Rogers' list of corruptions, I would suggest that two or three others empl oyed in hi s own text should be included! Withal , the book made interesting reading to an old seaman who has used most of the words many times without giving a thought to their origin , and for thi s e nlightenment , I thank him . R OB ERT G. H ERBERT. J R. Mr. Herbert, an Advisor of the National Society started his sea career in a New England fishing schooner. A selfdescribed "nitpicker," he maintains high standa rds of precision in use ofsea terms. See "letters ," this issue.
Wooden Shipbuilding, by Charles Desmond (Vestal Press , New York , 244pp, illus, 8 l/2xll pbk , $14.95). This book is a first-rate primer o n its subject , the large wooden vessels built in this country between about 1880 a nd 1920. It was clearl y intended as a manual for training personnel to operate the many yards that flouri shed during the First World War and the shipping boom that followed. It explains, full y and lucidly, all the stages from estimating, pl anning, c ho ice of materials, construction to launching and fitting out. There are many fine d rawings, but the photos are somewhat muddy and unclear. In this book can be fo und tabl es of characteristics and longevity of woods, sizes and schedules of fastenings, strength of material s and descriptio ns of all parts of the ships to be built. Fo r me there was a method of bending la rge, square, hardwood timbers into knees by the application of end pressure, which process would , at the same time, re nder the wood both harder and stronger a nd season it into the bargain! Though thi s book seems complete it must be pointed out that the building methods discussed are limited to those used in the latter half of the period it covers. That is to say, there is no me ntion of the time-honored hand tools and methods of the trade. These ships were built with massive shipyard equipment ; the 48-inch handsaw, the four-sided planer, air hammer and drill , power bolt-cutter and other heavy machinery. Even as the old traditional methods a re igno red , the future also is given little thought. There is one mention of the difficulty of obtaining some woods in la rge sizes and there is some di scussion of substituting iron and steel, for wood in such components as keelsons and knees . If developed , thi s trend might have produced very fine composite hulls at o nce SEA HISTORY, WINTER 1984-85
stro nger, more long-las ting, able to raise a g reater dead weight and yet more economic of the nati ve shipbuilding lumber that was , even then, dangerously depleted . However, this was not to be and 1919, when this book was originally published , was one of the very last years such ships we re built. In short , the book is a thin slice th ro ugh the long bread of shipbuilding. It is delightful , absorbing, easy to read , and within its limits, thoroughl y complete. RI CHARD A . F EWTRELL Mr. Fewtrell , voyager, rigger and ship restorer, is also chanteyman aboard the bark Elissa.
Heart of Oak, by Tristan Jones (St. Martin's Press, New York, 1984, 283pp, $11 .95). Jones, the peripatetic adventurer who has lately gained fame in such quests as sailing on the highest and lowest bodies of water in the world , here recounts his initiation into the lower deck of the Royal Navy in World War II. With a sure ear fo r the language, a sturdy independence of mind and strong sense of the community that is a forecastle, he recalls the 16-year-old he was shipping out in an auxilliary cruiser (a converted liner) that met her end in flames
and death at sea. There is mythologizing going on here. See for instance his acceptance of the myth of " Nelson's Blood''---the baseless story that the men drank the spirits Nelson's body was brought home in after Trafalgar. And there is endless grousing : the eggs and bacon are cold ; the living conditions worse than the worst jail ashore (something noted by Sam Johnson about ships in general centuries before) ; the WREN clerks not friendl y enough (he launches into a lengthy diatribe about this) . And always there is rumor, and the suspicion that those in charge are not in control. But .. . that is the point , that is how it was in those dank, fear-infiltrated forecastles where men carried on the centuries' old traditions of the Royal Navy. They never called it the Royal Navy, by the way, it is always "Andrew," for reasons not known , and the ocean is always "oggin" especially, apparently, when there is danger of being precipitated into it. And through it all a boy makes his way, dodging cuffs, making fri ends, losing friends by drowning, learning to fit the patterns oflife. Highly recommended as sea literature, this memoir is something more, it is concerned with man's life and learning, in the shape of a scared kid finding his sea legs in a hard service. PS
Service SEAMANSHIP I Customer U.S. Naval Institute IN THE AGE OF SAIL 2062 Generals Highway
I
SH4B
,I
An Account of the Shiphandling I Annapolis, Maryland 21401 of the Sailing Man-of-War, • YES! Pl ease se nd me. Based on E1\MANSHle _ _ copy( ies) of Contemporary Sources 1, 11111t.11u,,111 Seamanship in the Age of
S·
By John Harland Illustrated by Mark M yers
Sail (955 3) at $39.95 eac h. D I have enclosed my che ck or money ord er for $ . (Pos tage and hand ling charges are $3.75. Please add 5% sales tax for delivery within the state of Maryland.)
i1ll'lllRI \\II
Here is a modern, objecti ve apprai sa l of th e shiphandlin g of a squ are-rigge r th at is as con ce rn ed w ith th e practi ca l as pects of th e subj ect as it is w ith the th eo retica l. Thi s volum e co ntain s chapters on th e word s and phrases used in shiph and ling unde r sail ; masts, ri gging, and sails ; th e org ani zation of th e crew for handlin g th e ship ; studdin g th e sails ; steering, tac kin g, wearing , and box hauling ; and eve n lowerin g and hoist ing boats. Oth er topics includ e th e deve lopment of th e sa il pl an f ro m 1580 to 1900, theoreti ca l prin c ipl es unde rl yin g ship handlin g, making and sho rt enin g sa ils at sea, th e ship anc ho r, and more.
300 pages/3 50 illus.!$39. 95
A NAVAL INSTITUTE PRESS BOOK
D Charge to my 0
1 -·~·~ 1 ° rmi
Account Number
Cred it Card Ex p. Date
Signalure lCharge s nolvalidu nl esssi gned.J Name
Ad dres s _
_ __ _ _ _ _ __
Cily - - - - - - - - - -
State _ __ _ _ _ Zip _ __
Pri ce subj ect to cha nge wit hout notice .
43