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 BARRE BARREL 335 Cayenne from the Dutch. In 1667 he was created lieutenant general, and defeated the English in the Antilles, forcing them to raise the blockade of St. Christopher. In 1682 he was appointed governor of Canada, taking the place of the count de Frontenac. He was, however, recalled about 1684, for having by his irresolution caused the failure of the expedition to treat with the savages. He published a work on Guiana, entitled Description de la France equinoxiale (1666), and Journal (Tun voyage d_ Cayenne. BAKRE, Isaae, a British soldier and statesman, born in Dublin in 1726, died July 1, 1802. He received his education at Dublin university and afterward studied law in London, but entered the army, was ordered to Canada, and became an intimate friend of Gen. Wolfe, who obtained his promotion at various times, until he reached the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was severely wounded at the capture of Quebec, and was with Wolfe when that general died. He occu- pies a prominent position in Benjamin West's painting of " The Death of Wolfe." After the surrender of Montreal, Sept. 8, 1760, he was appointed bearer of despatches from Gen. Am- herst to Lord Chatham. In 1761, by the in- fluence of the earl of Shelburne, Col. Barre was elected member of parliament for the bor- ough of Chipping Wycombe. Almost his first political act was to make a personal attack upon the earl of Chatham. He has been accused of personal motives in this action, as he had con- sidered Chatham an obstacle in the way of his promotion while in the army. This attack was as bold as it was unexpected, and at once raised Barr6 to a prominent position among the supporters of the ministry, Chatham lead- ing the opposition. In 1763, after the disband- ing of Barre's regiment, he received the ap- pointment of adjutant general to the British forces and governor of Stirling castle, his pat- ron, Lord Shelburne, becoming president of the board of trade ; but in December of the same year he was removed from his appointments, having joined the opposition and voted against the government on several occasions. In 1765 he opposed the stamp act, and made a forcible appeal to the house in favor of the colonies. In 1766, under the second administration of Lord Chatham, Col. Barr6 was appointed one of the vice treasurers to Ireland and was sworn of the privy council. In the discussion upon the question of reporting the parliamentary debates Col. Barre opposed the ministry, and after a full exposure of the corruption then ex- isting, and the strongest denunciation of the corrrupt members, he left the house, calling upon every honest man to follow him. Through- out the administration of Lord North Col. Barre continued the warm friend of the Ameri- can colonies, and distinguished himself greatly by the boldness with which he advanced his sentiments. On the dissolution of the North ministry, Lord Shelburne became secretary of state for foreign affairs, and Col. Barr6 treas- 74 VOL. ii. 22 urer of the navy. Afterward, upon Shelburne becoming premier, Barre received the post of paymaster of the forces, which he held but a short time, as he retired with his patron in 1783, receiving for his services a pension of 3,200 per annum, which was afterward ex- changed for the sinecure of clerk of the pells, with 3,000 per annum. Col. Barre continued in parliament till 1790, when he retired, owing to the loss of his sight consequent on a wound received at Quebec. He has been supposed by many to be the author of the Junius letters. BiRREGES. See BAREP.ES. BARREL, a hollow vessel made of staves, set on end, arranged around a circle, and bound together with hoops. By each stave being made wider in the middle and tapering a little toward the ends, the barrel is of larger diam- eter, or bulges, in the middle. The bevelled edges of the staves cause them to fit closely to- gether, making a tight joint along their length. The ends are closed by circular heads, the edges of which are made thin to fit into a groove cut to receive them near the ends of the staves, in which they are held fast by driving the hoops upon the swell of the barrel. The construction of the barrel is most ingeniously adapted for combining great strength with lightness. It resists pressure from without by the arched arrangement of the staves ; and the hoops se- cure it from the expansive force of gases often generated in its contents. Its form is the most convenient for transportation, admitting of the vessel being rolled or rapidly swung by hooks placed under the chine or ends of the staves. It is not strange, therefore, that many millions of them should be annually made for the nu- merous uses they serve. In the form of kegs, firkins, liquor casks, butts, hogsheads, &c., they are met with everywhere. Yet the Chinese, with all their ingenuity, it is said, have never made a barrel. Until recently barrels have been constructed entirely by hand, the cooper shaving the staves with the draw knife, and shaping them by clamps. But machines are now applied to this purpose, by which the work is done much more expeditiously. The staves are planed, steamed, and then passed between a se- ries of rollers, which compress and bend them into proper shape. A stave is next set up on end in a frame, which holds it securely and forces it to its right bend, and swinging around to a plane working vertically on one side, one edge is jointed to its right bevel, and swinging to the other side, the opposite edge is served in the same way, the grooving at each end or crozing, the chamfering of the ends, and saw- ing off, all being done by different cutters at the same time. Other machines saw the staves, and some cut them with great rapidity directly from the block ; but these are for making what are called slack barrels, which do not need to be so perfectly tight and strong as those used to contain most liquids. As a measure of capacity the barrel is of very variable dimen- sions, differing in size in the different states,