T U R 



T U R 



ral root, being the root of the curcuma loriga of Linnaeus, 

 ufed hkewife by the dyers, to give a yellow colour. 



It is externally greyifh, and internally of a deep lively 

 yellow or faffron colour, very hard, and not unlike, either 

 in figure or fize, to ginger. 



It is brought chiefly from the Eaft Indies, but it is common 

 in the gardens of the Chinefe, who ufe it as a fternutatory, 

 and grows abundantly in Malacca, Java, and Balega. In 

 England it was firft cultivated by Mr. P. Miller in 1759. 

 It has been long officinally known. That fhould be chofen 

 which is big, new, refinous, hard to break, and heavy. 



Some people have miitakenly imagined, that there was a 

 native red turmeric ; their error was owing to this, that the 

 yellow root, as it grows old, turns brown ; and when pul- 

 Terized, is reddirti. It is much ufed by the glovers, &c. to 

 dye their gloves. The Indians ufe it to dye their rice, and 

 other foods, of a yellow colour : whence fome call it Indian 

 faffron. 



Our dyers do not find that it gives fo fteady a yellow as 

 the luteola, or weld ; nor can any of the mordants give it a 

 fufficient degree of durability ; common fait and ammonia- 

 cal muriate fix its colour faft, at the fame time rendering it 

 deeper ; but it is admirable to brighten and heighten the 

 red colours dyed with cochineal and vermilion ; as fcarlets, 

 &c. 



Turmeric has a flight aromatic, and not very agreeable 

 fmell ; and a bitterifh, (lightly acrid, and fomewhat warm 

 tafte. It readily gives out its aftive matter, both to aqueous 

 and fpirituous menftrua ; communicating to the former its 

 own deep yellow, and to the latter a fine yellowilh-red tinc- 

 ture. Diftilled with water, it yields a fmall quantity of a 

 gold-coloured effential oil, of a moderately ftrong fmell, 

 and pungent tafte : the remaining decoftion, infpiffated, 

 leaves a bitterifh, confiderably faline mafs. The infpiflated 

 extraft from reftified fpirit is moderately warm and bitter, 

 and not a little naufeous. In the Eaftern countries, this 

 root, befides its ufe in colouring and feafoning their food, is 

 much recommended as a medicine ; being accounted one of 

 the moft effedlual remedies in obftruftions of the vifcera and 

 mcfentery, which are there frequent ; in uterine diforders, 

 difficulties of urine, and affeftions of the kidnies. Among 

 us it has alfo been employed by way of decoftion, infufion, 

 and powder, as a deobftruent, in hypochondriac, leuco-phleg- 

 matic, and cacheftical conftitutions ; and cfteemed by fome 

 as a fpecific in the jaundice : the dofe in fubllance is from a 

 fcruple to a drachm ; in decoftion or infufion twice as much. 

 It tinges the urine of a deep yellow colour. Lewis. 



Although the ufe of this root has been highly commended, 

 it is now very rarely employed. 



A plafter of turmeric, well bruifed, top and roots, is 

 thought to be good againft the bite of the rattle-fnake. See 

 Phil. Tranf. N° 479. p. 144.. 



TuRMERic-^a/K, is the gum of the turmeric-root dif- 

 folved in water. 



The quahties and ufes of it are much the fame as thofe of 

 the yellow-berry waft for water-painting ; but it is a brighter 

 and cooler yellow ; for which purpofe it fhould be diffolved 

 in fpirit of wine inflead of water, by putting two ounces of 

 proof-fpirit, and one ounce of water, in a phial, with two 

 drachms of powdered turmeric-root, fhaking them well to- 

 gether, and letting them ftand, with a repetition of the 

 fhaking, for three or four days. 



TURMERO, in Geography, a town of South America, 

 in the government of Caraccas ; 40 miles S.W. of Leon dc 

 Caraccas. 



TURN, a town of Walachia, at the conflux of the 

 Alaut and the Danube; 24 miles S. of Brancovani. 

 Vol. XXXVI. 



Turn is ufed for a circular motion ; in which fenfe it 

 coincides with revolution. 



Turn, in a Clock or Watch-work, particularly denotes 

 the revolution of a wheel or pinion. 



In calculation, the number of turns which the pinion hath 

 is obtained by common arithmetic ; thus 5)6o( 12, where the 

 pinion 5, playing in a wheel of 60, moves round 1 2 times in one 

 turn of the wheel. Now, by knowing the number of turns 

 which any pinion hath in one turn of the wheel it works in, 

 you may alfo find how many turns a wheel or pinion has at a 

 greater diftance ; 



as the contrate-wheel, crown-wheel, &c. by ^ , 

 multiplying together the quotients, and the \ i 

 number produced is the number of turns, as \ /o 

 in this example : 5;4 I 



The firft of thefe three numbers has 1 1 turns, the next 

 9, and the laft 8. If you multiply 1 1 by 9, it produceth 

 99 ; that is, in one turn of the wheel 55, there are 99 

 turns of the fecond pinion 5, or the wheel 40, which runs 

 concentrical or on the fame arbor with the fecond pinion 5.* 

 If you multiply 99 by the laft quotient 8, it produces 792j 

 which is the number of turns the third pinion 5 hath. See 

 ChoCK-Work and Pinion. 



Turn, in Mining, is a pit funk in fome part of a drift. 

 If the mine be deep, there are many of thefe turns one 

 below another. 



TvKV-Houfe. When a drift is driven acrofs the country 

 N. and S. to cut a lode, the miners make a right angle from 

 their drift, and work on the lode itfelf ; which, as it is in a 

 contrary direftion to their paft drift, they call turntng-houfe, 

 in order to work on the courfe of the lode. 



Turn, in the Manege, is a term commonly ufed in direft- 

 ing to change hands. See Change and Entiek. 



Turn, in the Sea Language. See L.'VKD Turn, Tack> 

 and Turning. 



Turn, or Tourn, is alfo ufed for the fheriff's court, 

 kept twice a year in every hundred within his county, 

 vi%. a month after Eafter, and within a month after Mi- 

 chaelmas. 



From this court none are exempted but archbifhops, 

 bifhops, earls, barons, religious men and women, and all 

 fuch as have hundreds of their own to be kept. 



It is a court of record in all things that pertain to it ; and 

 is alfo the king's leet through all the county, of which 

 the fherifF is judge ; this court being incident to his office. 

 The attendance on it is called y^i?a regalis, or fuit-royal. 



It is called the Jhsriff's turn, becaufe he takes a turn or 

 circuit for this purpofe through the Ihire, holding the fame 

 in feveral places. 



Turn in the Head, in Rural Economy, a difeafe in calves 

 and young cattle, in which external objefts would appear to 

 turn round. The affeftion in this cafe feems to arife from 

 fome difeafed ftate of the brain, or parts about it. 



In the cure, bleeding is advifed, in proportion to the fize 

 and ftrength of the animal ; after which a powder, com- 

 pofed of camphor, valerian, nitre, and birthwort, in the 

 quantity of a drachm of the firft to an ounce of each of the 

 other ingredients, fhould be well powdered and mixed to- 

 gether, and then given at once in a pint of rofemary tea, re- 

 peating it as occafion may require. 



By this means much advantage has been gained, it is faid, 

 in fome inftancesof this difeafe. .^ 



TURNADO. See Tornado. 



TURNAGAIN Arm, in Geography, a branch of the 

 north part of Cook's inlet, extending eaft from Point Pof- 

 feffion. 



3 K TURNA- 



