slotch

slotchhave indicated above dogwood trees were not very common an that part of the South Coast and were rarely big enough for use as a tiller stick. _Tiller sticks_ were about 2" inches in diameter and about 4' long, the part held in the hand was rounded then the stick was flattened towards the opposite end and then a slot about 4" by 1 1/2 " was cut in it to fit over the rudder. The "_Purged_" (i.e. the best) ones were those with a crook in them on which the arm could be rested comfortably in a slightly curved position. In Fair Island the slot was called a "_slotch_".YesDNE-cit [-]slatch[-]JH 3/72 JWNot usedNot usedWithdrawn[see also 'tiller stick']Checked by Raji Sreeni on Sun 23 Aug 2015; Stamped but not used