The Sailor's Word-Book Part 220

SHOOTING OF NETS. The running out of nets in the water, as seins, drift-nets, herring-nets, &c.; but it does not apply to trawls.

SHOOTS, OR SHUTS. A large pipe or channel to lead away water, dirt, ballast, shot, &c., is called a shoot. The overfalls of a river, where the stream is narrowed by its banks, whether naturally or artificially, especially the arches of a bridge, const.i.tute a shoot.

SHOOT THE COMPa.s.s, TO. To shoot wide of the mark.

SHOOT THE SUN, TO. To take its meridional alt.i.tude; literally aiming at the reflected sun through the telescope of the instrument. "Have you obtained a shot?" applied to alt.i.tudes of the meridian, as for time, lunar distances, &c.

Sh.o.r.e. A prop fixed under a ship's sides or bottom, to support her when laid aground or on the stocks. Sh.o.r.es are also termed _legs_ when used by a cutter or yacht, to keep the vessel upright when the water leaves her. (_See_ LEGS.) Also, the general name for the littoral of any country against which the waves impinge, while the word _coast_ is applied to that part of the land which only lies contiguous to the sea.--_Bold sh.o.r.e._ A coast which is steep-to, permitting the near approach of shipping without danger; it is used in contradistinction to a _shelving-sh.o.r.e_.

Sh.o.r.e-ANCHOR. That which lies between the sh.o.r.e and the ship when moored.

Sh.o.r.e-BOATS. Small boats or wherries plying for hire at sea-ports.

Sh.o.r.e-CLEATS. Heavy cleats bolted on to the sides of vessels to support the sh.o.r.e-head, and sustain the ship upright.

Sh.o.r.e-FAST. A hawser carried out to secure a vessel to a quay, mole, or anchor buried on sh.o.r.e.

Sh.o.r.e REEF. The same as fringing reef.

SHORT, SHORT STAY, SHORT APEEK. "Heave short," means to heave in the cable till it is nearly up and down, and would hold the vessel securely until she had set all common sail, and would not drag or upset the anchor. If, however, the wind be free, and the making sail unimportant, _short_ would probably be _short apeek_, or up and down, the last move of weighing awaiting perhaps signal or permission to part.

SHORT ALLOWANCE. When the provisions will not last the period expected, they may be reduced in part, as two-thirds, half-allowance, &c., and thus _short-allowance money_ becomes due, which is the nominal value of the provisions stopped, and paid in compensation.

SHORT BOARDS. Frequent tacking, where there is not room for long boards, or from some other cause, as weather or tide, it is required to work to windward on short tacks in a narrow s.p.a.ce.

SHORTEN, TO. Said of a ship's sails when requisite to reduce those that are set. And _shorten in_, when alluding to the anchor, by heaving in cable.

SHORT-HANDED. A deficient complement of men, or short-handed by many being on the sick-list.

SHORT-LINKED CHAIN. A cable without studs, and therefore with shorter links than those of stud-chains; such are slings and chains generally used in rigging bobstays, anchor-work, &c. Cables only have studs.

SHORT-SEA. A confused cross sea where the waves a.s.sume a jerking rippling action, and set home to the bows or sides; especially tiresome to boats, hampering the oars, and tumbling in-board. Also, a race.

SHORT-SERVICE. Chafing geer put on a hemp cable for a short range.

SHORT-SHEETS. Belong to shifting sails, such as studding-sails, &c.

SHORT-TACKS. _See_ SHORT BOARDS.

SHORT-TIME OR SAND GLa.s.s. One of 14 seconds, used in heaving the log when the ship is going fast.

SHOT. All sorts of missiles to be discharged from fire-arms, those for great guns being mainly of iron; for small-arms, of lead. When used without prefix, the term generally means the solid shot only, as fired for a heavy blow, or for penetration. Also, a synonym of _scot_, a reckoning at an inn, and has immemorially been thus understood. Ben Jonson's rules are

"As the fund of our pleasure, let each pay his shot."

Also, a lot or quant.i.ty. Also, the particular spot where fishermen take a draught with their nets, and also the draught of fishes made by a net.

Also, the sternmost division of a fishing-boat. Also, arrows, darts, or anything that was shot. Also, a kind of trout. Also, a foot-soldier who carried a fire-lock.--_To be shot of_, signifies to get rid of, turned out.--_To shot the guns._ In active service the guns were generally loaded, but not shotted, as, from corrosion, it was found difficult to draw the shot; and the working and concussion not unfrequently started it, and consequently, if the gun was fired before re-driving it "home,"

it was in danger of bursting.

SHOT-LOCKER. A compartment built up in the hold to contain the shot.

SHOT-NET. A mackerel-net.

SHOT-PLUGS. Tapered cones to stop any sized shot-hole.

SHOT-RACKS. Wooden frames fixed at convenient distances to contain shot.

There are also, of recent introduction, iron rods so fitted as to confine the shot.

SHOTTEN-HERRING. A gutted herring dried for keeping. Metaphorically, a term of contempt for a lean lazy fellow.

SHOULDER OF A BASTION. The part of it adjacent to the junction of a face with a flank. The _angle of the shoulder_ is that formed by these two lines.

SHOULDER ARMS! The military word of command to carry the musket vertically at the side of the body, and resting against the hollow of the shoulder; on the left side with the long rifle, on the right with the short.

SHOULDER-OF-MUTTON SAIL. A kind of triangular sail of peculiar form, used mostly in boats. It is very handy and safe, particularly as a mizen. It is the Bermuda or 'Mugian rig.

SHOULDER THE ANCHOR. When a seaman forgets his craft, and gives his ship too little cable to ride by, she may be thrown across tide, lift or shoulder her anchor, and drift off.

SHOUT. A light and nearly flat-bottomed boat used in our eastern fens for shooting wild-duck. (_See_ GUNNING-BOAT.)

SHOUTE-MEN. The old name for the lightermen of the Thames.

SHOVEL. A copper implement for removing a cartridge from a gun without injuring it. Formerly used, and as late as 1816 by the Turks, to convey the powder into the chamber without using cartridges: also used to withdraw shot where windage was large. (_See_ LADLE.)

SHOVELL, OR SHOVELLER. _Spatula clypeata_, a species of duck with a broad bill. Formerly written _schevelard_. Also applied to a hoverer or smuggler.

SHOVE OFF! The order to the bowman to put the boat's head off with his boat-hook.

SHOW A LEG! An exclamation from the boatswain's mate, or master-at-arms, for people to show that they are awake on being called. Often "Show a leg, and turn out."

SHRAB. A vile drugged drink prepared for seamen who frequent the filthy purlieus of Calcutta. (_See_ DOASTA.)

SHRAPNEL Sh.e.l.l. Invented by General Shrapnel to produce, at a long range, the effect of common case; whence they have been also called _spherical case_. They have a thickness of only one-tenth of their diameter; so that, on the action of the fuse, they are opened by a very small bursting charge, and allow the bullets with which they are filled to proceed with much the same direction and velocity that the sh.e.l.l had at the moment of explosion. They require, however, extremely nice management.

SHRIMP. The small crustacean _Crangon vulgaris_, well known as an article of food.

SHROUD-KNOT. _See_ KNOT.

SHROUD-LAID. The combination in the larger cordage, also known as hawser-laid.

SHROUD-ROPE. A finer quality of hawser-laid rope than is commonly used for other purposes. It is also termed purchase-rope; but four-stranded rope is frequently used for standing rigging. All the strands are finer, of better hemp, and pa.s.s the gauge. Thus the patent shroud-laid rope, made from clean Petersburgh hemp, was found to break at a strain between 6-3/4 and 7-1/4 cwt. per inch of girth in inches squared. Thus a patent rope of 5 inches would require 175 cwt. Common rope, 25 threads in each strand, broke with 5 cwt. per inch, and fell off at 130 threads to 4 cwt. per inch. Thus,

cwt. qrs. lbs.

A common 10-inch cable weighed per 100 fathoms, 19 0 21 A superior " " 21 0 3

SHROUDS. The lower and upper standing-rigging. They are always divided into pairs or couples; that is to say, one piece of rope is doubled, and the parts fastened together at a small distance from the middle, so as to leave a sort of noose or collar to fix upon the mast-head; the ends have each a dead-eye turned in, by which they are set up by laniards to the channel. (_See_ CHAINS and DEAD-EYE.)--_Bentinck-shrouds._ Strong ropes fixed on the futtock-staves of the lower rigging, and extending to the opposite channels, where they are set-up by means of dead-eyes and laniards, or gun-tackle runner purchases, in the same manner as the other shrouds. Their use is to support the masts when the ship rolls.--_Bowsprit shrouds_ are now generally made of chain. They support the bowsprit in the same way that other shrouds support the masts.--_b.u.mkin or boomkin shrouds._ Strong chains fixed as stays to the b.u.mkin ends, to support the strain exerted by the fore-tacks upon them.--_Futtock or foot-hook shrouds._ Portions of rigging (now sometimes chain) communicating with the futtock-plates above the top, and the cat-harpings below, and forming ladders, whereby the sailors climb over the top-brim. _Top-gallant shrouds_ extend to the cross-trees, where, pa.s.sing through holes in the ends, they continue over the futtock-staves of the top-mast rigging, and descending almost to the top, are set up by laniards pa.s.sing through thimbles instead of dead-eyes.--_Topmast-shrouds_ extend from the top-mast head to the edges of the tops, and are set up to the futtock dead-eyes.

SHROUD-STOPPER. A stout rope-stopper made fast above and below a part of the shroud which has been damaged by an enemy's shot, or otherwise.