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ROPE YARN SUNDAY
On the day the tailor boarded a sailing ship
in port, the crew knocked off early, broke out
rope yarn, and mended clothes and hammocks.
One afternoon per week at sea, usually a
Wednesday, was reserved for mending. Since it
was an afternoon for rest from the usual chores,
much like Sunday, it was dubbed rope yarn
Sunday.
The Navy adhered to the custom up to the
years immediately after World War II; men used
Wednesday afternoon for personal errands like
picking up their laundry and getting haircuts.
They paid back the time by working half a day
on Saturdays.
Today, uniforms require less attention, so rope
yarn Sunday has been turned to other purposes—
mainly early liberty or a time for catching up on
sleep. Some, however, still adhere to tradition by
breaking out the ditty bag for an afternoon of
uniform PMS.
SALLY SHIP
Sally ship was not a ship but a method of
loosing a vessel run aground from the mud
holding it fast. In the days before sophisticated
navigation equipment, ships ran aground much
more often than today. A grounded ship could
be freed with little or no hull damage if it could
be rocked out of its muddy predicament.
To free the ship, the order was given to “sally
ship.” The crew gathered in a line along one side
and then ran back and forth athwartships from
port to starboard until the vessel began to roll.
Often the rolling broke the suction of the mud
so that the ship could be pulled free and gotten
under way.
SHIP’S HUSBAND
Sometimes when a ship is heading for the
yards, an old salt says that she is going to her
husband now, which causes novices to wonder
what he’s talking about. A ship’s husband was
once a widely used term describing the man in
charge of the shipyard responsible for the repair
of a particular ship. It was not uncommon to hear
the sailors of creaking ships lament, “Ah, she’s
been a good ship, lads, but she’s needing her
husband now.”
In the course of a ship’s life, she may have
had more than one husband; but this had little
bearing upon her true affections. Tradition has
it, her love was saved solely for her sailors.
SICK BAY
Admiral Horatio Nelson, who was responsible
for many British naval customs, forerunners of
our own, originated the term sick berth in his
order to the Mediterranean fleet in 1798. In a line-
of-battle ship, the sick berth was placed in the
bow. When round bows were introduced in 1811,
the sick berth, keeping its same position, found
itself in a bay (semicircular indentation). Thus,
in 1813 the British began the use of the term sick
bay. It is customary today for officers to remove
their caps when entering sick bay. It maybe that
this custom stems from the early sailing days when
men were not admitted to sick bay until they were
about ready for “slipping the cable” (dying).
SKYLARK
To skylark is to be inattentive or engage in
horseplay, usually when one is supposed to be
working. The term came about when young
sailors would climb to the skysail yardarms and
slide down the stays.
STARBOARD AND PORT
In the old Viking ships, ships were steered by
means of a heavy board secured to the right side
of the ship. Therefore, the right side of the vessel
(looking forward) was called the “steerboard”
side. Loading was avoided from that side because
of the possibility of damaging the steering gear.
Gradually the term steerboard was corrupted to
starboard.
The left side of these old ships (the place of
loading) was called the “load board” side. This
finally became “larboard.” Because “starboard”
and “larboard” sounded so much alike, the term
port was substituted in the United States Navy for
larboard. A General Order (18 February 1846)
reads: “It having been repeatedly represented to
the Department that confusion arises from the use
of the words ‘Larboard’ and ‘Starboard’ in
consequence of their similarity of sound, the
word ‘Port’ is hereafter to be substituted for
Larboard.” (Perhaps the term port was used
because, as ships became larger and rose higher
in the water, loading took place through openings
in the sides called “ports.”)
SUNDOWNER
A sundowner is
term is derived from
a harsh disciplinarian. The
the practice of strict captains
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