The sheets and foresail will get tangled on it when tacking, people will trip up on it when working on the foredeck. Etc etc..
It will be in the way. If you gotta have it hang it off the transom..
You can find books about restoring a boat or you can follow the links @Scott Danforth offered, from folks who have actually done the work. Hang with the forum and as you dig into the project many here will help you.
Yep, quite a chop job in the helm. While it probably doesn't effect mounting the instruments Ii speaks loudly for the quality of construction.
Be careful you don't cut your hands up messing with it.