BOOKS Wooden Shipbuilding and Small Craft Preservation: Papers from the Symposium on the American Wooden Shipbuilding Industry sponsored by the Bath Marine Museum April 30-May 2, 1976, in Bath Maine, and from the Second Annual Museum Conference on Small Craft sponsored by The Mariners Museum, May 8-9, 1976, in Newport News, Va. (Washington, DC, Preservation Press, 1976. 100 pp., $5.50). This first book published on maritime preservation by the National Trust is a sure-fire winner. The pictures alone, beginning with a photographic essay on American small craft, and ending with a step-bystep record of the building of a large coasting schooner at the Percy and Small yard in Bath, Maine, are rewarding to browse through, and invite study. Papers from the Small Craft Conference, a moveable feast held this year at The Mariners Museum , stress the interplay between historic and artifactual research and the effort that must go into these things before you pick up a scraper or a hammer-as pointed out particularly in a paper by Keith R. MacArthur on Mystic's lifesaving craft. The fourth Bath Marine Museum symposium upholds the high standards that have been established for this fixture of the maritime preservation world . Ralph Snow's paper on the Percy and Small Shipyard, which is undergoing restoration today by the Bath Marine Museum, of which he is executive director, deals with how the yard produced its great schooners rather than what it produced. It abounds in living detail on the actual life and functioning of the yard, based on oral history research, archeological findings in the yard itself, as well as thoroughgoing paper research. The yard was of course a major factor in the life of the town; large timbers blocked the streets as they were fed into the saw mill, and everyone knew when the large machinery was in use, as lights dimmed throughout the town. Basil Greenhill, director of the National Maritime Museum in England, contributed a distinguished paper on results of recent archeological learning about wooden boats in England, and the survival of some old practices as translated to American use. One could wish, however, for more such contribution by the distinguished and growing community of American marine archeologists, working on sites in this country today. Another small dissatisfaction I find is in the lack of an index of small craft collections throughout the country, so that
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the reader can hunt them out and see for himself. This would be a good project for the Trust to pursue in future publication. From this good beginning, one hopes to see more maritime publications from the Trust, and more discussion of maritime matters in the Trust's quarterly Historic Preservation, and monthly Preservation News. TED MILES Cruising in Seraffyn, by Lin and Larry Pardey (New York, Seven Seas Press, 1976. 192 pp. $11.95). "Go small, go simple, go now,'' say the authors of this account of ocean and coastal cruising in the 24-foot wooden cutter which they built together. A serious attempt is made in this book to get out actual costs of such sailing in different kinds of boats, based on the many case histories that now exist. Just as one begins to get annoyed at the enormous competence and practicality of this young couple, one comes across an item like "150 gallons red wine (approx.)-$225" in their listing of construction costs. The book is full of the joys the Pardeys take in their way of life and is recommended to any who think to take to the sea in a small boat. Jack Nastyface: Memoirs of an English Seaman, by William Robinson (London, Wayland Ltd., 1973, $7, 157 pp., illus., available through United States Naval Institute, Annapolis, Md.). As the author declares at the begining of this book, this is a seaman's story of his experiences in the Royal Navy from 1805 to late 1811, including action at Trafalgar , Basque Roads and Walcharen. It is a revealing glimpse into Nelson's navy and the conditions and customs that prevailed. Robinson deplores the cruel and (what is far worse) arbitrary floggings, the impressment and virtual imprisonment aboard ship. The reader detects a sensitive and alert mind appalled by the harshness and stupidity of the system, yet proud of the men he served with and the achievements of the Navy . His accounts of the battles are fascinating, especially for the touches of humanity. After the battle of Trafalger the rigid barriers between seamen and officers on his shattered ship were temporarily relaxed as dazed men of all ranks asked after their friends . And the day after the battle they were forced to abandon a Spanish prize ship as the weather worsened. Having taken off as many survivors as they could, they witnessed the separation of a Spanish
seaman and his son; the father in the overloaded rescue boat, the young man on the sinking prize. The sentiments that went into the happy resolution of this dilema will not be easily forgotten! The book was first published in 1836, a discreet quarter-century after Robinson's desertion. This reprint is generously illustrated with drawings and cartoons by George Cruikshank, a contemporary of Robinson's. NS Briefly Noted All About Boston Harbor Islands, by Emily and David Kales (Marlboro/ Herman, paper, illus ., $4.50) . Complete exploration of these historic islands with the boatman in mind. Recreation, geology, archaelogy, history and the future. America's Historic Ships, Replicas & Restorations, by Irvin Haas (New York , Arco, 1975, 127 pp., $8.95). Attractive, engaging introduction to leading historic ships, including warships, and sailing replicas, useful to old hands for accurate information presented in lively if uncritical fashion. (We salute Arco for handsome format and modest price, Haas for his care and evident jo fin subject!) Rebels Under Sail: The Am erican Navy During the Revolution, by William M. Fowler Jr. (Charles Scribners Sons, N. Y., illus., $15.00). Readable account of America's brave, small first fleet in both ignomy (the Penobscot expedition) and glory (the John Paul Jones raids) . Detailed exploration of life aboard ships in the eighteenth century and a solid research make this more than just another naval history. Rise and Fall of British Naval Mastery, by Paul M. Kennedy (Charles Scribners Sons, N. Y., maps, $15.00). Traces the conditions that led to Britain's dominance of the seas in the 19th century and her downfall in the 20th. Broadly written against the background of economic conditions, embodies valuable research and perspectives important to understanding the flow of modern maritime history. Whaling and the Art of Scrimshaw, by Charles H. Meyer (David McKay, N. Y., illus., $17 .95) ($14.95 until 12/31/76). Definitive work on scrimshaw with much information about whales, 19th century whaling and whalers. Includes step by step chapter of instruction for hobbyists and a strongly written indictment of contemporary whaling. Both an adventure and an encyclopedic reference work.