SOLDER 



SOLENOID 



559 



Solder, a fusible alloy used for joining metals. 

 For some of these there are two classes of solders, 

 called hard and soft. Under the head BRAZING 

 the composition of hard solders for brass and copper 

 is given. Common brass makes a solder for iron. 

 ' Silver solders,' which melt at a lower temperature 

 than ordinary hard solders, are used for brass, 

 copper, and sometimes even for iron. One kind 

 is composed of equal parts of silver and brass ; 

 another variety consists of these two metals and 

 zinc in equal proportions. These solders are a 

 little costly, but when they can be used they give 

 much satisfaction. The solder used by silver- 

 smiths is usually made of two of silver and one of 

 brass. Goldsmith's solder varies with the fineness 

 of gold to be joined, the coarsest kind being formed 

 of three of gold, two of silver, and nearly two of 

 copper ; but the proportion of gold is much higher 

 for fine work. Soft solders for brass consist of two 

 of tin and one of antimony, and of lead and tin in 

 equal or nearly equal proportions. The latter is also 

 used for lead, but plumbers use besides a mixture 

 of one of tin to two of lead. For pewter a little 

 bismuth is added to these two metals. A solder 

 of two of tin and one of lead does for zinc. Suit- 

 able solders for the above metals can be purchased 

 already prepared. The fluxes usually employed 

 are borax or sal ammoniac for hard solders, and 

 resin, muriatic acid, or Baker's mixture for soft 

 solders. 



Soldier. See ARMY, ENLISTMENT, MARTIAL 

 LAW, TACTICS, WAR. SOLDIER BEETLE is a name 

 given to coleopterous insects of the genus Tele- 

 phorus, from tneir red colour and combativeness. 

 SOLDIER BIRD is an Australian Honey-Eater 

 (Meliphagn sanguinolenta), named from the male's 

 crimson plumage. For Soldier-crab, see HERMIT- 

 CRAB. 



Soldo. See SOLIDUS. 



Sole (Solea),& genus of flat-fishesfPleuroneetidse), 

 distinguished by the following characters : mouth 

 rather small and not terminal, its lips curved on 

 each side towards the ventral edge of the head ; teeth 

 present only on the lower or left side, where also the 

 jaws are larger and stronger than on the right ; 

 eyes small and not prominent, on the right side, the 

 dorsal anterior to the ventral ; scales small, ctenoid 

 i.e. fringed with spines posteriorly ; lateral line 

 straight on the Ixxly, but with an anterior dorsal 

 curve on the head ; tactile filaments on the lower 

 side of the snout. Paired fins may be rudimentary 

 or absent. The dorsal fin commences on the snout, 

 and is not continuous with the caudal. The shape 

 of the fish is oval, the outline of the snout being 

 semicircular, and projecting somewhat beyond the 

 mouth. The Common Sole (S. vulgaris) is a fish 



Common Sole (Solea vulgarit). 



of high value in the market, and its price has risen 

 greatly of late years : in 1890 it was over 6 per 

 cwt. at the place of landing. It is captured in the 

 North Sea from Yorkshire southwards, in the 

 English Channel and Irish Channel, and off the 

 south coast of Ireland. Off the Scottish coasts it 



occurs only in small numbers. Beyond Britain it 

 ranges along the west coast of Europe and through- 

 out the Mediterranean. The largest supply of 

 soles comes from the North Sea, nearly four times 

 as many being landed on the east coast as on the 

 south coast of England, while the west coast pro- 

 duces about the same quantity as the south, the 

 produce of the Irish grounds being included in the 

 former. The Common Sole is the largest of the 

 British species ; it is distinguished by the follow- 

 ing characters : pectoral fins well developed on 

 both sides, nostrils on the two sides similar, fila- 

 ments of the lower side of the snout crowded with- 

 out arrangement. The colour of the upper side 

 consists of longitudinal series of black blotches on 

 a yellowish-brown ground. The sole has been 

 known to reach a length of 26 inches and a weight 

 of 9 lb., but its usual size varies between 10 and 

 20 inches and its weight from \ to 2 lb. It spawns 

 in March and April chiefly, but some individuals 

 may shed their ova in May. It breeds on the 

 grounds where it lives, and its ova are small and 

 buoyant. The young, at a very early stage after 

 they have metamorphosed, are occasionally found 

 in tidal pools, but after about 1 inch in length they 

 are probably to be found in deep water. The 

 adults are frequently taken in estuaries in summer 

 time, and have been said to thrive in fresh water, 

 though that is doubtful : they certainly do not 

 breed in fresh water. 



The Sand Sole, sometimes called Lemon Sole 

 (S. lascaris), is distinguished from the common 

 sole by having specks instead of blotches on its 

 coloured side, and a dilated nostril on he lower 

 side. Its habits are similar to those of the com- 

 mon sole, and it is sent to market with it without 

 distinction, but it is very scarce. The Thickback 

 ( S. variegata ) is found only on the south coasts of 

 England and Ireland, extending thence to the 

 Mediterranean. It is smaller than the two pre- 

 vious species, seldom exceeding 9 inches in length. 

 It is distinguished by its rudimentary pectoral fins, 

 and its markings of dark transverse bands on 

 a reddish ground. The Solenette (S. Eutea) is 

 the smallest British species ; it has rudimentary 

 pectorals, and markings like the common sole, with 

 the addition of a black line along every fourth or 

 fifth fin-ray in the dorsal and ventral fins. It is com- 

 mon both in the North Sea and on the south coasts ; 

 it does not exceed 5 inches in length. There are 

 a large number of species of Solea in temperate and 

 tropical seas all over the world, but no others are 

 of value as food. There are no soles of any value 

 on the Atlantic coast of the United States. There 

 are numerous closely allied genera. Synaptura is 

 distinguished by the continuity of the longitudinal 

 fins with the caudal ; it includes the curiously 

 marked East Indian Synaptura zebra mentioned 

 by Cuvier, which is reddish olive, with twelve pairs 

 of transverse brown bands. In some species of 

 Solea and allied genera the pectorals are absent 

 altogether. See A Treatise on the Common Sole, by 

 the present writer, J. T. Cunningham ( 1890). 



Sole Bay. See SOUTHWOLD. 



Solecism. A solecism is the term applied to 

 any violation of the grammar or idiom of a lan- 

 guage, or of the usages of society. The word ( Gr. 

 Soloikismos) is derived from the city of Soli in 

 Cilicia, whose inhabitants spoke very bad Greek, 

 in consequence of their intercourse with the Cilician 

 natives, and provoked the fastidious Athenians to 

 coin the epithet. 



Solelman II. See SOLYMAN. 



Solen. See RAZOR-FISH. 



Solenhofen Stone. See LITHOGRAPHY. 



Solenoid. See MAGNETISM, Vol. VI. p. 798, 



