There may possibly be some advantage in open water in the main and mizen rig, if warning of a " kick-up " has not been taken advantage of to reef. Going into the eyes of an open boat to reef her foresail in a " lop " is by no means a pleasant or safe operation to perform, and indeed it should not be attempted unless a counterbalancing weight is put in the stern ; the boat will then plunge violently, but there will be less danger of her being swamped. Now, with the main and mizen rig there will be no foresail to reef, and as the mainsail will be all in board, reefing when in extremi8 will be a comparatively easy operation. Again, if the mainsail has to be lowered in a hurry, the mizen will bring the boat to the wind, instead of taking her off as a foresail might. But the danger as last indicated can easily be avoided by letting go the head sheets before lowering the mainsail. Then the foresail might be found of service for scudding before a strong wind at sea. On the other hand, the mizen might be of use in rowing, in keeping the boat's head to the wind at sea. However, as snugging down should be never deferred, with a rising storm, until the sea got up so as to make reefing a foresail a matter of danger, we still cast in favour of the sloop or main and foresail rig.
The question here naturally arises, if the mizen is of use as well as the foresail, why not have both ? We certainly do not see why both should not be had ; and, if the wind is so strong as to necessitate the mainsail being stowed, the boat will be fairly handy and manageable under mizen and foresail, although the canvas would scarcely be large enough to get her to windward with the wind dead on end.
The fashion of lacing the sail to a boom is now general whatever the rig, and no doubt the plan has many advantages—the principal of which are that the foot can be kept straighter, and thereby the sail generally flatter, and ,in easing the sheet little or much the sail does not go into a bag; on the other hand without the boom, if the boat be struck by a squall, the wind will be spilled from the sail directly the sheet is loose ; but the case is different with a boom sail ; and if the squall be heavy it will be necessary to luff the boat up in good time as well as ease the sheet, and prepare to lower the sail in case the squall should not abate.
To the question of how much sail it is prudent to give an open boat, the answer very much depends upon the requirements and capabilities of the boat-sailer. Sail areas of open boats, we find, vary very considerably ; and in proportion to the length of boats multiplied by breadth, range from 1 to 3.* Thus we find some cruising gigs, 17ft. long by 5ft. 6in. in beam (equal to square feet), with about 90 square feet of canvas in their sails ; whilst other boats, only 14ft. by 5ft. 3in. (equal to 73 square feet) that are raced, have sail areas of 180 square feet, or 2.4 times the area of that found by multiplying the breadth into the depth. The latter pro
portion will only be safe in the hands of an expert, and the novice should begin with very small sails, or, in other words, the sail area should not exceed the length of the boat multiplied by her breadth.t Sometimes in the sloop rig the jib or foresail, instead of being tacked outboard to a bumpkin, is laced at its foot to a boom ; the sail is then " tacked" by this boom to the stem head, so much sail being forward of the stem as the space between the mast and the stem requires. A pair of sheets are required as usual, and the weather one should always take the weight of the sail ; the lee one is consequently slack, but only so slack that when the boat is put about it takes the strain as the weather sheet. Thus the sheets need no trimming in tacking. The objection to this " revolving jib " is that it cannot be readily " spilled," as after the sheet is gone the sail will sometimes be balanced by the wind; hence the sail may not only be an inconvenient one, but a dangerous one. This objection can be somewhat removed by having the tack fast some distance ahead of the centre of length of the boom.
The " balance lug," Fig. 68—which was introduced at Surbiton by Mr. Burgoine (boat builder, of Kingston-on-Thames), about twelve years ago—is a sail so arranged that it requires no dipping in going about; that is, it lies on the mast on one tack, and from the mast on the other. In this respect it resembles the " standing lug " illustrated on Plate V., and in the New Brighton rig and Mersey canoe rig; but the Surbiton lug has the advantage of a larger piece forward of the mast to "balance" the after part of the sail; hence the term balance lug.
The boom and yard are generally of about the same length, and the length of the mast is in a measure governed by the amount of peak, or round given to the head of the sail. If the yard is slung in its amidships, the sail should have great peak, and it will stand or sit better than if the sail be cut flat-headed. If the yard be slung nearer its lower end than amidships, the sail, if not cut with a high peak, is apt to sag to leeward ; and the same might happen if the sail be very flat-headed and slung, say, one-third of the length of yard from the lower end or heel of yard. A good place for the slings of a well peaked and round headed sail will be about one-tenth the length of yard from its amidships. (The head and foot of the sails are always laced to yard and boom.) A Surbiton boat, however, has the yard slung at about two-fifths its length from the lower end, but then the head of the sail has not so much round as shown in the diagram. However, a squarer sail and a better standing one can be obtained by slinging the sail nearer amidships and giving as much round to the head as shown in the drawing ; the luff will be shorter than is generally given, but this probably will be found an advantage.