36 ON ERRATA RECEPTA. 



also. "Flagon is (1) the old French j^acow, and thia iovjlascon, which 



is (2) from the Italian fiasco, deduced from the Latin vascuJum. 

 (Flask is the same word.) Adse is azza. Bagger is daga, both from 

 root dag i.e. dig. Mace is due to the Italian maccare, to bruise. Pon- 

 mel ia pomello, dim. of porno, apple. Boss is bozza, a rough, unformed 

 block of stone, whence also botch. Billiard is biglia. Cable is cap- 

 fio, properly the loop or knot on the rope. Hawser hails from alz- 

 are to hoist, (alius). Buoy is boja, strictly the rope or chain to 

 which the Float is attached. The siiigular term cockboat, with which 

 is connected coxswain, is the Italian cocca, having the same meaning, 

 derived from concha a shell. Pinnace in Italian is pinaccia, whose 

 root pinus poetically signified "a ship." Forge, English and French, 

 is fabrica tLe workshop ; thus fabrica,.fahr''ca,faurca,forgia. Bra- 

 zier is braciere, fiom bra-ce, hot coals. Match, for igniting, is viiccia, 

 i. e. myxa a wick. Spill, for the same purpose, is spillo (spinula from 

 its shape) ; whence the French epingle, pin. Grate, grating, is grada, 

 gradella, from the Latin crates, craticola, whence grille in French, 

 and to grill in English. Scaffold is catafalco, from catar to view 

 (captare sc. oculis) and balco a stage or gallery. Gibbet is giubetto, 

 properly little doublet, from al-juhbah, Arabic, which gives also the 

 'Ereuch jupon. A mangle is mangano, properly a hallista for hurling 

 fitones, — from its being worked somewhat as that machine was. 

 Callipers or compasses are calibro, the bore of a cannon, (Arabic cdlih 

 pattern) ; the case in which we put them is cassa, i.e. capsa. Model 

 is modello, Latin modulus, dim. of modus. Palette is dim. of pala 

 (spade) whence the French pelle, and the English peel, an implement 

 known to bakers. Litter, through the French litiere, is lettiare, late 

 Latin lectaria=lectus, couch. Cushion is cuscino from culcititium, 

 dim. of culcita Latin (feather-bed). (This culcita gives us also quilt.) 

 And culcita puncta (qu. Marseilles quilt ?), corrupted first by the 

 French into contre-pointe, has been finally transformed by us into 

 counterpane. 



To express military ideas, we borrow captain, for example, from 

 eapifano. Caput (chef) produces also the old French chevttaine, the 

 English chieftain. Champion is campione, one who takes the field 

 (campus), in behalf of another. The Cid Campeador had his title 

 from the same root-notion. Scout is Italian ascolta, scolta, connected 

 with the Latin auscultare to listen, whence the French ecouter also. 

 A sapper is the noun of zappare to dig ; and this from the Greek 



