Page:Small-boat sailing; an explanation of the management of small yachts, half-decked and open sailing-boats of various rigs; sailing on sea and on river; cruising, etc (IA smallboatsailing01knig).pdf/23

 on an exposed coast after each sail; and so forth.

I will suppose that the tyro has come to a decision as to the class of craft he requires, whether it be sailing dinghy or five-ton cutter, and that he is looking round the various boat-builders' yards to pick up a good second-hand craft; for it is generally a mistake to have a boat built for one until one has gained considerable experience and understands exactly what one wants. Excellent second-hand boats can often be purchased at less than a quarter of what they cost to build, and yet be in all respects practically as good as new.

But great caution should be observed in the selection. Do not be deceived by a fair exterior, so easily produced by a discriminate application of paint, putty, and oakum. Examine the vessel carefully before concluding the purchase, or you may find yourself wofully deceived. I remember, some years ago, seeing a 'great bargain' lying off the Mall, at Hammersmith—an unlikely place for a yacht. She was a cutter, of about ten tons, that had been purchased below bridges for a ridiculously small sum, by a young man of Hammersmith, who had no experience whatever of sailing, and scarcely knew one end of a boat from the other; but it was his ambition to become a yachtsman. Having bought his cutter, he had her towed up to Hammersmith, where she was to be fitted out. He modestly announced that as soon as she was