"Liverpool Judies" refers to the currents in the Mersey Estuary (or round that way somewhere; maybe tidal?), which speed the ship on her way to the port. Richard Dana in "Two years before the mast" said that when a vessel got into the north-bound currrent (I forget which one!) off the Eastern Seabord, the sailors used to say "The Boston girls have got hold of the tow-rope." That would make a nice illustion, I think; in fact there's a faint glimmer of Heath Robinson's pics for Anderen's "Little memaid" at the back of my mind.

There are some contemprary wood-engraved illustrations of the Alabama and the Kearsage, which are worth looking at for verisimiltude's sake; the guns are unbelievably enormous!

Les from Hull: you obviously know the same "Crabfish" I do. Now that would make for some interesting drawings!

Many years ago my then singing partner, Barrie Roberts, printed a lot of songs on "broadsheets" (which were actually no bigger than A4) with copies of woodcuts or wood engravings or sometimes original drawings of his own. John Foreman, the self-styled "Broadsheet King" has been doing the same thing since time immoral, too. I think we should encourage this kind of thing, and maybe Amy (and others) would make them available through the Mudcat?

Steve