( 7 ) [AVE 



ties were raised a step. Under " inferiors " and like denomin- 

 ations, other grades as low as " 7ths " have come on the 

 market. This means that goods are now shipped in lower 

 qualities than hitherto known. See " Grade and Graded." 

 The opposite is "Unassorted " (ivhich see). 



Astragal. A convex moulding of rounded surface, generally 

 from half to three-quarters of an inch. 



At Sight. These words written on bills of exchange or promissory 

 notes signify that they are payable on demand and without 

 allowance of days of grace. 



Auger. A carpenter's tool for boring holes larger than those 

 made by a gimlet. 



Automatic Dovetailing Machine. Machine in which the dovetails 

 iii one board and the pins in another are cut at one operation 

 by a single cutter. The boards are placed on a table, one 

 vertically and the other horizontally, and atTtomatic illy 

 traversed past the cutter a distance equal to the pitch re- 

 quired. The cutter then moves forward 011 to the work, the 

 dovetail and pin are cut simultaneously, the cutter recedes 

 and the movements are repeated. 



Autumn Shipment. Usually understood to commence 23rd 

 September and end 22nd December. For goods shipped 

 from ports closed during the winter, it is usually taken to 

 mean from 23rd September to close of season. 



Average is of two kinds, Particular and General. Particular 

 average is partial loss caused by a peril insured against 

 (whether damage or special charges), attaching particularly 

 to the commodity insured, e.g., damage by saturation of wool, 

 dissolving of sugar, etc. Partial average and partial loss 

 are the same thing, e.g., the position is the same whether 

 ten bags of sugar be washed out 10 per cent, or whether nine 

 bags are sound and one empty. Whether an insurance shall 

 cover partial loss or not, that is, whether an insurance shall 

 be " with average " or " free of particular average," is merely 

 a matter of arrangement and premium. General average 

 is an extraordinary sacrifice made in grave emergency 

 for the collective benefit of the owners of ship, freight and 

 cargo, e.g., the cutting away of a mast, the jettison of the 

 cargo, water poured down the hold to extinguish a fire. In 

 each case the monetary loss has to be ascertained and dis- 

 tributed over all the property saved according to the value 

 of each of these interests. The apportionment of the loss 

 over all the interests involved is the work of an " average 

 stater " (which see). 



