HISTORY OF MARINE ARCHITECTURE.

3*5

of contrary winds, or to victuall, or by a shipp springing a leake, &c. may rideundiscovered by being out of the road of trade, untill the winde and intelligencemakes the designe ripe for execution.

If this method proposed, in conjunction with the Danes, appeares difficult, orcannot bee obtained, then a squadron of shipps proper for this designe may beebuilt as if for the coal trade, and soe employed untill opportunity offers.

There is a vessell of North Yarmouth already built for the coal and Bourdeauxtrade, proper for this use, which upon tryall has been found more profitable tothe owners than vessells of other built. More of this sort may bee built in goodtime.

To return, however, to the invention of the sliding keels, the theory ofthe system, together with the previous contrivances which took place, ere itbecame so thoroughly digested in the mind of the inventor as to warrant his giv-ing it to the world so sufficiently perfected, that its general adoption mightbe expected, will, together with the methods to be pursued in working vessels sofitted, be best described by the annexed plates. Plate the first, fig. i, represents aboat, built at Boston in New England, in the year 1771, for Earl Percy, now Dukeof Northumberland. It was furnished with a continuous and uninterrupted slidingkeel, by means of which it could be worked without a rudder. Fig. 2, representsa boat, fitted at Deptford, with three sliding keels, in the year 1789. Fig. 3, is atransverse section of the T rial Cutter, with her sliding keel lowered down. Fig. 4,is a plan, showing the method of dovetailing the timbers into the dead wood at themidships. Fig. 5, is a representation of the main sliding keel, with the rack andwinch, by which it is raised or lowered. Fig. 6, is a section, showing the heeling ofthe timbers in the wake of the foremost and aftermost keels. Plate 2, fig. 1, is asheer draught of the Trial Cutter. Fig. 2, is a plan of the same vessel. Plate3, fig. 1, is a sheer draught of the vessel, with all her sliding keels lowered downas when sailing in a wind. Fig. 2, is the Trial Cutter, with her keels hauled up,as when going before the wind, or passing over a shoal. Plate 4, fig. x, showsthe same vessel, with her fore-keel lowered down, as when in the act of tackingor lying to. Fig. 2, is the same vessel, with the aftermost-keel lowered down,as when veering or scudding before the wind *. To this description, which is

given

* Captain Sehank adds some additional remarks, why vessels constructed according to his svstem,

\ OL. 111. 3 E Will