of the tackle being fastened to the single block. It is used for a variety of purposes, among others for the main sheet on a small cutter.
A Watch Tackle is a luff tackle with a tail—a rope some feet in length—on the double block, and a hook on the single block. A watch tackle should always be kept in some convenient place on a yacht's deck, for it is employed on all sorts of odd jobs when more 'beef' is wanted. It is indeed almost worth an extra hand on board, so sailors dub it the 'Handy Billy.' Among other things it is useful for setting up the rigging. It is employed as follows: the single block is hooked on to a ring-bolt on deck, or to a strop or bight of a rope secured to the bits or other strong piece of timber; while the tail of the double block is fastened by a rolling hitch (see Fig. 25) to the shroud or rope which has to be hauled taut.
Power can be multiplied when necessary, by clapping one purchase on another. A Luff-upon-Luff Tackle, for example, is formed with two watch tackles by bending the tail of the double block of the second tackle on the fall of the first tackle. A pull of one pound on the hauling part will then exert a force of sixteen pounds at the further end of the tackle.
If some accident happen to one part of a tackle or purchase—if a strand be chafed through, for example—and it becomes necessary to repair the damage, while at the same time it is undesirable to slack up the tackle, or to take it from the work it is
