DCHP-1 Online
tail-rope North 
n. a strong leather line attached to 773 the rear of a dog-sled, permitting the driver to pull back on the sled when going downhill and enabling him, when the line is allowed to drag behind the sled, to retrieve the outfit should the dogs bolt or should his grip on the sled be dislodged.
See also: tail-line
- 1931 On the down grade, tail ropes are loosed, and men bear back with all their weight. . . .
- 1948 "The son of a bitch, I got tangled in me tail-rope, and had a runaway."
- 1931 On the down grade, tail ropes are loosed, and men bear back with all their weight. . . .