The foot-ropes to the spanker-boom should be half the length of the boom, going over the end with a splice, covered with canvass, and coming in one third of the way to the jaws, and seized to the boom by a rose-seizing through an eye-splice. The next to go over the boom-end are the guys, which are fitted with a cut-splice covered with canvass, and have a single block turned in at their other ends. To these single blocks are luff or gun-tackle purchases, going to the main brace-bumpkin. Their length should be two fifths that of the boom. The topping-lifts are usually hooked into a band or spliced into bolts about one quarter the distance from the outer end of the boom, and reeve through single blocks under the top, with a double or single block at their lower ends. All the splices and seizings of the standing rigging should be covered with canvass, if possible, except in the channels and about the head, where they are too much exposed to the washing of water. A vessel looks much neater for having the ends of the rigging, where eyes are spliced, or where they are set up on their ends aloft or on deck, covered with canvass, and painted white or black, according to the place where they are. The lanyards and dead-eyes of the smaller rigging which sets up in the top may also be covered with canvass. The lanyards, dead-eyes, and turnings-in of the rigging in the channels, should always be protected by scotchmen when at sea, and the forward shroud should be matted or battened all the way up to the futtock staves. In some smaller merchantmen the lower rigging is not infrequently set up upon its end to bolts in the rail. This is very inconvenient on many accounts, especially as all the seizings have to be come up with, and the nip of the shroud altered, whenever it is at all necessary to set them taut. This soon defaces and wears out the ends; while, with dead-eyes, only the lanyards have to be come up with. Some vessels set up their lower rigging with dead-eyes upon the rail. This is convenient in setting them up in bad weather, but does not give so much spread as when set up in the channels, and presents a more complicated surface to the eye. If the rigging is fitted in this way, you must deduct the height of the rail above the deck from the measure before given for cutting it.