PURCHASE, any mechanical power employed in raifing or removing heavy bodies, or in fixing or extending the ship's rigging.

Q

QUARTER, that part of a ship's fide which lies towards the ftern.

QUARTER-CLOTHS, long pieces of painted canvas, extended on the outfide of the quarter-netting from the upper-part of the gallery to the gangway.

R.

RANGE, a fufficient length of the cable, drawn up on the deck, before the an hor is caft loofe from the bow, to let it fink to the bottom, without being interrupted, that the flukes may be forced the deeper into the ground, by the additional weight which the anchor acquires in finking.

REEF, a certain portion of a fail, comprehended between the top or bottom, and a row of eyelet-holes parallel thereto.

TO REEF, is to reduce the furface of the fail in proportien to the increase of the wind.

REEF alfo implies a chain of rocks, lying near the furface of the water.

RIGING, a general name given to all the ropes employed to fupport the mafts; and to extend or reduce the fails, or arrange them to the difpofition of the wind.

RIGHTING, the act of restoring a fhip to her upright pofition, after she has been laid on a careen. A fhip is also faid to right at fea when the rifes, with her mafts erected, after having been preffed down on one fide by the effort of her fails, or a heavy fquall of wind.

S.

S.

SCARFING, when two pieces of timber are to be joined together by the ends, if the ends are cut fquare, another piece is laid upon, and faftened to both, and this is called scarfing.

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SETING, the act of obferving the fituation of any diftant object by the compafs, in order to discover the angle which it makes with the nearest meridian.

SHEET, a rope faftened to one or both the lower corners of a fail to extend and retain it in a particular ftation.

SHROUDS, a range of large ropes extended from the maft-heads to the right and left fide of the fhip, to fupport the mafts, and enable them to carry fail.

SKIDS, or SKEEDS, are long compaffing pieces of timber, formed fo as to answer the vertical curve of a fhip's fide. They are notched below fo as to fit closely upon the wales; and as they are intended to preferve the planks of the fide, when any weighty body is hoisted or lowered, they extend from the main wale to the top of the fide; and they are retained in this pofition by bolts or fpike-nails.

SPRING, a crack or breach running tranfverfely or obliquely through any part of a maft or yard, fo as to render it unsafe to carry the usual quantity of fail there

on.

SPRING is alfo a rope paffed out of one extremity of a fhip and attached to a cable proceeding from the other, when the lies at anchor. It is ufually done to bring the fhip's broad fide, or battery of cannon, to bear upon fome diftant object.

SPRITSAIL, a fail attached to a yard which hangs under the bowsprit.

SQUALL, a fudden and violent blast of wind, usually

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occafioned

occafioned by the interruption and reverberation of the wind from high mountains.

STANCHION, a fort of small pillar of wood or iron ufed for various purposes in a fhip; as to fupport the decks, the quarter-rails, the netings and awnings.

1

STANDING, the movement by which a fhip advances towards a certain object, or departs from it.

STARBOARD, the right fide of a fhip when the eye of the fpectator is directed forward.

To STAY, the fame as to tack; the contrary to wear, which fee; hence the phrafe to mifs ftays when the fails in the operation.

STIFF, the quality by which a ship is enabled to carry a fufficient quantity of fail, without hazard of overfetting.

STREAKS, or STRAKES, the uniform ranges of planks on the bottom and fides of a ship.

To STRIKE, to run afhore, or to beat upon the ground in paffing over a bank or shallow.

STUDDING-SAILS, certain light fails extended, in moderate and steady breezes, beyond the skirts of the principal fails, where they appear as wings upon the yard-arms.

SURF, the fwell of the fea which breaks upon the fhore, or any rock lying near the furface of the water.

SWEEPING, the act of dragging the bight, or loofe part of a small rope, along the furface of the ground, in a harbour or road, in order to hook and recover fome anchor, wreck, or other material, funk at the bottom. It is performed by faftening the two ends of this rope to the fides of two boats which are abreast of each other,

at fome diftance. To the middle of the rope are sufpended two cannon fhot, or fomething which weighs heavy, in order to fink it to the ground: so that, as the boats

boats advance by rowing ahead, the rope drags along the bottom, to hook any thing for which they are fearch-, ing.

SWEEPS, are long pars sometimes used on board a ship to pull her round.

T.

TACK, a rope ufed to confine the foremost lowestcorners of the courses and say fails in a fixed position, when the wind croffes the hip's courfe obliquely.

TACK-CHAIN plates, ftrong links or plates of iron, the lower ends of which are bolted through the hip's fide to the timbers, for the purpofe of holding the rope called a tack.

MAIN-TACK, the tack of the main-fail.

TAFFAREL, the upper part of a fhip's ftern, being sta curved piece of wood, ufually ornamented with fculp

ture.

TAUGHT, the fate of being extended or ftretched. out. It is ufually applied to a rope or fail, in oppofition to flack.

TENDING, the movement by which, a fhip turns or fwings round her anchor in a tide-way, at the beginning of the flood or ebb.

THWART, the feat or bench of a boat whereon the rowers fit to manage the oars.

TILER, the bar or lever employed to turn the rudder in fteering.

TIMBERS, the ribs of a ship.

TRANSOMS, certain beams or timbers extended acroís the fern-post of a ship to fortify her after-part, and give it the figure moft fuitable to the fervice for which thé is calculated.

TRUSSEL or TRESTLE-TREES, two ftrong bars of timber fixed horizontally on the oppofite fides of the

lower

lower maft-head, to fupport the frame of the top, and the weight of the top-maft.

TRIM, the state or difpofition by which a fhip is best calculated for the feveral purposes of navigation.

To TREND, to run off in a certain direction. TRIPING, the movement by which an anchor is loofened from the bottom by its cable or buoy-ropes.

V.
VEERING, the fame as wearing, which fee.

To VEER away the cable, is to flacken it, that it may gun out of the ship.

W.

WAKE, the print or track impreffed by the course of a fhip on the furface of the water.

WALES, an affemblage of strong planks extending along a fhip's fide, throughout her whole length, at different heights, and ferving to reinforce the decks, and form the curves by which the veffel appears light and graceful on the water.

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WARP, a small rope employed occafionally to remove a hip from one place to another, in a port, road, or

river.

And hence

To WARP, is to change the fituation of a hip, by pulling her from one part of a harbour, &c. to fome other, by means of warps.

WASH BOARD, a broad thin plank, fixed occafionally on the top of a boat's fide, fo as to raise it, and be removed at pleafure. It is ufed to prevent the sea from breaking into the veffel, particularly when the furface is rough.

To WEATHER, i to fail to windward of some ship, bank, or head-land.

To WEAR, the fame as to veer, to perform the operation by which a fhip, in changing her courfe from one

board