pecially in getting
out, put down your paddle first, and then, grasping the gunwale firmly
in each hand, rise by putting your weight equally on both sides of the
canoe. If your canoe should drift away sideways from the
landing-place, when you are trying to land, place the blade of your
paddle flat upon the water in the direction of the wharf and gently
draw the canoe up to the landing-place with a slight sculling motion.

When it is necessary to cross the waves in rough water, always try to
cross them "quartering," i. e. at an oblique angle, but not at right
angles. Crossing big waves at right angles {177} is difficult and apt
to strain a canoe, and getting lengthwise between the waves is
dangerous. Always have more weight aft than in the bow; but, when
there is only one person in the canoe, it may be convenient to place a
weight forward as a balance; but it should always be lighter than the
weight aft. A skillful canoeman will paddle a light canoe even in a
strong wind by kneeling at a point about one third of the length from
the stern.

For the purpose of sailing in a canoe the Lateen rig is the safest,
most easily handled, and the best all-round sailing outfit. For a
seventeen-foot canoe a sail having forty square feet of surface is to
be recommended, and, in all except very high winds, this can be
handled by one man.

[Illustration: Canoe with sail.]

The Lateen sail is made in the form of an equilateral triangle, and
two sides are fastened to spars which are connected at one end by a
hinge or jaw. The mast--which should be set well forward--should be so
long that, when the sail is spread and the slanting upper spar is
swung from the top of the mast, the lower spar will swing level about
six to eight inches above the gunwale and hang clear above all parts
of the boat in going about. The sail is hoisted by a halyard attached
at, or a little above, the centre of the upper spar, then drawn
through a block attached to the brace which holds the mast in
position, {178} and thus to the cleats--within easy reach of the
sailor. The sheet line is fastened to the lower spar, about two feet
from the outer end; and, when not held in the hand, may be fastened to
another cleat. Both halyard and sheet should at all times be kept
clear, so as to run easily, and with knots about the cleats that can
be instantly slipped.

The leeboard is a necessary attachment to the sailing outfit. It is
made with two blades--about three f