The Power and the Glory (43 page)

swivel-gun
A small cannon mounted on a swivel so that it can be fired in any direction.

 

tack
A sailing vessel's course relative to the direction of the wind and the position of her sails. On a “starboard tack,” the wind is coming across the starboard side. Also, the corner to which a rope is fastened to secure the sail.

taffrail
The rail at the upper end of a ship's stern.

tampion
A wooden stopper for the muzzle of a gun.

tholepin
or
thole
One of a pair of pegs set in a gunwale of a boat to hold an oar in place.

three sheets to the wind
Very drunk.

top
A platform constructed at the head of each of the lower masts of a ship to extend the topmast shrouds. Also used as a lookout and fighting platform.

topgallant
The third mast, sail, or yard above the deck.

top-hamper
A ship's masts, sails, and rigging.

topsail
The second sail above the deck, set above the course or mainsail.

touchhole
A vent in the breech of a firearm through which the charge is ignited.

tumblehome
The inward inclination of a ship's upper sides that causes the upper deck to be narrower than the lower decks.

 

waist
The middle part of a ship's upper deck between the quarterdeck and the forecastle.

wardroom
The messroom on board ship for the commissioned officers and senior warrant officers.

watch
A fixed period of duty on a ship. Watches are traditionally four hours long except for the two dogwatches, which are two hours long.

wherry
A rowboat used to carry passengers.

windward
Facing the wind or on the side facing the wind. Contrast
leeward
.

 

xebec
A three-masted Arab corsair equipped with lateen sails. Larger xebecs had a square sail on the foremast.

 

yard
A cylindrical spar slung across a ship's mast from which a sail hangs.

yardarm
The outer extremity of a yard.

About the Author

W
ILLIAM C. HAMMOND is a literary agent and business consultant who lives with his three sons in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A lifelong student of history and a longtime devotee of nautical fiction, he sails whenever possible on Lake Superior and off the coast of New England.

The Naval Institute Press
is the book-publishing arm of the U.S. Naval Institute, a private, nonprofit, membership society for sea service professionals and others who share an interest in naval and maritime affairs. Established in 1873 at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, where its offices remain today, the Naval Institute has members worldwide.

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and discounts on fine nautical prints and on ship and aircraft photos. They also have access to the transcripts of the Institute's Oral History Program and get discounted admission to any of the Institute-sponsored seminars offered around the country.

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© 2011 by William C. Hammond III

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

 

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

 

Hammond, William C.,

The power and the glory : a novel / by William C. Hammond. p. cm.

eISBN : 978-1-612-51072-9

1. United States. Navy—History—18th century—Fiction. 2. United States—History,
Naval—To 1900—Fiction. 3. United States—History—1797–1801—Fiction.
4. United States—Foreign relations—France—Fiction. 5. France—Foreign
relations—United States—Fiction. I. Title.

PS3608.A69586P69 2011

813'.6—dc22

2011019894

 

This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper).

First printing