The Arts of the Sailor: Knotting, Splicing and Ropework (Dover Maritime)
by Hervey Garrett Smith
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Book Summary Information
Author: Hervey Garrett SmithEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1990-09-01
ISBN: 0486264408
Number of pages: 256
Publisher: Dover Publications
Book Reviews of The Arts of the Sailor: Knotting, Splicing and Ropework (Dover Maritime)
Book Review: A dab hand with rope and pen
Summary: 5 Stars
There dozens and scores of books that will illustrate how to tie knots and wield the marlinspike in a seamanlike manner, so why read one that was written nearly 60 years ago? The technology of rope has advanced with everything else, so too has the technology of yachting. It would be odd if a guide to nautical ropework wouldn't also need a little updating.
Perhaps so, but it is not only for the techniques that "The Arts of the Sailor" is worth reading, it is for the author. A dab hand alow and aloft, Hervey Garrett Smith could dab equally well in pen and ink, and his illustrations are marvelous.
But so is his narrative. Written in the era before today's political correctness and social taboos, Smith could write, midway through describing the painstaking construction of rope-strapped blocks, "Right about now you should be ready for a drink or a smoke, or both." But then he assures us that after completing the first block the worst is behind us, for, "it is somewhat like having babies, or opening a bottle of olives--after you get the first the rest come easy." Mothers may want to debate this, and I've never cared enough for olives to try more than one, but by today's standards there's something rebellious in this sort of writing, and this adds to its appeal.
Smith's bon-mots are scattered throughout the book, and one could easily leave off trying to learn knot-tying and just enjoy reading. Describing his preference for fixed-blade knives over folding blades, for example, Smith notes that the sheath for the knife (and, naturally, its accompanying marlin spike) is worn over the "starboard buttock," where it "at first feels rather awkward, but like the wearing of false teeth, you soon get used to it." Describing the method of sewing a patch into a torn sail, he advises caution as you drape it across your knee, since "there is a tendency to sew the canvas to your trousers."
Little of this is roll-on-the-deck hilarious, rather it is quirky and mirthful and makes the reading of it a pleasure rather than something merely to get through. It also recalls, fondly in my view, an era before modern-day nags and do-gooders enacted all these zero-tolerance edicts, an era when men could be men and boys could be Scouts. In his discussion of the variety of rigging knives, he accounts for the popularity of the folding kind by noting that "the average man normally carries his knife in his pocket." Well yes, of course. Don't you? Truth is, knives have been so often banned and made inconvenient that the average man these days rarely carries one. But except when in line at TSA or perhaps in the shower, I have rarely been without a knife in my pocket for most of the last 40 years. As a 6th grader I recall a teacher who was in need of one ask, "Any you Scouts got your knife?" I was proud to produce mine. If such a scene occurred today, both teacher and Scout would be arrested. So Smith evokes the social Miocene of the 1950's, and I kind of like it.
For quirky, mirthful (and also instructive) entertainment it's hard to beat the whole chapter given over to "How to Make a Proper Bucket." Smith begins, "If there is one subject on which I am violently opinionated it is the matter of a proper deck bucket...for I have had so much experience with the wrong kind.
"Most yachtsmen seem to think that a galvanized pail with a rope tied to the bail is a proper bucket, just as I once did. Now I'll admit that a tin pail is a handy though uncomfortable substitute for a marine toilet, but as a deck bucket for a respectable yacht it is a curse and an abomination...." Smith describes his years of putting up with these cursed and abominable things, which are difficult to stow, become fouled in everything, and above all make a constant irritating clatter when you're underway.
There follow detailed, illustrated instructions in making a proper canvas bucket. "After stenciling the name of your ship on the side you'll be anxious to try it out. Toss it over the side to fill it and notice that it hits the water with a respectable thump instead of a clang. Haul off and slosh a bucketful along the deck and observe how the rope grommet at the bottom provides a perfect handhold. ... Then when you're through using it throw it nonchalantly into the cockpit--it can't hurt a thing. Now jump on it a smack it flat--it's only 3 inches high now and no problem to stow. But above all else, praise God, you'll never hear a sound out of it!"
Well, of course nowadays you can go to any store and come away with a plastic pail that will be just as quiet and will cost you far less time. And it'll look right at home on your modern yacht, too, since the whole damn ship is made of plastic.
But you'll miss the pride of making it yourself. And you'll lose the nautical authenticity embodied in a "proper" canvas bucket. And you'll be poorer the craftsmanship gained in constructing it. I am an authentic salty sort of fellow myself, so just this morning I began work on my own proper canvas bucket. And I'll post some photos just as soon as I unstitch it from my trousers.
Summary of The Arts of the Sailor: Knotting, Splicing and Ropework (Dover Maritime)
A maritime expert offers boating and yachting enthusiasts a complete course in rigging, working, and maintaining a ship. The perfect shipboard reference, this volume is packed with useful "hands-on" information: sailor's tools, basic knots, and useful hitches; handsewing and canvas work; and dozens of other topics important to safety, economy, and efficiency. Over 100 illustrations.
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