A mode of working a windlass. By the alternating motion of the long hand-lever to the right, motion is communicated to the short lever, the end of which is in immediate contact with the rim of the wheel. The short lever has a very limited motion upon a pin, which is fixed in a block of cast-iron, which is made with two jaws, each having a flange projecting inward in contact with the inner surface of the rim of the wheel. By the upward motion of the outward end of the short lever, the rim of the wheel is jammed between the end of the lever and the flanges of the block, so as to cause friction sufficient to turn the wheel by the further upward movement of the lever. The backward movement of the wheel is prevented by a common ratchet-wheel and pawls ; as the short lever is pushed down it frees the wheel and slides freely over it.