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146 THOMPSON'S COAST PILOT. Beating to windward, the making a progress against the direction of the wind, by steering alternately close-hauled on the starboard and port tacks. To becalm, to intercept the current of the wind, in its passage to a ship by any contiguous object, as a shore above her sails, a high sea behind, etc., and thus one sail is said to becalm another.: Before the beam, denotes an arc of the horizon comprehended between the line of the beam, which is at right angles to the keel, and that point of the compass on which the ship stems. See Bearing. Belay, to make fast any running rope, as, Belay the main brace, or, make it fast. Bend, to apply to, and fasten; as, Bend the sails--apply them to the yards and fasten them. Undbend the sails,that is, cast them off, and take them from the yards. Her sails are unbent, she has none fixed. Bend the cable, make it fast to the anchor. Beneaped. See Neaped. | Berth; a place; as the ship's berth; the place where she is moored.--An officer's berth; his place in the ship to eat or sleep in.--Berth the ship's com- pany; that is, allot to them their places to mess in. Berth the hammocks, point out where each man's hammock is to hang. Between decks, the space contained between any two decks of a ship. Bight of a rope; the double part of a rope when it is a abights a narrow inlet of the sea. Bilge; to break.-- T'he ship is bilged,; that is, her planks are broken in by violence. Bilge-water i is that which, by reason of the flatness of the ship's bottom, lies on her floor, and cannot go to the well of the pump. Binnacle; a kind of box to contain the compasses in upon deck. Bitis; very large pieces of timber in the fore part of a ship, round which the cables are fastened when the ship is at anchor.--After-bitts; a smaller kind of bitts upon the quarter-deck, for belaying the running rigging to. : To bitt the cable, is. to confine be cable to the bitts, by one turn under the cross-piece, and another turn round the bitt-head. In this position it may be either kept fixed, or it may be veered away. : Bitter; the turn of the cable round the bitts.---Bitterend, that part of the cable which stays within board, round about the ge when the ship is at anchor. Block; a piece of wood, with running sheaves or wheels in it, through which the running rigging is passed, to add to the purchase. Board; to board a ship, is to enter it in a hostile manner, to enter a ship. Board; to make a board is making a stretch upon any tack, when a shipis working upona wind. 7 board it up; that is to turn to windward. --The ship has made a stern board; that is, when she loses ground in work- ing upon a wind,