Man on the Ocean

R. M. Ballantyne begins with a ship imagined as a floating home, carrying a whole community across open water. Written for young readers, his account of boats and ships combines descriptions of their construction and equipment with stories of the dangers of seafaring. Early chapters consider rafts, hollowed logs, canoes and coracles, while the discussion of origins includes both conjecture and the biblical account of Noah's ark.

The practical explanations give the book much of its interest. Ballantyne describes reefing and furling sails, the work of sailors on the yards, and the purpose of a bowsprit. He also explains port and starboard, sounding the depth with a lead, and the small cargo vessels used in British coastal trade. Readers curious about older sailing language can follow how equipment, labour and weather fit together, while seeing the beliefs and assumptions through which this nineteenth-century author presented maritime history.