FIRING TEST 



31 65 



FIRST AID 



In early Persia a less developed 

 fire-worship appears in the Avesta, 

 wherein A tar, a son of Ahura- 

 mazda, shares his conflict with 

 darkness and impurity. In the 

 Mazdean ritual, sacred fire, pre- 

 served in fire-temples, is not an 

 object of worship but an emblem 

 of divine power. This view is 

 maintained by its modern expo- 

 nents, the Persian Gabars and the 

 Indian Parsees. At Baku, on the 

 Caspian Sea, 18th century pilgrims 

 gathered for expiation before stone 

 temples near the burning oil wells. 

 Many phases of culture exhibit 

 fire-rituals loosely classed as fire- 

 worship. The perpetual fires of the 

 Greek prytaneum and the Roman 

 regia with its vestal virgins were 

 forms of Aryan hearth -ritual. These 

 rites survive, with much primitive 

 superstition, among E. European 

 peasantry, and in Damaraland. 

 The Semitic use of perpetual fire- 

 altars for burnt offerings, inci- 

 dental rather than essential, passed 

 into the ceremonial lights of ritual 

 Christianity. See Moloch ; Sun-wor- 

 ship ; Zoroastrianism. 



Firing Test. Experimental 

 firing of pieces of ordnance to 

 ensure their reliability. Before 

 acceptance guns are required to 

 fire one or more rounds with in- 

 creased charges without showing 

 undue expansion of the bore, and 

 a number of rounds with normal 

 charges to ascertain that the range 

 and accuracy of the piece meets 

 the requirements of the specifica- 

 tion. The firing test is additional 

 to careful measurement of the bore 

 and all working parts, and me- 

 chanical and chemical tests of the 

 materials used in construction. 

 See Artillery. 



Firkin. Old English ale mea- 

 sure, the fourth of a barrel, or 

 9 galls. Originally it varied from 

 7i to 8 galls., and now it would 

 equal 9| imperial galls. As a small 

 wooden cask to hold butter, a 

 firkin contains 56 Ib. The word is 

 derived from Dutch vierde, fourth, 

 and a diminutive suffix -kin. 



Firlot (Four lot). Obsolete Scot- 

 tish measure of dry capacity, 

 being the fourth part of a boll. It 

 varied for wheat and barley, and 

 in different localities. 



Firm (Span, firma, signature). 

 Word used for an association of 

 business men. In commercial 

 circles of the 17th century and 

 thereabouts it was used for a 

 business signature,one that clinched 

 a deal, and was then applied to the 

 business house that signed. It is 

 now the legal term for members of 

 a partnership (q.v.). 



Firmament (Lat. fir mare, to 

 make firm). Term used for the area 

 of the heavens. It is used to trans- 



late the Hebrew word raTcia (Gen. 

 i, 6), and refers to the universe. 

 See Stars ; Universe. 



Firman (Pers.). Passport issued 

 to favoured travellers by the 

 Turkish government. The term is 

 also applied to a licence to carry 

 out some enterprise or undertaking, 

 or to engage in a particular trade. 

 A firman bears the name of the 

 sultan, and only a special minister, 

 the nishanji (signer) effendi, has 

 the right to affix the sultan's name. 



Firminy. Town of France. It 

 is in the dept. of Loire, 8 m. S.W. 



of St. Etienne. Situated in a coal 

 district, it yields an average of 

 90,000 tons a year and employs 

 over 4,000 men. Other industries 

 are steel and iron manufactures, 

 also those of woollens, buttons, and 

 ribbons. Pop. 19,580. 



Fir ozabad . Town of the United 

 Provinces, India. It is in the Agra 

 district. The town, which is ill- 

 built, is 24 m. E. of Agra. Dating 

 from the 16th century, it contains 

 an old mosque and some temples. 

 Pop. 13,571, 55 p.c. Hindus, 35 p.c. 

 Mahomedans. 



FIRST AID: HOW TO HELP THE INJURED 



H. E. Davison, M.D., Examiner, St. John Ambulance Association 



This article is one of a group that includes Ambulance; Hospital; 

 Red Cross. See also Dressing Station ; Medicine ; Surgery 



First aid is a term for assistance should be applied and held in 

 which may be given in cases of 

 accident or sudden illness before 



medical advice can be obtained. A 

 knowledge of the principles of first 

 aid has been promulgated widely 

 in Great Britain by the operations 

 of the St. John Ambulance Asso- 

 ciation, St. John's Gate, Clerken- 

 well, B.C. ; the British Red Cross 

 Society ; the St. Andrew's Am- 

 bulance Association, and various 

 educational authorities. During 

 the Great War, 1914-18, men pos- 

 sessing first aid certificates from 

 one or other of these associations 

 proved of great value in augment- 

 ing the established strength of the 

 Royal Army Medical Corps, and, in 

 civil life, in undertaking stretcher- 

 bearer and dressing -station duty 

 during air-raids. 



As regards the details of first 

 aid, bleeding demands priority of 

 attention in any accident. It may 

 be stopped by firm and continuous 

 pressure upon the bleeding point, 

 or on the appropriate pressure 

 point in the case of arterial hae- 

 morrhage. All dirt, etc., should be 

 removed and the wound tho- 

 roughly cleansed with boiled water 

 and dressed with clean lint, linen, 

 or cotton. Out of doors, a wound 

 should never be bathed with water 

 unless one can be certain that the 

 water is clean. A handkerchief, if 

 clean, should be applied to the 

 wound, or, if only a soiled hand- 

 kerchief is available, the inside of 

 an envelope may, in the emergency, 

 be placed next to the wound, and 

 the handkerchief used as a bandage. 

 Treatment of Fractures 



All fractures should receive 

 attention before any attempt is 

 made to remove the patient from 

 the place of accident. Treatment 

 should be directed towards the 

 immobilisation of the broken bone. 

 Splints consisting of any rigid 

 material, as wood from boxes, 

 stout cardboard, walking sticks, 

 umbrellas, broom-shanks, etc., 



position by extemporised band- 

 ages. If practicable the splints 

 should be of such length and so 

 arranged that the joints above and 

 below the seat of the fracture are 

 kept at rest. In fractures of a bone 

 of one of the limbs, the limb should 

 be gently straightened before the 

 splint is applied, and in the case of 

 the upper limb support should be 

 afforded by a sling. 



Dislocations and Sprains 



In dislocations the limb should 

 be placed and supported in the 

 most comfortable position, and 

 cold dressings applied ; but other- 

 wise not treated except by a doctor, 

 as by unskilled manipulation grave 

 damage may be done to blood- 

 vessels and nerves in the neigh- 

 bourhood of the injured joint. 



In sprains a firm bandage should 

 be applied and kept wet by the 

 application of cold water. If the 

 ankle is sprained when out of doors 

 the boot should not be removed 

 until the patient returns to his 

 house, as a laced boot acts tempo- 

 rarily as a useful support. When- 

 ever it is doubtful whether the 

 injury sustained is one of sprain 

 or fracture the case should be 

 treated as if it were a fracture. 



For burns and scalds treatment 

 should be directed towards the 

 exclusion of air from the injured 

 part, and this may be effected 

 most readily by the immersion of 

 the part, if a limb, in warm water 

 in which bicarbonate of soda has 

 been dissolved. The burn or scald 

 should then be dressed as soon as 

 possible with strips of lint, linen, 

 or cotton, covered with some anti- 

 septic ointment, e.g. boracic oint- 

 ment. Any clothing adherent to 

 the burned flesh should be allowed 

 to remain, the remainder of the 

 garment being cut away. 



If clothing is set on fire the 

 patient should lie down at once on 

 the floor with the flames upper- 

 most. The flames should then be 



