S. A bent iron, called a crooked catch, or pot-hook, in anchors, &c.

SABANDER. The familiar of shah-bander, an eastern title for captain or governor of a port.

SABATINES. Steel coverings for the feet; sometimes slippers or clogs.

SABRE. A sword with a broad and rather heavy blade, thick at the back, and curved towards the point, intended for cutting more than for thrusting.

SABRETACHE. A flat leathern case or pocket suspended at the left side of a cavalry officer's sword-belt.

SACCADE. The sudden jerk of the sails in light winds and a heavy swell.

SACCOLEVA, or Sacolege. A Levantine small craft of great sheer, carrying a sail with an enormous sprit, so called.

SACK, To [from the Anglo-Saxon sæc]. To pillage a place which has been taken by storm.

SACKS OF COALS. The seaman's name for the black Magellanic clouds, or patches of deep blue sky in the milky-way near the south pole.[588]

SADDLE HILL. A high land visible from the coast, having a centre less elevated than its ends, somewhat like a riding-saddle.

SADDLES. Chocks of notched wood embracing spars, to support others attached to them; thus we have a saddle-crutch for the main or driver boom on the taffarel; another on the bowsprit to support the heel of the jib-boom.

SAFE-CONDUCT. A security passport granted to an enemy for his safe entry and passage through the realm.

SAFEGUARD. Protection given to secure a people from oppression in time of trouble.

SAFETY-KEEL. A construction of keel for further security, by Oliver Lang.

SAFETY-PIN. To secure the head of the capstan-bar.

SAFETY-VALVE. A conical valve on the top of the steam-chest, communicating with the boiler of a steam-engine, and opening outwardly; it is so adapted and loaded, that when the steam in the boiler exceeds its proper pressure, it raises the valve, and escapes by a pipe called the waste steam-pipe.

SAGG, To. To bend or give way from heavy weight; to press down towards the middle; the opposite of hogging. In Macbeth the word is figuratively applied—

SAGGING TO LEEWARD. To drift off bodily to leeward. The movement by which a ship makes a considerable lee-way.

SAGITTA. One of the ancient northern constellations.

SAGITTARII. The name in our records for some small vessels with oars and sails, used in the twelfth century.

SAGITTARIUS. The ninth sign of the zodiac, which the sun enters about the 21st of November.

SAGUM. An ancient military cloak.

SAIC. A sort of Greek ketch, which has no top-gallant nor mizen sails, but still spreads much canvas.

SAIL. The terms applicable to the parts of a sail comprise:—Seaming the cloths together; cutting the gores; tabling and sewing on the reef, belly, lining, and buntline bands, roping, and marling on the clues and foot-rope. The square sails comprise courses, top-sails, topgallant-sails, royals, skysails on each mast. The fore and aft, are jibs, staysails, trysails, boom main-sails and fore-sails, gaff top-sails, to which may be added the studding-sails and the flying kites. Also, a distant ship is called a sail.

SAIL BURTON. A purchase extending from topmast-head to deck, for sending sails aloft ready for bending; it usually consists of two single blocks, having thimbles and a hook; a leading block on the slings through which the fall leads to bear the top-sail clear of the top-rim.

SAIL HO! The exclamation used when a strange ship is first discerned at sea—either from the deck or from the mast-head.[589]

SAIL-HOOK. A small hook used for holding the seams of a sail while in the act of sewing.

SAILING. The movement of a vessel by means of her sails along the surface of the water. Sailing, or the sailings, is a term applied to the different ways in which the path of a ship at sea, and the variations of its geographical position, are represented on paper, all which are explained under the various heads of great circle sailing, Mercator's sailing, middle latitude sailing, oblique sailing, parallel sailing, plane sailing.

SAILING, Order of. The general disposition of a fleet of ships when proceeding on a voyage or an expedition. It is generally found most convenient for fleets of ships of war to be formed in three parallel lines or columns. But squadrons of less than ten sail of the line are placed in two lines.

SAILING CAPTAIN. An officer in some navies, whose duties are similar to those of our masters in the royal navy.

SAILING DIRECTIONS. Works supplied by the admiralty to Her Majesty's ships, which advise the navigator as to the pilotage of coasts and islands throughout the world.

SAILING ICE. A number of loose pieces floating at a sufficient distance from each other, for a ship to be able to pick her way among them. Otherwise termed open ice; when she forces her way, pushing the ice aside, it is termed boring.

SAILING LARGE. With a quartering wind. (See Large.)

SAILING ORDERS. Written instructions for the performance of any proposed duty.

SAIL-LOFT. A large apartment in dockyards where the sails are cut out and made.

SAIL-LOOSERS. Men specially appointed to loose the sails when getting under weigh, or loosing them to dry.

SAIL-MAKER. A qualified person who (with his mates) is employed on board ship in making, repairing, or altering the sails; whence he usually derives the familiar sobriquet of sails.

SAIL-NETTING. The fore-topmast staysail, main-topmast staysail, and main staysail are generally stowed in the nettings.

SAILOR. A man trained in managing a ship, either at sea or in harbour. A thorough sailor is the same with mariner and seaman, but as every one of the crew is dubbed a sailor, there is much difference in the absolute meaning of the term. (See Mariner and Seaman.)

SAILORS' HOME. A house built by subscription, for the accommodation of seamen on moderate terms, and to rescue them from swindlers, crimps, &c. Sailors' homes are a great boon also to shipwrecked mariners. Homes for married seamen and their families are now contemplated, and it is hoped that the admiralty will set the example, by building them for the royal navy, and letting them at moderate rents.

SAILOR'S PLEASURE. A rather hyperbolic phrase for a sailor's overhauling his ditty-bag at a leisure moment, and restowing his little hoard.[590]

SAILS, To Loose. To unfurl them, and let them hang loose to dry; or the movement preparatory to "making sail. "—To make sail, to spread the sails to the wind in order to begin the action of sailing, or to increase a ship's speed. —To shorten sail, to take in part of or all the sails, either by reefing or furling, or both. —To strike sail, to lower the upper sails.

A gracious mode of salute on passing a foreigner at sea, especially a superior.

SAINT CUTHBERT'S DUCK. The Anas mollissima; the eider, or great black and white duck of the Farne Islands.

SAINT ELMO'S LIGHT. See Compasant.

SAINT SWITHIN. The old notion is, that if it should rain on this bishop's day, the 15th of July, not one of forty days following will be without a shower.

SAKER. A very old gun, 8 or 9 feet long, and of about 5 lbs. calibre: immortalized in Hudibras:—

The name is thought to have been derived from the French oath sacre.

SALADE. An Anglo-Norman term for a light helmet or head-piece.

SALADIN. The first coat-of-arms; so called because the crusaders assumed it in imitation of the Saracens, whose chief at that time was the redoubtable Saladin.

SALAM, To. To salute a superior; a very common term, borrowed from India. Overdoing it does not please Jack, for he dislikes to see his commander "salamming like a captured Frenchman."

SALAMANDER. The heated iron formerly used for firing guns, especially in salutes, as it ensures regularity.

SALE OF COMMISSIONS. The regulated disposal of full-pay, unattached, retired, and half-pay commissions in the army.

SALE OF EFFECTS. See Effects, of dead men sold by auction "at the mast."

SALIENT ANGLE. In fortification, one of which the point projects outwards.

SALINAS, or Salines. Salt-ponds, natural or artificial, near the sea-coast.

SALINOMETER. A brine-gauge for indicating the density of brine in the boilers of marine steam-engines, to show when it is necessary to blow off.

SALLY. A sudden expedition out of a besieged place against the besiegers or some part of their works; also called a sortie. —To sally. To move a body by jerks or rushes; a sudden heave or set. Thus, when a vessel grounds by the bow or stern, and the hawsers are severely taut, the sally is practised.

This is done by collecting all hands at the point aground, and then by a simultaneous rush reaching the part afloat.

SALLY-PORT. An opening cut in the glacis of a place to afford free egress to the troops in case of a sortie. Also, a large port on each quarter[591] of a fire-ship, out of which the officers and crew make their escape into the boats as soon as the train is fired. Also, a place at Portsmouth exclusively set apart for the use of men-of-war's boats. Also, the entering port of a three-decker.

SALMAGUNDI. A savoury sea dish, made of slices of cured fish and onions.

SALMON. The well-known fish, Salmo salar. It is partly oceanic and partly fluviatile, ascending rivers in the breeding season.

SALMON-LADDER. A short trough placed suitably in any fall where the water is tolerably deep, leaving a narrow trough at intervals for the fish to pass through, with barriers to break the force of the water.

SALOON. A name for the main cabin of a steamer or passenger ship.

SALT, or Old Salt. A weather-beaten sailor. One of the old seamen who not only have known but have felt what war was.

SALT-BOX. A case for keeping a temporary supply of cartridges for the immediate use of the great guns; it is under the charge of the cabin-door sentry.

SALT-EEL. A rope's-end cut from the piece for starting the homo delinquens.

SALT-JUNK. Navy salt beef. (See Junk.)

SALTPETRE. The neutral salt; also called nitre (which see).

SALT-PITS. Reservoirs to contain sea-water for the purpose of making salt.

SALUTE. A discharge of cannon or small arms, display of flags, or cheering of men, in deference, by the ships of one nation to those of another, or by ships of the same nation to a superior or an equal. Also, the proper compliment paid by troops, on similar occasions, whether with the sword, musket, or hand.

SALVAGE. Originally meant the thing or goods saved from wreck, fire, or enemies. It now signifies an allowance made to those by whose means the ship or goods have been saved. These cases, when fairly made out, are received with the most liberal encouragement. Goods of British subjects, retaken from the enemy, are restored to the owners, paying for salvage one eighth of the value to ships-of-war; one-sixth to privateers.

When a ship is in danger of being stranded, justices of the peace are to command the constables to assemble as many persons as are necessary to preserve it; and on its being thus preserved, the persons assisting therein shall, in thirty days after, be paid a reasonable reward for the salvage; otherwise the ship or goods shall remain in the custody of the officers of the customs as a security for the same.

SALVAGE LOSS. A term in marine insurance implying that the underwriters are liable to pay the amount insured on the property lost in the ship, but taking credit for what is saved.

SALVAGER. One employed on the sea-coast to look to the rights of salvage, wreck, or waif.

SALVO. A discharge from several pieces simultaneously, as a salute.

SALVOR. The person claiming and receiving salvage for having saved a[592] ship and cargo, or any part thereof, from impending peril, or recovered after actual loss.

SAMAKEEN. A Turkish coasting trader.