The Sailor's Word-Book
Chapter 48 : CAPTAIN'S CLERK. One whose duty is strictly to keep all books and official papers

CAPTAIN'S CLERK. One whose duty is strictly to keep all books and official papers necessary for pa.s.sing the captain's accounts at the admiralty.

CAPTAIN'S CLOAK. The jocose name given to the last sweeping clause, the thirty-sixth article of war:--"All other crimes not capital, and for which no punishment is hereby directed to be inflicted, shall be punished according to the laws and customs in such cases used at sea."

CAPTAIN'S GIG. _See_ GIG.

CAPTAIN'S STORE-ROOM. A place of reserve on the platform deck, for the captain's wines and sea-stores.

CAPTIVE. A prisoner of war.

CAPTORS. The conquerors of and sharers in the proceeds of a prize.

Captors are not at liberty to release prisoners belonging to the s.h.i.+ps of the enemy. The last survivor is in law the only captor.

CAPTURE. A prize taken by a s.h.i.+p of war at sea; is the taking forcible possession of vessels or goods belonging to one nation by those of a hostile nation. Vessels are looked on as prizes if they fight under any other standard than that of the state from which they have their commission; if they have no charty-party, manifest, or bill of lading, or if loaded with effects belonging to the king's enemies, or even contraband goods. Whether the capture be lawful or unlawful, the insurer is rendered liable to the loss.

CAR. A north-country word, denoting any swampy land surrounded by inclosures, and occasionally under water.

CARABINEER. One who uses the carbine.

CARACK, CARRAK, OR CARRICK. A large s.h.i.+p of burden, the same with those called galleons. Hippus, the Tyrian, is said to have first devised caracks, and onerary vessels of prodigious bulk for traffic or offence.

CARACORA. A proa of Borneo, Ternate, and the Eastern Isles; also called caracol by early voyagers.

CARAMOUSSAL. A Turkish merchant s.h.i.+p with a pink-stern.

CARAVEL, OR CARAVELA. A Portuguese despatch boat, lateen-rigged, formerly in use; it had square sails only on the fore-mast, though dignified as a caravela.

CARAVELAO. A light pink-sterned vessel of the Azores.

CARBa.s.sE. _See_ KARBATZ.

CARBIN. A name in our northern isles for the basking shark.

CARBINE, OR CARABINE. A fire-arm of less length and weight than a musket, originally carrying a smaller ball, though latterly, for the convenience of the supply of ammunition, throwing the same bullet as the musket, though with a smaller charge. It has been proper to mounted troops since about A.D. 1556, and has been preferred to the musket as a weapon for the tops of s.h.i.+ps as well as boats.

CARCa.s.s. An iron sh.e.l.l for incendiary purposes, filled with a very fiercely flaming composition of saltpetre, sulphur, resin, turpentine, antimony, and tallow. It has three vents for the flame, and sometimes is equipped with pistol barrels, so fitted in its interior as to discharge their bullets at various times.

CARCa.s.s OF A s.h.i.+P. The ribs, with keel, stem, and stern-post, after the planks are stripped off.

CARCATUS [from _caricato_, It.] A law-term for a freighted s.h.i.+p.

CARD. The dial or face of the magnetic compa.s.s-card.

"Reason the card, but pa.s.sion is the gale."--_Pope._

Probably derived from _cardinal_.

CARDINAL POINTS. The general name by which the north, east, south, and west rhumbs of the horizon are distinguished.

CARDINAL POINTS OF THE ECLIPTIC. The equinoctial and solst.i.tial points; namely, the commencement of Aries and Libra, and of Cancer and Capricornus.

CARDINAL SIGNS. The zodiacal signs which the sun enters at the equinoxes and solstices.

CARDINAL WINDS. Those from the due north, east, south, and west points of the compa.s.s.

CAREEN, TO. A s.h.i.+p is said to careen when she inclines to one side, or lies over when sailing on a wind; off her keel or carina.

CAREENING. The operation of heaving the s.h.i.+p down on one side, by arranging the ballast, or the application of a strong purchase to her masts, which require to be expressly supported for the occasion to prevent their springing; by these means one side of the bottom, elevated above the surface of the water, may be cleansed or repaired. (_See_ BREAMING.) But this operation is now nearly superseded by sheathing s.h.i.+ps with copper, whereby they keep a clean bottom for several years.

CAREENING BEACH. A part of the strand prepared for the purpose of a s.h.i.+p's being grounded on a list or careen, to repair defects.

CARFINDO. One of the carpenter's crew.

CARGO. The merchandise a s.h.i.+p is freighted with.

CARGO-BOOK. The master of every coasting-vessel is required to keep a cargo-book, stating the name of the s.h.i.+p, of the master, of the port to which she belongs, and that to which she is bound; with a roll of all goods, s.h.i.+ppers, and consignees. In all other merchant s.h.i.+ps the cargo-book is a clean copy of all cargo entered in the gangway-book, and shows the mark, number, quality, and (if measurement goods) the dimensions of such packages of a s.h.i.+p's cargo.

CARICATORE. Places where the traders of Sicily take in their goods, from _caricare_, to load.

CARINA. An old term, from the Latin, for the keel, or a s.h.i.+p's bottom.

The north-country term keel means an entire vessel: "So many keels touched the strand." (_See_ KEEL.)

CARL, OR MALE HEMP. _See_ FIMBLE or FEMALE HEMP.

CARLE-CRAB. The male of the black-clawed crab, _Cancer pagurus_; also of the partan or common crab.

CARLINE-KNEES. Timbers going athwart the s.h.i.+p, from the sides to the hatchway, serving to sustain the deck on both sides.

CARLINES, OR CARLINGS. Pieces of timber about five inches square, lying fore and aft, along from one beam to another. On and athwart these the ledges rest, whereon the planks of the deck and other portions of carpentry are made fast. The carlines have their end let into the beams, called "culver-tail-wise," or scored in pigeon-fas.h.i.+on. There are other carlines of a subordinate character.

CARLINO, OR CAROLINE. A small silver coin of Naples, value 4_d._ English. Ten carlini make a ducat in commerce.

CARN-TANGLE. A long and large fucus, thrown on our northern beaches after a gale of wind in the offing.

CAROUS. A sort of gallery in ancient s.h.i.+ps, which turned on a pivot. It was hoisted to a given height by tackles, and thus brought to project over, or into, the vessel of an adversary, furnis.h.i.+ng a bridge for boarding.

CARP. A well-known fresh-water fish of the Cyprinidae family, considered to have been introduced into England in the time of Henry VIII.; but in Dame Berner's book on angling, published in 1486, it is described as the "daynteous fysshe" in England.

CARPENTER, s.h.i.+P. A s.h.i.+p-builder. An officer appointed to examine and keep in order the hull of a s.h.i.+p, and all her appurtenances, likewise the stores committed to him by indenture from the store-keeper of the dockyard. The absence of other tradesmen whilst a s.h.i.+p is at sea, and the numerous emergencies in which s.h.i.+ps are placed requiring invention, render a good s.h.i.+p's carpenter one of the most valuable artizans on board.

CARPENTER'S CREW. Consists of a portion of the crew, provided for s.h.i.+p-carpentry and s.h.i.+p-building. In s.h.i.+ps of war there are two carpenter's mates and one caulker, one blacksmith, and a carpenter's crew, according to the size of the s.h.i.+p.

CARPENTER'S STORE-ROOM. An apartment built below, on the platform-deck, for keeping the carpenter's stores and spare tools in.

CARPENTER'S YEOMAN. _See_ YEOMAN.

CARPET-KNIGHT. A man who obtains knighthood on a pretence for services in which he never partic.i.p.ated.

CARPET-MEN. Those officers who, without services or merit, obtain rapid promotion through political or other interest, and are yet declared "highly meritorious and distinguished."