Naut. Also 9 fodder, [prob. ad. Du. voederen (now voeren), or LG. fodern = Ger. fȍttern to line (used also Naut. as below); cf. further ON. fóðra to line, f. OTeut. *fóðro- sheath, etc. (mentioned under FODDER sb.: see also FUR, FOREL).]
1. trans. To cover (a sail) thickly with oakum, rope yarn, or other loose material fastened on it, with the view of getting some of it sucked into a leak, over which the sail is to be drawn.
1789. A. Duncan, Mariner’s Chron. (1805), IV. 36. The leak began again to gain upon them, a second sail was fothered and got under the bottom.
1790. Ann. Reg., 263. Fothering it round with oakum, to fill up.
1811. Naval Chron., XXV. 4. The only remaining sail had been fothered, and drawn under the ship, in the forlorn hope of diminishing the influx of water, but without the slightest effect.
1833. M. Scott., Tom Cringle, iii. (1859), 93. Get the boatswain to fother a sail then, man, and try it over the leak.
2. To stop a leak by this method.
1800. Naval Chron., III. 473. By foddering, and those excellent pumps, we kept her above water.
1820. Scoresby, Acc. Arctic Reg., II. 449. The different plans which I conceived might be adopted in the present case, or which I knew had been adopted to stop a leak in former cases, were the following, viz. 1. To fother.
Hence Fother (fodder) sb., the material used for fothering. Fothering vbl. sb., the action of the vb. Also attrib., as fothering-mat, -sail.
1800. Naval Chron., III. 473. Our Ship was full of water to the hold beams before we could get a sail with fodder over.
1815. Falconer’s Dict. Marine (ed. Burney), s.v. A superior method of fothering is now practised, which is performed in the following manner; that is, by fastening a sail at the four corners, letting it down under the ship’s bottom, and then putting a quantity of chopped rope-yarns, oakum, wool, cotton, &c. between it and the ship’s side.
1819. J. H. Vaux, Mem., I. xx. 226. Applying what is termed a fothering mat to her bows, to remedy this evil, but without effect.
1820. Scoresby, Acc. Arctic Reg., II. 451. A bunch of rope-yarns, straw or oakum, might enter some of the larger leaks and retard the influx of water, if applied near the place through the medium of a fothering sail.
