The Sailor's Word-Book Part 152

Large ships generally have two light-rooms, the after and the fore.

LIGHTS. In men-of-war, all the seamen's lights are extinguished by 8 P.M., the officers' at 10, unless the commanding officer gives his permission, through the master-at-arms, for a longer time, as occasion may require.

LIGHT SAILS. All above the topgallant-sails; also the studding-sails and flying jib. Men-of-war carry topgallant-sails over double reef.

LIGHT SHIP. In contradistinction to laden; a ship is said to be light when she has no cargo, or merely in ballast. When very crank, she is said to be _flying light_. Also, a vessel bearing a light as a guide to navigators.

LIGHT WATER-DRAUGHT. The depth of water which a vessel draws when she is empty, or nearly so.

LIGHT WATER-LINE. The line showing the depression of the ship's body in the water when just launched, or quite unladen. (_See_ WATER-LINE.)

LIGNAMINA. Timber fit for building.

LIGNUM VITae. _Guaiac.u.m officinale._ A West Indian tree, of the wood of which sheaves of blocks are made. It was allowed to be imported free of all duties.

LIMB. The graduated arc of an astronomical or surveying instrument. In astronomy, it is the edge or border of the disc of the sun, moon, or one of the planets; in which sense we say the upper limb, the lower limb, the sun or moon's nearest limb, &c.

LIMBER. In artillery, the two-wheeled carriage to which the trail of a field gun-carriage is attached for travel.--_Limber-boxes_ are the chests fitted above the axle-tree of the limber for ammunition.--_Limber up!_ is the command so to raise and attach.

LIMBER BOARDS OR PLATES. Short movable pieces of plank; a part of the lining of a ship's floor, close to the keelson, and immediately above the limbers. They are occasionally removed to clear them of any rubbish by which they may be clogged, so as to interrupt the pa.s.sage of water to the pump-well.

LIMBER-BOX. Synonymous with _limber-trunk_.

LIMBER-CLEARER. A small chain rove fore-and-aft through the limber-pa.s.sage to clear it when necessary, by hauling backwards and forwards.

LIMBER-Pa.s.sAGE. The line of limber-holes throughout the whole length of the floor, on each side of the keelson, for the water to have free access to the pumps.

LIMBER-PLATES. _See_ LIMBER-BOARDS.

LIMBER-STREAK. The streak of foot-waling nearest the keelson, wrought over the lower ends of the first futtocks.

LIMBO. Restraint, durance, confinement under arrest, or in the bilboes.

Dante uses this term for a division of the infernal regions.

LIMB-TANGENT. The accurate touch of the edge of a celestial body to the horizon.

LIME OR LEMON JUICE. A valuable anti-s...o...b..tic, included by act of parliament in the scale of provisions for seamen. It has latterly been so much adulterated that scurvy has increased threefold in a few years.

LIME-POTS. Formerly supplied among the munitions of war to ships.

LIMITING PARALLELS. The parallels of lat.i.tude upon the earth's surface, within which occultations of stars or planets by the moon are possible.

They are given in the _Nautical Almanac_ for each occultation.

LIMMER. The side-rope to a p.o.o.p or other ladder.

LIMPET. A well-known sh.e.l.l-fish, giving rise to the brackish proverb, "Sticking fast like a limpet to a rock."

LINCH OR LINS PIN. The iron pin which keeps the trucks of a gun-carriage confined to the axle-tree.

LINE, TO. To cover one piece with another. Also, to mark out the work on a floor for determining the shape of a vessel's body.--_To line a ship_, is to strike off with a batten, or otherwise, the directional lines for painting her. (_See_ TOE A LINE.)

LINE. The general appellation of a number of small ropes in a ship, as buntlines, clue-lines, bowlines, &c. Also, the term in common parlance for the equator. Also, in the army, distinguishes the regular numbered regiments of cavalry and infantry from the artillery and guards, to whom exceptional functions are a.s.signed. In fortification, it means a trench, approaches, &c. In a geometrical sense, it signifies length without breadth; and in military parlance, it is drawing up a front of soldiers.--_Concluding line._ A small rope, which is. .h.i.tched to the middle of every step of a stern-ladder.--_Deep-sea line._ A long line, marked at every five fathoms with small strands of line, knotted, and used with the deep-sea lead. The first 20 fathoms are marked as follows: 2 and 3 fathoms with black leather; 5 with white bunting; 7 with red; 10 with leather and a hole in it. Then 13, 15, and 17 repeat the previous marks of 3, 5, and 7. Two knots indicate 20, three knots 30, four knots 40 fathoms, and so on, with an additional knot for every ten. Meanwhile a single knot indicates the intermediate fives. Besides this system some pilots prefer their own marks, as in the Hooghly, where they always measure the line for themselves. The term "deep-sea line" must not now be confined to the use of the lead for the ordinary purposes of safe navigation; deep-sea soundings for scientific purposes are recorded in thousands of fathoms, in which case the line is sometimes made of silk, the object being to obtain the largest amount of strength with a small weight.--_Fishing-lines._ Particular kinds of lines, generally used for fishing snood, mackerel, whiting, cod, albacore, &c.--_Hand-line._ A line about 20 fathoms long, marked like the first 20 fathoms of the deep-sea line. It is made fast to a hand-lead of from 7 to 14 lbs., and used to determine the depth of water in going in or out of a harbour, river, channel, &c.--_Hauling-line._ Any rope let down out of a top, &c., to haul up some light body by hand.--_Knave-line._ A rope fastened to the cross-trees, under the main or fore top, whence it comes down by the ties to the ram-head, and there it is rove through a piece of wood about 2 feet long, and so is brought to the ship's side, and there hauled up taut to the rails.--_Life-line._ A rope occasionally extended in several situations for persons to lay hold of, to prevent their falling.--_Mar-line._ A particular kind of small line, composed of two strands very little twisted; there is both tarred and white mar-line.

That supplied for the gunner and for bending light sails is untarred.--_Navel-line._ A rope depending from the heads of the main and fore masts, and pa.s.sed round to the bight of the truss to keep it up, whilst the yard is being swayed up, or when the truss, in bracing sharp up, is overhauled to the full.--_Spilling-lines._ Ropes fixed occasionally to the square sails, particularly the main and fore courses in bad weather, for reefing or furling them more conveniently; they are rove through blocks upon the yard, whence leading round the sail they are fastened abaft the yard, so that the sail is very closely confined.--_White-line._ That which has not been tarred, in contradistinction to _tarred line_.

LINE-BREADTH. _See_ BREADTH LINE.

LINE OF BATTLE. A disposition of the fleet at the moment of engagement, by signal or previous order, on which occasion the vessels are usually drawn up as much as possible in a specified bearing, as well to gain and keep the advantage of the wind, as to run the same board, about 1 cable, or 100 fathoms distant from each other. The line-of-battle in sea-fights occurs both in Plutarch (_Themistocles_) and Froissart.

LINE-OF-BATTLE SHIPS. Formerly those of 74 guns and upwards; or in these iron days, any vessel capable of giving and taking the tremendous blows of the larger ordnance.

LINE OF BEARING. A previously determined bearing given out by a commander-in-chief, as well as line-of-battle. "From line of battle form line of bearing," or reverse. The line of bearing must be that point of the compa.s.s on which the ships bear from each other, and from which the line of battle can readily be formed without losing speed or ground.

LINE OF COLLIMATION. _See_ COLLIMATION, LINE OF.

LINE OF DEFENCE. In fortification, the face of a work receiving flank defence, together with its prolongation to the flanking work.

LINE OF DEMARCATION. A line which is drawn by consent, to ascertain the limits of territories belonging to different powers.

LINE OF LINE. _See_ GUNTER'S LINE.

LINE-OF-METAL ELEVATION. That which the axis of a gun has above the object when its line of metal is pointed on the latter; it averages 1-1/2 in guns of the old construction.

LINE OF NODES. The imaginary line joining the ascending and descending nodes of the orbit of a planet or comet.

LINE OF OPERATIONS. In strategy, the line an army follows to attain its objective point.

LINE OUT STUFF. To mark timber for dressing to shape.

LINERS. Line-of-battle ships. Also, a designation of such packet or pa.s.senger ships as trade periodically and regularly to and from ports beyond sea, in contradistinction to chance vessels. Also, a term applied by seamen to men-of-war and to their crews.

LINES. With shipwrights, are the various plans for determining the shape and form of the ship's body on the mould-loft floor. Also, a species of field-works, consisting of a series of fronts, constructed in order to cover the front and form the immediate defence of an army or the frontiers of a state.

LINES OF FLOTATION. Those horizontal marks supposed to be described by the surface of the water on the bottom of a ship, and which are exhibited at certain depths upon the sheer-draught. (_See_ LIGHT WATER-LINE, and LOAD WATER-LINE.)

LING. A brushwood useful in breaming. Also, a fish, the _Lota molva_; it invariably inhabits the deep valleys of the sea, while the cod is always found on the banks. When sun-dried it is called stock-fish.

LINGET. Small langridge; slugs.

LINGO. A very old word for tongue or dialect, rather than language or speech.

LININGS. The reef-bands, leech and top linings, buntline cloths, and other applied pieces, to prevent the chafing of the sails. In ship-building, the term means thin dressed board nailed over any rough surface to give it a finish.

LINKISTER. An interpreter; linguist.

LINKS. A northern phrase for the windings of a river; also for flat sands on the sea-sh.o.r.e, and low lands overflowed at spring tides.

LINK WORMING. Guarding a cable from friction, by worming it with chains.

LINNE. A Gaelic term for pool, pond, lake, or sea.