Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Volume 2.djvu/693

 SEA

C38]

SEA

to them, that Men may not tumble in, in the Night. Alfo, thole little Windows, and long Holes, which are cut out in Cabins to let in Light, are called Scuttles.

SYCRE GEMOT, in ancient Cuftoms, a Court held twice every lear (as the Sheriffs Turn is at this Day) by the Bifhop of the Dioceis, and the Earidorman (in Shires committed to Eldormeu) or Sheriff in thole com- mitted to Sheriffs, that were immediately under the King. . In this Court both the Ecclefialtical and Temporal Laws were given in Charge to the County : At firft it was held thrice every Tear. Ei'xard the Confeffor, appointed it to be held twelve Times in the lear. See Consis- tory.

SCYTALA, in Mechanicks, a Terra fome Writers
 * ufe for a Kind of Radius, or Spoke, Handing out from

the Axis of a Machine, as a Handle or Lever, to turn it round and work it by. See Axis in Peritrochw.

SCYTALA LACON1CA, in Antiquity, a Stratagem, or Invention, of the Lacedemonians, for the iecret wri- ting of Letters to their Correfpondents, that if they fhould chance to be intercepted, no Body might be able to read them. To this End they had two Wooden Rollers, or Cylinders, perfectly alike, and equal, one whereof was kept in the City, the other by the Perfon to whom the Letter was directed. For the Letter, a Skin of very thin Parchment was wrapped round the Roller, and thereon was the Matter wrote; which done, 'twas taken off, and fent away to the Party, who, upon putting it in the iarae manner upon his Roller, iound the Lines and Words in the very fame Difpofition, as when they were firft wrote : This Expedient they fet a very high Value on, though, in Truth, artlefs, and grofs enough : The Moderns have improved vaftly on this Method of Writing. See Cypher.

SEA, in Geography, is frequently ufed for that vaft Tract of Water incompaffing the whole Earth, more properly called Ocean. See Ocean.

For the Caufe of the Saltuefs of the Sea. See Salt-

NESS,

Sea is more properly ufed for a particular Part or Dj- -vifion of the Qpem, denominated from the Countries it wafhes, or other Circumftances : As, The Irifi Sea, The Mediterranean Sea, The Baltic Sea, The Red Sea, Sec.

Till the Time of the Emperor Juffinian, the Sea was common, and open, to all Men : Whence it is, that the Roman Laws give an Action againft a Perfon who fhttll prevent, or moleft, another in the free Navigation, or Fifhing therein. The Emperor Leo, in his 56 Novel, firft allowed fuch as were in PofTefTion of the Lands, the fole Privilege of Fifhing before their refpective Territo- ries exclufive of all others : He even gave a particular Commiffion to certain Perlbns, to divide the T'hracian Bofphorus among them. From that Time the Soveraign Princes have been endeavouring to appropriate the Sea, and to withdraw it from the Public Ufe. The Republic of Venice pretends to be fo far Miftrefs in her Gulf, that there is a formal Marriage, every Year, between that Seignory and the Adriatic. In thele laft Ages, the Eng- lip have particularly affected the Empire of the Sea in the Channel, and even that of all the Seas incompaffing the Three Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland, and that as far as the Shores ot the neighbouring States, In Confequence of which Pretention it is, that Children born on theie Seas are declared natural Englijhmen, as much as if born on Englif) Ground. The Jufice of this Pretention is ftrenuoufly argued between Grotius and Selden, in the Mare Liberum, and Marum Claz/fum.

Sv^-Jftrolabe, StA-Chart, S%K-Compafs t Sea-Xatcs, S-&.K- Quadrant, •

'Astrolabe. \ Chart. ■^ Compass. / Oleron. ^Back-Staff.

SEA- DRAGS, among Mariners, are fuch Things as hang over the Ship at Sea, as the Boat, £*?c. when towed.

SEA-WATER. To make Sea-water fweet, or frefh, is a Thing long and much wanted, for the Advantage of Navigation and Commerce : A Method of doing which has been invented by Mr. FLauton, and the Secret pub- liflied in the Philofophical Travfatlions. 'Tis perform'd by precipitating the Water with the Oil of ^tartar, and then difUUing it: The Oil of Tartar he can draw very cheap, and the Diftillation he performs very compendi- oufly, fo as to gain 24 French Quarts of frefh Water in a Day; * or &* Cooling of which, inftead of making the "Worm pafs through a Veffel of Water, as ufual, he makes it pafs through a Hole in the Ship into the Sea, and enter in agn'n through another. To the Precipita- tion, and Diftillation, he adds a third Operation, vim.

Filtration, to correct intirely the Malignity of the Water, The Filtration is performed by a peculiar Earth, mixed and Itirred with the diftilled Water, and at length iiif. fered to fettle to the Bottom. The Water thus manag'd, is found perfectly wholfcm both to Man and Beaft.

Dr. Lifter oblerves, That the Sea-water is made frefh by the Breath of Plants growing in it. This he found by putting a Quantity of Sea-weed in a Vefiel of Sea- watery and fitting the Hole with a head Beek and Re- ceiver, he diftilled daily, from the Plants, a fmall Quan- tity of frefh, fweet, potable Water; This he takes tube the mod natural, fate, and fpeedy Way of having frefh Water from the Sea. See Water.

Mr. Boyle relates, from fbme Experiments he pro- cured to be made of the Gravity of Sea -water, in diffe- rent Climates, that ftill, as you approach nearer the Equa- tor, the Sea-water is heavier and heavier, as far as within 30 Degrees thereof, after which it continues much at one.

SEA-YOKE, when the Sea is lb rough, that the Helm cannot be governed by the Hands, the Seamen make a Toke to fleer by 5 that is, they fix two Blocks to the End of the Helm, and reeving two finall Ropes through them, which they call Falls, by having fbme Men at each Tackle, they govern the Helm by Direction : They have other Ways of making Sea-Tokes.

SEAL, Sigillum, a Punchion, or Piece of Metal, or other Matter, ufually either round or oval j whereon is engraven the Arms, Device, gfjte; of fome Prince, State, Community, Magiftrate,or private Perfon, with a Legend orlnfcription : The Impreffion whereof in Wax lerves to make Acts, In- ftruments, &c. authentic— The King's Great-Seal is that whereby all Patents, Commiffions, Warrants, 0c, coming from the King, are Sealed. The Keeping hereof is in tho Hands of the Lord High-Chancellor, who is hence alfo denominated Lord Keeper. Indeed, there is fbme Diffe- rence between the Lord Chancellor and Lord Keeper; not in Office, but in the Manner of Creation, the latter being made by the Delivery of the Great-Seal, to him by the King $ but the former having likewife a Patent. .See Chancellor. The King's 'Privy-Seal is a Seal ufu- ally JGrft {ct to Grants that are to pafs the Great-Sz&l, See Privy-Seal.

The Ufe of Seals is very ancient. In %)aniel, cap. x'tv. we read that ^Barkis fet his Seal on the Temple of Bel: But Seals are ftill more ancient 5 for Jezabel, in Kings> cap. xxi. feals the Orders ihe fent for Nabotb's Death with the King's Ring. In Effect, as the ancient Seals were all Engraven on the Collets, Stones, $§c. of Rings, and as the Original Ufe of Rings, 'tis affertcd, was only to be in a Readinefs for the Sealing of Acts, Inftru- nients, i$c. Seals fhould be as ancient as Rings themlelves. See Ring. Thele Sealing Rings, called Anmtli S'tgna- tor'ri, Sigillaricii, Circgraphi or Cerograpbi, 'tis fa id, in ancient Authors, were firfl invented by the Lxced£inoni- ans, who, not content to fhut their Chefts, Armories, £fc, with Keys, added Seals to them : And to this End, at firrt, made ufe of Worm-eaten Wood, the Impreflions whereof they took on Wax, or fbft Earth: But they at length found the Art of Engraving Figures, or Rings, the Impreflions of which they took in the fame Manner. This, however, muft be granted, that even in Mofes's Time, the Art was known of Engraving, not only on Metals, but alfb on precious Stones. SeeENGRAviNG. Indeed, it does not appear that the Ring had any other Ufe among the Primi- tive Jews befides Ornament : At length they were u'ed to feal Internments, Contracts, Diplomas, Letters, $$c> Inftances whereof we have in the Third Book of Rings xxi. 8- Hefier viii. 10. Xenophon. Hellen. lib. I, ^itint. Curt, lib, vi. Jnft. lib. xliii. cap. iii. where we learn, the Keeping of the Emperor's Seal was become a parti- cular Office. Lucian adds, That Alexander gave his to Perdiccas, thereby appointing him his Succeffbr. 'Pliny obferves, That in his Time there were no Seals ufed any where but in the Roman Empire. At Rome, he tells us, they were become of abfolute Neceflity, inlomuch, that aTeftament was null without the Teftaror's Seal, ana the Seals of Seven Witnefles: But it does not appear that the Romans had any fuch Things as publick SeKr&h nor that their Edicts, and Contracts, were fealed, not even in the Times of the Emperors. In France, the Cuftom anciently was, inftead of figning their Inliru- ments, &c. only to feal them, as appears from an Infinity ot ancient Charters, which are not figned at all : The Rea- ibn whereof was, That in thofe Days very few People were then able to write ; no Body could read and write but

Clerks. In England, the firft fealeH Charter we

find

extant, is that of Edward the Confeffor, upon his Found- ing of Weptmfier Abbey : Yet, we read of Seals in the MS. Hiiiory of King Off a. Before the Time ot Wlltm the Conqueror, the Englifh did not feal with Wax, bu only made a Golden Crofs ou the Parchment, and iotne-