LOG LINE AND GLASS. Q. What is the use of the Log Line? To determine the rate of the ship's sailing. Q. What instrument is always used with it? Q. How do you find the length of a knot corresponding to a glass which runs a certain number of seconds? As the seconds in one hour (3600) are to the seconds in a glass, so are the number of feet in a nautical mile (6080) to the number of feet to a knot. Q. What are the correct lengths of a knot for a twentyeight seconds glass and a thirty seconds glass? Forty-seven feet three and a half inches, and fifty feet eight inches. Q. Would you measure the Log Line to this full length, or more, or less? About 8 or 9 inches less. Q. Why? So that the ship should not over-run her reckoning. Q. What length would you mark the Log Line then? For a 28 seconds glass it would be 46 feet 8 inches, and for a 30 seconds glass 50 feet. Q. What is the rule for this; called, usually, the short rule ? To the seconds the glass runs add a cipher and divide by 6, the quotient is the feet; and if there is a remainder, multiply it by 2 for inches. Q. Work out this for a 28 seconds glass. Attach a cipher and it becomes 280 6)280 feet 46-4 2 8 inches. Answer, 46 feet 8 inches. Q. Supposing that your Log Line is marked to 46 feet 8 inches, but your glass runs out in 14 seconds; what would you do? I should double the number of knots run out. Q. If all your glasses should be broken during the voyage? Use a watch with seconds hand, or a chronometer. Q. What stray line would you allow ? From twelve to fifteen fathoms, or about two-thirds the length of the vessel. Q. How would you mark a Log Line? After the line was thoroughly stretched, I would mark off the stray line and put a piece of white rag; then mark off the length of the knot and put a piece of leather ; at the next knot a piece of cord with 2 knots, &c. LEAD LINE. Q. How would you mark the Lead Line? 2 fathoms.........Leather. At 20 .Red Rag. ..Leather with a hole in it. White Rag. .................Piece of cord, with 2 knots in it. Q. How do you mark the deep-sea line? The same as the hand line as far as the 20 fathoms, then for every additional 10 fathoms add a knot to the cord, and at every 5 fathoms a piece of cord with one knot only, or a piece of leather, which is better. Q. How do you distinguish between 2 fathoms and 3 fathoms ? The leather at 2 fathoms is put in the strand half-way, thus forming two tails; at 3 fathoms it is put in the same way, but one tail is slit, thus forming three tails. Q. In a dark winter's night, with your hand so benumbed with cold that you cannot tell the marks by your touch, what would you do? Put it to my lips. If the white be a bit of canvas, the red a bit of bunting, and the blue a bit of cloth, the lips will instantly tell the difference. STOWAGE OF CARGOES. (See also Appendix A.) 1. What is dunnage ? Loose wood or other substances laid at the bottom of a ship. 2. What is it for? leak. To prevent damage to the cargo, if the ship should 3. What part would you dunnage ? The floors, bilges, pump-well, masts, and in the wake of the chain plates, scuppers, hooks and transoms. B 4. What dunnage would you allow for a general cargo ? 9 inches on the floors to 14 on the upper part of the bilges, and 2 in the sides. 5. Suppose the cargo were bale goods? 9 inches on the floors and to the upper part of the bilges, and 2 at the sides. The wing bales of the second tier to be kept 6 inches off the side of the lower corner. 6. Bags of coffee or cocoa? 9 inches on floors, 14 to upper part of bilges, and 2 at the sides. 7. Guano? 2 to 3 feet. Over the dunnage a tier of bags fore and aft, and, if possible, a second tier so laid as to cover the cantlines of the first; and bags to be built up the sides, around the mast casings, &c. 8. How do you stow bar iron ? Fore and aft till level with the keelson, then grating fashion. 9. How would you protect the sides of your ship? By laying bars fore and aft along the sides. 10. How do you secure it ? By laying the last three tiers solid, and shoring and wedging. 11. How do you stow bale goods ? On their flats amidships, marks and numbers up, on their edges in the wings. 12. How would you stow cases ? Marks and numbers up. 13. How would you stow a general cargo ? Marks and numbers up. 14. Where would you stow oil, resin, pitch, tar, &c. ? In the fore peak. 15. Where acids ? On deck. 16. Why? Ready to throw overboard if there is risk of breakage. 17. How do you stow casks? Fore and aft. Bung up and bilge free, good cross beds at the quarters, and well chocked with wood. 18. How could you find the bung of a dirty cask? The rivets of the hoops are in a line with the bung. 19. Why are casks stowed bung up? To prevent leak, and because it is the strongest way of the casks; the head-pieces are put in so that they are up and down when the cask is bung up. 20. How many heights are you allowed to stow ? 3 of pipes or butts, 4 of puncheons, 6 of hogsheads or half-puncheons, and 8 of barrels. 21. How would you stow a single cask? With 3 inches of soft wood bed under each quarter, with quoins on the beds on each side. 22. If stowing a cargo of casks, how would you stow the second ground tier ? Bilge and cantline. 23. The first upper tier ? In the cantlines of the ground tiers, with quoins under the quarters at each side. 24. Where would you stow valuable goods ? As far aft as possible. 25. To what depth should a ship be loaded? So as to have when upright 3 inches of clear side out of water for every foot depth of hold. 26. In stowing balks of timber, what should you be careful about? To see that the ends and sides are well chocked off. 27. How do you secure this cargo when all in? With tom shores under the beams. 28. What dunnage do you allow for grain ? Not less than 10 inches on the floors and 14 in the bilges, and the hold to be matted. 29. How would you lay the mats ? Begin in the midships both on floor and sides, and work forward and aft, and overlap about one-third. 30. If you had a small quantity of bullion on freight, where would you put it? In the Lazarette. |