Page:Boating - Woodgate - 1888.pdf/146

 working horizontally in slits cut in the beard. he foot presses against one bar or other to direct the mdder. Another process is to fix a shoe to the stretcher, in which the oarsman places his fool, This shoe works laterally, The third is one tried by the writer in 1868. Eyery inventor thinks his goose a swan, and possibly the writer is over-sanguine as to the merits of his own hobby. It consists of two bars Jaid on the stretcher, like a very widely opened letter V, the arms of the V pointing in the direction of the sitter. Each arm is hinged at the apex of the Y. The stretcher is grooved, so that either arm can be pressed into the groove, flush with the surface of the stretcher. Be- hind each bar is a spring. ‘he hars cross the stretcher just about the ballof the foot. ‘Ihe hinge is sunk deep in the wood, so that the arms of the levers do not begin to project above the weed till seme 5 inches on cither side of the centre of the stretcher. ‘lhe feet are placed in ordinary rowing pose, in the middle of the V, where the levers lie below the flush surface of the stretcher, ‘The strap, though tight, has a zde loop, to admit of slight lateral movement of the fect. ‘To put on radder either foot is slipped half an inch or so outward. ‘This brings it on to the lever of that side, and the pressure of the foot drives the lever flush. This pressure and movement of the lever, by means of another small lever and swivel outside the gunwale, in connection with it, works the rudder line. When steerage enough has been obtained, a half-inch return of the foot to its normal pose releases the lever, and the spring behind it at once brings it to status quo ante.

Now in the other two mechanisms above cited, the same foot has to steer doch wi Hence, for one of the two direc- tions, the toe must turn in like a pigcon’s. ‘This must, for the moment, cripple leg-vork, especially on slides, Again, with lateral movement in first and second machmmes, it is difficult for the stecrer to know to exactness when his rudder is ‘off.’ He may, in returning it after steerage, leave it a trifle on, or carry it the other way too far. If so, he has to counter-steer a stroke or tio later, till he feels that his rudder is free and trailing.