PREFACE.
IT is not easy to define the scope of iaodern academic seamanship as it
includes within its limits more than a passing knowledge of mechanics
and physics; the Merchant Shipping Act and Statutory Regulations as"
affecting ships, cargoes and seamen; the structure of the vessel, .her
stability, equipment, internal organisation and mobility; the convey-
ance of cargoes and the working of the ship as an economic unit,
together with a general knowledge of many nautical things which the
seamen may never be called upon to exercise in practice.
The ideal seaman is he who says and does the proper thing in just
the proper way and at the proper time, a man who has developed sea
sense and nautical sagacity. But ideal conditions and the ideal man
seldom, if ever, confront each other in an emergency at sea.
No man can hope to acquire a full and complete knowledge of all
nautical subjects either from the personal experiences of a lifetime or
from a prolonged reading of textbooks, but the prudent seaman reads
every shipping publication that comes his way, takes reasonable
precautions and studies the ways of ships and men, visualises possible
contingencies and mentally decides what action he would take in the
event of sudden emergency.
Weflo not pretend to have treated any of the subjects exhaustively;
the student who wishes to specialise must refer to recognised textbooks
written by experts. We have aimed, rather, at a simple introduction
of several aspects of seamanship, referring to fundamental principles in
cases where such exist, and developing the several themes up to a
reasonable examination standard. There is not a clear demarcation in
the Board of Trade syllabuses between the amount of knowledge
required for the several grades but, obviously, Masters are expected to
have a fuller and more intimate knowledge of various things than First
Mates, and First Mates than Second Mates, so it behoves the beginner
to assimilate as much information as his experience and capacity will
admit.
Much of thf candidate's knowledge is pure memory work—Statutory
Regulations, for example—devised, mainly, to bring about