RIGGING, in a ship, is a combination of very numerous ropes to afford stability to the masts, and to lower and hoist the sails. Notwithstanding the complication which the cordage of a rigged ship presents at first sight to the eye, the arrangement is remark ably simple. In all points, the rig of each mast is the same; to understand one is, consequehtly, io understand all. In the accompanying diagram, spars are shown by capital letters; sails. by italic letters; standing rigging, by Roman numerals; and run ng rigging, by Arabic numerals. To avoid a confusing number of synibols and need less repetition, the corresponding ropes. etc., on each mast bear the same numbers, and in the key, the name of such rope per se is only given. To find the full title of a rope, it is necessary to prefix (unless it pertain to the bowsprit or gaff) the name of the mast. (mizzen. main, or fore) to which it belongs. For example, the spars marked D are, counting from the left, i.e., the stern, called respectively mizzen-royal mast, main-royal mast, and fort-royal-mast; the standing-ropes marked TY, are the mizzen-stay, main stay, and fore-stay; and the running-ropes bearing the figure 5, are mizzen-braces, main braces, and lore-braces.
Rigging is either standing or running. The former is employed in maintaining, in fixed position, the masts and bowsprit; the latter runs freely through numerous blocks, and its functions are to raise and lower the upper. masts and the yards, to trim the sails, to hoist the signals and other flags, and occasionally to furl the sails.
Each mast has the following standing rigging: at each side shrouds (r., II., itm), con sisting of several very thick (usually in front, the stay (iv., v., vt. vu.); and behind, the backstays coming down to the ship's sides behind the shrouds. Across the ativermast and topmast shrouds, thin ropes, called railings, are hitched horizontally, and farm convenient ladders for the men to use in going. aloft,. The standing rigging of the lowermost reaches the chains on the ship's sides; while the shrouds of the topmast and topgallanunast are worked into the top, their stays to the tops of the mast nearer the bow in each case (the bowsprit serving as an anterior mast for the fore-rigging); all the hackstays, however, arc brought down to the ship's sides. In steamers, the mainstays require modification, in order to avoid the funnel; they are often adjusted on a plan similar to that of the backstays. The standing rigging of the
bowsprit consists of the bobstays (xiv.), generally of chain; the martingale stays (xi., xii.), and martingale backstays (xm.), which all exert an adverse pressure to that of the stays from the foremast, topmast, etc.
The running rigging is of four classes: 1. Lifts for the upper masts and the jib-boom. These are not SilOWD in the diagram, from the fact that they run parallel, and closely contiguous to the masts, topmasts, and bowsprit.
2. The lifts for the yards and sails. Each yard has two lifts, one proceeding from a point near'either extremity, and passing through a pulley at the head of that section of the mast to which the sail or yard belongs. They are worked either on the deck or in the top. The yard-lifts are shown by the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4. The gaff and boom have separate lifts working into the mizzen-top (13, 15). Each jib-sail has a lift (not show which acts parallel and close to iv., v., 10, or 11. If the ship carry stay-sails, there will be lifts parallel to the main and mizzen topmast stays and higher stays.
3. The ropes for adjusting the sails when spread. These comprise, first, the sheets for hauling down the lower corners of each sail—speeimens are shown at 12; secondly, the braces for turning the yards about, to trim the sails to.the wind. Each yard has two braces, one from either end passing to an adjoining mast, except the main braces, which are brought to the ship's side near the stern. The braces arc shown as Nos. 5, 6, 7, 8. The wings and spanker sheet (14, 16) perform similar offices for the spanker. There are minor ropes in connection the sails, for assisting in furling, reefing, spreading, etc.; but it would have rendered the diagram too complicated to have inserted them 4. Ropes iu connection with the flags. Each mast has at its head a truck, containing two or more small pulleys. Over each of these a thin halyard is passed, and brought down double to the deck. On these any required flag is rapidly bent and hoisted with great ease. There are two pair of similar halyards to the gaff-peak; and when the ship is to he decorated on any festive occasion, similar halyards are affixed to the end of each yard-at m.
In different classes of ships, slight modifications occur in the rigging, to suit particu lar circumstances, but the main principles of rigging are as detailed above for all sizes of decked vessels. .See SAILS.