the water being allowed to return to the sea through -scuppers. Leather pipes were nailed round the outside of the lower-deck -scuppers, which, by hanging down, prevented the water from entering -when the ship heeled under a press of canvas. - -The cables led in through the hawse-pipes below deck to the bitts. To -bitt the cable was to put it round the bitts, which were frames of -strong timbers fixed perpendicularly into the ship. The “bitter end” -was that part of the cable which was abaft the bitts, and not allowed -to run out. Hence the common expression “to the bitter end” has no -reference to the other meaning of the word spelt in a similar way. -These cables were in lengths of 40 fathoms, and then spliced to make -the 120 fathoms. Naturally a heavy ship such as a 100-gun first-rate -carried a great deal of way. When, therefore, the anchor was let go, -the friction of the cable passing through the hawse-pipe was something -enormous, and the hemp became so hot that the tar on its surface often -took fire, therefore men were always stationed to stand by with buckets -of water. Likewise, the bitts and timbers round the heated hawse-pipes -had to be attended to. Another drawback to a rope cable was that it -chafed a great deal. In coral-bottomed waters it was customary to arm -with chains that part which was likely to be worn; and the cable was -also sometimes buoyed with casks lashed at intervals, so as to float -safely above the rough bottom of the sea-bed. - -[Illustration: H.M.S. “PRINCE.” - -A first-rate of 110 guns, showing the stern balconies as built before -the close sterns were introduced.] - -There is an interesting passage in a letter written by Captain Duff -of H.M.S. _Mars_, in 1805, to his wife, in which the following words -occur: “October 10th. I am sorry the rain has begun to-night, as it -will spoil my fine work, having been employed for this week past to -paint the ship _à la_ Nelson, which most of the fleet are doing.” -That, of course, was just a few days before Trafalgar. And there is -a phrase in a letter written by a young midshipman to his father, in -1794, telling him all about the Glorious First of June battle. “The -French ... called us the little devil, and the little black ribband, -as we have a black streak painted on our side.” The explanation of -these two passages is as follows. Up to the beginning of the nineteenth -century it was left to a captain’s own taste to paint his ship whatever -colours he liked. There was no uniformity as to-day, but generally a -ship was painted with a wide black streak along the water-line just -above the copper sheathing. This streak ran right round the ship, and -in depth reached to the lower gun-deck. Above this the hull was painted -a brownish yellow, but sometimes it was more a lemon-colour. The after -upper works above the gun-decks and the outer sides of the poop above -the quarter-deck guns were painted a vivid red or blue. - -This bright band of colour gradually faded until, by the time Trafalgar -was fought, it became a dull, deep blue--almost black. Round the -forecastle ran a band of scarlet or pale blue edged with gold, and -continued down the beak to the figurehead. The outsides of the -port-lids were a brownish yellow like the sides, and the stern walks -were decorated with elaborate gilt carvings, cherubs and dolphins and -mermaids, the royal arms, and wreaths, etc. Round the stern of each -ship, outside the glazed windows of the cabin, ran a quarter gallery -for the captain, while at the bows a figurehead was seen which was -regarded with a sentimental interest and kept in good condition. But -Nelson had his ships painted black, with a yellow streak along each -tier of ports, and the port-lids were painted black. This chequer -painting, then, was the method “_à la_ Nelson” to which Captain Duff -was referring. - -Internally the sides of the ships were still painted a blood-red, -for the reason already given in an earlier century. So also were the -inner sides of the port-lids. But after Trafalgar the interiors were -sometimes painted in other colours, such as green or yellow or even -brown, until, after the year 1840, white became uniform. Many internal -fittings such as the gun-carriages, and even the guns themselves, were -painted red or chocolate during the Nelson period. The lower masts were -painted a dull yellow, the topmasts and upper spars varnished a dark -brown, and the lower yards and gaffs painted black. The blocks, the -chains, the dead-eyes, the wooden and iron fittings for the rigging -were all tarred black, just as one often finds them to-day on some -old coaster or fishing smack. The masts of the British warships were -painted white usually before any engagement with the French, so as to -distinguish them from the Gallic masts, which were black. - -[Illustration: AN EARLY NINETEENTH-CENTURY DESIGN FOR A MAN-OF-WAR’S -STERN.] - -It was the superiority of the British gunnery which won most of our -battles against the French, even when the latter had better ships and -faster. The British directed their fire chiefly against the hull, -whereas the French aimed at the rigging. The cartridges were filled -in the magazines and handed up to the fighting decks above by the -powder-monkeys. Along the decks were arranged, at intervals, match-tubs -to receive the slow-matches used in firing the guns, whilst in the -cockpit of the ship the surgeon and his mates were busy attending to -the wounded. The ’tween decks were very cramped, and there was not -much air, and there was still a good deal of disease rampant among the -seamen. The surgeon’s mate messed in a space only six feet square in -the cockpit, “screened off with canvas, and shut in by chests, dark -as a dungeon, and smelling intolerably of putrefied cheese and rancid -butter.” - -[Illustration: COURSE, TOPSAIL, AND TOPGALLANT SAIL OF AN EARLY -NINETEENTH-CENTURY SHIP.] - -After the end of the eighteenth century, the salutary practice of -building ships under cover became general. Nowadays, of course, most -ships are constructed in the open air. But in the time we are speaking -of the ship--men built with wood and not steel. And when the weather -was not allowed to get inside and rot the wood, it was found that the -vessels lasted much longer than before. Furthermore, the method of -uniting two pieces of timber together by “scarfing” was introduced. -It was done either by letting the end of one piece of wood into the -end of the other, or by laying the two ends together and fastening -a third piece to them both. Thus, curved timbers could be made with -pieces of straight timber. This may seem quite a small matter to some, -but when it is stated that until this device was employed ships ready -for launching were sometimes detained on the stocks for a considerable -period until natural bent timbers could be found, it will be seen that -Sir Robert Seppings, the inventor, was performing an excellent service -to the Admiralty. - -[Illustration: THE CIRCULAR-SHAPED STERN OF H.M.S. “ASIA.” - -This 84-gun ship was in the engagement at the Battle of Navarino.] - -And there were other improvements which were only justified. That -effusive gilt decoration--the scrolls, the allegorical figures, the -wreaths (which had come in during Caroline times), the heavy brackets -for the poop-lanterns were all to come under the chastening hand -of simplicity. The stern galleries became simpler in character and -fewer in number, the spritmast disappeared and the spritsail, though -the spritsail yard remained for some time. In the Merchant Service the -“Jimmy Green” continued till well into the nineteenth century; and the -yard of the lateen mizzen had long since been lopped off to become a -gaff, as also the triangular mizzen sail had become quadrilateral and -a boom had been added. Masts were made taller, but the bowsprit was -no longer a quasi-mast, as it had been since medieval days. Staysails -had come into use from Dutch origin, and royals--or, as Hutchinson -called them, “topgallant royals”--and studding-sails were already -well established during the latter part of the eighteenth century. -The triangular headsails were relied upon for getting the ship’s head -round, and consequently the foremast was no longer placed so far -forward as it had been in Tudor and Stuart times. - -[Illustration: A BRIG OF WAR’S 12-POUNDER CARRONADE.] - -During the reign of George III, a three-decker carried either 32- or -42-pounders on her lower gun-deck, 24-pounders on her middle deck, -and either 12- or 6-pounders on her upper deck. On the forecastle and -quarter-deck 6-pounders were fired. It was the 32-pounders which began -to be recognised as the largest satisfactory gun for the first-rates, -and so continued till about 1840. In place of the old Elizabethan -powder-horn and linstock, gun-locks and firing-tubes were introduced, -and the system of ventilating ships, introduced during the eighteenth -century by Dr. Hales, made for the improved health of both ships and -crews. - -Many of those who emigrated from these shores to the United States -of America can still remember the sailing ships which carried them -through gales with safety. That was the time when the ship’s deck -was like a veritable farmyard. There were no condensed foods, no -patent refrigerating arrangements, no water-condensers; so the -ship’s long-boat, stowed securely on deck, became filled with pens -of sheep and pigs, while cackling ducks and quacking geese reminded -the agricultural emigrants of the homes they had just left. There -was a cow-house on deck, and on some ships there was even a small -kitchen-garden in boxes filled with earth, which reposed in the -jolly-boat. In those smaller ships carrying no passengers, the pigs and -poultry had practically the whole run of the ship. Milk was obtained -from the goats and cows, but occasionally, when the wild Atlantic made -a clean sweep of the deck, this article of food was impossible till the -next port was reached. - -The eighteenth-century transatlantic ships used to make only two trips -a year, taking four months for the round voyage and back. The quickest -trip was the homeward one to England, for there was a favourable -westerly wind to run before. But even with a head wind, these old -packets made good their 40 knots a day. And so matters went on till the -volume of trade and the number of emigrants had so much increased as -to create a demand for the bigger ships of about 800 tons that came in -1840. - -[Illustration: A WEST INDIAMAN IN COURSE OF CONSTRUCTION.] - -I hope on another occasion to tell at greater length the story of that -fine class of ship known as the East Indiaman, which has long since -disappeared from the sea. I have but little space left here to deal -with a species of ship that was scarcely inferior to many of those in -His Majesty’s service. Although nominally merchantmen, yet they so much -enjoyed the patronage of the Government, that to be officer in the East -India Company’s service was almost the equivalent of a commission in -the Royal Navy. So well paid were the East India captains and their -staff, and so many handsome emoluments besides were there attached to -their posts, that you are not altogether surprised to find, as you -look down the names of these officers, men of title and the younger -sons of some of the best English families. - -[Illustration: A THREE-DECKER ON A WIND.] - -Promotion was made by seniority, and a captain was assigned to his -ship even before she was launched, so that he had an opportunity of -knowing every timber and every plank in her hull. He superintended -her fitting out, and when she was at last complete with her spars and -sails, her complement of passengers, her cargo and her crew, she put -to sea, but she was in no tremendous hurry to get to the Orient. Her -voyaging was to be safe and sure, like her captain’s remuneration. For -he was allowed by the directors 56½ tons of space for carrying cargo -on his own account, the rates of freights then varying from £35 to £40 -a ton. Captains did their own chartering, and in one way and another -accumulated very large perquisites. A conservative estimate places the -income of some of these skippers as from £6000 to £10,000 a year; and -the mates and petty officers managed to feather their own nests very -amply as well. - -The discipline of these ships was founded on the prevailing custom -in the Royal Navy. They flew the Navy’s long pendant. They were -built like some of the Admiralty frigates, they were fitted out on -similar lines, and they were handled in like manner. But they were -slightly fuller-bodied than the Admiralty ships in order to carry -plenty of cargo. The accommodation for passengers was, considering -the times, luxurious. At the end of each homeward voyage these ships -were entirely dismantled and given a complete refit, the passengers -selling their state-room furniture by auction on board before going -ashore. The directors looked well after the men as well as holding -out encouragement to the officers. Seamen of eight years’ service -were permitted pensions. The crews were divided into two watches, the -officers having three watches--four hours on and eight hours off. The -men messed in batches of eight, their allotted space being between the -guns in the ’tween decks. Here also were their mess-utensils and their -sea-chests, and here were slung their hammocks. Every Sunday morning -after the crew had been inspected they were, by the regulations of the -Company, to attend Divine service, the captain acting as chaplain. If a -commander’s log-book was found to have omitted this duty he was liable -to a fine of two guineas. He wore a uniform consisting of a blue coat -having black velvet lapels with cuffs and collar. There was plenty of -gold embroidery and gilt buttons with the Company’s device thereon. The -breeches were buff, he wore a black stock or neckcloth, and a cocked -hat and side-arms completed the picture. - -[Illustration: THE BRIG “WOLF,” - -Formerly in the Royal Navy, hove-to off Dover waiting for the pilot to -come out.] - -So also the crews were constantly drilled at their guns and trained to -handle cutlass, musket, and boarding pike. There were two men to every -job, there was plenty of food, and there was no cause for grumbling -at overwork. There was plenty of rum, there were good quarters and -good prospects. And yet for all that there were reckless fellows who -could not realise their good fortune. When they had offended they were -brought before the ship’s court-martial in true naval fashion and -sentenced to the cat-o’-nine-tails. And no man could complain that -the commander was “driving” his ship; for every evening, no matter -how fine the weather looked, the royals and all light sails such as -studding-sails were stowed, and the royal yards sent down on deck. -No risks were run unnecessarily, and if the weather looked at all -threatening the t’gallant sails and mainsail were stowed and a single -reef tucked into the topsails. The aim was to combine safety with -comfort, and so they snugged down every night, and by day whenever -there was the least temptation. But the East India was a fine service -and a splendid school for British seamanship, a calling that has so -considerably died out during the last forty years. In the year 1832 -the valuable monopoly which the East India Company had enjoyed for so -long a time was put an end to. Commerce was thrown open, competition -entirely altered the previous conditions, and at last this fine fleet -was sold and disbanded. - -[Illustration: A FRIGATE UNDER ALL SAIL.] - -[Illustration: MAN IN THE CHAINS HEAVING THE LEAD ON AN OLD WOODEN -SAILING SHIP. - -(From a contemporary lithograph.)] - -But it was the period of the clipper which simultaneously brought -seamanship to unheard-of attainment, and chanted its swan-song. The -period is covered roughly by the years 1840 to 1870. It was introduced -owing to a demand for the more rapid delivery of goods, especially tea, -which does not improve by remaining in a ship’s hold. It was given a -strong impetus by the discovery of gold in California, and the eager -rush of prospectors to reach that part quickly. The rush to Australia -in like manner was a still further impetus to the development of the -clipper ship at the middle of the nineteenth century. The China tea -trade in the ’fifties and ’sixties caused these ships to be improved -and developed and handled to the utmost limits, until the opening of -the Suez Canal in 1869 gave it its death-blow. For a time it lingered, -yet the collateral encouragement of the steamship made it impossible -for the sailing ship to pay her way across the ocean. But there never -have been such smart ocean passages so continuously maintained as by -the China clippers of the ’sixties. There never were better sailing -ships built of wood, and there never were captains who “cracked on” -or crews who could work such big canvas-propelled craft with such -distinction. This was the period when a ship was not content with -t’gallants and royals, but must needs set sky sails and moonrakers. - -[Illustration: H.M.S. “CLEOPATRA” ENDEAVOURING TO SAVE THE CREW OF THE -BRIG “FISHER,” 200 TONS, ON OCTOBER 26, 1835. - -This incident occurred 82 miles N. ¼ W. off Flamborough Head in a -strong S. W. gale with heavy squalls. The brig had lost her mainmast, -and hailed the _Cleopatra_ for assistance. A boat was therefore lowered -on the _Cleopatra’s_ lee quarter, but stove in and lost. A buoy was -veered astern, but the brig could not pick it up. During the night -the brig foundered with all hands. Liardet in his book on seamanship -suggested that in such an incident as this the best thing would be to -get to windward of the wreck, let down ropes from the lee side, then -signal to the wreck your intention of drifting down to her. The men -could then rescue themselves by the ropes.] - -A very fine type of clipper was built in 1859 by Messrs. Robert Steel -and Son, at Greenock, to which class belonged such famous ships as the -_Falcon_ and _Fiery Cross_. They were beautifully designed craft and -splendidly built, with ample deck space for working the ship and small -deck-houses, and were kept up almost as smartly as a modern sailing -yacht with polished brass-work, holystoned decks, and well-found gear. -The clipper _Seaforth_, which was built in 1863, brought about -quite a revolution in the sailing ship’s equipment, for she was the -first sailing vessel to have steel spars and wire rigging. Her lower -masts, her topmasts, and her topsail yards and bowsprit were all steel -likewise. - -[Illustration: H.M.S. “HASTINGS,” 74 GUNS. - -Lying “in Ordinary” in the Medway.] - -In one respect these old tea clippers were curiously medieval, though -the practice continued also in the ships of the Royal Navy till well on -into the nineteenth century. This was in the matter of loose ballast. -These tea clippers carried about 300 tons of shingle ballast laid -evenly along the bottom of the ship, and upon this shingle were laid -the chests of tea, and considerable dunnage was put in as well. These -ships had a registered tonnage of about 700 tons, and could carry -about 1000 tons of tea. They were worked by a crew of about thirty; -they were captained by skippers of the utmost ability and prudence, -who, unlike the East Indiaman captains, did not worry about snugging -down at nightfall, but first and foremost were bent on getting the -cargo to the London river in the least possible time. They “cracked -on” and undertook risks in gales of wind which would have terrified -many another commander. But it was to their interests to make smart -passages. Some of them were part-owners, and there was a premium of -ten shillings a ton to the skipper who landed the first cargo of a -season’s tea. Thus, in addition to his other emoluments, there was a -chance of making an extra £500 after a quick voyage. Many of the crews -had served their time in sailing ships of the Royal Navy, so a captain -could rely on getting the best out of his fine ship. Some of these -skippers retired with large fortunes; but the premium system led to a -great deal of jealousy and unpleasantness. For it might happen--it did, -in fact, occur--that one ship might make the fastest sailing passage -to Dungeness and yet get her package of tea ashore some time after -the second vessel, simply because the latter had been fortunate in -picking up a more powerful tug to tow her from Dungeness to London. So, -eventually, this premium method had to be abandoned. - -When we remember that such vessels as the _Taeping_ and other clippers -have been known to maintain for long periods an average of 13 knots -an hour, we may well regret that the coming of the steamship was not -delayed a century later, to give these ships a complete epoch of their -own. Perhaps in the course of events time will wreak its revenge, and -give us back once more a period of true seamanship and a recurrence of -the most interesting ways of a ship. - -[Illustration: MODEL OF FULL-RIGGED SHIP “CARMARTHENSHIRE.” - -Built of wood, with iron beams, in the year 1865. The double topsail -yards and stuns’l booms are discernible. She was of 812 tons register; -length, 174·6 ft.; beam, 32·7 ft.; depth, 20·5 ft.] - - - - -GLOSSARY - - - BITTACLE (Binnacle). See pp. 214 and 253. - - BITTS. Posts on a deck to which cables, etc., could - be fastened. - - BOLT-ROPES. Ropes round the edge of a sail to prevent - tearing. - - BONNETS. See p. 158. - - BOXHAULING. See p. 252. - - BRAILS. Small ropes used for the purpose of shortening - a ship’s canvas. - - - CAREEN. To lay a ship over on to her side for the - purpose of cleaning, caulking, etc. - - CATHEADS. Short projecting beams serving as a bracket to - suspend the anchor clear of the bows. - - - DRABLER. Canvas laced on the bonnet of a sail to give - it more drop. - - DRIVER. A large squaresail set occasionally upon the - mizzen-yard or gaff. - - DUNNAGE. Loose wood or other material packed in the - hold with the cargo to prevent it from - shifting. - - FOTHERING. See p. 262. - - - GAFF. A spar used for extending the upper edge of a - fore-and-aft rectangular sail. - - GRIPE, to. To come up into the wind in spite of the helm. - - GRIPE of a ship. 1. The sharpness of her stern under the water. - 2. A projection added to the keel. - - GRIPES. Lashings securing a boat in its place. - - GROUND-TACKLE. Ropes and tackle used in connection with - anchors and mooring apparatus generally. - - - HAWSE-PIPES. The metal linings to the hawse-holes or holes - in a ship’s bows through which the cable - passes. - - HOG, to. To scrub a ship with flat scrubbing brooms - called hogs. - - - MANGER. A small apartment made in the ship’s bows to - catch the water flowing through the - hawse-holes. - - MIZZEN. The aftermost mast of a vessel with two or - more masts. Sometimes called a jigger. In - medieval four-masters the aftermost mast was - called the bonaventure mizzen, and the one - immediately forward of this the main mizzen. - - MOONRAKERS. Sails above the sky-sails. - - - PARRAL. A band for keeping the end of a yard to the - mast. - - PINCH, to. To sail close-hauled. - - - QUANT, to. To propel a craft along shallow water-ways by - means of a long pole. - - - RHUMB-LINE. The line (cutting all the meridians at the - same angle) which is followed by a ship - sailing on one course. - - - SCARFING. See p. 282. - - SCUPPERS. Gutters or channels along the outer edge of a - deck by which water runs off. - - SNATCH-BLOCKS. Iron-bound blocks with an opening in which the - bight of a rope may be laid without - threading the end of the rope through. - - STRINGER. A strip of timber running round a ship - internally in line with the deck. - - SWATCH-WAY. A narrow sound or channel of water among - sand-banks. - - - TABERNACLE. The socket or hinged post for a mast that can - be lowered at will to pass under bridges, - etc. - - TRESTLE-TREES. See p. 207. - - TUMBLE-HOME. The incline inwards of a ship’s sides above - the level of its extreme breadth. - - - WARE. To veer. - - - - -INDEX - - - Ægean Sea, 33 - - Africa, circumnavigation of, by the Phœnicians, 21; - in early map, 124; - geographical knowledge of, 130 - - Agricola, 67 - - Alectus, 78 - - Alfred, sailors in time of, 17 - - Algiers, pirates of, 224 - - Amber, Phœnicians and, 26 - - Ambleteuse, 73 - - America, North, the Vikings and, 90, 91 - - Amundsen, Capt. Roald, 204 - - Amyntas III and shipbuilding materials, 46 - - Anchor work, 258 - - Anchors, metal, Athenian Navy, 44; - of the king’s galleys, middle ages, 146; - Spanish iron for, 180; - of men-o’-war, early 19th century, 278 - - Andersen, Capt. Magnus, 90 - - Anglo-Dutch wars, 208, 229, 230, 235, 237–40, 267 - - Anne, Queen, seamen in days of, 249 - - Anson’s voyage round the world, 131, 251 - - Antipater of Sidon quoted, 32 - - Antiphilus quoted, 33 - - Arabians, the, as navigators, 122 - - Arctic Circle, voyaging to, 116 - - Argand lamp, 244 - - Armada, the great, and seamanship, 184; - wages of seamen at time of, 208; - tactics against, 218; - the pirate and, 222 - - Arthur’s, King, conquests, 116 - - Artillery introduced, 180; - knowledge of, 181; - of an Elizabethan ship, 191; - 17th century, 228; - 18th century, 261; - on men-o’-war, 276, 283 - - Asia, kings of, build large warships, 43 - - _Askoma_, 31 - - Assyrian sculptures, Phœnician biremes in, 19 - - Assyrians, the, and the sea, 16 - - Astrolabe, the, need for, 172; - its origin and name, 172; - its use described, 173; - improved for the sea, 174; - and Columbus, 175; - importance of those who could use it, 175; - superseded, 212 - - Astronomers, the ancients as, 115 - - Astronomical measurements in navigation, 27 - - Athenian Navy, the, 44; - inventories of Athenian dockyards, 47 - - Atlantic, the, Arab name for, 154 - - Atlas, the first (Wagenaer’s), 214 - - Audley, Thomas, “Book of Orders,” 182 - - Augustus, 68 - - Australia, rush to, 288 - - Avery, David, 244 - - Ayscue, Sir George, 239, 242 - - Azores, the, 212, 217 - - - Baffin’s Bay, 88 - - Bailak Kibdjaki, 150 - - Ballast in ancient Greek ships, 32; - loose ballast, 289 - - Baltimore, piracy at, 223 - - Barometer, the, 259 - - Bayeux tapestry, ships in the, 137, 138 - - Beachy Head, battle of, 243 - - Beacons, 243 - - Beaver, Lieut. Philip, 267 - - Beazley, Mr. Raymond, quoted, 126 - - Bedford, Duke of, First Lord of Admiralty, and naval uniforms, 272 - - Behaim, Martin, improves the astrolabe, 174 - - Bells, ships’, 215, 254 - - Benbow, Admiral John, 266 - - “Better to break owners than orders,” 263 - - Birds, observations by, 88 - - Biremes, Phœnician, 19; - succeeded by trireme, 38; - number of oars, 40 - - Biscay, the Bay of, 117 - - “Bittacle” (i.e. binnacle), 214, 253 - - “Bitter end,” the, 278 - - Bitts, 278 - - Bitumen caulking, 19 - - “Black Book of the Admiralty,” 183 - - Black Deeps, the, 227 - - Blaeu, Wm. J., “The Sea Mirrour,” 215 - - Blake, Admiral Robert, and Tunisian pirates, 224; - sea commander, 229; - and discontent on his ships, 236; - defects in his ships, 237; - tactics, 238, 239; - battle off Portland, 240, 241 - - Boarding in naval warfare, 62, 183, 218 - - Boatswain, 146 - - Böckh’s “Corpus Inscriptionum Atticarum,” 47 - - Booms in Ancient Rhodes, 53 - - Borough, Admiral William, 217 - - Boteler’s “Dialogues,” 230 - - Boulogne (Gesoriacum), 67, 70, 72, 79 - - Bourne, William, on the cross-staff, 175; - “Arte of Shooting,” 191; - “Inventions or Devises,” 193; - “Regiment for the Sea,” 209; - first English book on navigation 211; - on the earth as a globe, 213; - “Treasure for Traueilers,” 216; - method of registering speed, 216 - - Bowline, to sail on a, 168 - - Boxhauling, 252 - - Bridport, Lord, 267 - - Brigg’s logarithms, 248 - - Bristol Channel pilot cutters, 31 - - Britain, Roman invasion of, 72–7 - - British fleet in Roman times (Classis Britannica), 67 - - British Navy, reorganised in 1618, 224; - under the Commonwealth, 229; - fashionable, 229; - captain’s pay at end of 17th century, 230; - probable strategy of to-day, 238; - ballast, 289. - _See also_ Elizabethan, Tudor - - British seamanship and British supremacy, 219 - - Buoys, 214, 226, 244 - - Burgh, Hubert de, 143 - - Bushnell, Edmund, “Complete Ship-Wright,” 224 - - Bytharne, Jehan, “Book of War,” 183 - - - Cables of Viking ships, 108; - hemp and chain, 277, 278 - - Cabot, Sebastian, 133 - - Cadiz, 235; - mutiny of, 267 - - Cæsar and the invasion of Britain, 5; - and his fleet, 69; - its tactics, 70; - invasion of England, 70–7; - seamanship, 74; - landing, 76; - knowledge of Gaul and Britain, 77 - - Calais, 72 - - Calicut, 135 - - California gold rush, 288 - - Caligula, 81 - - Callis (pirate), 222 - - Cambridge, Trinity College, MS. of pilgrim voyage, 147 - - Canary Isles, 118, 121 - - Cannon. _See_ Artillery - - Cape Barfleur, 138 - - Cape Blanco, 134 - - Cape Bojador, 134 - - Cape Nun, 134 - - Cape of Good Hope, Vasco da Gama and, 22; - doubled, 134; - named, 136 - - Cape St. Vincent (Holy Promontory), 125, 127, 217 - - Cape Verde Islands, 134 - - Captains, tyrannical, 249 - - Carausius, 78, 79 - - Carpenter, 146 - - Cartagena, 266 - - Carthaginian fleet, the, 62 - - Cartography. _See_ Map-making - - Catholic Church, the Portuguese and the, 131 - - Catteville, the race of, 138 - - Chain cables, 277 - - Chanca, Dr., of Columbus’s fleet, 165 - - Chaplains on Elizabethan ships, 199; - of French Navy, 230; - 18th century, 249 - - Charles I, mutinies of the Navy, 236 - - Charles II, Navy in time of, 229; - officers, 230; - and sea charts, 243 - - Charles V, 133, 170 - - Charts, compilation of, 171; - Wagenaer’s, 214, 219; - Charles II and James II and, 243; - of British coast, 18th century, 256; - English, 257 - - Chatham, 184; - dockyard, 226, 274 - - Chavez, Alonso and Hieronymo de, 138, 171 - - Chelsea pensioners on Anson’s voyage, 251 - - China tea trade, 288–9 - - Chinese, the, and the compass, 119; - voyages of, 119 - - Chios, battle of, 52 - - Chronometer, the coming of the, 178, 254 - - Church services in Navy, 17th century, 227 - - Cinque Ports, 140 - - Circle, great, sailing, 178, 211, 213 - - Civil War, the Navy during the, 236 - - Classis Britannica, 67, 79 - - Claudius, 67 - - Clerk, John, “Naval Tactics,” 269 - - Clinton (pirate), 222 - - “Close-fights,” 188 - - Clothing, seamen’s, 18th century, 264 - - Cockpit, 282 - - “Code de la Mer,” 151 - - Colbert, Jean B., 230 - - Colliers, London, of the 18th century, 251 - - Collins, Greenville, 243 - - Colonies, the, and seamanship, 230 - - Colosseum, the, 69 - - Colours of men-o’-war, 279; - internal, 246, 280 - - Columbus, Bartolomeo, 156 - - Columbus, Christopher, effect of Prince Henry’s work, 131; - his place, 136; - his log, 155; - his ships and navigation, 155; - his studies, 156; - and the Vikings, 156; - sets sail on first voyage, 157; - speed, 158; - his helmsman, 158; - reckonings, 159; - sights land, 160; - homeward bound, 160; - wreck of the _Santa Maria_, 161; - details of the ship, 163–4; - food, 164; - crew, 164; - religious atmosphere, 165; - subsequent voyages, 165; - third voyage, 166; - on the shape of the earth, 166; - fourth voyage, 167; - and navigating, 167; - as seaman and navigator, 169; - his achievements, 169; - reckoning by tonnage, 197 - - Compass, the, use by the Chinese, 119; - by Arabians, 119; - introduced to Europe, 119; - suspension of the needle, 120; - the fleur-de-lys, 120; - its early use, 124; - liquid compass anticipated, 150; - variation recorded by Columbus, 158; - variation, 212, 213; - Elizabethan names for the, 214 - - “Confessio Amantis,” 146 - - Congo River, 135 - - Constable, 146 - - Constantinople, 152 - - Cook, Capt., 263 - - Copper sheathing, 275 - - Corinth, triremes built at, 42; - shipbuilding at, 46 - - Corn-ships of Egypt, 57 - - Cortes, Martin, 171, 211 - - Court-martial instituted, 218 - - Craft, the working of, 5 - - Cretan pirates, 53 - - Crew, ship’s, of the 13th century, 141, 146 - - Cross-staff, the, 174; - its use described, 176; - improved, 212 - - Crusades, the, 117, 119, 121; - Crusaders’ journey from Dartmouth, 138–40 - - Cyprus, temple in, commemorating a large ship, 43 - - - Dartmouth, 138 - - Davis, John, as navigator, 155; - and circle sailing, 178; - nautical expressions in his logs, 203; - extracts from his “Traverse-Booke,” 205; - “Seaman’s Secrets,” 210 - - Davis’s quadrant, 246 - - Davits, 226 - - Deal, Cæsar’s landing at, 73, 74 - - Deane, Admiral, 240 - - Decks, 142 - - Deptford, seamen’s guild, 133, 171; - dockyard, 181, 226, 274 - - Diaz, Bartholomew, 135 - - Dock, dry, the first, 180 - - Docks at Rome, 62 - - Dockyards, Royal, 181, 226, 274 - - Dover, 67, 72, 76; - Roman Pharos, 243 - - Dover, Straits of, 72, 77 - - Drake, Sir Francis, 5; - influence of Prince Henry the Navigator, 131; - as navigator, 155; - Cadiz expedition, 217; - as strategist, 217 - - “Drift-sail,” 226 - - Duff, Capt., of H.M.S. _Mars_, 279 - - Duncan, Admiral, 267, 270 - - Dungeness, 77, 236, 289, 290 - - Dungeness beacon, 243 - - Dunnage, 289 - - Dutch as shipbuilders, 231 - - Dutch and English seamen, 16th century, 206 - - Dutch wars. _See_ Anglo-Dutch wars - - - East India Company’s service, 284–287; - monopoly abolished and fleet disbanded, 287 - - Ecnomus, battle of, 43, 62 - - Eddystone Lighthouse destroyed, 272 - - Edgar, King, 116 - - Edward II, 144 - - Edward III, poem on pilgrim ship of the time of, 147 - - Edward VI, 133 - - Egyptian corn-ships, 4, 57 - - Egyptian kings of the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C. build large - warships, 43 - - Egyptians, the ancient, and the sea, 11, 12; - Egyptian ships, 13; - and naval warfare, 14; - navigation of, 14; - ships and boats in the life of the people, 14; - shipbuilding, 15; - not instinctively seamen, 16 - - Einar Thambarskelfir, 108 - - Elizabethan galleons, 5 - - Elizabethan Navy, training of the seamen, 184; - seamanship, 186; - supremacy and colonial expansion, 186; - clumsy warships, 186; - types of vessels, 186; - obstacles to boarding, 188; - the tumble-home, 188; - colours of ships, 188; - steering, 189; - arrangements of the ships, 188–91; - sails, 190; - armament, 191–4; - the captain, 194; - punishments of seamen, 194; - the lieutenant, 194; - duties of the crew, 195; - watches, 196; - food, 198–202; - health, 198; - chaplain and trumpeter, 199; - life on board, 199; - contemporary account of sailing, 199; - sea terms in Elizabethan literature, 203; - their slowness, 206; - life of a captain, 207; - neglect of the seamen’s comfort, 207; - bad treatment, 208; - wages at time of the Armada, 208; - men of the service, 208; - flag saluting, 208; - cause of the impetus of the time, 209; - navigation books, 211–16; - instruments, 211, 212; - strategy, tactics, and discipline, 217; - court-martial, 218; - fleet tactics, 218; - seamanship, 219–20 - - Elizabethan seamen as nautical experts, 171 - - Emigration sailing ships to U.S.A., 283, 284 - - English as shipbuilders, 231 - - English Channel, winds, 72; - the Romans in the, 72; - tides, 74, 76; - John Davis and, 211; - piracy, 222 - - Equator, the, 178 - - Eric, son of Hakon, 109 - - Ericson, Thorstein, 87 - - Erith Dockyard, 181 - - Erling Askew, 94, 101 - - Erling Skialgson, 94 - - Eruli, 91 - - Espagnols sur Mer, Les, battle of, 144 - - Eudoxus, 27 - - Euphrates, shipbuilding on the, 17 - - Euripides, terms in, 36 - - Eustace the Monk, 143 - - Exmouth, Admiral Lord, and pirates of Algiers, 224 - - Exploration, claims in, 121 - - - Faroe Isles, 116 - - Fenner, Capt., 217 - - Fighting instructions, 270 - - Fighting tops, 110 - - Figureheads, 102, 280 - - Fire, braziers of, used by Rhodians, 53 - - Fireships, 53 - - Flag, national, use of, by ancient Greeks, 48 - - Flag saluting, 208 - - Flamborough, 243 - - Flamstead, John, 212 - - Flemming (pirate), 222 - - Fleur-de-lys on the compass, 120 - - Flintshire, 243 - - Flogging, 265, 286 - - Fog signalling, 228 - - Forelands, beacons on the, 243 - - Forest of Dean, 275 - - “Fothering,” 262 - - Francesco da Barberino, 151 - - Fraser, Edward, “Greenwich Royal Hospital,” 272 - - French as shipbuilders, 231 - - French Government and longitude, 254 - - Froissart quoted, 145 - - - Galiotæ (galley-men), 141, 146 - - Gama, Vasco da, 22, 131, 132, 134, 136 - - Gambia, River, discovered, 134 - - Gaul, Cæsar and, 77 - - Genoa and the Genoese, 118, 121, 156, 180 - - Geography, Phœnician influence on Greek geography, 26; - Pytheas and geographical knowledge, 27; - Greek and Roman, 114; - Ptolemy and, 116 - - George II establishes Naval Academy, 250; - and naval uniform, 272 - - Germany, 238 - - Gibson, Richard, 240 - - Gillianez, 134 - - Gillingham Reach, 184 - - “Glorious First of June,” A.D. 1794, 270, 271, 279 - - Gloucester, 67 - - Gnomon, the, 27 - - Gogstad Viking ship replica, 90 - - Gonzales, A., 134 - - Goodwin Sands, 77 - - Grapnels for boarding, 63, 101, 103 - - Greece, Phœnician losses at invasion of, 20 - - Greek fire, 142 - - Greek ships, galley, 5; - how built, 29, 35; - warships and ramming, 30, 32; - colouring and sails, 30; - warships, oar-propelled, 31, 37; - ballast, 32; - their shape, 34; - timber employed, 35; - other details, 35–7; - sailing seasons, 37; - manning of warships, 37; - biremes and triremes, 38–40; - anchors, 44; - quickly built, 46; - materials for, 46; - shipbuilding yards, 46; - naval tactics, 47; - seamen, 47; - _diekplous_ and _periplous_, 48; - admiral’s ships, 48; - signalling, 49; - seamanship, 50; - officers, 50; - a penteconter, 50–1; - summary, 51 - - Greek words used in connection with ships, 34–7, 39–41 - - Greeks, Phœnician influence on the, 26 - - Greenland, Venetian voyage to, 122 - - Greenwich Observatory founded, 230 - - Gregory, ship of, 101 - - Guilds, seamen’s, 133, 171 - - Gulf Stream, the, 88 - - Gunnery at time of Armada, 219; - at time of French wars, 280. - _See also_ Artillery - - Gunnstein, 109 - - Gunpowder, 262 - - Gunter’s scale, 248 - - - Haddock, Capt., 242 - - Hadley’s quadrant, 254 - - Hadrian’s wall, 67 - - Hair, human, for ropes, 54 - - Hakluyt, Richard, quoted, 116, 171, 212 - - Hakon, King, 98, 101, 109, 110 - - Hales, Dr., 283 - - Halogaland, 97; - the Halogalanders as seamen, 105 - - Halley, Edmund, on lead, latitude, and look-out, 253; - quadrant, 212 - - Hamblyn, Robert, 244 - - Hammocks introduced by Columbus, 164 - - Hannibalian War, slaves as oarsmen, 64 - - Hanseatic League, 180 - - Harald, King, 93, 98, 112 - - Harald Hairfair, 93 - - Harek of Thiotta, 94, 100 - - Harrison, John and William, invent the chronometer, 254 - - Harwich beacon, 243 - - Hatsopsitu’s, Queen, expedition to Punt, 12 - - Hawke, Lord, 230, 268, 273 - - Hawkins, Sir John, and payment for his men, 222 - - Hawse-pipes, 278 - - Heave to, 160 - - Heimskringla, the, 105 - - Hellespont, bridge of boats across the, 23 - - Henry VII, 170; - encourages shipbuilding, 179 - - Henry VIII, 133, 170; - decoration of his ships, 181, 182 - - Henry, Prince, the Navigator, 6; - and Madeira, 122, 134; - his influence, 126, 132, 133; - settles at Sagres, 127; - and the reaching of India, 127; - his naval college, 128; - his work, 129; - sea route to India, 127, 129, 130; - and the spread of the Catholic Church, 130; - the results of his work, 131; - the work of his pupils, 132; - his discoveries, 134 - - Herodotus on the Phœnicians, 21 - - Hiero II of Syracuse, mosaics on ship of, 52 - - Hipparchus, 115, 175 - - Holland, States of, and longitude, 254 - - Holmes, Mr. T. Rice, quoted, 69 - - Homer, references in, to ships, 34; - ship of Homer, 35 - - Hood, Admiral, 265, 270 - - Houlding, Capt., 241 - - Hour-glass, Vikings and the, 89; - hour and half-hourly glasses, 215, 254 - - Howard, Lord, of Effingham, tactics of, 218; - and the plague on his ships, 222 - - Howe, Lord, tactics of, 270, 271 - - Hull, Kingston-on-, 133; - seamen’s guild, 171 - - Hutchinson, William (“Practical Seamanship”), on a tyrannical - captain, 249; - on seamanship, 250; - on the men of the merchant service, 251; - on colliers, 252, 257; - on boxhauling, 252; - on the steering wheel, 256; - on the barometer, 259; - on squaresails, 260; - pilots, 260; - method of stopping leaks, 263; - of scrubbing ship’s bottoms, 263; - sails, 264 - - Hynmers, Richard, 215 - - Hypozomata, 30 - - - Iceland, 116 - - India, sea path to, 118; - Prince Henry the Navigator and sea route to, 127, 129, 130; - the opening of the sea route to, 134; - Portuguese expeditions to, 135; - Vasco da Gama’s voyage, 136; - Drake and the East Indian trade, 217 - - Indian Ocean, 119 - - Ingi, King, 93 - - Irish Sea, pirates in the, 223 - - - Jamaica trade, 249 - - James, St., shrine of, 147 - - James I and pirates, 223, 224; - ships of his time, 228 - - James II, Navy in the time of, 229; - and sea charts, 243 - - Jervis, Admiral. _See_ St. Vincent, Lord - - “Jimmy Green,” 265, 283 - - Jordaine, Sir Joseph, 242 - - - Kempenfelt, Capt., 269 - - Keppel, Admiral, 266 - - Kingsdown, 76 - - Kingston-upon-Hull. _See_ Hull - - Knut, King, 94, 98, 106 - - _Korumba_, 46 - - - L’s, the five, 252 - - Lagos, 127, 128 - - Lanterns, poop, of Stuart vessel, 246 - - Launching, 17th century, 225; - of the _Prince Royal_, 232 _et seq._; - cf. “wooden walls,” 275 - - Laws, maritime, of Rhodes, 55; - Medieval codes, 151; - Venetian, 153 - - Lawson, Sir John, 241 - - Leaks, methods of stopping, 262 - - Lebanon timber for Phœnician ships, 18 - - Leif, son of Eric the Red, 91 - - Leonidas of Tarentum quoted, 33 - - Lestock, Richard, 266 - - Levant, The, 118 - - Liburnians, the, of Dalmatia, 66 - - Lieutenants, 17th century, 229; - 18th century, 251 - - “Light of Navigation, The,” 228 - - Lightbody, James, “Mariner’s Jewel,” 189, 225; - on bittacles, 214 - - Lighthouses, ancient Greek, 45; - beacons, 243; - the Argand lamp, 244 - - Lights on promontories in the Middle Ages, 145, 243 - - Lightships, 244 - - Line of battle, 242 - - Lisbon, 156 - - Live stock on sailing ships, 283 - - Liverpool pilots, 260 - - Loadstone, the, 115 - - Log-book, 256 - - Log-line, introduction of the, 178, 216; - patent log, 217 - - Longitude, 211, 253; - rewards for instruments, 254; - by lunar observations, 254; - the chronometer invented, 254 - - Look-out, the, 228 - - Lotus plant, the, in Egyptian ships, 15 - - Lowestoft, battle of, 242; - beacon, 243 - - Lucian, 3, 57 - - Lulli, Raymond, 129 - - - Macedonia, King of, builds large warships, 43 - - Macham, discoverer of Madeira, 122 - - Machico, 122 - - Madeira, discovery of, 122; - rediscovery, 134 - - Magazines on men-o’-war, 277 - - Magellan, Ferdinand, 131 - - Magister, 146 - - Magnus, ship of, 112 - - Magnusson, Dr. Eirikr, quoted, 105, 107 - - Mahan, Admiral, quoted, 268 - - Malaga, battle of, 267 - - Malocello, 118, 121 - - Man, Isle of, 243 - - Manger, 278 - - Map-making, Ptolemy and, 116; - early Venetian, 124; - portolani, 124 - - Marinelli (mariners), 141, 146 - - Maritime arts only among seafaring people, 11 - - Maritime discovery, the ancients and, 114 - - Maritime progress, Prince Henry the Navigator and, 133 - - Markham, Sir Clements, quoted on Seville training in navigation, 178 - - Martin V, Pope, 134 - - Maskelyne, Dr., Astronomer Royal, 254 - - Maspero, Prof., on the Egyptians and the sea, 11 - - Masts, length of, 17th century, 225 - - Match-tubs, 282 - - Matthews, Admiral Thomas, 266 - - Mediterranean, the, Egyptian ships on the, 12; - Phœnicians in the, 22 - - Medway, the, 184 - - Melinda, 136 - - Men-o’-war. _See_ Wooden walls. - - Mercator, Gerard, “Mappemonde,” 219; - chart, 248 - - Meridians, converging, Ptolemy and, 116 - - Messahala on the astrolabe, 175 - - Meteorology. Virgil’s description of weather, 83–4 - - Midshipmen, 18th century, 251 - - Minnes, Vice-Admiral, 242 - - Misenum, 66 - - Missionaries as geographical discoverers, 117 - - Monck, Admiral, 229, 241 - - Monson, Sir William, “Naval Tracts,” 194, 198, 226 - - Moon-dial, the, 248 - - Moore’s “Midshipman’s Vocabulary,” 263 - - Moorish pirates, 223 - - Mozambique, 136 - - Mutinies at Spithead, the Nore, etc., 267 - - Mykenæans, the, and decorated sails, 51 - - Myonnesos, battle of, 52 - - - Nansen, Dr., on Pytheas, 28; - on the Vikings, 85, 90, 92 - - Napier, John, and logarithms, 224 - - Narrow Seas, the, 214, 219 - - Nature, man and the forces of, 10 - - Naumachia, 68 - - Nautæ (sailors), 141, 146 - - “Nautical Almanac,” 254 - - Nautical words. _See_ Sea terms - - Naval Academy, Portsmouth, 250 - - Naval education in Portugal, 128 _et seq._; - in England, 229; - in France, 230; - 17th century, 248; - 18th century, 250 - - Naval warfare in England, early, 144; - as a science, 182; - 18th-century tactics, 267, 268. - _See also_ Tactics - - Navigation, the beginning of, 5; - of the ancient Egyptians, 14; - of the Phœnicians, 19, 22; - Pytheas and, 27; - as described by Virgil, 83; - by instinct, 86; - of the Vikings, 86–90; - the ancients and, 114; - the Arabians and, 122; - Prince Henry the Navigator and, 128 _et seq._; - first book on, by an Englishman, 211; - early English books, 211–16; - instruments of the Elizabethans, 211, 212; - in the 17th century, 224; - in the 18th century, 253; - methods of 18th-century coasters, 257 - - Navy, Royal. _See_ British Navy - - Neco, King of Egypt, and the circumnavigation of Africa, 21 - - Nelson, Lord, signal at Trafalgar, 271; - the battle of St. Vincent, 271; - the _Victory_, 275; - cost of a man-o’-war in his time, 276; - colours of his ships, 280 - - Nemi, Lake, Roman boats, 78, 81 - - Nesiar, battle of, 101 - - New Forest, 275 - - Newcastle colliers, 230, 251, 256 - - Newcastle-on-Tyne Seamen’s Guild, 133, 171 - - Nile, the, 12 - - Nile barge, huge, 43 - - Nocturnal, the, 248 - - Nore Lightship, 244 - - Nore, mutiny at the, 267 - - Norse discoveries, 117 - - Norsemen, the, and navigation, 2. - _See also_ Vikings - - North Foreland, battle off the, 242 - - North-West Passage, 204 - - Norwood, Richard, “Seaman’s Practice,” 216 - - Nunez, Pedro, 178 - - - Oak for men-o’-war, 275 - - Oarsmen on triremes, 39 _et seq._; - on Viking ships, 112 - - Octher, 116 - - Officers of Navy of 18th century, 266 - - Olaf Tryggvason, King, 94, 96, 100, 101, 103 - - Oleron, laws of, 151 - - Oppenheim, Mr. N., quoted, 182, 188 - - Orfordness, 243 - - Ostend, 241 - - - Palinurus, the pilot, 83 - - Palos, 156 - - Pavia University, Columbus at, 156 - - Pay of Navy, mutinies, 267 - - Pedro, Prince, 127 - - Peloponnesian War, 38 - - Penn, Admiral Sir William, 241 - - _Pentekontoroi_ (Greek warships), 37, 50, 51 - - Pepys, Samuel, 229 - - Petrie, Prof. Flinders, on shipbuilding in Egypt, 15, 51 - - Pett, Sir Phineas, 231 - - Petts, the, as shipbuilders, 231 - - Philip II, neglect of, in saluting, 209 - - Philip III of Spain, 254 - - Phœnicians, the, as seamen, 12, 16; - build a fleet for Sennacherib, 17; - a race of seamen, 18; - their ships and crews, 18; - their navigation, 19, 22; - biremes, 19; - their losses, 20; - piracy, 20; - their voyages, 21; - circumnavigation of Africa, 21; - the first great seamen, 23; - engineers, 23; - Xenophon’s record of their ships, 23; - influence on the Greeks, 26 - - Pilgrim ship of Edward III, 147 - - Pilgrims as discoverers, 117 - - Pilot, grand, of England, 133, 226 - - Pilot major, 133, 170 - - Pilots, 170; “loadsmen,” 172; - Mersey, 260; - Tyne, 260 - - Piracy, Phœnician, 20; - in Roman times, 66; - in Tudor times, 184 - - Pirates, Mediterranean, 152; - in Elizabethan times, 222; - 17th century, 223; - Moorish, 223; - Tunisian, 224; - Algerian, 224 - - Plymouth Dockyard, 274 - - Plymouth Sound, brig in, 257 - - Pole, North, Pytheas and the, 27 - - Polo, Marco, 130 - - Popham, Admiral Edward, 229 - - Popham’s, Sir Home, code, 271 - - Portland, battle off, 1653, 240 - - Portland beacon, 243 - - Portolani, 124 - - Portsmouth, first dry dock at, 180; - dockyard established, 181; - ships from, wintered on Medway, 184; - dockyard, 226, 274; - Naval Academy, 250 - - Portuguese, their maritime knowledge, 125, 128; - influence of, on seamanship, 133; - concession to the King of Portugal, 134; - their discoveries, 134, 135; - discoverers able to keep at sea, 154; - enterprise in shipbuilding, 219; - as navigators, 219 - - Post, Roman imperial, 57 - - Powder-monkeys, 282 - - Premiums on speed of tea clippers, 289 - - Pressgang, the, 251 - - Prester John, 135 - - Privateering in Tudor times, 184; - in 18th century, 261; - tactics, 262 - - Prize, division of, Elizabethan times, 197 - - Provisioning by live stock, 283 - - Ptolemy, 115, 116 - - Ptolemy Philopator builds huge ship, 43 - - Punic Wars, 62, 64 - - Punt, Land of, 12 - - Purser, 146 - - Pursser (pirate), 222 - - Pytheas of Massilia, the pioneer of navigation, 6, 27; - his voyages of discovery, 28 - - - Quadrant, Davis’s, 212; - Flamstead’s, 212; - Halley’s, 212 - - Quadriremes and quinquiremes, 38, 42–3 - - - Rameses II, galleys of, 12 - - Ramming, Greek warships and, 30, 41; - method of, by Rhodians, 52; - in the Middle Ages, 143 - - Raud the Unchristened, 104 - - Ravenna, 66 - - Ravens used by the Vikings, 87 - - Rawlinson, Professor George, on biremes, 19; - on Phœnician navigation, 22 - - Reckonings, 256 - - Rectores (masters), 141, 146 - - Red Sea, the, 12 - - Reef, 145 - - Renaissance, the, and cartography, 124; - and shipping, 170 - - Rhodes, ancient, ships of, 52; - celoces, 52; - naval tactics, 52; - ramming, 52; - naval organisation, 53; - shipbuilding, 53; - sea prowess, 54; - as a port, 54; - sea law, 55; - “Code Navale des Rhodiens,” 151 - - Rhumb-lines, 213 - - Richard I and his Crusader fleet, 139; - his naval tactics, 143 - - Richardson, Wm., “A Mariner of England,” 264 - - Rigging, wire, 289 - - Rochelle, action off, 273 - - Rodney, Admiral Lord, 230; - signals, 266; - Battle of the Saints, 268; - victories of, 270 - - Roman boat found at Westminster, 78–81 - - Roman galley, 5; - shipowners, 56–7; - merchants and barge-owners, 57; - corn-ships, 57; - warships, 61, 65; - docks, 62; - the fleets, 62, 66, 67; - naval warfare, 62; - squadrons, 64; - standing navy abolished, 64; - Romans not seamen, 64; - naval officers, 64; - piracy, 66; - the classiarii, 67; - influence of the navy on land, 68; - Cæsar’s fleet, 69; - its tactics, 70; - invasion of Britain, 72–7; - as shipwrights, 77–82; - Romano-British ships, 79; - boat found at Westminster, 78–81; - Lake Nemi boats, 78, 81–2; - Virgil’s descriptions, 82–4 - - Roman pharos at Dover, 243 - - Rome, victualling of, 56; - docks at, 62 - - Romney Marsh, 77 - - Ropes, ancient Greek, 31 - - “Rosa Solis,” 207 - - Royal Naval College, 250 - - Royal Navy. _See_ British Navy - - Rudders of Viking ships, 107; - change of position of rudders, 146, 152 - - Rupert, Prince, 242 - - Ruyter’s, Admiral de, 242 - - - Sagas, descriptions from the, 92 _et seq._ - - Sagres, 127–9 - - Sailing season, 151 - - Sailors. _See_ Seamen - - Sails, ancient Greek, 30; - in the Middle Ages, 137, 145; - of the Elizabethan ships, 190; - 18th century, 264; - spritsails, 265; - beginning of the 19th century, 283 - - St. Albans (Aldhelm’s) Head light, 145, 243 - - St. Andrew’s cross, 209 - - St. George’s ensign, 183, 209 - - St. Vincent, Admiral Lord, 230, 270 - - St. Vincent, battle of, 271 - - Saints, Battle of the (1782), 265, 268, 270 - - Salamis, battle of, triremes at, 38 - - Saluting by flag, 208 - - Sandgate, 76 - - Sandwich, Earl, 240, 242 - - Sandwich, 276 - - Scandinavians as sailors, 93 - - “Scarfing,” 282 - - Schey, Rear-Admiral, 243 - - Scribes on Mediterranean ships, 153 - - Scuppers, 278 - - Sea, humanity’s debt to the, 6; - fear of the, 11 - - Sea sayings, 263 - - Sea sense, the, 8 - - Sea terms in Homer, etc., 35 _et seq._; - in Elizabethan literature, 203; - in current use, 206 - - Seamanship becoming a lost art, 4; - slowness of advance in early times, 120; - of the Middle Ages, 137 _et seq._; - first book on, 151; - of time of Columbus, 160; - early treatises on, 171; - East India Company’s service and, 287; - in the 19th century, 274 - - Seamen, hardships of, 3, 7; - the want of consideration for, 7; - the seaman character, 8; - bond between, 8; - of the 18th century, 251, 266 - - Sennacherib and his fleet, 16 - - Senofern and shipbuilding in ancient Egypt, 15 - - Seppings, Sir Robert, 282 - - Sesostris, sacred barge of, 16; - huge Nile barge, 43 - - Seville, Contractation House, 170 - - Seville training in navigation, 178 - - Sextant, the, 174, 254 - - Seyffert, Dr. Oskar, and Greek ships, 38 - - Shakespeare and sea terms, 203 - - Sheathing with copper, 226, 275 - - Sheer hulk, 275 - - Sheerness Dockyard, 274 - - Ship of the 13th century described, 140; - fighting methods, 142 - - Shipbuilding in ancient Egypt, 15; - earliest English book on, 224; - of wooden ships under cover, 282 - - Shipowners, Roman, servants of the State, 52–3 - - Ships, ancient Egyptian, 13–16 - - Ships, measuring of, 224; - construction of, 17th century, 227; - painted red internally, 246, 280 - - Ship’s bottoms, scrubbing, 263 - - Ships named: - _Association_, 273 - _Assurance_, 240 - _Bison_, 103 - _Blanche Nef_, 138 - _Capitana_, 165 - _Centaur_, 82 - _Chimæra_, 82 - _Crane_, 96, 101, 104 - _Dorsetshire_, 273 - _Dragon_, 104 - _Eagle_, 273 - _Edinburgh_, 273 - _Elizabeth_, 204 - _Fairfax_, 241 - _Falcon_, 288 - _Fiery Cross_, 288 - _George_, 237 - _Goddess Isis_, 59 - _Great Harry_, 181 - _Helene_, 204 - _Long Worm_, 96, 101 - _Marigalante_, 197 - H.M.S. _Mars_, 279 - _Mary_ (Charles II), 5, 241 - _Mauretania_, 4 - H.M.S. _Minerva_, 264 - _Nina_, 155, 157 _et seq._ - _Olympic_, 4 - _Pinta_, 155, 157 _et seq._ - _Prince Royal_, 231–5 - _Pristis_, 82 - _Radians_, 79 - _Red Lion_, 204 - _Royal James_, 242 - _Ruby_, 241 - _San Felipe_, 217, 218 - _Santa Maria_, 155 _et seq._; - described, 163 - _Scylla_, 82 - _Seaforth_, 289 - _Short Worm_, 97, 101, 103, 104 - _Sovereign of the Seas_, 244 - _Speaker_, 241 - _Sunneshine_, 204 - _Swiftsure_, 237 - _Taeping_, 290 - _Triumph_, 240, 241 - _Vanguard_, 241 - _Victory_ (Nelson’s), 275 - _Worm_, 97, 101, 103, 104 - - Ships, types of, named: - Aphraktos, 65 - Barque, 204 - Bireme, 19, 40, 66 - Brig, 252, 257 - Carabela (caravel), 128, 137, 157, 168 - Carack, 219 - Celox, 52 - Ceol, 110 - Clipper, 274, 288, 289 - Cock-boat, 199 - Collier, 251, 256 - Dieres, 52 - Dragon, 96, 112 - Dromon, 94 - East Indiaman, 249, 274, 284 - Frigate, 276 - Galleon, 199 - Galley, 12, 46 - Kataphraktos, 65 - Kaupskip, 95 - Keel, 110 - Knörr, 95 - Lateener, 168 - Lembus, 65, 66 - Liburnian, 66 - Man-o’-war, “high charged,” 186; - “wooden walls,” 274 - Navis aperta, 66 - Navis tecta, 65 - Pentekontoros, 37, 38, 50, 51, 65 - Penteres, 52 - Pinnace, 190 - Privateer, 261 - Quadrireme, 42, 51, 65 - Quinquireme, 38, 43, 51, 62, 64–6 - Skeid, 95 - Skuta, 95 - Snekkja, 95 - Tea clipper, 274, 288, 289 - Three-decker, 276, 283 - Tetreres, 52 - Triemiolia, 52 - Triremes, 24, 38–40, 50, 51, 54, 62, 65, 66, 79 - - Shoreham, battle of, 183 - - Shovel, Sir Cloudesley, wreck of, 254; - on Great Storm, 272 - - Sicily, King of, builds large warships, 43 - - Sidney, Sir Philip, 190 - - Sidon, sailors of, 17, 20, 22 - - Signal book, 270 - - Signalling, ancient Greek, 49; - in Tudor times, 183; - 17th century, 227 - - Signals, Rodney’s, 266, 268 - - Sigurd, King, 93, 95, 100, 106 - - Sigurd, Bishop, 104 - - “Skipper,” 206 - - Skopti, 109 - - Slave trade, Phœnician, 20 - - Sluys, battle of, 144 - - Smith, Capt. John, “Accidence,” 195; - account of life aboard an Elizabethan ship, 199; - on pirates, 222 - - Sofala, 136 - - Solebay, battle of, 242 - - Sounding lead, Vikings use, 89 - - South Pole, 204 - - Southampton Water, 263 - - Spain and iron supplies, Tudor times, 180; - jealousy of, in Elizabethan days, 209 - - Spaniards and gunnery, Armada, 219 - - Spanish warships, sailors cook for themselves on board, 153; - signalling in the, 183 - - Spars, steel, 289 - - Speed recording without log, 158 - - Spithead, mutiny at, 267 - - Spritmast, 283 - - Squaresails, 260 - - Starboard, 108 - - Statham’s “Privateers and Privateering,” 261 - - Steel, Robert, and Son, Greenock, 288 - - Steering wheels, 256, 272–3 - - Sterns, decorated, 280, 282 - - Stokes Bay, 239 - - Storm, great, of 1703, 272 - - Strabo on the Sidonian navigation, 22 - - Stuart seamanship, 235 - - Stuart warships, 244; - rig and sails, 244; - decks and armament, 245–6; - workmanship and decoration, 245–8 - - Sturmanni (steersmen), 141, 146 - - Suez Canal, 288 - - Surgeons, 282 - - Svein, King, 93, 101, 108 - - Swearing, 265 - - Swin Channel, 214, 258 - - Syria, 152 - - - Tacking, the art of, 10 - - Tactics, naval, 17th century, 238; - in Anglo-Dutch war, 239; - line-ahead, 239; - schools of, 240; - 18th century, 268; - French, 268; - Clerk’s “Naval Tactics,” 269; - Lord Howe’s changes, 270; - Jervis’s tactics, 271 - - Tampion’s portable barometer, 259 - - Tartaglia, Nicholas, “Arte of Shooting,” 216 - - Tea clippers, 288, 289 - - Tetricus the Elder, 78 - - Texel, mutiny off the, 267 - - Thames estuary, 77, 214, 258 - - Thames, Roman boat found in the, 78–81 - - Thames waterman as seaman, 12 - - Thanet, 77 - - Themistocles and a navy, 38 - - Thole-pins, 35 - - Thorburg Shavehewer, 96, 97 - - Thorleif the Sage, 109 - - Thorowgood, Capt. Thomas, 236 - - Tides, the, Pytheas and, 28; - in the English channel, 74, 76 - - Tigris, shipbuilding on the, 17 - - Tillers, steering, in use, 1703, 272 - - Timber of ancient Greek vessels, 35 - - Time as recorded by Elizabethans, 215 - - Tin, Phœnicians and, 21, 26 - - Tonnage, reckoning by, 197 - - Torr, Mr. Cecil, quoted, 45, 49, 54 - - Torres, Capt. Antonio de, 197 - - Torrington, Lord, 243 - - Tower of London, 184 - - Trade routes, ancient, and the Phœnicians, 26 - - “Trade” wind, 207 - - Trafalgar, battle of, 279; - Nelson’s signal, 271 - - “Trani, Loi de,” 151 - - Travel, desire for, 121 - - Traverse board, 256 - - Trestle-trees, 207 - - Triremes, Greek, 38; - arrangement of, 39; - number of oars, 40; - rigging, 42 - - Tristan, 134 - - Tromp, Marten, 238, 239 - - Trumpeter on Elizabethan ships, 199 - - Tudor colours, the, 181 - - Tudor period, sailors in the, 17 - - Tudor ships, life on, 179; - victualling, 179; - health, 179; - shipbuilding, 180; - naval weapons, 180; - foreign shipbuilding for Henry VIII, 180; - artillery, 181; - decorated ships, 181, 182; - crew of the _Great Harry_, 181; - rate of pay, 182; - fleet orders, 182; - signalling, 183; - tactics, 183 - - Tunisian pirates, 224 - - Tyne, the, 257; - Tyne pilots, 260 - - - Uniforms originate in France, 230; - adopted in English Navy, 271; - how blue and white originated, 272 - - Union Jack, 245 - - United States, emigration sailing ships to, 283; - length of voyage, 284 - - - Veneti, the, 69 - - Venetian maps, 124; - shipping season restricted, 152; - shipping laws, 153; - and the Atlantic, 154; - position on the sea, 154; - decline, 154 - - Venetians, the, 118, 122 - - Venice, Arsenal at, 180 - - Ventilation of ships, 283 - - Vikings, the, ships, 4, 5; - as seamen, 16; - as warriors and explorers, 85; - their sea sense, 86; - sense of time, 87; - navigation methods, 87–90; - and discovery of North America, 90; - replica of Gogstad ship’s voyage, 90; - extent of voyages, 90; - provisioning, 91; - descriptions from the Sagas, 92–5; - moving of ships, 93; - winter sailing, 92, 93; - species of craft, 95; - building a ship, 96; - fitting-out season, 100; - naval tactics, 101; - sails, 105; - steering, 107; - cables, 108; - precedence for berthing, 109; - row-boats, 109; - mooring, 110; - fighting tops, 110; - awnings, 110; - messing, 111; - bailing, 112; - oarsmen, 112; - fighters and seamen, 113; - as discoverers, 117, 121 - - Virgil’s description of ships and sea, 82–4 - - Vivaldi, 118 - - Volusenus, 72 - - Voyages without navigational methods, 6 - - - Wagenaer’s atlas, 214; - charts, 219 - - War and shipbuilding, 85 - - War vessels, ancient, 43, 44 - - Wars of the Roses, 85 - - “Watches” in Elizabethan ships, 196 - - Water-compass, 119 - - West Indies, 170. _See also_ Columbus - - Westminster, Roman boat found at, 78–81 - - Whales, observations by, 88 - - Whipstaff, 189 - - William the Conqueror, 5, 138 - - Winds, waves, and tides, awe of, 10 - - Wissant, 75 - - Wolf the Red, 97 - - “Wooden walls,” 274; - oak for the, 275; - the life of, 275; - building, 275; - rig, description, and cost, 276; - cables, 277, 278; - colours of, 279, 280; - gunnery, 280 - - Woolwich Dockyard established, 181, 226, 274 - - Woolwich, launch at, in 1610, 232 - - Wright, Edward, “Haven-finding Art,” “Certaine Errors in - Navigation,” 212 - - - Xenophon on Phœnician ships, 23 - - Xerxes and the Phœnicians, 23 - - - Yarmouth Roads, 257 - - Young, Capt., and neglect of Dutch to salute, 208 - - - Zamorano, Roderigo, 133, 171 - - Zeno, the brothers, 122 - - - WILLIAM BRENDON AND SON, LTD. - PRINTERS, PLYMOUTH - - - - -[Illustration: I. BODY PLAN, ETC., OF AN EARLY NINETEENTH-CENTURY -74-GUN SHIP.] - -[Illustration: II. A PORTABLE CRAB WINCH OF THE EARLY NINETEENTH -CENTURY.] - -[Illustration: III. LONGITUDINAL PLAN OF AN EARLY NINETEENTH-CENTURY -74-GUN SHIP.] - -[Illustration: IV. A 330-TON MERCHANT SHIP OF THE EARLY NINETEENTH -CENTURY. - -Upper illustration shows method of framing. Lower illustration gives -plan of upper deck, indicating positions of windlass, masts, hatches, -capstan, pump, etc. (See Chapter X.)] - -[Illustration: V. SHROUDS OF MAINMAST, EARLY NINETEENTH-CENTURY SHIP.] - -[Illustration: VI. DESIGN OF THE STERN OF AN EARLY NINETEENTH-CENTURY -330-TON MERCHANT SHIP.] - -[Illustration: VII. MIDSHIP SECTION OF 330-TON MERCHANT SHIP OF THE -EARLY NINETEENTH CENTURY.] - -[Illustration: VIII. LONGITUDINAL PLAN OF AN EARLY NINETEENTH-CENTURY -330-TON MERCHANTMAN. - -Length between perpendiculars, 108 ft. 3¼ in. Extreme breadth, 27 ft. 6 -in. Depth, 12 ft. Length on keel, 82 ft.] - -[Illustration: IX. PLANS OF AN EARLY NINETEENTH-CENTURY 74-GUN SHIP.] - -[Illustration: X. IRON CLIPPER SAILING SHIP “LORD OF THE ISLES.” - -Length between perpendiculars, 185 ft. Extreme breadth, 29 ft. 1000 -tons displacement.] - -[Illustration: XI. THE WOODEN CLIPPER SHIP “SCHOMBERG.” - -Length between perpendiculars, 262 ft. 6 in. Extreme breadth, 45 ft. -2600 tons burthen.] - - - - -FOOTNOTES - - -[1] “Phœnicia,” by George Rawlinson. London, 1889. - -[2] I have availed myself of Mr. H. G. Dakyns’ excellent translation of -“The Works of Xenophon,” Vol. III, Part I. London, 1897. - -[3] Given in “Select Epigrams from the Greek Anthology,” by J. W. -Mackail. London, 1911. - -[4] _Ibid._ - -[5] _Ibid._ - -[6] “A Dictionary of Classical Antiquities.” London, 1902. - -[7] See Fig. 24 of “Sailing Ships and their Story.” - -[8] Given on page 212 of Mackail, _ut supra_. - -[9] Taken from Plate LII in “Peintures Antiques de Vases Grecs de la -Collection de Sir John Coghill, Bart.,” par James Millingen. Rome, 1817. - -[10] “Journal of Hellenic Studies,” Vol. XII, p. 203. - -[11] “Journal of Hellenic Studies,” Vol. XI, p. 193. - -[12] “Rhodes in Ancient Times,” by Cecil Torr. Cambridge, 1885. - -[13] “Six Dialogues of Lucian,” translated into English by S. T. Irwin. -London, 1894. - -[14] “The Remains of Ancient Rome,” by J. H. Middleton. London, 1892. - -[15] “Cæsar’s Conquest of Gaul,” by T. Rice Holmes. Oxford, 1911. - -[16] “Sailing Ships and their Story.” - -[17] See article in “The Yachting Monthly,” Vol. XII, p. 81, “The -Shipwrights of Rome.” - -[18] “Northern Mists: Arctic Exploration in Early Times,” by Fridtjof -Nansen, 2 vols. London, 1911. - -[19] That is to say they were still existing about A.D. 1180. - -[20] That is to say 148 feet: grass-lying means straight. - -[21] See “The Saga Library,” edited by William Morris and Eirikr -Magnusson. London, 1905. I am indebted to this edition for the extracts -which I here make from the Sagas, and also for some valuable matter -given in the notes to that edition. - -[22] “The Story of the British Navy.” London, 1911. - -[23] Grieves. - -[24] Haste. - -[25] Arrange. - -[26] “You’re standing too close beside your mate so that he cannot -haul.” - -[27] Shout. - -[28] Go aloft. - -[29] Taylia = “tally aft the sheet”--“haul aft,” etc. - -[30] Stow. - -[31] “No nearer”--“don’t come any nearer to the wind.” - -[32] “Thou failest”--“you’re slacking.” - -[33] “Wartake” may mean “war-tackle,” but what exactly that signifies -no one to-day has been able to suggest. - -[34] i.e. lay the cloth. - -[35] “Pery” means “squall.” - -[36] “Thow canst no whery” = “you mustn’t complain”--“you know nothing -about these matters.” - -[37] Malmsey. - -[38] Boiled nor roast. - -[39] “My head will be cleft in three”--“my head is splitting.” - -[40] “Gere” means “tools.” Lightly constructed cabins were knocked -together on these Viking-like ships by the ship’s carpenter to -accommodate passengers. - -[41] Lie. - -[42] Evidently some of the passengers had to sleep in the hold, whence -the stench of the bilge-water and the accumulation of filth made their -life very trying. - -[43] “Dawn of Navigation,” in “Proceedings of the United States Naval -Institute,” Vol. XXXII. Annapolis, 1906. - -[44] Far from having been expressly built for exploration, the _Santa -Maria_ had been constructed for the well-known trading voyages to -Flanders. The _Pinta_ and _Nina_ had been built for the Mediterranean -trade. - -[45] Sir Clements Markham states that the bonnet was usually cut -one-third the size of the mizzen, or one-quarter of the mainsail, being -secured to the leach by eyelet holes. - -[46] The italics are mine. - -[47] i.e. “lie at hull”--the Elizabethan word for “heave to.” - -[48] i.e. lie to a drift-sail or sea-anchor. - -[49] i.e. an azimuth compass. - -[50] This is thought to have been some instrument showing how the line -of the course cuts the several meridians, those meridians being drawn -upon their proper inclination. - -[51] The derivation of the word _Flame_-borough or Flamborough at once -suggests a burning beacon. - -[52] “Greenwich Royal Hospital,” by Edward Fraser. - - - - -Transcriber’s Notes - - -Punctuation, hyphenation, and spelling were made consistent when a -predominant preference was found in the original book; otherwise they -were not changed. - -Simple typographical errors were corrected; unbalanced quotation -marks were remedied when the change was obvious, and otherwise left -unbalanced. - -Illustrations in this eBook have been positioned between paragraphs -and outside quotations. In versions of this eBook that support -hyperlinks, the page references in the List of Illustrations lead to -the corresponding illustrations. - -In some of the original illustrations, details, particularly words, -were unreadable, and the image quality of a few originals was -significantly worse than the others. - -The HTML version of this eBook can display larger versions of some of -the “Plan” diagrams found at the end of the book, but, when this eBook -was prepared, the .mobi and .epub versions did not support those larger -sizes. - - -The index was not checked for proper alphabetization or correct page -references. - -Text uses both “lodestone” and “loadstone”, “a side” and “aside”. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Ships & Ways of Other Days, by -Edward Keble Chatterton - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SHIPS & WAYS OF OTHER DAYS *** - -***** This file should be named 60226-0.txt or 60226-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/0/2/2/60226/ - -Produced by deaurider, Charlie Howard, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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