Harper's Outdoor Book for Boys

An old bicycle chain and sprockets, together with the axle, cranks, and pedals, can be arranged on a frame, so that a saddle may be mounted the proper distance above the pedals. This arrangement is clearly shown in the illustration, which shows also the outrigger timbers at the stern, to which a sheet-iron rudder may be made fast. It is operated by a handle and bar, which turns the rudder by means of flexible wire-rope run through two deck-pulleys at the outer rear ends of the deck planking. The iron rod is held in place to the forward upright of the seat-frame with metal straps. At its lower end a wooden wheel having a groove is made fast, around which a wrap or two of the wire-cable is taken to hold the rudder steady.

A Sloop-rigged Ice-yacht

For travelling over the ice there is nothing to beat an ice-yacht, and some that have been constructed on the Hudson River are of gigantic size and power. Boats of this kind, and having the speed of an express-train, are dangerous for boys to play with, but the ordinary ice-boat that will go from ten to twenty miles an hour is within the ability of any well-grown boy to make and safely handle.

It is quite a simple matter to make a good ice-boat, for it is but a framework properly put together and bolted, on top of which a deck is nailed, with a mast-step arranged at the front.

Fig. 1 shows the elevation view of a moderately sized sloop-yacht; and in Fig. 2 the deck plan is shown, the joints and deck boards being clearly indicated. The triangular body of the boat is ten feet long and eight feet wide, and the bowsprit projects out six feet beyond the timber A in Fig. 2.

The frame is made of clear spruce timbers six inches wide and two inches thick. The timber A is eight feet long, B B are eleven feet long, C is five feet long, and D D are each three feet long.

At the front corners and at the back the timbers are bevelled, as shown in the plan drawing, and they are joined with long bolts as indicated by the dotted lines. Timbers C and D D are set in place and securely fastened with long, steel-wire spikes. The bowsprit E is mounted against timber C and laid over timber A, to which it is bolted fast. A half-inch iron pin is driven in the butt end of the bowsprit, and it fits into a hole made in timber C.

The bowsprit is cut from spruce two inches and a half by four inches, and tapered at the outer end, where a withe having three eyes is driven on. The top eye receives the forestay and the side ones the bobstay cables that run to the corners of the boat, where they are drawn taut with turn-buckles. The shoe-blocks F F are twenty-four inches long and three inches square, and are bolted to the timbers A and B as shown.

At the stern a triangular block is mounted between the ends of the timbers B B, through which the rudder-post will pass. The decking planks G are then attached to the frame with screws or steel nails.

The mast-step is made by attaching two twelve-inch pieces of plank eighteen inches long and an inch and a quarter thick to the inside sides of timbers D D. Across the top of them attach another plank, and in the middle of it cut a hole three inches and a half in diameter, or large enough to receive the mast. In the bowsprit, directly under the large hole, make a small one to receive a three-quarter-inch pin. This iron pin is to be driven in the bottom of the mast so that six inches of it projects beyond the bottom of the stick. These will form the mast-step, and when the mast is in place and held by the forestay and shrouds it cannot jump out. Iron stanchion-rods are attached to the top of the mast-plate and to the inside of timber A as shown in the illustration.

The shoes are of tire, steel and will have to be made by a blacksmith. The front ones are thirty inches long, curved up at the front, as shown in Fig. 3 A, and bevelled at the bottom so as to form a gripping or cutting edge. When mounted the lower edge is at the outside of the boat. Shanks with bolt-tops and collars pass through the holes made in the shoe-blocks F F, and are securely held with nuts screwed down on washers so as not to cut the wood.

The rudder (Fig. 3 B) is a chisel-edged piece of steel twelve inches long turned up at both ends and mounted at the foot of a shank C, which is provided with a collar, a square shoulder for the tiller D to fit on, and a threaded top so that a nut will hold the tiller in place. The shoes can only be made of steel or iron, as wooden ones are useless.

The mast is twelve feet high and three inches and a half or four inches in diameter, slightly tapered near the top. The gaff is six feet long and the boom twelve feet in length. The main-sail measures eight feet on the mast, five feet on the gaff, eleven on the boom, and the leach is thirteen feet long. The jib is ten feet on the forestay, six feet at the foot, and eight feet on the leach. This sail area will present a good surface to the wind, and with an ordinary breeze the boat should make from eight to twelve miles an hour with two or three boys on the deck.

The rigging is done in the same manner in which boats are fitted out. The spars should be varnished and the boat can be painted or varnished, as a matter of choice. All white wood-work with black metal parts, or a red frame with cream-colored deck and black metal parts, are pleasing combinations, but a boy’s own ideas can be carried out with the paint-pot and brush.

A Twin-mast Ice-boat

The twin-mast ice-boat shown in Fig. 4 is the same size as the other one, and built in the same manner except that timbers D D in Fig. 2 are omitted and a smaller deck is laid at the stern.

One foot back from the corners three-inch masts are stepped in holes made in timbers B B to receive half-inch iron pins driven in the foot of the masts. The sticks are eleven feet long and lashed together at the top or bolted with several long, thin bolts as shown in the illustration. They pitch forward at a slight angle, or so that the forestay is eleven feet long.

The gaff is sixteen feet long and the boom eighteen feet in length, and the leach of the sail is fourteen feet.

The gaff is hauled up into the crotch formed by the masts, and a set of blocks and tackle at the bottom of the sail on the boom and the deck will haul the sail into the proper position. It then swings free between the masts, and the jib and main-sail form one large sheet, so that when the main-sheet goes to one side or the other the jib always takes the opposite position and the wind is playing on the entire sail at all times.

This is a very easy rig to handle as it relieves the steersman from the bother of the jib-sheets which are annoying in a stiff breeze.

Scoots and Scooters

Scoots and scooters are the latest wrinkle in ice-boats. Down on the Great South Bay, on the southern side of Long Island, they speak of them in fun as “ice-water boats.” The advantage in a boat of this kind lies in their ability to sail on poor ice or to go across water that is partly open and frozen as many of the bays along the coast are at times.

The scoot shown in Fig. 5 is in the form of a sharpy, but the bottom curves up at the bow so that if it is sailing on the water and comes to the edge of an ice-floe that is not too high out of the water the wind will blow the boat up on the ice and it will sail along on its runners at double its previous speed. In the same manner when it comes to open water it will slip off the ice quite comfortably and become again a marine craft.

The model and descriptions of a centre-board sharpy may be taken for the construction of the boat, except that there is no stem or bow-post and the bottom rounds up the same as the side boards curve in. The bow is therefore nearly a point. This construction is shown in Fig. 6 (page 252), which is a view of the sides and bottom only, the deck planking being fastened down afterwards.

The boat should be calked with white-lead and lamp-wicking and as carefully made as a water-boat, for it must be absolutely tight and water-proof. The deck may be covered with canvas and painted, or it may be of varnished or painted wood.

The hull should be from twelve to fifteen feet long and from four to five feet wide across the widest part. It is fifteen inches deep, and is provided with a centre-board and trunk the same as described for the sailing sharpy on page 221.

The mast is twelve feet long or about ten feet above the deck; the gaff is seven feet and the boom eleven feet long. The bowsprit is four feet long and is bolted to the forward deck, and from the end of it to the top of the mast a light, wire-cable forestay is made fast for the jib to run on.

The sails are made of twilled drill or very heavy unbleached muslin, and in the main-sheet one or two sets of reef-points will be necessary. The main-sail measures seven feet on the mast, six feet and six inches on the gaff, ten feet and six inches on the boom, and thirteen feet on the leach. The jib measures seven feet on the forestay, four feet across the foot, and six feet on the leach. The sail-cloth should be ribbed to strengthen it and a light rope run around all the edges of both sails.

The shoes are made of light, broad tire iron or steel twenty-four inches long and shaped so that the front part will bolt fast to the outside of the scooter sides and the rear ends will lie against the bottom of the boat where they can be bolted fast. The shape of these shoes is shown in Fig. 7 A (page 252), and any blacksmith will make them for you at a nominal cost. The rudder is of stout sheet-iron mounted in the end of a shank as shown at Fig. 7 B (page 252). Its fan-tail permits it to swing the boat in the water and its lower edge will guide it on the ice.

The rudder-post should be attached to the skag which is arranged at the under side and rear of the boat, and with a short iron tiller fastened as shown in Fig. 3 C and D the rudder may be swung.

When sailing on the ice the centre-board should be hauled up as high as it will go, for it is of use only when the boat is in the water.

A scoot is a cranky boat on the ice as the runners or fore-shoes are closer together than on an ice-boat with a triangular frame. Going before the wind it is all right, but when sailing on or up into a stiff wind it will keep a boy moving to hold his balance and steady the boat.

The shovel-nosed scooter shown in Fig. 8 is an easier boat to handle as it is broader than the sharpy, but it is not quite so fast, being slightly heavier.

It is twelve feet long over all with a five-foot beam and fourteen inches high including deck and bottom. The side boards are twelve inches wide, curved up at the bow, and bent in at the stern as shown in the illustration.

Twin masts are stepped two feet from the bow and lashed together nine feet above the deck. The rigging is the same as for the twin-mast ice-boat, and the sail measures twelve feet on the gaff, fourteen feet on the boom, with the leach eleven feet in length.

A small centre-board mounted in a trunk will be necessary for water sailing, and with several coats of paint the scooter will be ready for use.

A Wind-runner

An interesting boat for a boy to sail is a wind-runner like the one shown in Fig. 9.

Two spruce planks twelve feet long and ten inches wide are attached to three battens and separated four inches. The stern batten is four inches high and two inches wide, and through a hole made in the middle the shank of the rudder-post extends, from the top of which the tiller works.

The front ends of the planks are rounded and mounted on a triangular framework six feet across at the front and extending back about five feet from the ends of the planks.

A mast three inches in diameter and nine feet high is stepped through a collar and into a block attached to the back of the front cross-piece as shown in Fig. 10. An iron pin at the bottom of the mast drops into a hole made in the block and the backstays hold the mast in place.

A yard-arm eight feet long supports a square sail six feet wide, which is caught at the lower ends to the outer ends of the triangle frame.

The shoes attached to the triangle frame with bolts are fifteen inches long and the rudder-blade is ten inches long.

This is a rapid sailer before the wind, and with a little manœuvring the runner can be made to sail on the wind, though it will not run nearly as close to the wind as the ice-boats or scoots. Paint or varnish will give the wood-work a good finish, and under a stiff breeze this wind-runner will carry four or five boys.

A House-punt

A house-punt of very simple construction is shown in Fig. 1. The punt is from sixteen to twenty-four feet long according to the size desired, but for a party of four boys it should be twenty-four feet long, eight feet wide, and two feet deep with a cabin eight feet high.

The sides and middle rib should be of pine, spruce, or white-wood one inch and a quarter thick, free from sappy places and knots. If the boards cannot be had as long as twenty-four feet nor as wide as two feet, use two boards twelve inches wide and make one joint at the middle of the lower board and two in the upper board as shown in the drawing of the side elevation (Fig. 2). Six inches down from the top at either end and thirty inches in at the bottom cut the sides as shown so that the punt will have a shovel-nose at both ends and can be poled or sailed in either direction. Make a third or middle rib the same size as the side board. This is to be placed at the middle of the punt so as to receive the sheathing and deck planking. The arrangement of this middle rib and the side boards is shown in Fig. 3 and at A in Fig. 3. A batten is shown to which the upper and lower boards of a side are nailed fast. If the two boards are used it will be necessary to arrange these battens along the inside of each side about eighteen inches apart. They should be of tough wood five or six inches wide, an inch and a quarter thick, and two feet long.

Galvanized boat nails should be used, and when driven in from the outside they should be clinched at the inside. Good boat nails are of malleable iron stiff enough to go through hard-wood but ductile enough to be turned over at the ends with a light hammer and quick, sharp blows.

The sheathing and deck planking should be not less than four inches and not more than six inches in width, and before it is put on it should be well sun-dried to take out all moisture. It should then be given two good coats of paint on both sides to make it water-proof.

Lay the sides and middle rib bottom up and begin to sheath from one end. Lumber sixteen feet long should be used, and this, when cut in half, will make two pieces from each length. If matched boards are used smear the edges with white-lead before the boards are driven together, but if straight-edge lumber is employed it will be necessary to lead and wick the joints. This is done by taking a piece of round iron one-quarter of an inch in diameter and eight inches long and bending it as shown at Fig. 4 A. Lay this on the flat edge of each board at the middle and heat the iron so as to form a groove as shown at Fig. 4 B. The wood, having been beaten in, forms a gully in which a string of lamp-wick can be laid as shown in Fig. 4 C. The groove must not be cut with a chisel for then its effect would be lost. The object of this treatment is that when the punt is in the water the joint swells forcing out the wood against the lamp-wick and making a water-tight joint. The edges of the wood and the wicking must be well smeared with white-lead in order to properly calk the joint.

Between the middle rib and each side an inner keel should be arranged so that each plank can be nailed fast to it. This will act as an additional brace to hold the sheathing planks in place and make the bottom more rigid. This inner keel should extend from end to end of the punt, and short pieces may be laid inside the bevelled ends to lend added strength.

At each end a spruce plank eight inches wide is made fast with long boat nails, first leading all the joints to make them water-tight. The deck planks are laid on the same as the sheathing, and to brace them from underneath, in the space between the middle rib and the sides, two-by-three-inch spruce rails are propped on short sticks which are nailed to the inner keel and to the rails as shown at Fig. 5. These under props should be arranged about eighteen inches apart, the entire length of the punt. Groove the upper edges of the end and side planks with the iron, then lay the lamp-wicking in, lead, and nail down the planking, taking care to put the nails in straight and true. When the punt is finished give it several good coats of copper paint on the bottom and sides and several coats of good marine paint on the deck.

To construct the cabin lay down the sill-joist of two-by-three-inch spruce, making the plan fourteen feet long and seven feet and eight inches wide (Fig. 6). To this nail the uprights and bracing timbers, forming the sides and ends as shown in the drawings of the side and end elevation (Fig. 7). The door spaces at the ends should be three feet wide and seven feet high, so that when trimmed and the doors hung the actual size will be two feet and eight inches wide by six feet and ten inches high.

The window openings are two feet wide by two feet and six inches high, and between all the uprights braces are nailed fast to prevent the frame from racking. The arrangement of framing timbers is quite clearly shown in the drawings, and in the deck plan (Fig. 6) the arrangement of the bunks is indicated. Across the top of the framework one-and-a-half-by-six-inch beams are laid having their upper edge crowned as shown in the end elevation (Fig. 7). Over these the roofing boards are laid lengthwise, and on top of them canvas is drawn and tacked down all around the edges with copper tacks.

The roofing boards may be of three-quarter-inch stuff planed on both sides and from two to four inches wide, whichever is the easiest to obtain. The boards should extend over the ends and sides for two or three inches so that a finishing moulding can be made fast under the boards. Give the top of the boards two good coats of paint, then stretch oiled canvas over the top and tack it fast. Several coats of paint will finish the canvas and make it hard enough to walk on, for in pleasant weather this upper deck will make a pleasant place to spend many hours under the shade of a canopy. The cabin sheathing is of narrow matched boards planed on both sides and as free from knots and sappy places as it is possible to get them. The boards must be thoroughly sun-dried before they are laid on and nailed fast, and it would be well also to paint the matched edges so that moisture may not get in and swell them. The inside and outside of the cabin is to be painted to protect the wood from moisture, and if painted a light tint of any color, or white, it will be cooler in summer when the sun is shining than if coated with a dark color. Dark colors absorb light and heat while light ones reflect or shed them.

The window-sashes should be arranged on hinges so that they may be swung in and back against the inside of the cabin and hooked. Or, by cutting away a part of the upright, the sash may be arranged to slide. Wire screening may be tacked over the window-frame at the outer side to keep out flies and mosquitoes, and screen doors can be made also for the front and rear doorways—to swing in, as the wooden doors swing out.

Over the rear deck a canopy is arranged on poles. This is similar to a tent fly for camping, and will shed the sun and rain from the deck when the cook is preparing meals.

A small cook-stove may be arranged inside the cabin, but if it is not convenient to carry coal in a box on the deck an oil-stove will answer every purpose.

Two bunks may be built in on each side, one above the other, and four wire springs may be arranged to rest on battens driven across the bunks at the head and foot. A small hatch should be cut in the rear deck and another one through the cabin floor so that a few things may be stored in the hold. The aft hatch should be provided with a suction-pump so that any water that leaks in can be readily pumped out.

Rings, cleats, and ropes should be provided for the punt, and two anchors would be better than one, especially when near the shore or in shallow water, to hold the punt from swinging, which it is sure to do if there is any wind or waves. Always anchor it so that the wind is blowing on one end and not broadside as it is a strain on the anchors and ropes to hold a boat broadside on.

By erecting a spar fifteen or twenty feet high and four or five inches in diameter, a square-sail can be rigged on yard-arms so that the house-punt can be sailed before the wind. A long oar will be necessary to steer with, or a portable rudder may be made and hung to the stern with pins and ropes.

A house-punt of this description will be a very great source of enjoyment to several boys in the summer-time, and in the winter when not in use the punt can be hauled out on shore, the windows boarded up, and old canvas drawn over the decks to protect them from the sun.

A House-raft

Almost any boy can build a fairly good boat, even if it is a flat-bottomed sharpy. But to build a raft of the proper size, and on it a house that may be comfortably occupied, will require the aid of a good carpenter who understands construction, and under whose direction several boys can work to good advantage.

For a party of four or five young fellows, a very convenient and commodious house-raft at anchor is shown in Fig. 8. The raft is about thirty-eight feet long and twelve feet wide, while the house is twenty-three feet long and twelve feet wide by nine feet high from raft deck to top of house.

These dimensions will, if necessary, permit the raft to be taken through any canal, and without mast and deck-rails it will pass under the road bridges that span the canals.

If the house-raft is to be used on canals only, it will be better not to have the mast, and the deck-rail may be arranged so that it can be removed quickly before passing under a low bridge.

The mast is for use on lakes, bays, or rivers only, where a large square-sail can be hoisted on a yard-arm, and by means of which the raft may be made to sail before the wind slowly, so that its position may be changed from time to time.

The construction of a house-raft is quite simple, and will not require the services of a boat-builder, as the carpenter can build both the raft and the house on it. To begin with, it will be necessary to obtain four straight logs thirty-eight feet long, as sound as possible, and not wind-racked. Two of these logs are to be laid with the butt end at the stern, and the other two with butts at the bow, thus giving equal spaces between each along the entire length of the raft.

Across the ends of these logs nail a temporary strip to keep them the proper distance apart; then at right angles lay four-by-twelve-inch timbers on edge about two feet apart, and spike them securely to the logs. This part of the work should be done in shallow water, where the logs can be near enough to shore for the workers to stand on bottom.

When laying these cross-timbers it is always well to place the first ones about five feet apart, and stand a straight timber across from one to the other parallel to the logs, so that as each succeeding timber is laid it can be levelled by either cutting slightly into the log or building up the bearing, as it may require.

Having timbered the logs the entire length, begin to plank or deck the raft with one-inch-and-a-quarter spruce boards six inches wide, laying the strips from bow to stern.

Fig. 9 will show the position of the logs with cross-timbers above, on top of which the planking may be seen. To the under side of the cross-beams and midway between the logs, planks should be fastened that will run the entire length of the raft. These are to form a bearing against which the upper bilge of the barrels will rest. Fig. 9 shows the heads of three barrels, each the end one of a number that are chained together and run all along under the raft to give it sufficient buoyancy to counteract the displacement that would be caused by the weight of the house and occupants.

Fig. 10 is a side view of those same barrels, showing the position they occupy and the distance from one to the other. Oil-barrels are the best for this purpose, and after being well bunged they should be treated to several good coats of copper paint before being drawn under the raft. It would be well to leave a gallon of oil in each barrel, as it keeps the glue sizing in good condition, and prevents it from yielding to the dampness caused by the water, the pressure of which might in time find its way through small cracks or openings.

A few yards of wrought-iron chain sufficiently heavy for the purpose can be obtained and cut into short lengths, and each end should be fitted with an eye-plate with four holes in it, which plates are to be fastened to the ends of the barrels with short, fat screws, having first thoroughly smeared the back of each with white-lead. The barrels should be arranged about one foot apart, and if the logs are from twenty-four to thirty inches in diameter at the butt end there should be just enough space to accommodate the three rows of barrels between the four logs as shown in Fig. 9.

Across the logs at the bow and stern attach the planking, to extend down a foot below the water-line, and with short uprights against which to nail, fasten weather-boards along the sides of the raft to cover the logs and come up flush with the deck line.

Seven feet in from the ends of the raft lay cross-stringers, three by six inches, at distances of eighteen inches apart, on which to place the floor of the house. This flooring may be of narrow spruce boards, planed on one side and having matched edges.

The uprights for the house construction are placed on the flooring beams and sills, and securely pinned to them, and the cross-beams at top of house should be placed the same distance apart as the floor beams to sustain the weight above, as the top of the house or upper deck will be the open-air living-room. The side elevation (Fig. 11) shows the position of windows that will be placed on both sides of the house, and another illustration (Fig. 12 A and B) shows both front and rear elevations of the house, as well as the location of companionway and deck-rails.

The deck plan (Fig. 13) shows the arrangement of the house and how it is divided into the several compartments.

In the front, the dining and living saloon is a room measuring about eight feet in width and eleven feet in length. At one end a couch is placed which, if necessary, can be used as a bed; and close to it are two large windows—one overlooking the fore-deck, the other giving a view from the side of the house. At the other end of the room a neat china-cupboard is built into the corner, and in the opposite corner the front door and a window are placed. One of the illustrations is an interior view of this cabin, showing how comfortable and attractive it can be made to appear. As it is a sort of general mess-room and living-cabin, it can be decorated and kept as such in a ship-shape manner.

Fishing-rods, guns, and nets against the wall will take up little space, while in the locker under the cupboard a variety of sporting paraphernalia can be stored.

Leading aft from this saloon, a passageway opens into the galley, a room six feet and six inches wide by eleven feet long, where all the cooking-utensils and stores are kept.

This galley should be painted a light gray or ivory white, with several coats of paint mixed for outside use, so the wood-work can all be wiped down with a damp cloth when necessary. White is always the best color for a kitchen or galley, and it has the appearance of cleanliness that no other color will give; it will be found to keep a room much cooler also, and for that reason it is recommended. A rug or rag carpet will be an acceptable covering for the floor, which should be treated to several coats of yellow-ochre paint.

Between the dining-saloon and the galley two state-rooms are placed, so the passageway runs between them, and from which the doors open that lead into them. These rooms are each about eight feet and six inches long by nearly five feet wide, and two berths, each three feet wide, are built in the rooms. Both rooms have large windows, and spaces for corner wash-stands; and as the doors open against the ends of the berths, there is no lost space nor wasted room.

Rows of hooks will accommodate clothing, and the lower berth should be at least twenty-two inches up from the floor to allow room to slide a trunk or two under it. These rooms can be ceiled and papered, or painted, as a matter of choice, but a few coats of varnish will render the wood-work in good shape and proof against dampness.

All the windows and doors in this boat can be of stock sizes, so that the cost of special sizes can be avoided. The sheathing may be of cedar shingles or of clapboards, as the cost is about the same. The clapboards should be painted, and will look better than shingles, although a very artistic effect is had by staining the shingles and painting the door and window casings in shades to match, preferably in the brown and olive-green shades.

The flooring of the upper deck should be of regular flooring boards with matched edges and planed on one side. Over this flooring canvas should be stretched and tacked, and afterwards given two or three coats of oil and varnish to make it water-proof, and finally treated to a coat or two of lead-colored paint. The seams should all be well laid down, and fastened with copper or tinned tacks, driven about two inches apart. It would be well to give the boards two good thick coats of paint before the canvas is applied, so that when the oil soaks through the canvas it will soften the paint somewhat, and help to hold the canvas in its proper place.

Leading from the fore-deck to the upper deck a stair or companionway is built, and anchored securely in place to the front of the house. The platform at the head of the staircase is braced over the front doorway by means of two iron rods that act as brackets, and which are screwed securely both to the under side of the platform and to the door-casing. This can be an open stairway composed of two side ways and eleven treads, the ends of the treads being anchored in grooves cut in the ways, and securely fastened with screws.

The rail around the deck is of common iron gas-pipe held in place by sockets and uprights. If the piping cannot be had, then hickory or hard-wood poles one inch and a half in diameter may be employed and held in place by uprights three inches wide and thirty inches high, through which two holes have been bored to receive the poles.

Around the fore and after decks a stringer three by six inches can be spiked down, and to the sides near the bow and stern large cleats should be bolted fast, by which the raft can be moored. Amidships at the bow a large post may be fastened, around which to attach a tow-line if necessary, and at the stern a rudder is arranged, with the post projecting up through the deck for a distance of a foot or eighteen inches. A mortise should be cut in the top of this post, into which the end of a tiller can be inserted when steering the craft, either when in tow or under sail.

A mast twenty-five or thirty feet long can be stepped amidships against the front of the house, and strapped fast to the upper deck with a horseshoe band. A step-block can be fastened to the deck into which the tenoned end of the mast will fit.

A yard-arm about twenty feet long, or longer if desired, can be arranged to hoist nearly to the top of the mast, and from which a large square-sail may be rigged so the lower corners will fasten to outriggers four or five feet long that can be temporarily braced at the sides of the boat when sail is set. This pole affords a good place from which to fly club or college colors, and from which to suspend lines of colored and Japanese lanterns to illuminate at night. This mast should be six inches in diameter at the base, and gradually taper near the top, and if a sail is to be used frequently, it would be a good plan to bobstay and shroud the stick with some standing rigging, so as to relieve it from the entire strain of a large sail.

The top of the house affords a living-room twenty-three feet long and twelve feet wide, and in that space a number of chairs, a table, hammocks, and benches can be accommodated.

For lake, river, and bay use this deck can be covered by a large awning, supported at the centre by a ridge-pole, and at the sides by upright posts that hold a stout wire in place, over which the striped awning canvas is caught. Drop-curtains at the sides will be convenient to ward off the bright sunlight, and this deck-room will be found the most delightful place to spend the pleasant days and evenings.

Along the inland waterways a raft of this description is a most desirable craft, as it can be towed from place to place, and for pleasure purposes its value cannot be overestimated, as it is a base for hunting and fishing as well as a retreat from village life; and the pleasure and comfort that can be had from a raft like this can well be appreciated when once tried.

To build a house-raft on these plans is not a difficult nor an expensive piece of work, and outside of the cost of the lumber, timber, barrels, and logs the amount is limited, unless finish is contemplated. With materials at hand and the help of three or four good workers, it should not require more than a week to construct this raft and house, and if fitted and painted in the manner described the cost should not exceed from two hundred to three hundred dollars, including all labor and material, according to the locality in which it is constructed.

A Float

In the spring, when every one who owns a boat of any sort is painting and repairing his craft, boat-houses, and floats, a few suggestions in regard to the floats will be found of practical value.

My chum and I own two canoes and a row-boat. The first year we built a boat-house, which exhausted our funds, and we were obliged to wait till the next spring before we could consider the expense of making a float. Most floats are constructed of spars on logs, with a mooring on top.

As we prepared to make the float ourselves, we wanted to find the easiest and cheapest way of doing so. The spars were costly, and, besides, are clumsy, and for a float of adequate size they would have to be so large that we could not move them alone.

As we lived in the city we could not get logs, or, if we could, we should have had a big bill for cartage. It was while we were painting the boat-house one afternoon that we saw an empty barrel go floating by. My chum said he had an idea that we could make a float after all. We went to one of the grocery stores and got four new flour-barrels, with the heads, at a cost of twenty-five cents apiece.

We took them, two by two, over to the boat-house, and then went to a near-by lumber-yard and got three two-by-three sixteen-foot joists, which cost us fifty-five cents, and one hundred square feet of boards such as are sold at thirty dollars a thousand feet. Some nails and our tools, and we were ready to begin work.

First we laid two barrels end to end about two feet apart; then about twelve feet from them we laid the other two in the same way. Then we took two of the joists and laid them on each side of the barrels on edge. Taking the other, we cut it in two pieces six feet long, which left a waste space of four feet in length. We then nailed the two sixteen-foot pieces and the two six-foot pieces together in the form of a rectangle as in Fig. 14.

Then, having propped the barrels to keep them in place, we lifted this hollow rectangle onto them so that it rested on their sides as in Fig. 15. Cutting the four-foot joists into four one-foot pieces, we utilized them as corner braces.

Next we fastened the barrels to the frame, and, after painting them with a coat of thick paint to fill the cracks, we launched the craft. Then we covered the frame with the boards, laying them crosswise. A ring-bolt in each corner and a roller in the middle, and an old hose-pipe tacked around the edges, completed the float as shown in Fig. 16.

This we found was a most excellent float, and, above all, it was light, could be hauled out on the bank easily, or stored during the winter.

As it rose and fell with the tide there was no trouble in launching the boats at any time, whereas with a dock the pleasures of launching at low-water are too well known to be described.

Below is a table of expenditures:

While the prices of these articles, particularly the lumber, have risen somewhat, the cost of this float will remain extremely small.

Ropes may be joined to one another either by knotting or by splicing. If the rope belongs to the running rigging (such as halyards, sheets, etc.) of the vessel, it will be necessary to put a splice in it, as a knot would refuse to render (pass) through the swallow (opening) in the block. There are three kinds of splices in general use—namely, the long, the short, and the eye-splice. When joining running rigging a long splice is always employed, as it does not increase the diameter of the rope, and when neatly made cannot easily be detected. The short splice is very bulging, but it can be made quickly and is employed in all cases where the rope does not pass through blocks. The eye-splice is used for making a permanent loop in the end of a rope, such, for instance, as is seen in the hawsers by which steamboats are temporarily made fast to a dock, the loop or eye being thrown over the spile on the pier. Let us first consider the making of the latter splice.

Splices

The Eye-splice (Fig. 1).—Open the end of the rope and lay the strands 1, 2, 3 upon the standing part as shown in A in Fig. 1; now push strand 4 through the rope as shown in B; next thrust strand 5 over the part through which the former was passed, and last push the strand 6 through on the opposite side. Repeat this once, then cut off the remaining ends, and the splice will appear as in C.

The Short Splice (Fig. 2).—Hold the rope B (Fig. 2 A) in the left hand; pass the strand 4 over 1, and having thrust it through under 3, pull it taut; take strand 5 and pass it over 2 and under 1; pass strand 6 over the first strand next to it and under the second. Shift the rope around and treat the other side in the same way, and the result will be as shown in Fig. 2 B. This single tucking of the ends is not sufficient for strength, so repeat the operation once, then cut off the ends of the strands.

The Long Splice (Fig. 3).—Unlay (untwist) the two ends to be joined some two or three feet, and place the ends together in the same manner as explained for the short splice. Now take the strand 1 and unlay it as far back as A, and in the groove left in the rope wind the strand 2; unlay the strand 3 and in its place lay-up (wind) the strand 4. At this stage the rope will represent the appearance of Fig. 3 B. The middle strands, 5 and 6, will now be knotted with a simple overhand knot Fig. 3 C, care being observed that the knot is formed to follow the lay (form) of the rope. Next divide these two strands equally as shown in Fig. 3 D, and tuck them into the rope on the same principle as explained for the short and eye splice. The remaining strands will be treated in the same manner, after which stretch the rope well and cut off the ends.

Knots

Reef Knot (Fig. 4).—This commonly used knot is also known as a flat knot and square knot, and is one of the most valuable of the many employed. As its name implies, it is used to tie the reef points of a sail, the stops (short lengths of rope) used to secure the jib to the bowsprit when the sail is lowered, etc. Should a person find it necessary in order to affect an escape from a burning building to fashion a line by tearing sheets into lengths and tying them together, this knot should be employed, for it will not slip and the bulge where the strips are tied will afford good hold for the hands. In order to make the knot, simply tie an overhand knot, then pass the ends so that they shall take the same lay (form) as the crossed parts beneath. Should the ends be passed (crossed) wrong, an Old Granny knot (Fig. 5) will be the result, and this knot will capsize (pull out of shape) and slip as soon as a strain is put upon it.

Bowline Knot (Fig. 6).—Take the end (1) of the rope in the right hand and the standing part (2) in the left hand; lay the end over the standing part and turn the left wrist so that the standing part forms a loop (4) enclosing the end; now lead the end back of the standing part and above the loop and bring the end down through the loop again as shown. A bowline of this kind, sometimes called a single bowline, is employed in a variety of ways. Seamen sit in the bight (3) of this shape to be hoisted aloft under certain circumstances, and two towing hawsers are often made fast to each other by two bowlines, the bight of one being passed through the bight of the other.

Bowline on a Bight (Fig. 7).—Double the rope, and take the double end (1) in the right hand, the standing part (2) of the rope in left hand; lay the end over the standing part, and by turning the left wrist form a loop (3), having the end inside; now pull up enough of the end (1) to dip under the bight (4), bringing the end towards the right and dipping it under the bight, then passing it up to the left over the loop and hauling taut. This knot is employed in the same way as explained for the single bowline, and it may also be stated that it affords much amusement as a puzzle, for if the standing part (2) is held and the knot presented to be untied, only those familiar with the way in which it is made will be apt to discover the secret of dipping the end (1) back and undoing the knot by handling it in a reverse manner to that described for its manufacture.

Running Bowline (Fig. 8).—The only difference between this knot and the one described under the head of “Bowline” is that the end (1) of the rope is taken around the standing part (2), and then a single bowline (3) is tied on its own part. As will be understood by reference to the diagram, this forms a slipknot or lasso, and in fact it is employed for the same purposes as the latter. When a shark is hooked by sailors the great fish is hauled up until his head is out of water, then a running bowline is made around the hook-line and allowed to fall down over the fins, when it is hauled taut and the strain taken off the hook and line, so that the danger of the fish escaping may be greatly lessened, for the line is apt to break from the thrashing of the creature or the hook pull out.

Wall Knot (Fig. 9).—Unlay the end of the rope and whip (tie) it where shown, and form a bight of strand 1, and hold it down at the side represented by 2; pass the end of 3 around 1, and the end of 4 around 3 and through the bight of 1, then the knot will appear as shown in Fig. 10; now haul the parts taut and the knot will be formed.