SIC 



SIC 



mtthod of abandoning their ancient cuftoms, and adopting 

 thofe of tlie people whom they had vanquifhcd, whenever 

 they found them luperior to their own. 



SICIMA, in Ancient Geography, a town of Paleftine, in 

 Samaria, according to Jofephus. 



SICINOS, or PnoLEGANDROS, the name of one of the 

 Cyclades iflands ; lituated S.E. of Sipluios, E. of Mclos, 

 and W. of Jos, and very near it. 



SICION, in Geography, a Imall idand in the Indian fea, 

 «ear the coaft of Africa. S. lat. i2° 35'. 



SICK Herrings. See Herring. 



Sick, Iron. See Iron SicL. 



SICKHERY, in Geography, a town of Hindooftan, in 

 the circar of Gohud ; 5 miles N. of Lahaar. — Alfo, a 

 town of Hindoollan, in the circar of Gohud ; 10 miles S.E. 

 of Kooch. 



SICKLE, in Agriculture, 3 toothed hook, with which 

 corn is reaped. 



There is confiderable variety in the conllruftion of the 

 tools which are employed for this purpofe in different places ; 

 and which, in fomc, are denominated Jichles, but in others 

 hooks. Some of them are alfo ufcd in one part of the 

 country, and fome in another, being wholly unknown in 

 others. 



The common fickle is a fort of femicircular piece of 

 wrought iron faced with fteel, which in general is from 

 •ibout twenty to thirty inches in length, and about half an 

 inch in breadth, having a fharp toothcd-cdge cut in the 

 fteeled part, from twenty-fix to thirty teeth being formed 

 in every inch in length. The teeth all incline towards the 

 handle of the tool, fo that it only cuts when it is drawn to- 

 wards the perfon ufing it, and not when introduced through 

 the Handing corn in the aft of reaping. The Furnefs fickle, 

 a valuable tool of this kind, made ufe of in a dillrift of that 

 name in the northern part of Lancafliire, has a blade two 

 feet fix inches long, edged with fifteen teeth in every incli, 

 and in the fpan of its curvature, meafurcs two feet from 

 the heel to the point. It is a powerful tool, and capable 

 of doing much work in a given time when in good hands, 

 as feen below. 



The fmoolh-edged fickle, or reap-hook, has a fhape and 

 length wliich are much the fame as thofe in the common 

 fickle, only a little broader ; but the edge is Imooth or (harp 

 and without teeth. 



The Ladging or lagging fickle or hook is a tool of the 

 fame kind, but which is a great deal larger and heavier, as 

 well as broader at tlie point. It can, however, be ufed 

 with great effeft and expedition by thofe who are accultomed 

 to this mode of reaping. 



The fickle-hook is alfo another tool of this nature, which 

 js made ufe of in iome diltridts. It is only toothed from 

 about the middle to the point end, by which the walte of 

 grain in cutting is faid to be prevented. 



By much the molt ancient of thefe tools is the common 

 fickle, and it is probably, on the whole, the bed of 

 them, though it is getting much out of ufe in many 

 parts of the country, being now even fcarcely known or em- 

 ployed in the counties of Devon, Cornwall, and Somcrfet, 

 and many other places in the more wellern dillridls of 

 the kinjrdom, having long fincc given place to the hooks, 

 the reafon of which (eems to be the greater eafe of perform- 

 ing the work by them, as is commonly fnppoied, but by 

 no means proved. The fickle is by far the molt frugal and 

 economical tool for accomplifliing the work with, as caufiiig 

 the leall Ids of grain. Trials made with the lickle and the 

 reap-hook, have indeed fliewn that the latter tool is more 

 expeditious, but at the fame time that the lof« of grain is far 



greater, being eflimated at not lefs than five-fixths of the 

 whole in fcattered corn. 



This difference is fuppofed to be produced by the hook 

 having a fiiarp fmooth edge, which cuts the Hems, as it is put 

 into the (landing corn, before it is gathered into the left 

 hand of the workman ; while the fickle having a fine-toothed 

 edge inclining towards the heel part, as has been already 

 feen, does not cut the Itraws as it is put into the (landing 

 crop. Thus, though the hook will execute the work 

 with greater facility, where the workman mull have 

 eafe, the bell mode will probably be to have recourfe to the 

 fickle-hook, by means of which, from the manner of its 

 being edged, it will much prevent the above enormous lofs 

 of corn which is caufed in other ways of doing the bufinefs. 



It is neccJary for the farmer to be aware of this difference 

 in the ufe of the different tools of the fickle kind, as the 

 hooks are fad introducing themfelves into the eadern and 

 even the northern parts of the kingdom, as well as into Ire- 

 land, where they were formerly unknown, and prevail much 

 in many other places. 



In the above dillrift of Furnefs, the reaping is wholly 

 and mod excellently performed by means of the fickle. At 

 an eafy rate of working, three men, it is faid, with this tool, 

 will cut a cudom.ary acre of fix yards and a half to the pole 

 or perch, of long, light, (lender corn, bind and douk the 

 fame in the courfe of a day, or lefs than fourteen hours ; and 

 five men with thefe tools will perform the fame quantity of 

 work in a field of the ftronged corn, when laid and much 

 entangled. By hard labour from light to dark, three men 

 with this fort of tool will reap, bind, and douk above a 

 cudomary acre of any kind of grain. See Harvesting 

 and Reaping of Corn. 



SlCKLK-Fi/h. See Falx. 



SlCKLE-/f^or/, in Botany. See CoROS'lLLA. 



SICKLUPEN, in Geography, a town of PrufTia, in th- 

 province of Samland ; 5 mdes N. of Tilfit. 



SICKNESS. See Disease. 



Sickness, Palling. See Epilep.sy. 



Sickness, Green. See Chlorosis. 



Sickness, Sweating. Sec Sweating Sichnefs. 



SICKREE, in Geography, a town of Bengal; 26 milc» 

 W.N.W. of Ramgur. 



SICLOS, a town of Hungary, having a cadle on a 

 mountain, in which the emperor Sigifmund was imprifoned; 

 64 miles S.E. of Canifcha. 



SICLYGULLY, a town of Bengal; 15 miles N. of 

 Rajemal. 



. SICON, a town of the ifiand of Cuba; 125 milej 

 W.S. W. of Havanna. 



SICUB, or Sicui', in Natural Hiflory, a name given by 

 the inhabitants of the Philippine lilands to a fpecies of 

 hawk, of the bignefs of their common hawk, or bau'iy, 

 which is fomewhat larger than our fparrow-hawk. This 

 bird is very elegantly variegated all over its body with yel- 

 low, white, and black. See Lavin. 



SlCULl, in Ancient Geography, a people originally ot 

 Dalmatia, who edablidied themfelves in Italy about the 

 l6th century B. C. They formed a numerous nation, and 

 had podellion of a confiderable extent of country; as they 

 peopled IJmbria, Sabina, Latium, and all the cantons the 

 occupiers of which were afterwards known under the name 

 of Opici. The Sieuli paded into Sicily, and gave it their 

 name. This event is faid to have taken place, according to 

 Ilellanicus of Lefbos, 80 yean before the fiege of Troy, 

 or 1364 years B.C. according to the chronology of Tiiucy- 

 dides. The name of Sieuli, which comprehended all the 

 people who difl'ufcd thcmlelvcs from the Tiber to the eadern 

 4 O 2 cxtrcnnty 



