The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.2 / Page 304 (Color Image)

0304	The Book of Ser Marco Polo : vol.2

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MARCO POLO BooK III.

forward, whereby it often shall stave in some part of the

ship). In such case the water that enters the leak flows

to the bilge, which is always kept clear ; and the mariners

having ascertained where the damage is, empty the cargo

from that compartment into those adjoining, for the

planking is so well fitted that the water cannot pass from

one compartment to another. They then stop the leak

and replace the ladi n g.3]

The fastenings are all of good iron nails and the sides

are double, one plank laid over the other, and caulked

outside and in. The planks are not pitched, for those

people do not have any pitch, but they daub the sides

with another matter, deemed by them far better than

pitch ; it is this. You see they take some lime and some

chopped hemp, and these they knead together with a

certain wood-oil ; and when the three are thoroughly

amalgamated, they hold like any glue. And with this

mixture they do paint their ships.4

Each of their great ships requires at least 200 mariners

[some of them 300]. They are indeed of great size, for

one ship shall carry 5000 or 6000 baskets of pepper [and

they used formerly to be larger than they are now]. And

aboard these ships, you must know, when there is no

wind they use sweeps, and these sweeps are so big that

to pull them requires four mariners to each.5 Every

great ship has certain large barks or tenders attached to

it ; these are large enough to carry I000 baskets of

pepper, and carry 50 or 6o mariners apiece [some of them

8o or lao], and they are likewise moved by oars ; they

assist the great ship by towing her, at such times as her

sweeps are in use [or even when she is under sail, if the

wind be somewhat on the beam ; not if the wind be astern,

for then the sails of the big ship would take the wind out

of those of the tenders, and she would run them down].

Each ship has two [or three] of these barks, but one is

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