erm loosely
applied to any war-horse.

CHARITY-SLOOPS. Certain 10-gun brigs built towards the end of Napoleon's
war, something smaller than the 18-gun brigs; these were rated sloops,
and scandal whispers "in order that so many commanders might charitably
be employed."

CHARLES'S WAIN. The seven conspicuous stars in Ursa Major, of which two
are called the pointers, from showing a line to the pole-star.

CHART, OR SEA-CHART. A hydrographical map, or a projection of some part
of the earth's superficies _in plano_, for the use of navigators,
further distinguished as plane-charts, Mercator's charts, globular
charts, and the bottle or current chart, to aid in the investigation of
surface currents (all which see). A selenographic chart represents the
moon, especially as seen by the aid of photography and Mr. De la Rue's
arrangement.

CHARTER. To charter a vessel is to take her to freight, under a
charter-party. The charter or written instrument by which she is hired
to carry freight.

CHARTERED SHIP. One let to hire to one or more, or to a company. A
_general_ ship is where persons, unconnected, load goods.

CHARTERER. The person hiring or chartering a ship, or the government or
a company by their agents.

CHARTER-PARTY. The deed or written contract between the owners and the
merchants for the hire of a ship, and safe delivery of the cargo; thus
differing from a bill of lading, which relates only to a portion of the
cargo. It is the same in civil law with an indenture at the common law.
It ought to contain the name and burden of the vessel, the names of the
master and freighters, the place and time of lading and unlading, and
stipulations as to demurrage. The charter-party is dissolved by a
complete embargo, though not by the temporary stopping of a port. It is
thus colloquially termed a pair of indentures.

CHASE, TO. To pursue a ship, which is also called giving chase.--_A
stern chase_ is when the chaser follows the chased astern, directly upon
the same point of the compass.--_To lie with a ship's fore-foot in a
chase_, is to sail and meet with her by the nearest distance, and so to
cross her in her way, as to come across her fore-foot. A ship is said to
have a good chase when she is so built forward or astern that she can
carry many guns to shoot forwards or backwards; according to which she
is said to have a good forward or good stern chase. Chasing to windward,
is often termed chasing in the wind's eye.

CHASE