W H E 



furrow. When the ground is without ridge and furrow, the 

 wheel {hould be drawn over it in parallel lines, five or ten 

 yards diftant from each other. The wheel on the other end 

 of the axle is a common fix-inch wheel, fupporting only the 

 empty fide of the cart, confequently will not cut or deprefs 

 the ground. 



The advantage of this contrivance is, that it makes an in- 

 dent or depreflion in the furface foil of foft wet clayey grafs- 

 lands, fufficient to carry off the water during the fame win- 

 ter, by prefling down the fward and herbage without de- 

 ilroying it. In the following fpring, thefe drains will be 

 nearly grown up, and clothed with grafs ; confequently, 

 there will be nothing taken from the pafturage or the 

 fcythe. It is neceffary to obferve, that the wheel muft be 

 drawn over the ground every year on the approach of 

 winter. With it, and two old horfes, a flout boy or man 

 may, it is faid, drain from ten to twenty acres in eight 

 hours. 



It may be found very ufeful in the grafs and hay land dif- 

 trifts about the metropolis and other places. See Surface 

 Draining. 



Wheel, Meafuring. See Perambulator. 



Wheel, Orffyreus's. See Orffyreus. 



Wheel, Perftan. See Persian. 



WnEEL-PIoughs, in Agriculture, all fuch ploughs as are 

 conflrudled with wheels. See Plough. 



Wheel, Potter's, is a round board attached to a lathe, 

 and capable of being moved by it, either rapidly or more 

 flowly, as occafion may require. This round board moves 

 in a horizontal pofition ; and when in ufe, the clay which is 

 to be fafhioned is fixed on the centre of it ; and it is put in 

 motion either by a perfon who conflantly attends it when at 

 work,' or by means of a treadle which is moved by the foot 

 pf the workman himfelf. 



As the clay revolves upon this machine, the workman 

 either models it by his fingers, or forms it, by means of an 

 inftrument which he holds in his hand, into any kind of cir- 

 cular fhape that he may defire ; and when the objeft is to 

 make a number of veflels exaftly fimilar to each other, the 

 fize is generally determined by a gauge fixed without the 

 circumference of the revolving wheel, but projefting over 

 it in fuch a manner that, whenever the yielding clay is 

 fpread out until it touch this gauge, the artift knows that 

 the article which he is making has attained the exaft figure 

 which he intends. 



The potter's wheel has lately been much improved by 

 adapting a flrap to it, which pafTes over a large taper cyhn- 

 der of wood, and by means of which the artilt is enabled 

 to increafe or diminilh the rapidity of the motion at plea- 

 fure. This contrivance is known to mechanics by the name 

 o( the cone pulley. Parkes's EfTays, vol. iii. See Pottery. 



Wheels, Tires of, the iron hoops or bars which are put 

 round the outfides of the felly-parts of them. 



Wheel, Water. See Water. 



Wheel is alfo a name of a kind of punifhment, which 

 great criminals are put to in divers countries. 



In France, their afTafTins, parricides, and robbers on the 

 highway, were condemned to the wheel ; i. e. had their bones 

 firil broken with an iron bar on a fcaffold, and then to be 

 expofed and left to expire on the circumference of a wheel. 

 In Germany, they broke their bones firft on the wheel itfelf. 



This cruel punifhment was unknown to the ancients ; as 

 is obfervcd by Cujas. It is not certain who was the inventor. 

 Its firft introduftion was in Germany. It was, indeed, but 

 rarely praftifed any where elfe, till the time of Francis I. 

 of France ; who, by an edift of the year 1534, appointed 



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it to be infliaed on robbers on the highway. Richekt dales 

 the ed>a in the year 1538, and quotes Brodsus, Mifcell. 

 lib. 11. cap. 10. 



Wheel, in the Military Art, is the word of command, 

 when a battalion or fquadron is to alter its front, either one 

 way, or the other. 



To wheel to the right, the man in the right angle is to turn 

 very flowly, and every one to wheel from the left to the 

 right, regarding him as their centre ; and -vice verfd, when 

 they are to wheel to the left. 



When a divifion of men are on the march, if the word 

 be, wheel to the right, or to the left ; then the right or left- 

 hand man keeps his ground, turning only on his heel, and the 

 reft of the rank move about quick, till they make an even 

 line with the faid right or left-hand man. 



Squadrons of horfe wheel after much the fame manner. 



In wheehng, the circle is conceived to be divided into 

 four parts ; whence wheeling to the right or left refpefts 

 only a quarter of a circle ; and wheeling to the right or left 

 about, refers ^to half of the circle. In performing this 

 motion, each man moves more quickly or flowly, accord- 

 ing to his diftance from the right to the left. See Bat- 



TALION. 



Wheel, or Catherine-Wheel, in ArchiteHure, frequently 

 occurs in the upper part of the north and fouth tran- 

 fepts of our ancient cathedrals, being divided by mul- 

 lions, like the fpokes of a wheel : it refembles the engine of 

 torture faid to have been prepared by the tyrant Maximin to 

 tear the flefh of St. Catherine of Alexandria. The French, 

 who have generally placed a large wheel of this fort by way 

 of a weft^ern window to their cathedrals, call it Rofe du 

 Portail. ■' 



WiiEEL-Aiiimals, Brachionus, in Zoology, a genus of ani- 

 malcules, which have an apparatus of arms for taking their 

 prey. (See Brachionus. ) This apparatus has been fup- 

 pofed, by microfcopical writers, to be a kind of wheels. 

 This is one of the fmaller animalcules ; and is defcribed by 

 Dr. Hill to be, when at reft, of a plain fmooth body, conic 

 figure, obtufe at the pofterior extremity, and open at the 

 anterior, of a duflcy ohve colour, and femi-tranfparent. 

 When in motion it protrudes from the open extremity a 

 part of its naked body, to the whole of which this outer 

 conic body feems to be but a cafe or fheath ; from the end 

 of this exerted part of the body, it thrufts out two protu- 

 berances, which give it the appearance of a double head ; 

 and in each of thefe is difcovered an apparatus in continual 

 motion, appearing to be a rotatory one, though really a vi- 

 bratory one very quickly repeated. Each of thefe pro- 

 truded bodies has fix arms inferted into it, which it con- 

 tinually (huts and opens over one another. Each of the 

 arms is furni(hed with a double feries of fibres at its edge, 

 which, being expanded, caufe it to fpread to confiderable 

 breadth. There are feveral fpecies of this genus. 



The wheel animal, defcribed by Mr. Baker, has two 

 feeming vvheels, with a great many teeth or notches com- 

 ing from its head, and turning round as it were on an axis. 

 On the leaft touch, this animalcule draws its wheel into its 

 body into the fheath ; but when every thing is quiet, throws 

 them out and works them again. 



In order to find thefe animalcules, choofe fuch roots of 

 duck-weed as are long, and proceed from ftrong old plants, 

 for the young roots feldom afford any ; they fhould not be 

 covered with that rough matter which is frequently found 

 about them, nor any way tending to decay, as they will 

 often be. 



In the water found remaining in the leaden pipes, or 



gutters on the tops of houfes, there are alfo found great 



3 A 2 numbers 



