tarpaulin

n. [ Tar + palling a covering, pall to cover. See Pall a covering. ] 1. A piece of canvas covered with tar or a waterproof composition, used for covering the hatches of a ship, hammocks, boats, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. A hat made of, or covered with, painted or tarred cloth, worn by sailors and others. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Hence, a sailor; a seaman; a tar. [ 1913 Webster ]

To a landsman, these tarpaulins, as they were called, seemed a strange and half-savage race. Macaulay. [ 1913 Webster ]