ST© 
-ri n 
made or entered into for buying, selling, 
assigning, or transferring any public or joint 
stock, or other public securities whatsoever, 
or of any part, share, or interest therein, 
whereof the person or persons contracting or 
; agreeing, or on whose behalf the contract or 
, agreement shall be made, td sell, assign, and 
transfer the same, shall not, at the time of 
making' such contract or agreement, be ac- 
tually possessed of, or entitled unto, in his, 
her, pr their own name or names, or in trust 
f(*r their use, are null and void to all intents 
and purposes whatsoever; and all and every 
person whatsoever contracting or agreeing, 
or on whose behalf, or with whose consent 
any contract or agreement shall be made to 
sell, assign, or transfer any public or joint 
stock or stocks, or other public securities, 
whereof such person or persons shall not, at 
the time of making such contract or agree- 
ment, be actually possessed of, or entitled 
unto, in their own name, or in the names of 
trustees to their use, shall forfeit 500/. 
Notwithstanding these prohibitions and pe- 
nalties, the practice of stock-jobbing has con- 
tinued, and greatly increased ; and though it 
is certainly attended with many evil conse- 
quences, it is doubtful whether, if possible, 
it would be politic to prevent it, while the 
public debt continues of such enormous 
amount ; as the current value of the public 
funds would frequently be greatly depressed 
if it was not supported by the transactions of 
those who make a regular trade of dealing 
therein. 
STOCKS, the public funds of the nation 
instituted for the purpose of paying the in- 
terest upon loans. See Loan. 
Stocks, among ship-carpenters, a frame 
of timber, and great posts made ashore, to 
build pinnaces, ketches, boats, and such small 
craft, and sometimes small frigates. Hence 
we say, a ship is on the stocks when she is 
a building. 
Stocks, a wooden machine to put the 
legs of offenders in, for the securing of disor- 
derly persons, and by the way of punishment 
in divers cases, ordained by statute, &c. And 
it is said, that every vilt within the precinct 
of a torn is indictable for not having a pair of 
stocks, and shall forfeit 5/. 
STOERE, a genus of the syngenesia poly- 
gamia segregata class of plants ; the corolla 
of all the floscules is equal ; the proper one 
is monopetalous and funnel-shaped; the limb 
is quinquelid and patulous; there is no peri- 
carpium ; the seed, which is contained in 
the cup, is solitary,' oblong, and crowned 
with a long hairy pap. There are nine 
species. 
STOKESIA, a genus of the syngenesia 
polygumia squabs class and order of plants. 
The coroll ets in the ray are funnel-form, 
longer, irregular ; down four-bristled; recept. 
naked. There is one species, a herb of South 
Carolina. 
STOLE, groom of the, the eldest gentle- 
man of his majesty’s bed-chamber, whose 
office and honour it is to present and put on 
his majesty’s first garment, or shirt, every 
morning, and to order the things in the 
chamber. 
STOLEN GOODS. To help people to 
stolen goods lor reward without apprehend* 
jug the felon, is felony. 4 G, I. c. 11. 
Person® having or receiving lead, iron, 
is T O 
copper, brass, bell-metal, or solder, knowing 
the same to be stolen, shall be transported". 
29 G. II. c. 30. 
STOMACH. See Anatomy. 
SI'OMATEUS, a genus of fishes of the 
order apodes ; the generic character is, head 
compressed ; teeth in the jaws and palate ; 
body oval, broad, slippery ; tail forked. There 
are three species, viz. the fiatola, body beau- 
tifully barred, inhabits the Mediterranean and 
lied seas; has two stomachs: paru back 
gold-colour; belly silvery; inhabits South 
America: and the cumara, back blue ; belly 
white; inhabits the fresh waters of Chili ; is 
about a span long, and not crossed with 
stripes. 
SI’OMOXYS, a genus of insects of the 
order diptera : the generic character is, 
sucker with a single-valved sheath, inclosing 
bristles, each in its proper sheath ; feelers 
two, short, setaceous, of five articulations ; 
antenna? setaceous. There are 1 6 species. 
SLONE, calculus humanus. See Cal- 
culi, and Medicine. 
Stones from the atmosphere. See Me- 
teoric stones. 
Stones. See Mineralogy. 
Stones and Earths, anali/sis nf. The 
enly substances which enter into the com- 
position of the simple stones, as far at least 
as analysis has discovered, are the six earths, 
silica, alumina, zirconia, glucina, lime, and 
magnesia ; and the oxides of iron, manga- 
nese, nickel, chromium, and copper. Seldom 
more than four or five of these substances 
are found combined together in the same 
stone : we shall suppose, however, in order 
to prevent unnecessary repetitions, that they 
are all contained in the mineral which we are 
going to analyse. 
Let 100 or 200 grains of the stone to be 
analysed, previously reduced to a line pow- 
der, be mixed with three times its weight of 
pure potass and a little water, and exposed 
in a silver crucible to a strong heat. The 
heat should at first be applied slowly, and 
the matter should be constantly stirred to 
prevent the potass from swelling and throw- 
ing any part out of the crucible. When the 
whole water is evaporated, the mixture 
should be kept for half an hour or three 
quarters in a strong red heat. 
If the matter in the crucible melts com- 
pletely, and appears as liquid as water, we 
may be certain that the stone which we are 
analysing consists chiefly of silica; if it re- 
mains opaque, and of the consistence of 
paste, the other earths are more abundant ; 
it it remains in the form of a powder, alumina 
is the prevalent earth. If the matter in the 
crucible is of a dark or brownish red colour, 
it contains oxide of iron ; if it is grass-green, 
manganese is present; if it is yellowish green’ 
it contains chromium. 
When the crucible has been taken from 
the fire and wiped on the outside, it is to be 
placed in a capsule of porcelain, and filled 
with water. This water is to be renewed, 
front time to time, till all the matter is de- 
tached from the crucible. The water dis- 
solves a part of the combination of the alkali 
with the silica and alumina of the stone ; and 
if a sufficient quantity was used, it would dis- 
solve the whole of that combination. 
Muriatic acid is now to be poured in till 
the whole of the matter is dissolved. At 
S T O 
first a flaky precipitate appears, because the 
acid combines with the alkali which kept it 
in solution. Then an effervescence takes 
place, owing to the decomposition of some I 
carbonat of potass formed during the fusion, I 
At the same time the flaky precipitate is re- I 
dissolved; as is also that part of the matter I 
which, not having been dissolved in the! 
water, had remained at the bottom of the! 
dish in the form of a powder. This powder,: 
if it consists only of silica and alumina, dis- 
solves without effervescence; but if it con- 
tains lime, an effervescence takes place. 
If this solution in muriatic acid is colour- 
less, we may conclude that it contains no 
metallic oxide, or only a very small portion ; 
if its colour is purplish red, it contains man- 
ganese; orange-red indicates the presence of 
iron ; and golden yellow the presence of 
chromium. 
I his solution is to be poured into a cap- 
sule of porcelain, covered with paper, and 1 
evaporated to dryness in a sand-bath. When 
the evaporation is drawing towards its com- 1 
pletion, the liquor assumes the form of jelly. j 
It must then be stirred constantly with a glass J 
or porcelain rod, in order to ’facilitate the 
disengagement of the acid and water, and to 
prevent one part of the matter from being, 
too much, and another not sufficiently, dried! j 
Without this precaution, the silica and al u- : 
nfina would not be completely separated 
from each other. 
When the matter is reduced almost to a 
dry powder, a large quantity of pure water ’ 
is to be poured on it ; and, after exposure to 
a slight heat, the whole is to be poured on a ! 
Litre. The powder which remains upon the j 
filtre is to be washed repeatedly, till the 
water with which it has been washed ceases < 
to precipitate silver from its solutions. This, 
powder is the whole of t lie silica which the ] 
stone that w r e are analysing contained. It i 
must first be dried betw een folds of blotting \ 
paper, then heated red-hot in a platinum or 
silver crucible, and weighed while it is yet 
warm. It ought to be a fine powder, of a 
white colour, not adhering to the fingers 
and entirely soluble in acids. If it j^ 3 co* ' 
loured, it is contaminated with some metallic 1 
oxide ; and shews that the evaporation to i 
dryness has been performed at too high a 
temperature. To separate this oxide, the 
silica must be boiled with an acid, and then 
washed and dried as before. The acid solti* 
tion must be added to the water which passed 
through the filtre, anil which we shall deno- 
minate A. 
The watery solution A is to be evaporated i 
till its quantity does not exceed 30 cubic j 
inches, or nearly an English pint. A solu- 
tion of carbonat of potass is then to be pour- | 
ed info it till no more matter precipitates. ] 
It ought to be boiled a few moments to 
enable all the precipitate to fall to the bot- 
tom. 4V hen the whole of the precipitate has 
collected at the .bottom, the supernatant li- j 
quid is to be decanted off; and water being 
substituted in its place, the precipitate anil 
waiter are to be thrown upon a filtre. When 
the water has run off, the filtre with the pre- ; 
cipitate upon it is to be placed between the 
folds of blotting paper. When the precipi- 1 
tate has acquired some consistence, it is to 
be carefully collected by an ivory knife, 
mixed with a solution of pure potass, and 
boikd.in a porcelain capsule. If any alumina. 
