BOA 



EOC 



bottom facilitates her movement in turn- 

 ing-, and contributes to the ease of the 

 steerage, as a single stroke of the steer- 

 ing oar has an immediate effect, the boat 

 moving as it were upon a centre. The 

 tine entrance below is of use in dividing 

 the waves, when rowing against them ; 

 and, combined with the convexity of the 

 bottom, and the elliptical form of the 

 stem, admits her to rise with wonderful 

 buoyancy in a high sea, and to launch for- 

 ward with rapidity without shipping any 

 water, when a common boat would be in 

 danger of being filled. The internal 

 shallowness of the boat from the gunwale 

 down to the platform, the convexity of the 

 form, and the bulk of cork within, leave 

 a very diminished space for the water to 

 occupv, so that the life-boat, when filled 

 with water, contains a considerable less 

 quantity than the common boat, and is 

 in no danger either of sinking or over- 

 turning. 



It may be presumed by some, that in 

 cases of high wind, agitated sea, and 

 broken waves, a boat of such a bulk could 

 not prevail against them by the force of 

 oars; but the life -boat, from her peculiar 

 form, may be rowed a-head, when the at- 

 tempt in other boats would fail. Boats of 

 the common form, adapted for speed, 

 are, of course, put in motion with a small 

 power ; but, for want of buoyancy and 

 bearing, are over-run by the waves, and 

 sunk, when impelled against them ; and 

 boats constructed for burthen meet with 

 too much resistance from the wind and 

 sea, when opposed to them, and cannot, 

 in such cases, be rowed from the shore to 

 a ship in distress. 



BOATSWAIN, a ship officer, to whom 

 Is committed the charge of all the tack- 

 lings, sails, and rigging, ropes, cables, 

 anchors, flags, pendants, &.c. He is also 

 to take care of the long-boat and its fur- 

 niture, and to steer her either by himself 

 or his mute. 



He calls out the several gangs and com- 

 panies aboard, to the due execution of 

 their watches, works, spells, &c. He is 

 likewise provost-marshal, who sees and 

 punishes ail offenders, sentenced by the 

 captain, or a court-martial of the fleet. 

 He ought frequently to examine the con- 

 dition of the masts, sails, and rigging, and 

 remove whatever may be unfit for ser- 

 vice, or supply what is deficient ; and 

 he is ordered by his instructions to per- 

 form his duty " with as little noise as pos- 

 sible." 



BOATSWAIN'S mate has the peculiar 

 command of the long-boat, for the setting 

 forth of anchors, weighing or fe 



home an anchor, warping, towing, or 

 mooring- ; and is to give an account of 

 his stores. 



BOB, a term used for the ball of a short 

 pendulum. 



BOB, in ringing of bells, denotes a peal 

 consisting of several courses, or sets of 

 changes. 



BOB ARTIA, in botany, a genus of the 

 Triandria Digynia class of plants, the ca- 

 lyx of which is imbricated, and contains 

 only a single flower; the corolla is a 

 glume, consisting of t\vo valves, and 

 placed on the germen ; the seed is sin- 

 gle, of an oval figure, and is contained in 

 the cup. 



BOBBIN, a small piece of wood turn- 

 ed in the form of a cylinder, with a little 

 border jutting out at each end, bored 

 through to receive a small iron pivot. It 

 serves to spin with the spinning-wheel, 

 or to wind thread, worsted, hair, cotton, 

 silk, gold, and silver. 



BOBBING, among fishermen, a parti- 

 cular manner of catching eels, different 

 from sniggling. 



BOB-STAYS, in nautical language, 

 ropes used to Confine the bowsprit down- 

 ward to the stem or cut-water. A bofy- 

 stay is fixed, by thrusting one of its ends 

 through a hole bored in the fore part of 

 the cut-water for this purpose, then splic- 

 ing both ends together, so as to make it 

 two-fold, or like the link of a chain ; a. 

 dead-eye is then seized into it, and a la- 

 niard passing through this, and communi- 

 cating with another dead-eye upon the 

 bowsprit, is drawn extremely tight by the 

 help of mechanical powers. The use of 

 the bob-stay is to draw down the bow- 

 sprit, and keep it steady, and to counter- 

 act the force of the stays of the foremast, 

 which draws it upwards. The bowsprit 

 is also fortified by shrouds from the bows 

 on each side ; on this, and other accounts, 

 the bob-stay is the first part of a ship's 

 rigging which is drawn tight, to support 

 the masts. 



BOCARDO, among logicians, the fifth 

 mode of the third figure of syllogisms, in 

 which the middle proposition is an uni- 

 versal affirmative, and the first and last 

 particular negatives, thus : 



Bo Some sickly persons are not stu- 

 dents : 



CAR Every sickly person is pale : 



DO Therefore some persons are pale 

 that are not students. 



BOCCON1A, in botany, so called from 

 a Sicilian monk, a genus of the Dodccan- 

 dria Monogynia class and order. Natural 

 order of Rhoeadese : Papaveraceee, Jus- 

 Essential character: calyx two? 



