There is no difficulty in the learned writing for the learned, but it is extremely difficult to compose a work for the instruction of the ignorant. The more comprehensive and exact knowledge the writer has of his subject the more arduous is the effort to express his thoughts in such simplicity as will make it understandable to those who have little or no knowledge of the subject he treats. This is doubly so when the subject is one like sailing—an art whose language is wholly technical and almost totally divorced from the common expressions of life. It is impossible to translate sea language into land language; nor is it possible to explain the conditions and operations of the art without employing sea terms.

In this work I have endeavored to avoid as far as is possible the employment of intricate or obscure technical language, and where it is used have endeavored to explain the meaning and define the application. This book is intended for the use of persons who are supposed to be altogether ignorant of the art of sailing. It is a primer and, therefore, is almost absurdly simple and profuse in explanatory details. But my experience as a teacher has taught me that such books cannot be too simple, and that in order to be understandable they must be loaded with explanations of explanations until nothing is left to explain. To those who know, this will seem unnecessary, but it must be remembered that many who will learn from this book, have not only never handled a sailing boat, but have never seen one before, and have but extremely crude notions of how the canvas and helm are employed to drive and direct them.

In regard to the glossary: The definitions given are those that define the terms as used in sailing or navigating small craft, and may have a different meaning when applied to larger vessels. It is very difficult to exactly define many nautical terms, as they are words in action, and consequently present different phases, as they are differently employed. In many cases only one who is a trained seaman can comprehend their exact purport or understand their significant application.