ABACK

The sails are said to be taken aback, when they are brought into this situation, either by a sudden change of the wind, or by an alteration in the ship's course. They are laid aback, to effect an immediate retreat, without turning to the right or lest; or, in the sea-phrase, to give the ship stern-way, in order to avoid some danger discovered before her in a narrow channel; or when the has advanced beyond her station in the line of battle, or otherwise.

The sails are placed in this position by slackening their lee-braces, and hauling in the weather ones; so that the whole effort of the wind is exerted on the fore-part of their surface, which readily pushes the ship astern, unless she is restrained by some counteracting force. See BACKING, and BRACING.

It is also usual to spread some sail aback near the stern, as the mizen-top-sail, when a ship rides with a single anchor in a road, in order to prevent her from approaching it so as to entangle the flukes of it with her slackened cable, and thereby loosen it from the ground. See ANCHOR,

Fig. 14. plate III. discovers the plan of a ship, a b, with her main-top-sail, c d, aback; in which the curved doted line expresses the cavity of it, as blown back by the wind on each side of the mast. The fore-top-sail, which is full, is exhibited by the line e f. Fig. 13. represents a perspective view of the ship in the same situation; and the dart shews the direction of the wind upon both.

Plate III

Lay all flat ABACK, the order to arrange all the sails in this situation.

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