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SETTING, the act of observing the fituation of any distant object by the compass, 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 station. SHROUDS, a range of large ropes, extended from the maft heads to the right and left fide of the fhip, to support the mafts, and enable them to carry fail.

SKIDS, or SKEEDS, are long compafling pieces of timber, formed fo as to answer the vertical curve of a fhip's fide. They are notched below fo as to fit clofely 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 unfafe to carry the ufual quantity of fail thereon.

SPRING is also 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 bowfprit.

SQUALL, a fudden and violent blaft of wind, ufually Occafioned by the interruption and reverberation of the wind from high mountains.

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

STANDING, the movement by which the hip 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 fhip 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 a-fhore, or to beat upon the ground in paffing over a bank or fhallow.

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

SURF,

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

SWEEPING, the act of dragging the bight, or loose 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 fastening the two ends of this rope to the fides of two boats, which are a breast of each other, at fome distance. To the middle of the rope are fufpended two cannon fhot, or fomething which weighs heavy, in order to fink it to the ground; fo that, as the boats advance by rowing a-head, the rope drags along the bottom, to hook any thing for which they are fearching..

SWEEPS, are long oars, fometimes used on board a ship to bring her round.

Τ.

TACK, a rope used to confine the foremost lowest corners of the courfes and ftay-fails in a fixed pofition, when the wind croffes the fhip's courfe obliquely.

TACK-CHAIN plates, ftrong links or plates of iron, the lower ends of which are bolted through the ship's fide to the timbers, for the purpose 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 a curved piece of wood, ufually ornamented with fculpture. TAUGHT, the ftate 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 flip.

TRANSOMS, certains beams or timbers extended across the ftern-poft of a fhip, to fortify her after-part, and give it the figure moft fuitable to the fervice for which the is calculated.

To TREND, to run off in a certain direction.

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

TRIPING, the movement by which an anchor is loofened from the bottom by its cable or buoy-ropes.

TRUSSEL or TRESTLE-TREES, two ftrong bars of timber, fixed horizontally on the oppofite fides of the lower maft-head, to fupport the frame of the top, and the weight of the top-maft.

VEERING,

V.

VEERING, the fame as wearing, which fee.

To VEER away the cable, is to flacken it, that it may run out of the fhip.

W.

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

WALES, an affemblage of ftrong planks extended 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 vessel appears light and graceful on the water.

WARP, a fmall rope, employed occafionally to remove a fhip from one place to another, in a port, road, or river. And hence,

To WARP, is to change the fituation of a ship, 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 pleasure. It is used to prevent the fea from breaking into the veffel, particularly when the furface is rough.

To WEATHER, is to fail to windward of fome 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 to the other, turns her ftern to windward; it is the oppofite to tacking, in which the head is turned to the windward and the ftern to the leeward.

WINDLASS, a machine ufed in merchant fhips, to heave up the anchors. It is a large cylindrical piece of timber, fupported at the two ends by two frames of wood, placed on the oppofite fides of the deck, near the fore-maft, and is turned about as upon an axis, by levers, called handfpecs, which are for this purpose thrust into holes bored through the body of the machine.

WOOLDING, the act of winding a piece of rope about a maft or yard, to fupport it in a place where it may have been fished or scarfed; or when it is compofed of feveral pieces united into one folid.

Y.

YARD, a long piece of timber fufpended upon the mafts of a ship, to extend the fails to the wind.

YAW, the movement by which a fhip deviates from the line of her courfe towards the right or left in steering.

ΑΝ

ACCOUNT

OF A

VOYAGE round the WORLD.

CHAP. I.

The Paffage from the Downs to Rio de Janeiro.

[The longitude in this voyage is reckoned from the meridian of London, weft to 180 degrees, and east afterwards.]

Ο

N the 21st of June 1764, I failed from the June 1764,
Downs, with his Majefty's fhip the Dolphin,

and the Tamar Frigate, which I had received Thurfd. 21, orders to take under my command: as I was coming down the river, the Dolphin got a-ground; I therefore put into Plymouth, where fhe was docked, but did not appear to have received any damage. At this place we changed fome of our men; and having paid the people two months wages in advance, I hoifted the broad pendant, and failed again on the 3d of July; on the July. Tuesday 3. 4th we were off the Lizard, and made the best of our Wednef. 4 way with a fine breeze, but had the mortification to find the Tamar a very heavy failer. In the night of Friday 6. Friday the 6th, the officer of the first watch faw either a fhip on fire, or an extraordinary phenomenon which greatly refembled it, at some distance: it continued to blaze for about half an hour, and then disappeared.

In the evening of Thurfday, July the 12th, we saw Thurfd. 12. the rocks near the island of Madeira, which our peo

ple call the Deferters; from defertes, a name which has

VOL. I.

B

been

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