He did not get a whole boat, just part of the propulsion system. To wit, a shaft and a screw.
“W must stand for Wilkes, who us from warrants saved,
Y for York, the New, now half-corrupted, half-enslaved,
Z we give to Zero, which refers to Tory minions, who threaten us with fire and sword, to bias our opinions!
Stand firmly A to Z, we swear forever to be free!”
—The Revolutionary Alphabet, 1775