B R O 



757 



B R O 



O'.'ntr k-.inlv, lire. It is governed by a bailiff, recorder, 

 anil aldermen, and a court baron is held in the town- 

 hall, by the lord of the manor, every three weeks, for 

 recovery of debts under -l-Os. In 1801, this town 

 contained 1 17$ houses, and .5898 inhabitants, of whom 

 >:-i wore returned as employed in trade and inanu- 

 hii-tures. It has two annual fairs for linen cloth, 

 cheese, and horses, and a weekly market on Thurs- 

 day. 



In the neighbourhood, are Grafton manor, the an- 

 cient rc-sidence of the Earl of Shrewsbury ; Dodford 

 priory ; and Hewell Grange, the seat of the Earl of 

 Plymouth. See Nash's History of Worcestershire. 



(!>) 



BROMUS, a genus of plants of the class Trian- 



iria, and order Digynia. See BOTANY, p. 106. 



BRONCHOCELE. See SURGERY. 



BRONZE, the name of a mixed metal, which the 

 ancients employed for casting statues and other orna- 

 ments. According to Vasari, the bronze of the E- 

 gyptians consisted of two-thirds of brass, and one of 

 copper ; "and Pliny informs us, that the Greeks add- 

 ed to the brass one-tenth part of lead, and one-twen- 

 tieth part of silver. 



In casting bronze figures, particular attention must 

 be paid to the formation of the mould. The pattern 

 from which the cast is to be made must have a mould 

 made upon it, with a mixture of one third of plaster 

 of Paris, and two-thirds of brick-dust. Its thickness 

 should be proportioned to the weight of the figure ; 

 and small air-holes, opening upwards, should.be made 

 in the joints, to give free passage to. the air, which is- 

 thrust out by the entrance of the metal. Over the 

 interior surface of the mould there should be spread 

 neatly a layer, of clay of the intended thickness of 

 the metal. When this is done, the concavity, which 

 is bounded by the layer of clay, is to be filled with the 

 composition of plaster of Paris and brick-dust already 

 mentioned, which will form the core. When the fi- 

 gure is long, strong bars of iron must be laid in the 

 mould as a support to the metal figure, and round 

 these the core must be cast. The mpuld is then 

 opened, the layer of clay taken, and every kind of 

 dampness expelled, by drying the mould and core 

 with charcoal or lighted straw. The core is then re- 

 placed in the mould, where it is supported in its pro- 

 per position by short bars of bronze, which run 

 through the mould into the core. The mould being 

 strongly fortified with iron bars, and fixed in a right 

 position, the liquid bronze is poured intir the mouth 

 of the mould, (ir) 



BRONZING, is the art of imitating bronze, or 

 of communicating to figures in wood, ivory, plaster, 

 &c. that greenish rust which distinguishes the bronze 

 figures of the ancients. The golden bronze is mad 

 of the finest and brightest copper dust, and when it 

 is wanted of a red colour, a small quantity of red 

 ochre, well pulverised, is added. They are both 

 put -on with varnish, and the body to which they are 

 applied is immediately dried over a chafing dish, to 

 prevent it from turning green. 



The following method of bronzing figures is ex- 

 tremely simple. After having covered the figure 

 with a coat of gum water, mixed with a little mi- 

 ium, take a little fish glue, dissolved in spirits of 



win?, by exposing them in a warm plaa , and add 10 

 it some saffron ; then take the filings or dust of any 

 metal which it is wanted to imitate, and apply tLi ., 

 when raixed with the glue, to the figure, with a hair 

 pencil. 



In bronzing copper, the Chinese first rub it with 

 vinegar and ashes, till it is .veil polished. When the 

 copper is well dried in the sun, they cover it with a 

 coat, made in the following manner. Take two parts 

 of verdigris, two parts of cinnabar, five parts of 

 sal ammoniac, two parts of the bill and liver of ducks, 

 five parts of alum ; pound and mix them well, and 

 form them into a clear paste. The copper, after 

 being covered with a coat of this paste, is dried, 

 cooled, and washed, and the same operation is re- 

 peated about ten times. 



Iron may be bron/.ed merely by rubbing it when 

 hot with the hoot of a cow, and with oil. For far- 

 ther information on this subject, see a Paper by Mac- 

 quer, in the Memoirs of the French Academy for 

 17G7 ; B'ich's History of the Ii',i/fil S-ic.it-ty, vol. i. 

 p. 103; and Supplement de FEricycloptdiff, torn. ii. p. 

 72. () 



BROOKE, HENRY, an ingenious author, though 

 of eccentric and irregular talents, was born in Ire- 

 land, in the year 1706. In the earlier period of hi? 

 life, he became a pupil of the celebrated Dr She- 

 -ridan, and afterwards prosecuted his studies at Dub- 

 lin college, whence he removed to the Temple. 



Having returned to Ireland, he there privately 

 married his cousin, an amiable young, woman, to 

 whom he .had been appointed guardian. With her 

 he lived, for some time, in domestic retirement, un- 

 til the increase of his family compelled him to have 

 recourse to his literary talents, in order to make 

 his income adequate to their maintenance. With 

 this view he repaired to London, and, in 1735, 

 wrote his philosophical poem, entitled, Universal 

 Beauty. Thereafter, he again returned to his na- 

 tive country, and engaged in the practice of the 

 law; but his inclination carrying him to literary pur- 

 suits, he revisited the metropolis, and offered his tra- 

 gedy of Gustaviis Vasa to the stage. The strong 

 sentiments of liberty with which this play abound- 

 ed, excited the attention of government, and its pub- 

 lic representation at the theatres was authoritatively 

 prohibited. But the author was more than indem- 

 nified for any pecuniary loss which he might have 

 suffered, in consequence of this proceeding. His pri- 

 vate friends, and the political party attached to Fre- 

 derick, Prince of Wales, encouraged him to publish 

 the play by subscription, in 1739 ; and this measure 

 succeeded so well, that Brooke derived from it more 

 emolument than he probably would have done, had 

 the piece been exhibited on the stage. Finding his 

 expences, however, still too great, when compared 

 with his limited income, he was reduced to the ne- 

 cessity of quitting the house he had taken av Twick- 

 enham, dismissing his servants, and again retiring to 

 his native country. 



In 1745, he produced his tragedy, entitled, Tin 

 Earl of Westmoreland, which was represented on 

 the Dublin theatre ; and, in the same year, he pub- 

 lished his Farmer's ,Letters. About this time, too, 

 he obtained the appointment of barrack-master from 



Brcx>- 



