The Helm and Rudder.--Sheets.--The Topping-Lift.--Springing a Leak and
the Use of the Pump.--Sailing "close-hauled," "by the wind," or "full
and by."--To know when a Yacht is as near the Wind as she will
lie.--Running free.--Before the Wind, or Scudding.--To execute a Pilot's
Luff.
THE HELM AND RUDDER
Control the movement of the yacht through the water, and serve to direct
her course.
The rudder may be described as pieces of boards or planks, in a line
with the keel, hung upon pivots at the stern of a vessel, in an upright
position, and extending from the keel to the rail, and having an
attachment, called a tiller or wheel, to move it in either direction, to
the right or left, across the line of the keel of the yacht. (See
diagram.)
[Illustration: _Rudder & Tiller_]
The tiller, which passes through the rudder-head, is moved to the right
or left; and this is termed "moving the helm." For instance, "Move the
helm over to starboard," "Put the helm to starboard," that is to say,
push the tiller over towards the starboard side of the yacht, which will
carry the rudder to the port side of the yacht, and, if under way, the
bow will change direction towards the left. In other words, when a
vessel is under way, and going ahead by her own momentum, or anchored in
a tide-way, the following rule always holds good:--
_To starboard the helm carries the head to port._
_To port the helm carries the head to starboard._ See diagrams, Figs. 1
and 2, page 37.
This is all reversed at a critical point in seamanship, which should be
carefully remembered; and that is when a yacht has what is called a
_stern-board_, i.e., has received some force which is making her go
through the water stern first. This often happens when an attempt has
been made to tack, and the execution of the manoeuvre has seemed to
fail: it is then for a moment or two that the yacht will often drift
astern, keeping in the wind's eye, making it uncertain whether or not
she will yet "go about." It is at this moment, whilst she is making this
stern-board, that a knowledge of the helm will yet put her about by
shifting the helm hard over to the opposite side from where it was when
the attempt was made to go about. Remember not to move the helm till the
yacht has commenced making stern-way, then this law applies:--
_To starboard the helm carries the head to starboard._
_To port the helm carries the head to port._
For instance, if it were desired to go about by bringing the helm over
to the starboard side of the yacht, and the manoeuvre should fail, after
the yacht has come head to wind, and commenced to get stern-way, it
might yet be consummated by shifting the helm, or tiller, over to port,
which would have exactly the same effect as it formerly had when the
yacht was advancing, and the helm hard a starboard.
[Illustration: Fig. 1.]
[Illustration: Fig. 2.]
A yacht should be perfectly enough balanced with sails and ballast to
carry a nearly even helm when on the wind: but it is often the case that
they carry what is called a _lee-helm_; that is to say, when the yacht
is on a wind, the tiller is continually poked down to leeward, or the
opposite side of the yacht from the wind, to keep her up to her course,
from which a tendency to fall off is shown: this is usually caused by
too much head-sail, and may be remedied by a shorter bowsprit, a smaller
jib, or another cloth on the after-leach of the mainsail.
To carry a lee-helm is a "beastly thing," as an Englishman would say,
and something that cannot long be endured by those who truly like
yachting. If the yacht is free from the odious lee-helm, she may carry
a _weather-helm_, which is not as bad as a lee-helm, but is troublesome.
This causes the yacht to have a tendency to "luff up into the wind," and
causes the tiller to be carried hard over on the weather-side of the
yacht, and is usually occasioned by too much after-sail, or bad storage
of ballast. Both these habits of carrying a lee, or weather-helm, are
detrimental to speed, as in both positions the rudder is often held at
nearly a right angle to the keel, decreasing the speed materially. A
yacht that is well balanced in sails and ballast will, on a wind,
habitually carry the tiller a point or two to windward of the line of
the keel, and it will need but little movement in any direction to keep
her on her course. Sometimes, in sudden squalls, a yacht that carries a
weather-helm will luff up into the wind in spite of the helm, so as not
to be stopped except by slacking off the main-sheet. The same may occur
in yawing with a yacht that carries a lee-helm. The helm may be put hard
down, and sometimes the jib-sheet will have to be eased off, before the
yacht will come to the wind. A weather-helm is endurable, but a lee-helm
never,--"_Well, hardly ever._"
SHEETS.
Sheets are the ropes that confine the mainsail and jib in place, and are
most important in their uses. The jib-sheets lead along the deck, aft,
to the standing-room, in most yachts, and in heavy weather should not
be belayed so but what they can be cast off in an instant by a sudden
jerk of the hand. They may be held in place by a sort of hitch, hard to
describe, where one part jams the other, and keeps it in place. Any
boatman will explain how it is made. The main-sheet makes fast, usually,
at or near the helmsman, under whose charge it is; _and in heavy weather
this should not be made fast at all_, but only one turn taken, and the
remainder of the strain rest upon the hand. Of course, in yachts over
thirty to forty feet in length, with crews, every thing can be made
fast: but we are now writing of smaller craft, and it is repeated, in
squally and dirty weather _never make fast the main-sheet_; it is the
key to the whole science of boat-sailing, and should never be out of
one's hand in time of emergency. It can, after taking one turn, be wound
around the tiller, and brought to the same hand as the one that is
moving the helm, and yet be instantly cast off, if necessary.
THE TOPPING-LIFT.
This useful rope holds up the main-boom, and its length is regulated by
a pulley. In scudding before the wind it is very useful; for, by means
of the pulley, the end of the boom can be "topped up," so as to be kept
out of the water when the yacht rolls heavily. It is also useful in
making the mainsail set well; and, after the latter is hoisted, it can
be made to set flat as a board by slacking the topping-lift so that the
after-leach of the sail will wholly sustain the outer end of the
main-boom.
SPRINGING A LEAK, AND THE USE OF THE PUMP.
The pump should always be kept in good order, and ready for immediate
use. In case the yacht springs a leak, the best way to stop it is to
pass a light sail over the bows, and bring it aft over the leak by means
of ropes on both sides of the yacht. Leaks are more easily stopped on
the outside, the pressure of the water forcing the canvas into the
damaged part; and even light canvas is almost water-proof. Of course,
after once having thus temporarily stopped a leak, it is scarcely
necessary to add that one should seek shelter in the nearest port, and
have the yacht perfectly repaired before proceeding farther; for there
is nothing more deceptive, or dangerous even, than a small leak, which
is almost always sure to open, and become a source of great anxiety,
just so soon as the sea begins to get up and the wind to blow,--at the
very moment, in other words, when the yacht needs all possible care and
attention in other directions, to insure her safety. Never neglect a
small leak, but have it attended to and repaired at once.
Examine the well of the yacht often, and ascertain by personal
inspection that she is not making water faster than is usual, and
especially have this attended to during rough weather. If a leak is
discovered, the yacht should, if possible, be put before the wind till
it is secured; for she will receive less strain to hull and spars in
this position than in any other.
CLOSE-HAULED.
A yacht is said to be close-hauled, or sailing "_full and by_" when she
is brought as near to the wind as is possible, so as to advance through
the water; for it is to be presumed that it is understood, that if the
main-boom were brought so as to pass directly over the line of the keel
of the yacht, and the head of the yacht brought as near the wind as
possible, and the sail to remain full, and not shake, she would not
advance, but would simply be pushed to leeward by the wind. To insure
her advancing, the boom must be at some angle from the line of the keel:
therefore it may be taken as a rule that the main-boom, in sailing, is
always kept out over the quarter, on one side or the other; and
close-hauled simply means that it is brought as far inboard, or towards
the line of the keel, by means of the main-sheet, as experience has
proved can be done, and have her advance through the water. Some yachts
haul aft the main-boom closer than others, being enabled to do so on
account of their build and model; and the closer the boom can be
brought to the line of the keel, and the yacht still kept advancing, the
nearer the wind she will be said to sail, and will "hold a good wind,"
as it is called. And this is, of course, a _desideratum_ in beating to
windward, or against the wind at an angle to it; for the yacht that
makes the angle least between itself and the direction of the wind will,
other things being equal, arrive the quickest at its destination; whilst
another, that cannot lie so nigh the wind, will have to pass over much
more water to arrive at the same place. On general principles, all
fore-and-aft vessels lie equally near the wind, usually within four
points and a half; but there are craft, that from their model, and equal
balance of sail, or some other unknown cause, will lie nearer than their
neighbors, and seem to eat up into the wind.
Just how far to have the main-boom over the side of the yacht, in
sailing close-hauled, has never been settled; for it resolves itself to
this. If the boom is hauled further inboard, the yacht sails nearer to
the wind, but in an increased ratio loses its speed; for, if it should
be hauled completely in till in a line with the keel, the yacht would
stop, as has been explained: whilst, the farther out over the side it is
allowed to go, the faster the yacht sails, but the farther also from the
wind and the direction that it is desired to proceed in to windward.
Hence a happy medium must be decided upon; and there is no doubt but
what the result of most races has depended more upon the use of the main
sheet, when close-hauled, or beating to windward, than upon any other
cause. Just how flat to trim the sheets can only be acquired by
experience; but the following general rules will apply:--
As a general principle, the sheets can be trimmed flatter, or farther
aft, in light weather and a smooth sea, than in heavy weather and a head
sea. In fact, it is impossible to sail as near the wind in lumpy water
as in smooth water. After a yacht has been reefed, also, she will not
lie as near the wind as before, for the same reasons that compelled the
reefing.
With old hands, the yacht, when close-hauled, is allowed to, what
sailors call, "go through the water," rather than to point up almost
into the wind's eye, and keep bobbing up and down, and advancing very
little. In most yachts it will be found by experiment that the main-boom
should be at about the angle shown in the figure in the diagram on p.
46, marked "close hauled;" but others may be, perhaps, hauled slightly
more inboard: but, as a general law, a good free sheet is the better,
especially in a sea-way.
TO KNOW WHEN THE YACHT IS AS NEAR THE WIND AS SHE WILL SAIL
Is important, and it can always be known by the following method. Push
the helm very slowly over to leeward, and, as the yacht commences to
come towards the wind, keep the eye fastened upon the luff, or inner
leach, of the mainsail. As soon as the yacht is too near the wind to
have the sail stand full, a little wave will be seen to agitate the luff
of the sail, from its head to the foot, usually commencing near the
head, and just under the gaff, as that part of the sail is at a further
angle from the wind than the part that is fastened to the main-boom; the
gaff blowing out much further to leeward, not being confined by a sheet
as the main-boom is. This wave, or shake, is caused by the wind getting
on both sides of the sail, and, if persisted in, would bring the yacht
to a stand-still, with the sail flapping in the wind's eye. But short
practice will enable one to see almost instantly this commencement of a
shake, that begins to show itself on the mainsail like a smile breaking
over the countenance of a pretty woman; and at the first symptom reverse
the helm, and keep the yacht in that position which is called sailing
"by the wind," or "full and by;" that is to say, full sails, and by the
wind. If, after the yacht is in this position, a bearing on shore can be
taken to steer by, it will be a good thing; but as the wind often
changes even several points, especially near the coast-line, every few
moments, this experiment must be repeated; and it is this keeping a
yacht up to her work, and never letting her fall off, and never shaking
her, and yet taking advantage of every flaw, that goes to make up the
accomplished helmsman. There are other signs besides these, which to a
sailor are very simple, that denote to him when the yacht is off the
wind; such as the angle at which the wind strikes his face, the
direction of the wind on the face of the waters, and the line of the
weather-vane at the main truck, and the smoke from his pipe: these will
do for him as well as luffing and shaking the mainsail, but the latter
method is the perfect one; and, if the yacht can be so steered as to
keep just the suspicion of a little smile rippling its luff below the
throat of the gaff, it will be the perfection of sailing "close-hauled,"
or "by the wind."
RUNNING FREE.
When the wind is favorable, and the yacht will lay her course without
having to beat towards her destination at an angle against the head
wind, as in close-hauled, then the sails are arranged in a different
manner; and the main-boom is swung out over the side in just such
proportion as the wind may be free, till completely out, so as to hang
at right angles with the keel, when the wind is dead aft. (See
diagrams.)
[Illustration: wind diagrams]
BEFORE THE WIND, OR SCUDDING.
This is the most difficult steering of any; and in rough water it is
very hard to keep the yacht upon her course, for the reason that the
seas will lift the stern out of the water, thus at once neutralizing the
use of the rudder for a moment, and causing the yacht to yaw. Besides
this, the speed changes, this affecting the rudder also. When on top of
a sea, and all the sails full, the yacht will go fast: when she attempts
to bury her head, and kick up her heels, and becalms the jib and lower
part of the mainsail, she will go slower. There is one thing to be
guarded against in running before the wind, and that is the "jibing" of
the main-boom; that is to say, the wind getting on the forward part of
the sail, from any cause,--whether by change of wind, or on account of
bad steering,--and carrying it violently over to the other side,
endangering the yacht, and with a liability, in heavy weather, of
carrying away the mast. This must be guarded against carefully; and if
the sea is very bad, and the yacht steers very wild, it is better to
tack down to leeward, as it is termed, that is to say, to haul up the
yacht a little towards the wind on either tack, so as to bring it over
the quarter, and then run before it for a distance, and then, by careful
jibing, bring the wind over the other quarter, and then proceed on.
PILOT'S LUFF.
In harbor-sailing, a buoy or point often appears ahead, which, if
passed, the yacht could be at once kept away free, being now
close-hauled, thus saving the time and inconvenience of tacking, but, as
she is going, will be right in the way, unless she is put about. To
avoid tacking in such a case, where the yacht will _almost_ stand by, a
manoeuvre is often executed (if the tide is favorable, and the wind
brisk), to avoid tacking, called a "pilot's luff," and consists of--when
quite near the object to be passed, and according to its position as
right ahead or slightly to leeward--bringing the yacht quickly up into
the wind, so that the sails shake, and by her own momentum shooting her
dead to windward once or twice her length; and then, before her headway
is lost, and the rudder, therefore, useless, keeping her off again till
every thing draws, when the same manoeuvre may be again executed, each
time gaining a position farther to windward than could have been gained
in any other way, except by going about on the other tack.
It takes a steady hand at the tiller, and a good calculation of the
momentum of the yacht, to execute a pilot's luff well: but it is very
useful often, if well performed, and very disastrous in a race; for
instance, if the helmsman succeeds in getting the yacht "into irons,"
and with a stern-board on, as may be the case if he brings her up too
high, or neglects to move the helm in time to get back upon his course
before the momentum of the yacht is lost, or lets her go about on the
other tack. A pilot's luff is a very pretty manoeuvre when well
executed; and you shall see many an old boatman squeezing his boat by a
point, instead of taking the trouble of going about, knowing, that, the
moment he has doubled it, his course will be such that the wind will be
fair, and he can then ease off his sheets, and go on his way rejoicing.