Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Volume 2.djvu/745

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la the^hilofophical 7ranfa£fions,\ve have the Description of an Engine invented by Monfieur 2)alefme t which coniumes the Smoak of all Sorts of Wood, and that fo totally as the molt curious Eye cannot dilcover it in the Room, nor the niceft Nole finell ir, though the Fire be made in the middle of the Room. It confifts of Ieveral Iron Hoops, four or five Inches Diameter, which fhut into one another ; arid is placed on a Trever. A Brand taken out of the Fire fmoaks inftantly ; but ceafes as fbon as returned. The mod fcerid Things, as a Coal fteep'd in Cat's-pifs, which ftinks abominably when taken out of the Fire, yet in it makes not the leaft ill Scent; no more than Red Herrings broil'd, &C.

SMOKE Farthings, were the pentecoftal or cuftomary Ob- lations, offered by the Inhabitants within any Diocefs, when they made their Proceffions to the Carhedral Church ; which came by degrees into an annual, (landing Rent, called Smoke - Farthings.

SMUGGLING, a Cant Term for the Running of Goods ; or the ftealing them alhore without paying Cuftom. See Custom.

SMUT, a Difeafe in Corn, whereby the Pulp or Meal thereof is damaged, and its naturalTafte, Colour, £$;. alter'd.

The Smut is ulually aicribed by the Husbandmen to the exceflive Farneis and Ranknefsof the Soil ; to the manuring the Land with rotten Vegetables, as Straw, Hawm and Fern; and to the lowing fmuny Seed.

Mr. Bradley makes no doubt to call the Smut a Slight, and to account for it on the fame Principle as the Blights befalling other Plants, particularly Fruit Trees, viz. from innumerable little Infers, btought, or at leaft hatch'd by the caftern Winds, which prey on and devour the native Juices of the Corn, and poilbn them with a Mixture of their own. See Blight.

An approved Method to prevent the Smut? the fame Mr. "Bradley gives us, as follows : The Wheat, for Seed, to be walhed in three or four Waters, ftirring it well round, and with great force, each time, and skimming off all the light Wheat fwimming atop. This done, J tis to be fteep'd in a Liquor thus prepared : Into a fufficient Quantity of Water, put as much Salt, as, when itirred about, will make an Egg Iwim ; and to this add as much more Salt ; flir the whole well, and to the Brine, put two or three pound of Alum beaten fine. In this Mixture, lay the Wheat to fteep, at leaft, thirty or forty Hours. Take it out the Night be- fore 'tis to be lown, and fifi: fome flack'd^Lime on it ; this dries and fits it for {owing.

Note, many fteep their Wheat in Brine, yet have plenty pf Cmiitty Corn: The Realbn is, that they don't either make their Brine ftrong enough, or don't let the Wheat flay long enough therein. 'Tis a common Notion among them, that fteeping it fo long, rots the Grain ; but Experience Jliews the contrary.

SNAKE Root. See Serpentaria Radix.

SNEEZING, a convulfive Motion of the Mufcles of the Breafl: ufed in Expiration ; wherein, after lulpending the Inlpiration begun, the Air is repelled from the Mouth and Nofe with a momentary Violence. See Respiration.

The Caufe is an Irritation of the Upper Membrane of the Nofe, which communicates with the Intercoftal Nerve by means of the Twigs that it detaches to it. This Irritation is performed either externally by itrong Smells ; as Marjoram, Rofes, &c. or by Dull floating in the Air, and taken in by Inlpiration; or by fliarp, pungent Medicines, as CrefTes and other Sternutatories, which vellicate the Membrane of the Nole ; or internally by the Acrimony of the Lympha or Mu- cus, which naturally moiftens that Membrane.

The Matters caft forth In Sneezing-, come primarily from the Nofe and Throat, the pituitary Membrane continually exuding a Mucus thither ; and, fecondarily, from theBreaft, the Trachea and the Bronchia of the Lungs.

P. Strada, in an exprels Treatife on Sneezing, has dilcovered the Original of the Cuftom of faluting thofe who Sneeze. He iliews it to be a Remain of Paganifm ; tho' he owns 'twas in ufe among the Jews as well as among the Romans. From an Epigram in the Anthology, it appears, that among the An- cients, a Perfon after Sneezing-,- made a fhort Prayer to the Gods; asSsu 0tt£«r, Jupiter fave me.

SNOW, a Meteor form'd in the middle Region of the Air, of Vapour raifed by the Action of the Sun or fub- tcrraneous Fire, there congeal'd, its Parts conftipated, its fpecifick Gravity increased, and thus returned to the Earth in form of little Villi or Flakes. See Meteor and Vapour.

The Snow we receive, may properly enough be afcribed to the Coldnefs of the Atmofphere through which it falls. When the Atmofphere is watm enough to difiblve the Snow before it arrives at us ; we call it Rain: If it preferve itfelf undiffolved, it makes what we call Snow. See Rain.

The Ufes of Snow muft be very great, if all be true 'Bartholin has laid in its behalf, in an exprels Treatife, de Nivis ufu medico: He there fhews that it fruclifies the Earth, (which, indeed,is a very oldand general Opinion) pre- lerves from the Plague, cures Fevers, CoUcks, Tooth-Aches,

Sore-Eyes, and Pleurifies (for which laft Ufe, his Country- men of- '■JJetimark ule to keep Snow- Water gathered in March) He adds, that it contributes to the prolongation of Life 5 giving Inftances of People in thzMpine Mountains that live to great Ages; And to the preierving of dead Bodies : In- ftances whereof, he gives in Perlbns buried under Snow in paffing the Alps, which are found uncorrupted in the Summer when the Snow is melted.

He obferves, that in Norway, Snow-water is notonly their fole Drink in the Winter 5 but Snow even ferves for- Food 5 People having been known to live feveral Days, without any other Suftenance.

Indeed the Generality of thefe medicinal Effecls of Snow, are not to be afcribed to any Ipecific Virtue in Snow ; but to other Caufes. It fructifies the Ground, for Inftance, by guarding the Corn, or other Vegetables, from the intenfer Cold of the Air, eipecially the cold, piercing Winds. And it preferves dead Bodies, by conftipating and binding up the Parrs, and thus preventing all fuch Fermentations or in- ternal Conflicts of their Particles, as would produce Corrup- tion. See Cold.

'Tis a popular Error, that the firft Snow that falls in the Tear, has particular Virtues. In Italy, they cool their Wines all the Summer with Snow- water.

Dr. Grew, in a Difcourle of the Nature of Snow, ob- ferves, that many Parts thereof are of a regular Figure, for the molt part fo many little Rowels or Stars of Six Points, and are perfecf and tranfparenr Ice, as any we fee on a Pond, &c. Upon each of thele Points are other collateral Points, let at the lame Angles, as the main Points themfelves ; Among which there are divers others irregular, which are chiefly broken Points, and Fragments of the regular Ones. Others alfo by various Winds, feem to have been thaw'd, and froze again into irregular duffers ; fo that it feems as if the whole Body of Snow were an infinite Mafs of Icicles irregularly figured. That is, a Cloud of Vapours being gathered into Drops, the laid Drops forthwith defcend ; upon which Defcent, meeting with a freezing Air as they pals through a colder Region, each Drop is immediately froze into an Icicle, (hooting itfelf forth into Ieveral Points ; but thele ftill continuing their Defcent, and meeting with fome intermitting Gales of warmer Air, or in their continual Waftage to and fro, touching upon each other, fome of 'em are a little thaw'd, blunted, and again froze into Clufters, or in- tangled fo as to fall down in what we call Flakes. The Light nefs of Snow, although it is firm Ice, is owing to the Excels of its Surface, in Companion to the Matter contained under it ; as Gold itfelf may be extended in Surface, till it will ride upon the leaft Breath of Air. See Ice and Freezing.

Signior Sarotti, in the c Philofophical <Trai?fa£iions, mentions a red or bloody Snow, which fell on the Mountains le Langhe t near Genoa on S. Jqfep/fs Day. This Snow when fqueez'd, yielded a Liquor of the fame Colour.

SNUFF, a Preparation of Tobacco, made by reducing it into a Powder, fit to be taken at the Nofe ; in order to purge or clear the Head of Pituita. See Tobacco.

Ordinarily, Tobacco is only the Balis of Snuff ; other Matters being added to give it a more agreeable Scent, &c.

The kinds of Snuff', and their Ieveral Names, are infinite ; and new ones are daily invented; fo thar it would be as impertinent as 'tis impoffible, to give a Detail of them. We fhall only lay, that there are Three grand Sorts ; the Firft granulated; the Second an impalpable Powder ; and the Third the Bran or the coarfe Part remaining after lifting the f econd Sort.

SOAP, a kind of Paft, fbmetimeshard and dry, and fome- times loft and liquid ; much uled in warning, and whitening Linens, and for various other Purpofes, by the Dyers, Per- fumers, Hatters, Fullers, &c. See Dying, Hat, Ful- ling, £=fc.

The principal Soaps of our Manufacture, are the Soft, the Hard,zx\c\ the Sail Soap. TheScfi Soap, again, is either White or Green : The Procels of making each kind, is as follows 3

Method of making the feveral Kinds of Soap.

i° Green, Soft-Soap. The chief Ingredients ufed in making of Green Soap, are Lyes drawn from Pot-am and Lime, boil'd up with Tallow and Oil. Firft, the Lye and Tallow are put into the Copper together, and when melted, the Oil is put to it, and the Copper made, to boil ; then the Fire is dampt or ftopt up, while the Ingredients lie in the Copper to knit or incorporate ; which done, the Copper is fet on boiling, being fed or filled with Lyes as it boils, 'till there be a fufficient Quantity put therein ; Then it is boil'd off with all convenient fpeed, and put to Casks.

2 White Soft Soap. One fort of White Soap is made after the fame manner as Green Soft Soap is, Oil excepted, which is not ufed in White. The other fort of White Soft Soap, is made from Lyes of Allies of Lime boil'd up at twice with Tallow. Firft, a quantity of Lyes and Tallow are put into the Copper together, and kept boiling ; being [ Z ] fed