AR has always been a great incentive1 to shipbuilding. But this statement requires modification2 by excluding both civil war and the merchant ship. Of the former, no better instance could be found than the disastrous3 Wars of the Roses. Of the latter, the manner in which the Romans and others developed the war-galley at the neglect of the merchant ship is a clear example.
The Vikings, too, were great warriors4; hence the wonderful development of their ships was for hostile purposes. But, unlike the Romans, they were equally distinguished5 as maritime6 explorers. And it is with their methods on the sea that we are now about to deal. They were so vigorous in their activities, so dauntless and daring, such genuinely strenuous7 shipmen that they were bound to do great things, or fail where none could have succeeded. “They had neither compass nor astronomical8 instruments,” as Dr. Nansen reminds us, “nor any of the appliances of our time for finding their position at sea; they could only sail by the sun, moon, and stars, and it seems incomprehensible how for days and weeks, when these were invisible, they were able to find their course through fog and bad86 weather. But they found it, and the open craft of the Norwegian Vikings, with their square sails, fared north and west over the whole ocean, from Novaya Zemlya and Spitzbergen to Greenland, Baffin’s Bay, Newfoundland, and North America, and over these lands and seas the Norsemen extended their dominion10. It was not till five hundred years later that the ships of other nations were to make their way to the same regions.”18
That being so, how did these men succeed in making such long passages? The lodestone or compass did not reach Norway until the thirteenth century. I think that before we attempt a more definite answer we should make a great allowance for that sea-sense which is partly inborn13 and partly obtained by the experience of long years. I remember once asking a man who had been skipper of a coaster, whose family had lived their lives on the sea or by it, whose brothers had gone down with their ships to the port whence there is no returning—how the captains of such craft managed. Had they any real knowledge of navigation? “No, sir,” my friend answered, “they’re all mostly self-reliant.” In other words, they have a rough knowledge of the problems, and the rest is instinct. Only the other day I was talking to yet another plain, seafaring man. I asked him how he and his mates managed to find their way in by night through a certain very tricky14 and unlighted channel that was full of dangers and scoured15 by a strong tide. It was the same answer. “They managed as best they could,” relied on their instinct, sometimes made mistakes and got picked up, but on the whole succeeded in getting through.
I suppose it was much the same with the Vikings. But with this exception: that, being unfettered by87 book-learning, they possessed16 the instinctive17 faculty18 more thoroughly19. They knew the Scandinavian coast-line thoroughly well; and long coasting voyages had taught them the configuration20 of other nations’ shores. The rising and setting of the sun would assist them in clear weather, and the Pole-star at night. They were wont21 to carry in their ships a number of ravens22, and when they were expecting soon to make a landfall and it was useless to climb the mast, they released these birds, which, flying high, spotted23 the distant shore and flew towards it. The Viking mariner25 could thus set his course to follow their direction of flight.
Of course, with such rough-and-ready methods they made egregious26 mistakes and sometimes found themselves sailing in exactly the opposite direction to that desired, like some amateur yachtsmen who have sailed through the night by the wind and not known that the wind had veered27 several points. Dr. Nansen gives as an instance of a Viking’s mistake that of Thorstein Ericson, who in starting from Greenland arrived off Iceland instead of America. And, be it added, there are plenty of well-found ships to-day, both sail and steam, which, in spite of all their sextants, their patent logs, and deep-sea sounding leads, have made landfalls miles off their course.
Their sense of time, too, was another instinct which few of us possess to-day. “Several accounts show,” says the same Scandinavian authority, “that on land the Scandinavians knew how to observe the sun accurately28, in what quarter and at what time it set, how long the day or the night lasted at the summer or winter solstice, etc. From this they formed an idea of their northern latitude29.” It is just possible that they may even have understood how to take primitive30 measurements of the sun’s altitude at noon with a88 species of quadrant. But it is not likely that during those long, early voyages they could have been able to take observations of this kind from their ships. Nor can they have understood how to reckon the latitude from such measurements except at the equinoxes and solstices.
From the narrative31 of a voyage north of Baffin’s Bay, about the year 1267, it appears that they endeavoured at sea to get an idea of the sun’s altitude by observing where the shadow of the gunwale, on the side nearest the sun, fell on a man lying athwartships when the sun was in the south. This shows, at any rate, that the Norsemen did at least observe the sun’s altitude. Even in thick weather they could get along satisfactorily provided that the wind did not shift and send them off their course. But if the breeze veered or backed a few points they would be heading unconsciously in the wrong direction.
The observations of birds were of no little assistance. If the haze33 hid the land off whose coasts they imagined themselves to be, they could observe the kind of bird which was flying around them. A flight of wild-fowl, a particular breed of sea-bird, the difference in the fauna34, and so on, when off such coasts as Scotland, Ireland, Iceland, and Norway, could not fail to assist them greatly. It is true, also, that in their sailing directions they took notice of the whale. Thus, when sailing from Norway to Greenland one should keep at such a distance to the southward of Iceland as to have birds and whales from thence. Similarly, the drift-ice, icebergs35, driftwood, floating seaweed, the colour of the sea were all separate units in the whole method which enabled them to perform what they did. The Gulf36 Stream water, being of a purer blue than the greenish-brown water of the coastal37 current, must also have assisted them in their long voyages. Like the ancient seamen38 of89 the Mediterranean39, they relied largely on the sounding lead, and there is a record that Ingolf and Hjorleif found Iceland “by probing the waves with the lead.”
Primitive Navigation of the Vikings.
Finding the ship’s latitude by the shadow of the gunwale.
As to the primitive method, referred to above, for finding the ship’s latitude by observing the shadow of the gunwale, it has been suggested that they might have measured the length of the shadow of the gunwale by marks on the thwart32, and determined40 when the boat lay on an even keel by means of a bowl of water. They could thus obtain a fairly trustworthy measurement of the sun’s altitude. It has been thought possible that the Norwegians might have become acquainted with90 the hour-glass either from their voyages to Southern Europe, or else by plundering41 the monasteries42. This would enable them to measure the length of day approximately, and so, taken in conjunction with the sun, be able to tell fairly correctly the direction of the cardinal43 points of the compass.
There are some who scoff44 at the idea that the Vikings discovered North America. But there are first-rate authorities, among whom may be reckoned Dr. Nansen himself, who are quite convinced that these men did sail across the sea and land there. Certain incredulous people would have us believe that an open craft such as the Viking type would never last out a voyage like that across the Atlantic. But this supposition is immediately refuted by the Norse craft which was built on the lines and to the exact dimensions of the Gogstad Viking ship discovered in 1880. Rigged with a squaresail, with a jib added and without any other ship as convoy46, this replica47 was sailed from Bergen to Newport, Rhode Island, in the year 1893. The voyage began on May 1, and the United States were reached on June 13. She was commanded by Captain Magnus Andersen, who had already, in 1886, crossed the Atlantic in an open boat. Although bad weather was encountered, yet Captain Andersen and his crew of eleven men reached Newport in safety. His ship proved that the Viking type made a very fine seaboat, and furthermore that she was fast even in the deep furrows48 of the ocean; for she did an average of nine knots easily, but when the seas fitted her exactly she could reel off her eleven knots.
For these old Vikings, intrepid49 mariners50 and pioneers of the sea, had by their skill and experience been able to develop an improved type of ship which combined the advantages of speed and seaworthiness. In such craft they voyaged to places as far apart as Palestine91 and Greenland. By their travels they completely changed the existing ideas of geography. When they ceased to make merely coasting voyages and took to the blue water, they were doing more than perhaps they realised. They crossed the North Sea to the Shetlands and Orkneys, to Britain and Ireland, to the Faroe Isles53, to Iceland, to Greenland, and finally to America. Just exactly when first the Northmen crossed the North Sea cannot be determined; but some authorities believe that it was undertaken before the Viking age. As early as the third century of the Christian54 era, the Eruli sailed from Scandinavia over the seas of Western Europe and ravaged55 Gaul and Spain, and even penetrated56 during the fifth century to the Mediterranean as far as Italy. During the sixth century the Vikings voyaged from Denmark to the land of the Franks, but the first Viking expedition began in A.D. 793. In the year 999, Leif, the son of Eric the Red, sailed from Greenland via the Hebrides to Norway. This is the first recorded time that such a lengthy57 sea voyage was attempted, for prior to this the journey had been made via Iceland. But it is also clear, from the sailing directions which have come down to us for navigating59 the northern waters, that voyages were made direct from Norway to Greenland. It was this same Leif who, in the year A.D. 1000, discovered America.
The question must necessarily occur (as in the case of the circumnavigation of Africa by the Ph?nicians) as to the means of provisioning these Viking ships for such lengthy cruises. If Captain Andersen and his men in 1893 were able to last out, there is no reason why the ancient Norsemen should not, even if we make some allowance for the modern advantages of preserved foods. We know very little as to the methods adopted to ensure adequate food-supplies, but we do know that92 bronze cooking vessels60 have been found which belonged to these craft. They used salt meat and salt fish, and these they could obtain by hunting and fishing in the neighbourhood of Iceland, Scotland, Greenland, and so on. Nansen asserts that they certainly took cattle with them on some voyages; and they could also catch seals to keep the pot from running empty. In sheltered waters, such as the Norwegian fjords, when at anchor, the crew erected62 a triangular63 awning64 over the ship and turned-in in leather sleeping bags.
But it is by making a careful study of the Sagas65 that we are able to get a true idea of the life and methods of these magnificent seamen, and from this source I propose to extract the following interesting data. In these heroic narratives67 there is much to interest the lover of the sea and ships. There is a continual clashing of shield and sword, a slatting of canvas and a splashing of oars69, as the long-ships leap over the cold, silvery seas. The air is full of the deep-throated shouts of the sea-kings; the horizon is bright with the coloured sails and the gilded70 prows72. Every man is a picked fighter and seaman73; every craft a thing of beauty and of strength. There are the dark, cruel rocks, and the crimson74 blood of the vanquished75, the sound of the waterfalls coming down from the cliffs, the fluttering of pennants76, the hammering of the shipwrights’ men ashore77, the cries of the women-folk as they behold78 the distant battles. There is nothing subtle in the picture; the colours are laid thickly, and the tones are crude as a modern poster. But there is bravery and seamanship, and above all the sweet sea smell which pervades79 these accounts and stirs the enthusiasm of the reader to its full extent. You feel as you read them that ships and men both seem to have been of the right stuff, that in those days there was a grandeur80 about the sea which not easily can be forgotten.
93 The Scandinavians to this day remain, perhaps, the hardiest81 race of sailors to be found anywhere. They have penetrated to the neighbourhood of both poles, and they put to sea in such leaky, ill-found merchant ships year after year, that it makes you nervous to think of them battling against a breeze of wind in craft which have been condemned82 by most other nationalities. Even in the Viking days they were great seamen, without fear, unfaltering. But, like the South Europeans, they used to leave the sea alone during the winter, hauling their ships by rollers up the beach in the autumn, and then make them snug83 in their shed till the spring tempted58 them again to fit out. But Harald Hairfair is recorded as having set the example of remaining all winter afloat in his warships84, a proceeding86 which was quite contrary to the prevailing87 custom.
But there were other times when it was fortunate that this type of ship could be moved about so easily. For example, when King Harald had learnt that King Svein “was come before the mouth of the firth with a great host of ships,” the former rowed his vessels in the evening to a narrow slip, and when it became dark he had the vessels unloaded and dragged them over the low land-neck before daybreak, and had “arrayed” the ships again, so that he was able to sail away to the nor’ard past Jutland, and thus escape out of the Danes’ hands. And there are occasions on record when the Vikings dragged their ships for two miles over ice. They loved their ships, these men of the biting north, and even in the time of personal peril88 dreaded89 that their craft should fall into the hands of the enemy. When Sigurd was being pursued by King Ingi he was careful to scuttle90 his ship before abandoning her. He “hewed off stem and stern of his ship, and sheared92 rifts93 therein and sank it in the innermost ?gis-firth.”94 So, too, they would treat an enemy’s ship. Thus Erling Askew94 “fared away from the land,” “arrayed them for a Jerusalem-faring and fared west over sea to Orkney,” and so to the Mediterranean, where they lighted upon a dromon and attacked her by cutting rifts in her side below, as well as above, the water-mark—“hewed windows” in her, as the old Saga66 realistically has it.
They were masters of cunning, too. Harek of Thiotta was coming along one evening with his fleet “with the wind blowing a breeze. Then he let strike sail and mast, and take down the vane, and wrap all the ship above the water in grey hangings, and let men row on a few benches fore12 and aft, but let most of the men sit low in the ship.” This somewhat puzzled King Knut’s men, who wondered what ship it could be, for they saw only few men and little rowing. Moreover, she seemed to be grey and untarred, “like a ship bleached96 by the sun, and withal they saw that the ship was much low in the water. But when Harek came forth97 into the sound past the host, he let raise the mast and hoist98 sail, and let set up gilded vanes, and the sail was white as snowdrift, and done with red and blue bands.”
And here is another instance where the ships kept afloat during the winter. The passage is interesting as showing that they shortened sail by taking in a reef: “On Thomas-mass [December 21], before Yule, the King put out of the haven99, there being a right good fair wind somewhat sharp. So then they sailed north coasting Jadar; the weather was wet, and some fog driving about.” But Erling Skialgson sailed after him, and because his long-ships went faster than the others, “he let reef the sail and waited for his host.” But Olaf’s ships “were very water-logged and soaked.” “He let call from ship to ship that men should lower95 the sails and somewhat slowly, and take one reef out of them.” They slacked away the halyards, then tucked in a reef, and then doubtless sweated up the yard again.
In reading these Sagas, it is necessary to understand the different species of craft which the Norsemen employed. Firstly, there were the warships or dragons. Secondly100, there were the long serpent or snake class, which also were men-of-war. Thirdly, there were ships of burden, ocean-going merchantmen, fishing boats, and small fry. The long-ship, which was a man-of-war, was not suitable for freight-carrying on those trading voyages to Ireland and elsewhere. But the kaupskip, broad of beam and with ample freeboard, was built for service on the island-sheltered waters of Norway and the Baltic. So also the kn?rr, which was used for both ocean trading and overseas warfare101, was wont to sail as far away as to the Orkneys. Such a type was so big that she could carry 150 men. It should be borne in mind that this was essentially102 a sailing ship, while the long-ship was more for rowing. The smallest of the long-ships were of twenty-five benches, i.e. for a crew of fifty oarsmen; in other words, about the same as a Roman penteconter. Some, however, were fitted with only twenty benches for forty oars. The skuta type of warship85 rowed from fifteen to twenty oars aside, but the snekkja, or long serpent class, carried from twenty to thirty aside, and the skeid from thirty to thirty-five aside. The word “skeid” signifies originally that it was a craft built of split wood, or strake-built. This expression was used doubtless in contradistinction to the craft which were merely hollowed out from the tree. Sigurd, after scuttling103 his ships, caused Finns to build him two cutters sinew-bound, which had no nails therein but had withies for knees. These craft could each row a dozen men a side. They were so96 fast that no ship could overtake them. The dragon type was so called from the dragon’s head at the stem-head, and the animal’s tail which ended the ship as the lotus-bud was wont on the ancient Egyptian craft. The earliest mention of the dragon type dates from A.D. 868.
There was a craft named the Crane, which was a long-ship of the snekkja type. She was high in the stem, not beamy, carried thirty benches for her rowers, and had been constructed for the use of King Olaf Tryggvison during the autumn of 998. But the ship which became a prototype and was the envy of all that beheld104 her, was a vessel61 presently to be named the Long Worm. Let me tell the story thus: One winter King Olaf gave the order for her to be constructed, and there, under the Ladir cliffs in the cold, bracing105 air, the shipmen set to work. “Much greater it was than other ships,” records the Saga, “that were then in the land, and yet are the slips whereon it was built left there for a token19; seventy-and-four ells of grass-lying keel was it.20 Thorberg Shavehewer was the master-smith of that ship, but there were many others at work: some to join, some to chip, some to smite106 rivets107, some to fit timbers.... Long was that ship, and broad of beam, high of bulwark108, and great in the scantling. But now when they were gotten to the freeboard Thorberg had some needful errand that took him home to his house, and he tarried there very long, and when he came back the bulwark was all done. Now the king went in the eventide, and Thorberg with him to look on the ship, and see how the ship showed, and every man said that never yet had they seen a long-ship so great or so goodly: and so the king went back to the town.”
97 But early next morning, when the king and Thorberg returned to the ship, and the smiths were already there, the latter stood doing nothing. They exclaimed that the ship was spoilt, for some man had evidently gone round from stem to stern cutting notches109 with an axe110 along the gunwale. The king was exceedingly angry, and promised punishment if the offender111 should be found out. Thereupon, to the surprise of all, Thorberg instantly owned up as being himself the culprit, and he set about planing all the notches out of the gunwale. He went round the side which had been notched112 with his pattern, but when he had done so, it was generally agreed that the notching113, far from being a disfigurement, was in fact an ornament114. The king decided115 that Thorberg’s pattern was an improvement, so his anger ceased, and he bade him to do the same ornamentation along the other side.
This dragon-ship, built after the manner of the Worm which the king had got from Halogaland, was a far more excellent and larger ship than the model; so he named one the Long Worm and the other the Short Worm. On this great vessel were thirty-four benches for the oarsmen. She was most beautifully finished off with all the affectionate care and pride which only a Viking could bestow117 on a ship. Done all over with gold, with bulwarks118 as high as on a ship built for sailing the “main sea,” this Long Worm was the marvel119 of her age. “The best wrought120 and the most costly121 was that ship of any that have been in Norway.” Wolf the Red was the man who had the honoured post of bearing King Olaf’s banner in the prow71 of that ship. Around this valiant122 standard-bearer were four men to fight for that flag. And the crew were as notable as their ship. As she excelled all other craft, so they excelled all other men. They were picked men, every one of them, reputed to be famous for “godliness and98 might and stout123 heart.” With their gleaming shields and fine stature124 they took up their allotted125 positions. Looking down the ship from bow to stern, there were the standard-bearer and his company in the prow. Then abaft126 of them were a dozen forecastle men ready to resist any enemy who thought he might board the Norse ship at that critical part. Next came the thirty forehold men, astern of whom were another company in the mainhold. “Eight men there to a half-berth127 in the Worm, all chosen man by man.” At the poop was the commander, and immediately below him was the ship’s arsenal128, where the arms were kept ready for immediate45 service.
But the coming of the Long Worm was not to be taken lightly. There was some other whom she had moved to jealousy129. “King Harald sat that winter in Nidoyce,” says the Saga. “He let build a ship that winter out at Eres that was a buss-ship. This craft was fashioned after the waxing of the Long Worm, and done most heedfully in all wise. There was a drake-head forward, and a crooked130 tail aft, and the bows of her were all adorned131 with gold. It was of thirty-five benches, and big thereto, and the bravest of keels it was. All the outfit132 of the ship the king let be made at the heedfullest, both sails and running-tackle, anchors, and cables.”
Anchor of Oseberg Viking Ship.
Primitive Blocks and Tackle
employed on Viking Ships.
Rowlock on a Viking Ship.
Fastenings of a Viking Ship.
And there were others whose ships were a source of wonder and of admiration134. King Knut “himself had that dragon, which was so mickle that it told up sixty benches, and on it were heads gold-bedight. Earl Hakon had another dragon that had a tale of forty benches. Thereon also were gilt135 heads; but the sails of both were banded of blues136 and red and green. These ships were all stained above the water-line.” Very keen were these North-men in using the sea as well for pleasure as for service. “Now on a fair day of spring100 tide was Harek at home, and few men with him at the stead, and the time hung heavy on his hands. So Sigurd spake to him, saying that if he will, they will go a-rowing somewhither for their disport137. That liked Harek well: so they go down to the strand138, and launch a six-oarer, and Sigurd took from the boathouse sail and gear that went with the craft; for such-wise oft they fared to take the sail with them when they rowed for their disport. Then Harek went aboard the boat and shipped the rudder.... Now before they went aboard the craft they cast into her a butter-keg and bread basket, and bare between them a beer-cask down to the boat. Then they rowed away from land; but when they were come a little way from the isle52, then the brethren hoisted140 sail and Harek steered141, and they speedily made way from the isle.”
Both ships and gear were frequently stored in sheds. There is an account of a man who “went down to the water and took the ship of burden which he owned, and King Olaf had given him, and ran out the craft; but all the gear appertaining to it was there in the ship-house.” And again, one of the North-men remarks: “The ship of burden which I have had this while, and here stands in her shed, methinks it is now become so ancient that she rots under her tar9.” They hauled these great ships ashore to the sheds by means of rollers:
“... heard how the boardlong
Dane-ships o’er the well-worn rollers
In the south were run out seaward ...”
so sings one of the Sagas. “After Easter,” runs another of these narratives, “the king let run out his ships, and bear thereto rigging and oars. He let deck the ships, and tilt142 them and bedight them: he let ships float thus arrayed by the gangways.” For it was the101 fitting-out season, you will realise. The word tilt signifies tent. “He let deck” does not mean quite what it would convey to modern minds; all that it indicates is that he replaced the floor-boards, which had been removed at the end of the previous season so that the air could get down below to the ship. Nor does gangway convey the exact definition. It means nothing more than the pier143 or jetty alongside which the ships were moored144 after fitting out.
The naval146 tactics of these men consisted in laying their craft alongside the enemy, boarding him, and then slashing147 away at the latter and hewing148 off the figurehead or the tail of his ship as trophies149. As they approached, they threw grappling anchors into the other vessel, just as they were wont to fight in the Mediterranean. Thus there is a reference to the incident when “the forecastle men of the Long Worm and the Short Worm and the Crane cast anchors and grapplings on to the ships of King Svein.” And this method survived in Northern Europe right through the Middle Ages. When they boarded a ship they did their best to “clear” the ship by cutting down the defenders150, or driving them overboard or else into other ships. That was their main objective—to get the ship to themselves. “Now in those days,” says one of the Sagas, “the wont was when men fought a-shipboard, to bind151 the ships together and fight from the forecastle.” “Now the most defence on the Worm, and the most murderous to men was of those of the forehold and the forecastle, for in either place was the most chosen folk and the bulwark highest.” And again—“Erling Askew set upon the ship of King Hakon, and shoved his prow in betwixt it and Sigurd’s ship, and then befell the battle. But the ship of Gregory was swept aground, and heeled over much, so at first they gat them not into the onset152.”
Vikings Boarding an Enemy.
The flagship of King Olaf at the battle of Nesiar,102 in the year 1016, had on the stem a carved head of the king which he himself had fashioned. “That head was long sithence in Norway used on ships which chieftains steered.” At this battle the king had a crew of a hundred in his ship, and most of them carried white shields “with the holy cross laid thereon in gold,103 while some were drawn153 with red stone or blue; a cross withal he had let draw in white on the brow of all helms. He had a white banner, and that was a worm. Thereafter he let blow the war-blast, and they set off out of the harbour, rowing in search of the earl.” ... “The king’s men caught the beaks154 of the [enemy’s] ships with grapnels, and thus held them fast. Then the earl cried out that the forecastlemen should hew91 off the beaks, and even so they did.”
Ten years later this same Olaf was the owner of a vessel named the Bison, which was “the greatest of all ships,” “which he had let make the winter before.” On her prow “was a bison-head dight in gold.” Aft there was a tail, and the head, the tail, and both beaks were all laid with gold. She was a big craft, for she rowed more than sixty men. Arrows and swords were the weapons with which the Norsemen fought, and the chests or lockers155 were kept well filled for the fray156. “King Olaf Tryggvison stood on the poop of the Worm, and shot full oft that day, whiles with the bow and whiles with javelins157, and ever twain at once.... Then went the king down into the forehold, and unlocked the chest of the high-seat; and took thence many sharp swords and gave them to his men.” For the poop consisted of a section of the ship with a floor above the ordinary deck, and commanded a view over the whole of the ship. Valiant were the fights often enough, but there were occasions when the contest was so unequal that there was no alternative but to flee. They would then throw overboard rafts with clothes and precious articles heaped on the top in hopes that, by attracting the cupidity158 of their pursuers, they themselves would succeed in getting away scot-free.
The capture of the ship Worm—this was the Little Worm, and not her bigger sister—happened on this wise: King Olaf stood to the northward159 sailing with104 the land abroad. Wherever he went ashore he christened the unbaptised. The time came when he turned his ships to the southward, but it came to pass that then he was harassed160 by “a driving storm with brine spray down the firth.” Finally, he spoke161 to Bishop162 Sigurd, and asked him if he knew of any remedy. The bishop answered that he would do what he could, provided God would strengthen his hands to overcome the might of these weather fiends. The picture which the Saga suggests is one that I believe has never yet been attempted by any artist, but there is a fine subject for anyone who could depict163 the northern blue mists, the high rocks, the sea, the great assembly of Viking ships and men, the bright colours contrasted with the sombre hues164 of atmosphere, the bishop in his vestments surrounded by these stalwart storm warriors. “So took Bishop Sigurd all his mass-array and went forth on to the prow of the king’s ship, and let kindle165 the candles, and bore incense166. Then he set up the rood in the prow of the ship, and read out the gospel and many prayers, and sprinkled holy water over all the ship. Then he bade unship the tilt and row in up the firth.” Thereupon all the other ships followed the lead, and lo, as soon as the men in the Crane began to row, the crew felt no wind whatever. The driving storm was gone. In that sudden calm the fleet rowed quietly the one ship astern of the other, and so they arrived at God Isles. There they came upon Raud the Unchristened, and he was put to death with little enough mercy. His dragon-ship was captured, and Olaf called her the Worm—the Little Worm—“because when the sail was aloft then should that be as the wings of the dragon. The fairest of all Norway was that ship.”
The Viking ships had no use for head winds. “But when they sought east into the Wick,” runs the narrative elsewhere, “they got foul167 winds and big, and lay-to105 in havens168 wide about, both in the out-isles and in up the firths.” Dr. Eirikr Magnusson21 believes that the Halogalanders were in the art of navigation far ahead of the more southerly Norwegians about the year A.D. 1000; and interprets the following to indicate this much. For myself, I have a vague suspicion that it may signify not so much navigation as seamanship, and that it means that Raud understood the art of beating to windward. No doubt these squaresail craft would not haul any nearer to the wind than seven points, but these ships were in no great hurry to make quick passages. They could go about on the other tack95 and so have—to quote the Saga’s expression—the wind “at will.” This is the statement under discussion: “Raud rowed out to sea with his dragon, and so let hoist sail; for ever had he wind at will whithersoever he would sail, which thing came from his wizardry.” It seems to me that this is exactly explained by beating to windward when the breeze headed them.
The squaresail was hoisted by the halyard, and the yard was kept to the mast by means of parrals (rakki). The sail when hoisted was said to be “topped,” while its straining at the halyard was poetically169 alluded170 to as “wrangling with the tackle.” “Topped sails with tackle wrangled,” is a sentence found among the Heimskringla. There is more than one illuminating171 reference to the sails of the Norsemen which can claim our attention. “But as they hauled up the sail the halliard broke asunder172, and down came the sail athwart the ship, and a long while Thorir and his must needs tarry there, or ever they got up their sail a second106 time.” It is true that the Vikings relied considerably173 on their oars, but for long passages it is unquestionable that their large squaresail was their main means of propulsion. Thus, for example, a fleet might sail to the fjord under sail-power to meet their enemies, but the sail would be lowered before the fight. The oar was kept in position against the thole-pin, and prevented from slipping along the gunwale by means of a strap174, and the sixty odd rowers, with their fine physical strength and healthy endurance, could make these easy-lined craft leap across the waves with a speed fully116 equal to that which their coloured sails could give to them. There is more than one reference, too, to the different hues of these sails then prevailing in Northern Europe, the “English king Knut” having blue sails on the yard of each of his ships.
When they voyaged there was nothing of the modern hurry of seafaring life. They were not compelled to perform a certain passage within a specified175 number of days, and they could wait as long as their commanders wished for a fair wind to spring up. “After that King Sigurd fared to his ships, and made ready to leave Jerusalem-land. They sailed north to that island which hight Cyprus, and there King Sigurd dwelt somewhile and fared sithence to Greekland, and laid-to all his host off Angelness, and lay there for half a month. And every day was a fair breeze north along the main; but he willed to bide176 such a wind as should be a right side-wind, so that sails might be set end-long of the ship, for all his sails were set with pall177, both fore and aft: for this reason, that both they who were forward, as well as they who were aft, would not to look on the unfair sails.” The meaning of this expression is quite obvious to a seaman. Sigurd clearly wanted to make his voyage with the wind in such a direction that it was abeam178 rather than dead aft. The107 logical inference from this extract is that his ships sailed best on a broad reach rather than when running free. And if we may judge from the lines and dimensions of those Viking ships which have been unearthed179 in Scandinavia in such wonderful preservation180, it is quite certain that these long, straight-keeled craft would be very fast on a wind.
And how were they steered? The rudder was placed on the starboard side, the round top of it being secured to the gunwale by means of a loop which one may call the rudder-strap. At a proper distance down, says Dr. Magnusson, a cone181-shaped piece of wood was nailed to the side of the boat, the top of the cone being plumb182 with the outside of the gunwale. Through the rudder, where it took the form of a broad oar-blade, a hole was made corresponding to one through the cone-shaped piece of wood which went right through the side of the boat. A cord drawn through the hole in the rudder and the conic piece of wood, and made fast within board, gave to the rudder a fixed183 position. By loosening the cord the rudder could be lifted at will and taken inboard. Through the neck of the rudder a square hole was made, into which fitted the end of the tiller, by means of which the helmsman moving it towards him starboarded the rudder, and ported it by performing the exact opposite.
There was a plank184 at the back of the seat of the helmsman against which he could steady himself in handling the helm, just as many a steersman on small craft to-day get support for controlling the tiller in a seaway. This was known as the “staying board.” Thus “Einar shot at Earl Eric, and the arrow smote185 the tiller-head above the head of the earl, and went in up to the shaft186 binding187. The earl looked thereon, and asked if they wist who shot; and even therewith came another arrow so nigh that it flew betwixt the earl’s108 side and his arm, and so on to the staying-board of the steersman, and the point stood far beyond.”
We must picture in our minds the Norse steersman sitting with his face to the starboard side, his hand on the tiller. The stjornbordi—or steering188 side—was the starboard. The bakbordi was the port side. Why bakbordi? Because it was the board at the back of the helmsman when he sat looking to starboard or steering side. And so to this day, although no longer a ship has her rudder at the side, yet the right-hand side of a ship is always the starboard.
Notwithstanding the curious fact that in certain parts of Europe, at an extraordinarily189 early date, chain cables were actually in use, yet it is quite clear that those of the Viking ships were of rope. These cables were twisted round the beaks of the ships, the beaks consisting of pieces of timber placed upright in and about the prow of the ship. They were similar to the bitts such as you see in a modern lifeboat or yacht. So, whenever the Viking vessel was at anchor, or she was lashed190 alongside her enemy in pitched battle, the cable of the anchor or the grapnel was made fast to these timbers. In the account of the flight of Earl Svein, it is recorded that “when the earl saw to how hopeless a pass things were come, he called upon his forecastle men to cut the cables and let loose the ships, and even so they did. Then the king’s men caught the beaks of the ships with grapnels, and thus held them fast. Then the earl cried out that the forecastlemen should hew off the beaks, and even so they did.” And again: “Einar Thambarskelfir had laid his ship on the other board of that of the earl, and his men threw an anchor into the prow of the earl’s ship, and thus they all drifted together into the firth; and after that the whole host of the earl took to flight, and rowed out into the firth.”
109 Ships might not bring-up where they liked. There was decided precedence among the Norsemen, as will be observed from the following incident: “On a summer Earl Hakon had out his fleet, and Thorleif the Sage11 was master of a ship therein. Of that company also was Eric, the earl’s son, who was as then ten or eleven winters old. So, whenever they brought-to in havens at night-tide, nought191 seemed good to Eric but to moor145 his ship next to the earl’s ship. But when they were come south to Mere51, thither192 came Skopti, the earl’s brother-in-law, with a long-ship all manned; but as they rowed up to the fleet, Skopti called out to Thorleif to clear the haven for him, and shift his berth. Eric answered speedily, bidding Skopti take another berth. That heard Earl Hakon, how Eric his son now deemed himself so mighty193 that he would not give place to Skopti. So the earl called out straightway, and bade them leave their berth, saying that somewhat worser lay in store for them else, to wit, to be beaten. So when Thorleif heard that, he cried out to his men to slip their cables; and even so was it done. And Skopti lay in the berth whereas he was wont, next to the earl’s ship to wit.”
There were a number of small row-boats employed by the Vikings, the size of which did not allow of more than six oarsmen. No doubt these were employed for going ashore when the big ships lay some distance from the shore. But often the Viking craft lay alongside piers194. “Gunnstein said that now was the turn of the tide, and it was time to sail. Therewith they drew in their cables.... In this they fared on until they came to Geirsver, the first place where, coming from the north, one may lie at a pier. Thither they came both one day at eve, and lay in haven there off the pier.” The mention is also made of gangways for getting on board from the shore.
110 But sometimes they lay moored stem and stern in much the same fashion as the ancient Greeks were wont. They let go their bow anchors in deep water, veered out cable, took a line ashore from the stern, and then, each ship having done this, the whole fleet were lashed up together side by side just as to-day you often see a whole fleet of fishermen tethered in a small harbour. There are several passages in the Sagas which call attention to the manner in which their ships were moored. “Forthwith when Karli, and his, got aboard their ship, they swept off the tilts195, and cast off the moorings; then they drew up sail, and the ship soon sped off into the main.” Or again ... “said they had seen King Hakon’s host, and all the arrayal thereof; said that they were lying up by the stakes and had moored their sterns to the stakes; they have two east-faring keels, and have laid them outermost196 of all the ships; on these keels are masthead castles, and castles withal in the prow of them both.”
This last quotation197, belonging to the twelfth century, has reference to the mode of fighting which was in vogue198 during the Middle Ages, when the fighting tops, the castellated structures at both bow and stern, were such significant features on these long, narrow ships. The word “keel” is used not, of course, in reference to any particular portion of the ship’s structure, but to the ship as a whole. The word is still in active use to-day on the Humber as applied199 to a species of craft which, with its large squaresail as its only canvas, bears some similarity to the old Norse ceols or keels.
Viking Ship with Awning up ready for the Night.
The crews of these ships slept under those “tilts” or awnings200 which were spread across the ship in an inverted201 V-shape. In harbour the tilts were spread over the entire vessel. But in less sheltered anchorages, and when at sea, tilts were rigged over only portions of the ship to afford sufficient protection to the men.111 But in all cases these tilts or tjalds were struck before the ship went into action, for the obvious reason that it was desirable to have the entire ship clear for fighting. The food-supplies, both solid and fluid, were carried in casks, and the mess system is well described in one of the Sagas entitled “The Story of the Ere-Dwellers.” “In those days,” runs the narrative, “was it the wont of chapmen to have no cooks, but the messmates chose112 by lot amongst themselves who should have the ward24 of the mess day by day. Then, too, was it the wont of all the midshipmen to have their drink in common, and a cask should stand by the mast with the drink therein, and a locked lid was over it. But some of the drink was in tuns, and was added to the cask thence as soon as it was drunk out.”
We know nothing as to whether these Norse ships possessed bilge pumps. The probability is that they did not, but a bailing202 butt139 was certainly part of their inventory203. Evidently there was a well some distance aft, into which any water shipped was allowed to drain and thence bailed204 out, as the reader shall presently see from the following quotation. The description refers to the time when King Harald manned his new dragon-galley. “The said dragon he manned with his court-guard and bareserks,” runs the Saga. “The stem men were the men most tried, because they had with them the king’s banner; aft from the stem to the bailing place was the forecastle, and that was manned by the bareserks. Those only could get court-service with King Harald who were men peerless both of strength and good heart and all prowess; with such only was his ship manned.”
Each oarsman had about three and a half feet to work in. There is more than one reference in these Sagas to the beds and berths205 on the Viking ships. “When the ship of Magnus was much ridded, and he was lying in his berth,” etc. In the ships of war the rowing benches did not stretch right across the vessel, as this would interfere206 with the mobility207 of the fighting men, who must needs be left free to rush forward or aft as the case might be during the battle. The oarsmen therefore had each a bench just roomy enough to sit down and do their work whilst pulling at the oar. Little enough is told us of the commander, but we113 know that in the ship’s inventory was included his mess-table or “meat-board.”
They were strong of body, these Norsemen, like their ships, brave and valiant fighters, and they were not altogether bereft208 of wit, as for instance when, wishing to convey an insult, someone fashioned an anchor from a piece of cheese, and said that “such would hold the ships of Norway’s king.” They were adaptable209, too, as in such cases when they readily took their anchors ashore, bound them to long staves, and employed them for razing210 an enemy’s wall to the ground. But, most of all, they were seamen of the very finest type which the world has ever seen.
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1
incentive
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| n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机 | |
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modification
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| n.修改，改进，缓和，减轻 | |
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disastrous
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| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
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warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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6
maritime
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| adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的 | |
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strenuous
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| adj.奋发的，使劲的；紧张的；热烈的，狂热的 | |
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astronomical
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| adj.天文学的，（数字）极大的 | |
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tar
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| n.柏油，焦油；vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于 | |
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dominion
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| n.统治，管辖，支配权；领土，版图 | |
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sage
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| n.圣人，哲人；adj.贤明的，明智的 | |
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fore
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| adv.在前面；adj.先前的；在前部的；n.前部 | |
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inborn
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| adj.天生的，生来的，先天的 | |
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tricky
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| adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的 | |
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scoured
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| 走遍（某地）搜寻（人或物）( scour的过去式和过去分词 )； （用力）刷； 擦净； 擦亮 | |
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possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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instinctive
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| adj.(出于)本能的；直觉的；(出于)天性的 | |
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faculty
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| n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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configuration
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| n.结构，布局，形态，(计算机)配置 | |
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wont
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| adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯 | |
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ravens
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| n.低质煤；渡鸦( raven的名词复数 ) | |
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23
spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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ward
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| n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开 | |
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mariner
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| n.水手号不载人航天探测器，海员，航海者 | |
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egregious
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| adj.非常的，过分的 | |
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veered
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| v.（尤指交通工具）改变方向或路线( veer的过去式和过去分词 )；（指谈话内容、人的行为或观点）突然改变；（指风） （在北半球按顺时针方向、在南半球按逆时针方向）逐渐转向；风向顺时针转 | |
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accurately
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| adv.准确地，精确地 | |
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latitude
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| n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区 | |
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primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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narrative
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| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
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thwart
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| v.阻挠，妨碍，反对；adj.横(断的) | |
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haze
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| n.霾，烟雾；懵懂，迷糊；vi.(over)变模糊 | |
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fauna
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| n.(一个地区或时代的)所有动物，动物区系 | |
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icebergs
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| n.冰山，流冰( iceberg的名词复数 ) | |
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gulf
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| n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂 | |
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coastal
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| adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的 | |
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38
seamen
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| n.海员 | |
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Mediterranean
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| adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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plundering
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| 掠夺，抢劫( plunder的现在分词 ) | |
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42
monasteries
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| 修道院( monastery的名词复数 ) | |
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cardinal
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| n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的 | |
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44
scoff
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| n.嘲笑，笑柄，愚弄；v.嘲笑，嘲弄，愚弄，狼吞虎咽 | |
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45
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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46
convoy
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| vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队 | |
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replica
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| n.复制品 | |
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48
furrows
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| n.犁沟( furrow的名词复数 )；（脸上的）皱纹v.犁田，开沟( furrow的第三人称单数 ) | |
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intrepid
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| adj.无畏的，刚毅的 | |
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50
mariners
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| 海员，水手（mariner的复数形式） | |
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51
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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52
isle
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| n.小岛，岛 | |
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isles
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| 岛( isle的名词复数 ) | |
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54
Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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55
ravaged
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| 毁坏( ravage的过去式和过去分词 )； 蹂躏； 劫掠； 抢劫 | |
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56
penetrated
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| adj. 击穿的，鞭辟入里的 动词penetrate的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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57
lengthy
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| adj.漫长的，冗长的 | |
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58
tempted
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| v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词） | |
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59
navigating
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| v.给（船舶、飞机等）引航，导航( navigate的现在分词 )；（从海上、空中等）横越；横渡；飞跃 | |
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60
vessels
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| n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人 | |
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61
vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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62
ERECTED
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| adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立 | |
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63
triangular
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| adj.三角（形）的，三者间的 | |
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64
awning
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| n.遮阳篷；雨篷 | |
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65
sagas
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| n.萨迦（尤指古代挪威或冰岛讲述冒险经历和英雄业绩的长篇故事）( saga的名词复数 )；（讲述许多年间发生的事情的）长篇故事；一连串的事件（或经历）；一连串经历的讲述（或记述） | |
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saga
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| n.(尤指中世纪北欧海盗的)故事，英雄传奇 | |
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narratives
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| 记叙文( narrative的名词复数 )； 故事； 叙述； 叙述部分 | |
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68
oar
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| n.桨，橹，划手；v.划行 | |
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69
oars
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| n.桨，橹( oar的名词复数 )；划手v.划（行）( oar的第三人称单数 ) | |
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70
gilded
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| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
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71
prow
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| n.(飞机)机头，船头 | |
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72
prows
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| n.船首( prow的名词复数 ) | |
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73
seaman
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| n.海员，水手，水兵 | |
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74
crimson
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| n./adj.深(绯)红色(的)；vi.脸变绯红色 | |
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75
vanquished
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| v.征服( vanquish的过去式和过去分词 )；战胜；克服；抑制 | |
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76
pennants
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| n.校旗( pennant的名词复数 )；锦标旗；长三角旗；信号旗 | |
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77
ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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78
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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79
pervades
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| v.遍及，弥漫( pervade的第三人称单数 ) | |
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80
grandeur
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| n.伟大，崇高，宏伟，庄严，豪华 | |
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81
hardiest
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| 能吃苦耐劳的，坚强的( hardy的最高级 )； （植物等）耐寒的 | |
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82
condemned
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| adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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83
snug
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| adj.温暖舒适的，合身的，安全的；v.使整洁干净，舒适地依靠，紧贴；n.（英）酒吧里的私房 | |
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84
warships
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| 军舰，战舰( warship的名词复数 )； 舰只 | |
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85
warship
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| n.军舰，战舰 | |
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86
proceeding
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| n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报 | |
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87
prevailing
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| adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的 | |
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88
peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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89
dreaded
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| adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
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90
scuttle
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| v.急赶，疾走，逃避；n.天窗；舷窗 | |
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91
hew
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| v.砍；伐；削 | |
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92
sheared
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| v.剪羊毛( shear的过去式和过去分词 )；切断；剪切 | |
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93
rifts
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| n.裂缝( rift的名词复数 )；裂隙；分裂；不和 | |
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94
askew
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| adv.斜地；adj.歪斜的 | |
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95
tack
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| n.大头钉；假缝，粗缝 | |
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96
bleached
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| 漂白的，晒白的，颜色变浅的 | |
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97
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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98
hoist
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| n.升高，起重机，推动；v.升起，升高，举起 | |
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99
haven
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| n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所 | |
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100
secondly
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| adv.第二，其次 | |
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101
warfare
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| n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突 | |
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102
essentially
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| adv.本质上，实质上，基本上 | |
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103
scuttling
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| n.船底穿孔，打开通海阀（沉船用）v.使船沉没( scuttle的现在分词 )；快跑，急走 | |
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104
beheld
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| v.看，注视( behold的过去式和过去分词 )；瞧；看呀；（叙述中用于引出某人意外的出现）哎哟 | |
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105
bracing
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| adj.令人振奋的 | |
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106
smite
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| v.重击；彻底击败；n.打；尝试；一点儿 | |
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107
rivets
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| 铆钉( rivet的名词复数 ) | |
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108
bulwark
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| n.堡垒，保障，防御 | |
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109
notches
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| n.（边缘或表面上的）V型痕迹( notch的名词复数 )；刻痕；水平；等级 | |
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110
axe
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| n.斧子；v.用斧头砍，削减 | |
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111
offender
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| n.冒犯者，违反者，犯罪者 | |
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112
notched
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| a.有凹口的，有缺口的 | |
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113
notching
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| adj.多级的（指继电器）n.做凹口，开槽v.在（某物）上刻V形痕( notch的现在分词 )；赢得；赢取；获得高分 | |
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114
ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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115
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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116
fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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117
bestow
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| v.把…赠与，把…授予；花费 | |
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118
bulwarks
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| n.堡垒( bulwark的名词复数 )；保障；支柱；舷墙 | |
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119
marvel
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| vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事 | |
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120
wrought
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| v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的 | |
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121
costly
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| adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的 | |
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122
valiant
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| adj.勇敢的，英勇的；n.勇士，勇敢的人 | |
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124
stature
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| n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材 | |
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125
allotted
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| 分配，拨给，摊派( allot的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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126
abaft
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| prep.在…之后；adv.在船尾，向船尾 | |
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127
berth
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| n.卧铺，停泊地，锚位；v.使停泊 | |
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128
arsenal
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| n.兵工厂，军械库 | |
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129
jealousy
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| n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌 | |
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130
crooked
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| adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的 | |
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131
adorned
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| [计]被修饰的 | |
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132
outfit
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| n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装 | |
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133
thong
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| n.皮带；皮鞭；v.装皮带 | |
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134
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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135
gilt
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| adj.镀金的；n.金边证券 | |
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136
blues
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| n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐 | |
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137
disport
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| v.嬉戏，玩 | |
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138
strand
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| vt.使（船）搁浅，使（某人）困于（某地） | |
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139
butt
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| n.笑柄；烟蒂；枪托；臀部；v.用头撞或顶 | |
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140
hoisted
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| 把…吊起，升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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141
steered
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| v.驾驶( steer的过去式和过去分词 )；操纵；控制；引导 | |
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142
tilt
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| v.(使)倾侧；(使)倾斜；n.倾侧；倾斜 | |
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143
pier
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| n.码头；桥墩，桥柱；[建]窗间壁，支柱 | |
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144
moored
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| adj. 系泊的 动词moor的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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145
moor
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| n.荒野，沼泽；vt.(使)停泊；vi.停泊 | |
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146
naval
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| adj.海军的，军舰的，船的 | |
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147
slashing
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| adj.尖锐的；苛刻的；鲜明的；乱砍的v.挥砍( slash的现在分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减 | |
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148
hewing
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| v.（用斧、刀等）砍、劈( hew的现在分词 )；砍成；劈出；开辟 | |
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149
trophies
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| n.（为竞赛获胜者颁发的）奖品( trophy的名词复数 )；奖杯；（尤指狩猎或战争中获得的）纪念品；（用于比赛或赛跑名称）奖 | |
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150
defenders
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| n.防御者( defender的名词复数 )；守卫者；保护者；辩护者 | |
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151
bind
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| vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬 | |
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152
onset
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| n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始 | |
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153
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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154
beaks
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| n.鸟嘴( beak的名词复数 )；鹰钩嘴；尖鼻子；掌权者 | |
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155
lockers
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| n.寄物柜( locker的名词复数 ) | |
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156
fray
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| v.争吵；打斗；磨损，磨破；n.吵架；打斗 | |
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157
javelins
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| n.标枪( javelin的名词复数 ) | |
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158
cupidity
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| n.贪心，贪财 | |
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159
northward
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| adv.向北；n.北方的地区 | |
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160
harassed
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| adj. 疲倦的，厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词 | |
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161
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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162
bishop
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| n.主教，（国际象棋）象 | |
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163
depict
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| vt.描画，描绘；描写，描述 | |
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164
hues
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| 色彩( hue的名词复数 )； 色调； 信仰； 观点 | |
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165
kindle
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| v.点燃，着火 | |
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166
incense
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| v.激怒；n.香，焚香时的烟，香气 | |
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167
foul
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| adj.污秽的；邪恶的；v.弄脏；妨害；犯规；n.犯规 | |
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168
havens
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| n.港口，安全地方( haven的名词复数 )v.港口，安全地方( haven的第三人称单数 ) | |
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169
poetically
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| adv.有诗意地，用韵文 | |
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170
alluded
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| 提及，暗指( allude的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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171
illuminating
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| a.富于启发性的，有助阐明的 | |
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172
asunder
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| adj.分离的，化为碎片 | |
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173
considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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174
strap
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| n.皮带，带子；v.用带扣住，束牢；用绷带包扎 | |
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175
specified
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| adj.特定的 | |
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176
bide
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| v.忍耐；等候；住 | |
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177
pall
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| v.覆盖，使平淡无味；n.柩衣，棺罩；棺材；帷幕 | |
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178
abeam
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| adj.正横着(的) | |
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179
unearthed
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| 出土的（考古） | |
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180
preservation
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| n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持 | |
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181
cone
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| n.圆锥体，圆锥形东西，球果 | |
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182
plumb
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| adv.精确地，完全地；v.了解意义，测水深 | |
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183
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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184
plank
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| n.板条，木板，政策要点，政纲条目 | |
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185
smote
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| v.猛打，重击，打击( smite的过去式 ) | |
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186
shaft
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| n.(工具的)柄，杆状物 | |
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187
binding
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| 有约束力的，有效的，应遵守的 | |
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188
steering
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| n.操舵装置 | |
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189
extraordinarily
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| adv.格外地；极端地 | |
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190
lashed
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| adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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191
nought
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| n.／adj.无，零 | |
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192
thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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193
mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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194
piers
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| n.水上平台( pier的名词复数 )；（常设有娱乐场所的）突堤；柱子；墙墩 | |
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195
tilts
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| （意欲赢得某物或战胜某人的）企图，尝试( tilt的名词复数 ) | |
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196
outermost
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| adj.最外面的，远离中心的 | |
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197
quotation
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| n.引文，引语，语录；报价，牌价，行情 | |
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198
Vogue
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| n.时髦，时尚；adj.流行的 | |
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199
applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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200
awnings
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| 篷帐布 | |
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201
inverted
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| adj.反向的，倒转的v.使倒置，使反转( invert的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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202
bailing
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| （凿井时用吊桶）排水 | |
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203
inventory
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| n.详细目录，存货清单 | |
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204
bailed
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| 保释，帮助脱离困境( bail的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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205
berths
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| n.（船、列车等的）卧铺( berth的名词复数 )；（船舶的）停泊位或锚位；差事；船台vt.v.停泊( berth的第三人称单数 )；占铺位 | |
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206
interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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207
mobility
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| n.可动性，变动性，情感不定 | |
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208
bereft
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| adj.被剥夺的 | |
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209
adaptable
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| adj.能适应的，适应性强的，可改编的 | |
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210
razing
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| v.彻底摧毁，将…夷为平地( raze的现在分词 ) | |
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