Fore and aft craft and their story; an account of the fore and aft rig from the earliest times to the present day (1922) (14597483609)

Identifier: foreaftcraftthei00chat2 (find matches)
Title: Fore and aft craft and their story; an account of the fore and aft rig from the earliest times to the present day
Year: 1922 (1920s)
Authors: Chatterton, E. Keble (Edward Keble), 1878-1944
Subjects:
Publisher: London : Seeley, Service
Contributing Library: New York Public Library
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN



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at all the craftwere literally smothered in canvas, and with the smalldisplacement which these vessels possessed, with theirhghtness and great length, their speed before the windmust have been something enormous. And even when the Venetians, Genoese, theSpaniards, and the Portuguese took to building big-bellied cargo craft, and left the galley type merely forwarlike purposes, the lateen-sail was still employed.No matter whether the merchant craft carried one orthree masts they were fitted with the triangular lateenand not the square-sail. Thus it was that Moorishpirates, Italian cargo-carriers, or Spanish galleys sworeby the excellencies of the lateen fore-and-aft rig. Itspread everywhere in the south, and stiU prevails evento this day. Even the Swiss lakes retain it, as thetourist is well aware. The resemblance of this lateen-rig to the Arabian dhows is very marked. But actualexperience shows that these Swiss craft embody all thedisadvantages of the dhow-rig, for the high peak whilst
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ORIGIN OF THE FORE-AND-AFT RIG 33 of unquestionable benefit in light winds, is the mostunsuitable of all in sudden squalls. These Swiss shipshave wonderful reputations for ghosting, yet whenthose sudden and hard winds blow down on to thesurface of the lake from the mountains above, thesesails are positively dangerous. But for all that, sopowerful is the conservative spirit of sailors, whetheron sea or fresh water, that the rig has never beendiscarded. To-day the lateen-rig is to be found from one end ofthe JNIediterranean to the other. You will note all sortsof modifications, you may notice three masts instead ofone, and even in the one-sticker you w411 occasionallyfind that, not content with its lateen canvas projectingboth forward and abaft the mast, other sails have beensometimes added. A moderate instance of this is to befound in such a craft as the Marseilles fishing-boat, whichhas added a foresail. The accompanying photograph(Fig. 1), taken from a picture in the Boijmans Museum,