holystone

noun

1. A piece of soft sandstone used for scouring the wooden decks of ships, usually with sand and seawater.
2. A stone with a naturally-formed hole, used by Yorkshiremen for good luck.

verb

1. (transitive)To use a holystone.

   “Six days shalt thou labour and do all thou art able, And on the seventh—holystone the decks and scrape the cable.”

   “The boils called sand boils, which form on the front of the knee, are generally produced by small particles of sand being rubbed beneath the skin when the men are kneeling to holystone the decks. Very troublesome sores are thus produced. Great care should, therefore, be taken never to kneel with the bare knees upon a sanded deck.”

   “Six days shalt thou labor and do all that thou art able, / And on the seventh holystone the deck and scrape the cable.”