Chris-Craft 2015 21 Carina Owner's Manual page 189

Glossary Of Boating Terminology
Striking The Flag
Striking the ensign was and is the universally recognized indication of surrender.
Suit
Nautical term, dating from at least the early 1600s, meaning the outfit of sails used by a ship. The term was
revived after World War II, when a Navy ship's complement of electronics could be referred to as its
electronics suit, and its total armament might be called its weapons suit. The word is sometimes incorrectly
spelled "suite."
Tar, Jack Tar
Tar, a slang term for a Sailor, has been in use since at least 1676. The term "Jack tar" was used by the
1780s. Early Sailors wore overalls and broad-brimmed hats made of tar-impregnated fabric called tarpaulin
cloth. The hats, and the Sailors who wore them, were called tarpaulins, which may have been shortened to
tars.
Toe the line
The space between each pair of deck planks in a wooden ship was filled with a packing material called
"oakum" and then sealed with a mixture of pitch and tar. The result, from afar, was a series of parallel lines a
half-foot or so apart, running the length of the deck. Once a week, as a rule, usually on Sunday, a warship's
crew was ordered to fall in at quarters - that is, each group of men into which the crew was divided would
line up in formation in a given area of the deck. To insure a neat alignment of each row, the Sailors were
directed to stand with their toes just touching a particular seam. Another use for these seams was punitive.
The youngsters in a ship, be they ship's boys or student officers, might be required to stand with their toes
just touching a designated seam for a length of time as punishment for some minor infraction of discipline,
such as talking or fidgeting at the wrong time. A tough captain might require the miscreant to stand there,
not talking to anyone, in fair weather or foul, for hours at a time. Hopefully, he would learn it was easier and
more pleasant to conduct himself in the required manner rather than suffer the punishment. From these two
uses of deck seams comes our cautionary word to obstreperous youngsters to "toe the line."
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