350 



GALLEY GALLIC ACID. 



the Krythrmans, he imagines, found, that, without 

 lidding to the length of the vessel, they could have 

 (lie same number of oars in nearly one-half of the 

 length, by placing the oars obliquely, thus, up the 

 side of the galley : 



by this means the rowers being all placed in the 

 midships, ample room would be left for an elevated 

 deck for combat at the poop and prow. Thus, then, 

 according to Mr Ho well, originated the creation of a 

 bireme; and when this idea was once started, of 

 placing the banks of five oars each obliquely, the 

 extension of the plan was easy to an indefinite degree, 

 simply by adding to the length of the galley, without 

 at all increasing her height. The oar-ports of a 

 trireme would, for instance, appear thus : 



o 











o o 



a quiuquereme thus : 

 o o o 



o 



o 















o 



o o o o o 



and so on, until the galley of Ptolemy Philopator 

 would count forty of these oblique ascents, behind 

 one another from stem to stern, and each of five oars, 

 without being necessarily higher in the water than 

 a bireme. 



This theory supersedes all others in probability, 

 and is in agreement with most of the passages refer- 

 ring to galleys and matters of military marine in the 

 ancient authors. It at once obviates the absurdity 

 contained in that monstrous supposition, that even 

 forty banks must have been placed one over an- 

 other. Nor would there be any inconvenience in the 

 oblique ascending series of five oars in each bank. 

 It justifies also the general title, applied to war gal- 

 leys, naves longce ; the appropriateness of which 

 would be utterly lost in the huge proportions of a 

 galley of forty, or even ten banks, rising one above 

 another ; while it agrees with the inevitable deduc- 

 tion from various writers, and from the imperfect 

 representation on Trajan's column, that there were 

 at least several ascending tiers of oar- ports, requiring 

 oars of various lengths. It, moreover, is in accord- 

 ance with the appearance of the galleys on Duilius's 

 rostrated column ; on which, in the beaks of the 

 vessels (the only part represented) there are no oars ; 

 leading us to conclude that these were placed only 

 in the waist. Mr Howell has presented the directors 

 of the Edinburgh academy with a model of a hexi- 

 reme, constructed according to his theory. 



The following cut represents a light galley : 



Such vessels had but one rank of oars on each side, 

 or at most two. They were of different kinds, and 



called by various names ; as celoces, \. e. naves cclcrcB 

 or cursoriee, lembi, phaseli, myoparones, &c. 15ut the 

 most remarkable of these were the naves liburnee, a 



kind of light galleys used by the Liburni, a people 

 of Dalmatia, addicted to piracy. To ships of this 

 kind Augustus was in a great measure indebted for 

 his victory over Anthony at Actium. Hence, after 

 that time, the name of naves liburnee was given to all 

 light quick-sailing vessels, and few ships were built 

 but of that construction. 



Galley is also a name given to an open boat, row- 

 ing six or eight oars, and used on the river Thames 

 by custom-house officers, press-gangs, and also for 

 pleasure ; hence the appellation of custom-house gal- 

 ley, press-galley, &c. 



Galley, or, Gaily, is also the name of the kitchen 

 of a ship of war, or the place where the grates are 

 put up, fires lighted, and the victuals generally boiled 

 or roasted. In East India ships it is generally termed 

 the cook-room, and on board of merchantmen, it is 

 called the caboose. 



GALLEY-SLAVE ; a person condemned to work 

 at the oar on board a galley, being chained to the 

 deck. (See Galley.) Condemnation to the galleys 

 is a punishment whereby criminals and delinquents 

 are adjudged to serve as slaves on board the galleys, 

 either during life, or for a limited time. A man 

 condemned for perpetuity is dead, in a civil sense. 

 He cannot dispose of any of his effects, cannot inherit ; 

 and, if he be married, his marriage is null ; nor can 

 his widow have any of her dower out of his goods, 

 which, with his lands, are thereby confiscated. 



GALLIA. See Gaul. 



GALLIC ACID. This acid derives its name 

 from the gall-nut, whence it was first procured by 

 Scheele. It may be obtained by the following pro- 

 cess. Digest bruised galls in boiling water, with 

 vellum cuttings, for some hours, then allow the mix- 

 ture to cool, and filter it. Add to the filtered liquor 

 a solution of acetate of lead, as long as it contains 

 any precipitate, pour the whole upon a filter, wash 

 the precipitate with warm water, and digest it in 

 very dilute sulphuric acid, filter, and, having saturated 

 the clear liquor with chalk, evaporate it to dryness. 

 Introduce the dry mass into a retort placed in a sand- 

 bath, apply heat, and a portion of water will first 

 rise, and afterwards a crystalline sublimate of gallic 

 acid. There are many other processes for obtaining 

 this acid, among which the following deserve notice. 

 Moisten bruised gall-nuts, and expose them four 

 or five weeks to a temperature of about 80. A 

 mouldy paste is formed, which is to be squeezed dry, 

 and digested in boiling water. It then affords a 

 solution of gallic acid, which may be whitened by 

 animal charcoal, and which, on evaporation, yields 

 gallic acid crystallized in white needles. Boil an 

 ounce of powdered galls, in sixteen ounces of water, 

 down to eight, and strain it ; dissolve two ounces of 

 alum in water, precipitate the alumina by carbonate 

 of potassa, and, after edulcorating it, stir it into 

 the decoction ; the next day filter the mixture ; 

 wash the precipitate with warm water, till this 

 will no longer blacken sulphate of iron ; mix the 

 washing with the filtered liquor, evaporate, and the 

 gallic acid will be obtained in acicular crystals. 



