KEDGINGr. 



133 



that I shall attempt to make it intelligible even 

 to readers who are not nautical. 



In the navigation of rivers, which have many 

 windings and shallow places, the chief danger is, 

 that the tide will force the ship either on the bank, 

 or on some shoal : there is a risk of this even when 

 she is under all sail, and with a good breeze of 

 wind ; for the tide Sometimes runs so rapidly and 

 irregularly as to hustle the ship on shore, before 

 the sails can be made to act. When the wind is 

 blowing faintly, and is, at the same time, not 

 quite fair, the danger of this happening is much 

 increased. On such occasions, instead of sailing 

 in the usual manner, with the ship's head fore- 

 most, no sails whatever are set, and the stern, in- 

 stead of the bow, is made to go first, an operation 

 technically called Kedging. 



If, when a tide is running, the anchor by which 

 a vessel is riding be raised off the ground, she 

 will, of course, immediately begin to drift along 

 with the stream, and most probably soon run 

 aground upon one of the shoals. The ship, it 

 must be observed, when under these circumstan- 

 ces, andj^with no sail set, can make no progress 



