Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Boatswain
- Note that "Bosun," spelled that way, is the NATO reporting name for the Soviet Tupolev Tu-14 bomber.
A boatswain (pronounced and often spelt bosun, derived from boat and swain, a servant.) is a warrant officer or petty officer in charge of a ship's anchors, cordage, colours, deck crew and the ship's boats. Onboard a sailing ship such as a man-of-war or a galleon, the boatswain would also be in charge of the rigging while the ship was in dock. It was his duty to summon the crew to work by a whistle.
Onboard merchant vessels, the boatswain is the foreman of the crew, and is sometimes also the third or fourth mate .
Boatswain is also another name for the skua, a predatory bird, though it can be applied to any species of gull of the genus Stercorarius.
Reference
09-23-2007 01:00:40
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details