Nautical dialect

Question

While translating a short story called The Flying Weathercock by Edward Page Mitchel, which takes place in Newaggen town in Maine, I had a difficulty understanding the nautical dialect of two characters, namely a captain and his assistant. I wonder if anyone could help me understand what they are saying in this paragraph: "Aye, aye, Cap'n Trott!" he responded from the wheel. "Howz hellum?" he

demanded from the forecastle.

"Har' down, Cap'n Trott," he reported from the wheel. "Makin' much starnway?"

"Beat's nater, the starnway, Cap'n Trott."

"Shake down the centerboard a peg, Peleg."

"It's clean chapped now, Cap'n Trott."

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

I can't believe the writer expected his readers to understand any of that. I think you are supposed to be as mystified as I am by their exchange, as if you were overhearing what is essentially a foreign language. He is writing in eye dialect, too, not spelling the words as they would normally be spelled but rather spelling them as they are being pronounced by the salty dogs.

That said, I

That said, I can pick out a little and guess at some more. "Starnway" is "sternway", rearward motion of a ship. I assume the centerboard is an adjustable keel held in its set position with pegs, and their centerboard is already fully extended.

Thanks for this post. I hadn't heard of Mitchell before, and I think I'd better read him.

GPY · Answer

Also ...

"Aye" means "yes" (probably you know that one).

I think "Howz hellum?" means "How's (the) helm?", asking about the position of the ship's wheel, then "Har' down" would be "Hard down", referring to the wheel being turned to its maximum extent in one direction.

Tkacka15 · Answer

anonymous"Har' down, Cap'n Trott," he reported from the wheel. "Makin' much starnway?"

If the ship is underway, I read it as:

"Hard to starboard (a command to the helmsman to put the ship rudder to its maximum right-hand position), I'm steering much more to the starboard side (changing the ship course clockwise in a rapid way)."

Anonymous · Answer

Here's my interpretation of this (I have no nautical experience, so I'm guessing a lot here):

A ship's captain, named Peleg Trott, is highly intoxicated and is having a conversation (some of it garbled) with himself. The people in his dialog are: "Peleg" (the first mate) and "Captain Trott."

"Peleg" (from the wheel): "Aye, aye, Cap'n Trott!" (= "Yes, sir, Captain.")

"Trott" (from the forecastle): "Howz hellum?" (= "How's the helm?")

"Peleg": "Har' down, Cap'n Trott," he reported from the wheel. (= "The wheel is hard down [turned all the way to one side] Captain.")

"Trott": "Makin' much starnway?" (= "Are you making much sternway"? They're apparently tacking and so rather than "headway," they're making "sternway," diagonal progress against the wind.

"Peleg": "Beat's nater, the starnway, Cap'n Trott." (= "The tack is not going well with the sternway, Captain." "Beat" or "beating" is nautical slang for tacking, sailing into the wind and making forward progress painstakingly with a zig zag course. "Nater" is apparently nautical slang for negative. This is akin to words like: not, later, peter out, nah, nada, and nothing.

"Trott": "Shake down the centerboard a peg, Peleg." (= "Then lengthen the adjustable keel, Peleg." The keel apparently plays a role in tacking, because the forces on the ship are from the side mainly. So the keel would need to be at full length when tacking - and shorter when sailing with the wind, to reduce drag.)

"Peleg": "It's clean chapped now, Cap'n Trott." (= "The keel is at full length already, Captain.")

Nautical dialect

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