CANVAS CANOES.
Like all inhabitants of islands, we early turned our attention to
navigation. Our scow was serviceable for transporting materials back and
forth across the strips of shallow water between our quarters and the
Jersey shore. We never attempted to row across, because progress would
have been entirely too slow, and we would have drifted down to the
rapids long ere we could reach the opposite side. But on Lake Placid
matters were different. Although there was no settlement near us on the
Pennsylvania shore, to occasion our crossing the water for provisions
and the like, yet the quiet stretch was admirably suited to boating for
pleasure, and mighty little pleasure could we get out of our heavy scow.
UNCLE ED'S DEPARTURE.
Owing to a sudden business call Uncle Ed left us after he had been with
us nearly three weeks. But, before going, he explained carefully to Bill
just how to construct a canvas canoe. Jack, the cook, who was anxious to
lay in a second supply of provisions, accompanied Uncle Ed as far as
Millville, the next town below Lamington. Here Uncle Ed bought five
yards of canvas, 42 inches wide, several cans of paint and a quantity of
brass and copper nails and tacks. These supplies, together with the food
provisions that Jack had collected, were brought to us late in the
afternoon by Mr. Schreiner. Mr. Schreiner also brought the necessary
boards and strips of wood for the framework of our canoe.
A VISIT FROM MR. SCHREINER.
We invited Mr. Schreiner to spend the night with us, and this he did
after fording with some difficulty the swift-running river. In the
morning we showed him our quarters, our filter, the roads we had built,
the spar bridge across to Kite Island, our surveying instrument and the
chart we had made of the vicinity. He was greatly pleased with our work,
and it was then that he gave us an order for the bridge over the gorge.
From that day on he became our staunchest ally, so that when my father
and Mr. Van Syckel complained that we were loafing away a lot of time
which could be more profitably spent in study or work, Mr. Schreiner
stood up for us and declared that our experiences on the island were
doing us far more good, both physically and mentally, than any other
work that they could conceive of; that before condemning us they should
pay us a visit and see how we were employing our time.
THE SAILING CANOE.
[Illustration: Exploring the River in the Indian Canoe.]
[Illustration: Fig. 104. Stern Post of the Canoe.]
[Illustration: Fig. 105. Stern of the Canoe.]
[Illustration: Fig. 106. Center Form.]
[Illustration: Fig. 107. Bulkheads.]
[Illustration: Fig. 108. Center Braces.]
[Illustration: Fig. 109. Top View of the Canoe Frame.]
[Illustration: Fig. 110. Side View of the Canoe Frame.]
Immediately after Mr. Schreiner's departure we started work on the
canoe. A strip of spruce 1 inch thick, 3 inches wide and 12 feet long
served as the keelson. At the stern a post 1-1/2 inches thick, 3 inches
wide and 13 inches high was secured to the keelson with brass screws.
This was braced as indicated in Fig. 104. At the bow a stem piece was
attached to the keelson. This stem was cut to a somewhat semicircular
form, as shown in Fig. 105. The outer edge was tapered with a draw-knife
to a thickness of 1/4 inch and a brace was nailed to the inner edge. Our
next work was to cut out three forms, one of the shape shown in Fig. 106
and two like that shown in Fig. 107. The first form was set up on the
keelson midway between the stem and stern, and the other two were spaced
about four feet each side of the center form. The center form was used
only for shaping the frame of the boat, and was not intended to be
permanently affixed to the canoe. Therefore, we fastened it to the
keelson very lightly, so that it could be readily removed. The other two
forms, however, were made permanent parts of the frame, serving as
bulkheads. The gunwales were now secured in position. These were of
spruce 3/4 inch thick and 2 inches wide. The ends were beveled off so as
to neatly fit the stem piece and the stern post, to which they were
fastened by brass screws. Then we applied the longitudinal strips, or
rib bands, which were of 1/4-inch thick spruce 1 inch wide. Ten of these
bands were used, equally spaced apart on the center form, to which they
were lightly tacked; but they were nailed securely to the bulkheads and
the stem piece and stern post. The cross ribs were made of barrel hoops
which we had soaked in water for a day or so to render them pliable
enough to be bent into place. These hoops were split to a width of 1/2
inch, and secured first to the keelson, then to the longitudinal strips
and finally to the gunwales. Copper tacks were used for nailing the ribs
in place, and these were long enough to be passed through the rib bands
and clinched on the outside. Forty cross ribs were nailed on, and at the
center of the canoe they were spaced about three inches apart. The
center form was then removed and cut along the dotted lines shown in
Fig. 106. The semicircular pieces thus obtained were now strengthened
with strips on their inner edges, and wedged in between the keelson and
the gunwales, to which they were nailed, as shown in Fig. 108. A pair of
cleats nailed to the cross ribs served as supports for the seat of the
canoe. The frame of the boat was completed by nailing in place two deck
beams of 1/2-inch square pine and four corner pieces between the
gunwales and the bulkheads, so as to make an elliptical well hole or
deck opening. Before laying on the canvas covering the edges of the
gunwales, keelson, deck beams, stem and stern posts were smoothed down
with sandpaper.
[Illustration: Fig. 111. Lacing the Canvas on the Frame.]
STRETCHING ON THE CANVAS.
[Illustration: Fig. 112. Tacking the Canvas to the Keel.]
The frame was laid in the center of the canvas and the latter drawn
around it. Then with a large needle and strong twine we sewed both edges
of the cloth together with long stitches, lacing the canvas over the
frame as a shoe is laced over a foot. This done, the boat was turned
deck downward and the canvas was tacked to the keelson. In each case,
before driving in a tack a daub of white lead was applied, to
water-proof the spot. At the stem and stern a gore (narrow triangular
piece) was cut out of the canvas so as to make it lie smooth on the
frame, and white lead was painted in between the overlapping edges. The
canoe was then turned deck upward and the lacing tightened, while we
carefully worked out all wrinkles in the cloth. After tacking the canvas
along the gunwales on the outside, it was trimmed off, leaving
sufficient margin to be brought over the gunwales and tacked inside. Two
triangular pieces were cut out for the decks, and these were lapped over
the outer canvas and tacked to the gunwales. A narrow molding along the
edge of the boat served to cover the tack heads and added a certain
finish to the canoe. A keel plate 2 inches wide and 1 inch thick was
attached to the outside of the boat, and then, after wetting the canvas,
it was given a coat of white lead and oil. When this was perfectly dry
it was sandpapered and the second coat applied.
THE RUDDER.
[Illustration: Fig. 113. The Rudder.]
[Illustration: Fig. 114. The Rudder Hinge.]
The canoe was now complete except for the rudder, which was cut from a
1/2-inch board to about the shape shown in Fig. 114. Strips 1-1/2 inches
wide and 1/2 inch thick were nailed to each side of the blade, forming a
post, to the top of which a crosspiece or tiller was fastened. A cleat
nailed to the pillar at each side of the rudder post served to greatly
strengthen the joint. The rudder was hinged to the canoe by a rod, which
passed through four brass screw eyes, two threaded into the rudder and a
corresponding pair screwed into the stern. For convenience in steering
we ran our tiller rope clear around the boat, through screw eyes in the
gunwales and a pulley at the stem, so that the steersman could guide his
craft from any point in the canoe.
THE DEEP KEEL.
[Illustration: Fig. 115. Bottom of Canoe, Showing Deep Keel.]
[Illustration: Fig. 116. End View, Showing Deep Keel.]
We planned to use our canoe as a sailboat, and had to provide a deep
keel, which, for convenience, was made detachable. This keel was 6
inches wide, 1/2 inch thick and 6 feet long, and was fastened at the
center of the canoe. Screw eyes about twelve inches apart were threaded
alternately into opposite sides of the keel plate. Corresponding hooks
were attached to the keel in position to hook into the screw eyes, and
thus hold the keel firmly in place.
CANOE SAILS.
[Illustration: Fig. 117. The Mast Step.]
[Illustration: Fig. 118. The Mainsail.]
[Illustration: Fig. 119. The Mizzen Sail.]
Our boat was fitted with two masts, a mainmast and a mizzen or dandy
mast. The former was 6 feet long and the latter 4 feet long, and each
measured 1-1/2 inches in diameter at the base, tapering to about 1 inch
diameter at the upper end. They were held in brass bands, or clamps,
bent around them and secured to the bulkheads, as shown in Fig. 117. The
sails were of the lanteen type. The mainsail measured 8-1/2 feet along
the boom, 9-1/2 feet along the yard and 10 feet at the leach. The
dimensions of the mizzen sail were: along the boom, 5 feet; along the
yard, 5-1/2 feet; and at the leach, 6 feet. The boom was attached to a
strap of leather on the mast, and was thus given freedom to swing around
in any desired position. The yard was similarly attached, and was raised
by a cord, which passed through pulleys at the top and at the base of
the mast and extended to a cleat within easy reach of the occupant of
the boat. A double paddle was fashioned from a board 1 inch thick, 6
inches wide and 6 feet long. The blades were shaved down to a thickness
of 3/8 of an inch at the edges.
It will be observed that we used no iron in the construction of this
boat. Uncle Ed has warned us not to, because iron rusts out so easily
and is apt to damage both the canvas and the wood with which it is in
contact.
[Illustration: Fig. 120. The Double Paddle.]
A canoe is rather a tipsy thing to sail in, as we soon learned, and it
was lucky that we could all swim, else our vacation might have ended
very tragically; for the very first time Bill and I tried the boat an
unexpected gust of wind struck us and over we went. We were very poor
sailors at first, but it didn't take us long to catch on.
LEE BOARDS
One thing that bothered us greatly in sailing was the keel of our canoe.
It was forever getting twisted, particularly when we tried to make a
landing. There were only a few places along the island where the water
was deep enough to permit our coming right up to shore without striking
the keel. The fastening was not very strong, and every once and awhile
it would be wrenched loose. The matter was made the subject of a special
letter to Uncle Ed, and in due time his answer was received. As usual,
he offered a first-class solution of the difficulty. "Don't use a keel,"
he wrote; "lee boards are much better." Then he went on to explain what
was meant by lee boards: "The leeward side of a boat is the opposite of
the windward side; that is, that side of the boat which is sheltered
from the wind. Lee boards, then, are boards which are hung over the lee
side of a boat to prevent it from drifting to leeward, and they serve to
take the place of a keel or centerboard."
[Illustration: Fig. 121. A Lee Board.]
[Illustration: Fig. 122. Section of the Canoe, Showing Lee Board.]
[Illustration: Fig. 123. The Lee Boards in Use on Canoe.]
Following Uncle Ed's direction we fastened a strip of wood across the
canoe about six feet from the bow, nailing it firmly to the gunwales.
This provided a support to which the lee boards were secured. The lee
boards were paddle-shaped affairs of the form and dimensions shown in
Fig. 121. Each paddle near the top was hinged to the end of a board
three inches wide and a foot long. The paddle was held at right angles
to the board by means of a hook. Each board was fastened with door
hinges to a baseboard which extended the width of the boat and was
attached to the crosspiece of the canoe by means of a couple of bolts.
The bolt heads were countersunk, so that the hinged boards could lie
flat over them. To the top of each lee board two ropes were attached,
one passing forward around a pulley and thence back to a cleat within
easy reach of the occupant of the canoe, and the other passing directly
back to this cleat. By pulling the former rope the lee board was lifted
out of the water, while the latter rope was used to swing the board into
working position. When tacking to port (left), the board on the left
side of the canoe was lowered and the other was raised, as shown in Fig.
123, and when tacking to the starboard (right) the board on the right
side was lowered, while the left one was raised.
[Illustration: The Indian Canoe Fitted with Lanteen Sail and Lee Boards.]
THE INDIAN PADDLING CANOE.
[Illustration: Fig. 124. Center Form.]
[Illustration: Fig. 125. Intermediate Form.]
[Illustration: Fig. 126. The Stem Piece.]
[Illustration: Fig. 127. Skeleton Frame of Canoe.]
[Illustration: Fig. 128. Section at Center of Canoe.]
Our sailing canoe proved such a good one that we decided to build a
second. This was to be much lighter, for paddling only, and of the true
Indian shape, with wide, bulging sides and raised stem and stern. The
dimension of the forms used are given in Figs. 124 and 125. These forms,
it will be observed, were notched to receive the keelson and gunwales.
The keelson was formed of 1-inch spruce 3 inches wide and 10 feet long.
The stem and stern, which were both of the same shape, were cut from a
12-inch board to the form shown in Fig. 126, and were firmly secured to
the keelson. This made the boat 12 feet long. The forms were then set in
place on the keelson, one at the center and the others three feet each
side. The gunwales were formed of 3/4-inch by 2-1/2-inch spruce, and the
twelve rib bands used were of the size used in our first boat. As none
of these forms was to remain in the boat, nails were driven very lightly
into them, with heads projecting so that they could easily be withdrawn
when it was time to remove the forms. The cross ribs were passed under
the keelson inside of the rib bands and outside of the gunwales, as
shown in Fig. 128. After they were set in place and firmly secured with
copper tacks, a band was nailed to the keelson to form the keel. To
produce the raised stem and stern, four wedge-shaped pieces were nailed
to the tops of the gunwales, as indicated in Fig. 129. The forms were
then removed and were replaced with cross sticks braced between the
gunwales. The center cross stick was provided with two corner pieces, as
shown in Fig. 130, adapted to fit under the gunwales and against the rib
bands. The canvas was then applied in the manner described before, but
was tacked to the upper edge of the gunwale instead of the outer side,
and the tacks were covered by a half-round molding which extended around
the entire boat. After the lacing was cut the edge of the canvas was
secured to the under edges of the gunwales. The canoe was then completed
by fastening on a 1-inch square keel and treating the boat with two
coats of paint. The paddle was a duplicate of the one described in
connection with the sailing canoe.
[Illustration: Fig. 129. Wedge Pieces at the Ends.]
I remember that we eventually equipped our paddling canoe with a sail
and a pair of lee boards, though no record of this fact appears in the
chronicles of the society.
[Illustration: Fig. 130. The Cross Braces.]