SKE 



665 



SLA 



SI'VA. In Hindoo mythology, the Su 

 preme Being, in the character of destroyer 



SIXTH. In music, a hexachord : an in- 

 terval of two kinds; the minor sixth, con- 

 sisting of three tones and two semitones 

 major; and the major sixth, composed of 

 four tones and a semitone. 



SI'ZARS. The lowest class of students at 

 Cambridge. 



SIZE. A glutinous substance, prepared 

 from different materials, as shreds and 

 parings of leather, hides, parchment, vel- 

 lum, &c., used by painters, plasterers, 

 and others. 



SI'ZEL. In coining, the residue of bars 

 of silver, after the pieces for coins are 

 cut out. 



SKATE. In ichthyology, a species of ray- 

 fish, the Raia batis, Lin., Yarn, common 

 on all parts of the British coast, and 

 known by various names, as blue-skate in 

 Scotland, grey-skate in England, and tin- 

 ker in Lyme Regis, on account of its dusky 

 colour. 



SKEIN, or RAP. A quantity of cotton- 

 yarn after it is taken off the reel. The 

 skein contains 80 threads of 54 inches, 

 and 7 skeins make a hank, 18 hanks a 

 spindle. v 



SKEL'ETON. 2XtTv. An assemblage of 

 the bones of an animal, cleaned, dried, 

 and preserved in their natural position. 

 "When the bones are retained iu their 

 proper positions by their natural liga- 

 ments, the skeleton is said to be natural; 

 but when they are retained in their re- 

 spective situations by means of wires, the 



skeleton is artificial. The figure shows 

 the principal parts of the human skeleton : 

 a, the os frontis (frontal bone) ; b, the os 

 twaporis (temporal bonc.jc, e, clavicle; 



d, the cervical vertebra? ;/, g, scapula; h- 

 humerus ; t, the ribs ; k, lumbar vertebrae 

 I, os innominatum; in, great trochanter; 

 n, ulna; o, radius; p, phalanges of the 

 fingers ; r, femur ; s, external condyle of 

 the femur ; t, tibia ; u, fibula ; x, the ancle ; 

 y, the tarsal bones. 



SKEW BACK, or AS'KEW BACK. Th 

 course of masonry forming the abutments 

 of a segmental arch, or to the cast-iron 

 ribs employed in bridges. 



SKEW BRIDGE. In engineering, a kind 

 of bridge introduced upon railroads, when 

 the line intersects any existing communi- 

 cation at right angles. 



SKIM'MER. Black skimmer. A bird, the 

 Rhynchops nigra, Lin., so named from its 

 mode of feeding, which is by skimming 

 its aliment from the surface of the water 

 with the lower mandible, while on the 

 wing. 



SKIN. 1. In anatomy, the skin consists 

 of two substances, placed one above the 

 other, in the form of laminae or layers : 

 the inner is called the true skin ; the 

 outer is named the cuticle, epidermis, 



or scarf skin. 1. In commerce, the term 



is used to denote the skins of those ani- 

 mals, as calves, deer, goats, sheep, &c., 

 while the term hide is used to designate 

 the skins of the ox, horse, &c. 



SKIP. In music, a passage from one 

 sound to another by more than one de- 

 gree at a time. 



SKIRT'ING. In architecture, the narrow 

 vertical board at the bottom of the wall 

 in an apartment. 



SKOL'EZITE. A mineral. Thomsonite, 

 thus named because, when placed in 

 the flame of the blowpipe, it twists like 

 a worm (ffzttK'rfc) , becomes opaque, and 

 is converted into a blebby colourless glass. 



SKOR'ADITE, ( A native arseniate of iron, 



SKOR'ODITE. I of a leek-green colour 

 (sometimes brown), so named because 

 before the blowpipe it fuses and gives out 

 a smell like that of garlick (irztfobct). 



SKUNK. An animal of the weasel-tribe, 

 pre-eminently remarkable for its horrible 

 and suffocating stench. There are several 

 species. See MEPHITIS. 



SKY-ROC'KET. See ROCKET. 



SKY-SCRA'PERS. Small triangular sails, 

 sometimes set above the royals. 



SLAB, Wei. yslab, a thin stripe. 1. A 

 plane, or table of stone. 1. The out- 

 side plank cut off a tree, which is of un- 

 equal thickness. 3. Slabs of tin are the 



lesser masses, into which the workers 

 cast the metal : these are run into moulds 

 of stone. 



SLAB-LINE. A small rope by which 

 seamen truss up the main or fore-sail. 



SLACK. Small coal under the size of an 

 egg- 



SLAO, Dan. slagg. The vitreous mass 



