Regard should always be paid, on entering land-locked waters from the open sea, to the force of the wind. Many open-sea sailors, from being accustomed to a fair amount of wave disturbance whenever the wind has any strength in it, are misled when sailing in enclosed lochs by the smoothness of the water, and so, misjudging the force of the wind, are apt to carry on longer than is desirable, to the danger of spars. When cruising in the vicinity of yachts racing, the yacht should be kept well out of the way to leeward; and if by chance she happens to find herself to windward of an approaching racing yacht, her head should be turned in whatever direction will seem the best for not taking the wind out of the racer's sails. When coming to in unknown or any other roads or anchorage, the prevailing wind should not be forgotten, and the spot chosen for letting go the killick should be one from which a speedy retreat can be made should necessity compel. An outside berth in a close-crowded anchorage is therefore always the safest, though, perhaps, not always the most agreeable. The writer hopes that these few wrinkles may prove as serviceable to the readers of these pages as they have been from time to time to himself. It must be remembered that, when the yachtsman is caught out in a breeze of wind and is obliged to take in a couple of reefs in the mainsail, house his topmast, and shift his jibs, it does not necessarily mean the presence of 'great guns.' It takes very little wind to raise a sea in the channels round our coasts, and to make the small yachtsman sniff a hurricane. In order, therefore, to become accurate about the force of the wind or sea, the writer recommends the 'Meteorological Notes,' supplied (at 5_s._ per annum) by Mr. Scott from the Meteorological Office, London, as being most useful for the purpose, and most interesting for reference. His principle is to have the papers sent to his home address, where they remain till the yacht's return to lay up. Then the log or note-book is brought out, notes of the dates on which he relieved his bark and had been more severely knocked about than usual are referred back to, and a very fair idea as to the true local weather is obtained. A knowledge of wind and weather is soon acquired thus. [Illustration: In the Channel.] CHAPTER XIII YACHT INSURANCE BY G. L. BLAKE A book on yachting would not be complete without a few words relating to yacht insurance. There are hundreds of owners who never think of taking out a Marine policy on their boats, simply because they do not know how easy it is; twenty-five years ago indeed only a few insured because it was not generally understood that Lloyd's Agents were willing to underwrite their names against all yachting risks. All yachts should be insured, and therefore the writer will endeavour to explain some of the special clauses contained under a yachting policy.