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500 ours, or side-aces, or guarded side-kings, or singletons, or blank suits. A plain singleton is one raiser, a singleton ace or a blank suit two raisers each. The " trick " and the first " raiser " should lie in different suits.

The bidder makes his bid, and then counts his losers (reckoning all " guards " as losers and the things which they guard as takers). His partner announces as many necessary raisers as his hand warrants. The bidder then deducts his partner's takers from his own losers, and knows how high a bid the combined strength warrants. Count losers to bid and takers to raise or double.

No one should double the only bid he can defeat. No one should double any very low bid, nor one that affords an easy means of escape to his quarry. A doubler should hold the sure book in his hand (trusting his partner for the odd) and should be practically sure that his double affords his enemy no probable means of escape.

The declarant's scheme of play in any declared trump is to exhaust the adverse trumps and then to make his side-tricks; he foregoes this trump-exhaustion only in the case of a cross-ruff between his two hands, or a quick ruff in dummy. The adversaries' scheme in declared trumps is to make quick aces and kings.

The declarant's scheme in no-trumps is to hold up the control of the adverse suit or suits, and to establish his own as soon as possible, remembering that " length is strength in no-trump." The adversaries' scheme is to withhold as long as possible the controlling card or cards of the declarant's suits, seeking meanwhile to establish their own best suit.

Quick tricks are the motto in declared trumps, slow tricks and continual " hanging-back " in no-trumps. (F. I.)

BRIDGE, FRANK (1870–), English musical composer, born at Brighton Feb. 26 1879, was musically educated at the Royal College of Music, which he entered as violin student in 1896, but gained a scholarship for composition three years later. For many years subsequently he was equally in demand both as composer and as viola player, in which latter capacity he was quite first-rate. Often he was called upon to play the viola in quintets with the Joachim Quartet. Bridge was at one time or other a member, as violist, of the Crimson and the Motto quartets. A vast number of songs were produced by him, but it is as a composer of chamber music for strings that his reputation stands. In this category there are four quartets for pianoforte and strings or for strings alone and a sextet; a phantasy trio; a quartet in E minor, which was crowned by an honourable mention at Bologna in 1906. His sonnet, Blow out, you bugles, has been sling ubiquitously. Among the other works of real importance are his orchestral compositions, Isabella (1907); Dance Rhapsody (1909); a suite, The Sea (1912); A Dance Poem (1914); a suite for stringed orchestra and A Lament for the same; a tone-poem, Summer. As a conductor Bridge also established his reputation. In 1910-11 he conducted at the Savoy theatre for Marie Brema, and was at Covent Garden with Beecham in 1913.

BRIDGE, SIR FREDERICK (1844–), English organist, composer and conductor, was born at Oldbury, Worcs., Dec. 5 1844. Educated at first at the Cathedral school, Rochester, where his father was a vicar-choral, he became a chorister there in 1850 and 15 years later assistant organist. In 1865 he became organist to Trinity church, Windsor, in 1869 to Manchester cathedral, and in 1875 he was appointed permanent deputy organist to Westminster Abbey. In 1882 Bridge succeeded Turle as organist and master of the choristers at Westminster Abbey, a post he retained until 1918, when he retired with the title of emeritus organist. In 1890 he was appointed Gresham professor of music; in 1896 conductor of the Royal Choral Society; in 1902 King Edward professor of music in London University. He was knighted in 1897, received the M.V.O. in 1902 and was promoted C.V.O. nine years later. Belonging to what has come to be regarded as the " old school," but remaining a popular figure as the organizer of important musical functions, Bridge was a voluminous composer, especially of church music. He has written about a dozen oratorios and cantatas, many successful glees and part-songs; primers on counterpoint, organ accompaniment and musical gestures. Also he published Samuel Pepys, a Lover of Music (1903); A Shakespearean Birthday Book and an autobiography, A Westminster Pilgrim (1919).

BRIDGES, ROBERT (1844–), English poet (see 4.532), was in 1913 appointed Poet Laureate. Among his later publications were Ibant Obscuri (1916) and an ode on the Tercentenary Commemoration of Shakespeare (1916); as well as an Essay on Keats, several addresses on poetical subjects, and occasional poems during the World War. He also edited The Spirit of Man (1916), an anthology in English and French. In the summer of 1920 he originated a letter, subsequently signed by many Oxford tutors, lecturers, professors and some heads of colleges, addressed to the learned world of Germany and intended as an eirenicon, which was published in the autumn. Its advisability was the occasion of much difference of opinion in academic and other circles.

BRIDGING, MILITARY (see under PONTOON, 22.69). At the beginning of the 2oth century all the armies of the civilized Powers were equipped with pontoon trains of various forms. The European continental nations all had steel boat-shaped pontoons varying in size from the large German bipartite pontoon, which had about 8 tons effective buoyancy, to the Italian high-prowed pontoon specially suited for the swift current of the rivers in that country and capable of carrying lorries when two pontoons were placed stern to stern, and the French and Belgian pontoons, which were somewhat smaller than the British. The British army adhered to the bipartite wooden boat-shaped pontoon, 21 ft. over all in length, 5 ft. 3 in. beam, and 2 ft. 5 in. in depth, with a maximum effective buoyancy, when immersed to within 6 in. of the gunwale, of about 45 tons. The advantages of the wooden pontoon with waterproof canvas skin, as proved by the South African War, were lightness, quietness for night work, and the ease with which bullet holes could be plugged, or holes caused by shell splinters repaired. On the other hand, the steel pontoons undoubtedly stood the rough handling of active service better, and did not suffer like the wooden pontoons when they had to be stored in the open under a hot sun. They can also be more readily manufactured in large quantities in war-time, whilst the difficulty of obtaining a sufficient supply of thoroughly seasoned material greatly hampered the rapid expansion of the British bridging trains. Taking all considerations into account it seems probable that the next pontoons designed for the British army will be of galvanized steel, somewhat larger and appreciably deeper than the present pattern.

FIG. 11.

The British pontoons (as shown in fig. 11) were made in two sections, the bow section having its gunwale rising towards the bow, and the body curved and tapered forward, so as to reduce the force of the current against the bridge. The stern section was rectangular in form, so that two pontoons could be coupled together stern to stern, or any number of sections could be coupled together to form rafts capable of bearing the weight of the heaviest gun carried in the field. Figure 12 shows the various uses to which the pontoon sections are put in forming light, medium, or heavy bridge. Normally when packed for travelling (as in fig. n) and when used in the normal form of light bridge designed to take a column of infantry in fours, field guns, and horse transport, the bow and stern sections were coupled together as one pontoon, which could be lifted off its carriage and launched by sixteen men gripping the handles at each side. The wagons carried also the superstructure of timber road-bearers (or " baulks "), which fit on the saddles of the pontoons to form the bridge, " chesses " or planks forming the roadway, and " ribands " or wheel-guides which hold the ends of the " chesses "