raft 
to be floated to a distant point are often very large, strongly 
constructed, and carry huts for the numerous men re- 
quired to manage them. Those of the Rhine are some- 
times 400 or 500 feet long, with 200 or more hands. A ci- 
il' 
ti 
rafts have been successfully transported. 
3. A structure similarly formed of any mate- 
rials for the floating or transportation of per- 
sons or things. In cases of shipwreck, planks, spars, 
a, b, tanks or air-chambers ; c, -', decks ; e, fender ;/,f, life-lines; 
g, rowlocks ; g ', steering and sculling rowlock ; h, lashings. 
barrels, etc., are often hastily lashed together to form a 
raft for escape. Ill passenger-vessels life-rafts frequently 
form part of the permanent equipment. See life-raft. 
Where is that son 
That floated with thee on the fatal raft > 
Shale., C. of ., v. 1. 34 
4. An accumulation of driftwood from fallen 
trees in a river, lodged and compacted so as to 
form a permanent obstruction. Rafts of this kind 
exist or have existed in the Mississippi and other rivers of 
the western United States, the largest ever formed being 
that of the Red River, which during many years completely 
blocked the channel for 45 miles. 
5. A conglomeration of eggs of some animals, 
as certain insects and mollusks, fastened to- 
gether and forming a mass; a float. See out 
under lanthina. 
A great many eggs [of the common cockroach] are laid at 
one time, the whole number being surrounded by a stiff 
chitinous coat, forming the so-called raft. 
Amer. Nat., XXII. 857. 
raft 1 (raft), i\*. [<raffl, .] I. trans. 1. To 
transport or float on a raft. 
Guns taken out of a ship to lighten her when aground 
should be hoisted out and rafted clear, if there is any dan- 
ger of bilging on them. Luce, Seamanship, p. 182, note. 
The idea of raftiny timber by the ocean. 
Set. Amer., N. S., LVIII. 17. 
2. To make a raft of ; form into a raft. 
As soon as the blubber is taken off, it is rafted tied to- 
gether with ropes in a sort of raft and lies in the water 
until taken on board ship. 
C. M. ScammoH, Marine Mammals, p. 63. 
I could see him securing these planks to one another by 
lashings. By the time he had rafted them, nearly an hour 
had passed since he had left the sandbank. 
W. C. Russell, A Strange Voyage, xlvi. 
II. intraiis. To manage a raft; work upon a 
raft or rafts ; travel by raft. 
They canoed, and rafted, and steam-boated, and travelled 
with packhorses. Academy, Nov. 10, 1888, p. 801. 
raft' 2 (raft), n. [A var. of raff, appar. by con- 
fusion with raft 1 .'] A miscellaneous collection 
or he'ap ; a promiscuous lot : used slightingly : 
as, a raft of papers; a whole raft of things to 
be attended to. [Colloq., U. S.] 
This last spring a raft of them [Irish maids] was out of 
employment. Philadelphia Times, Oct. 24, 1886. 
raft 3 (raft), H. [Origin uncertain; cf.rnff.'] A 
damp fusty smell. Halllwell. [Prov. Eng.] 
raft^t. An obsolete preterit aud past participle 
of ri'dvc. 
raft-breasted (raft'bres"ted), . In omith., 
ratite. II'. K. Parker. 
raft-dog (raft'dog), . Au iron bar with ends 
bent over and pointed, for secur- 
ing logs together in a raft. The 
points are driven respectively in- 
to adjacent or juxtaposed logs, 
which are thus bonded to each 
other. 
raft-duck (raft'duk), n. The 
scaup or blackhead duck, Aithyia or Fuligula 
or Fulijc marila: so called in the United States 
from its flocking closely on the water, as if form- 
in;,' a raft of ducks. Also called bluebill, shuffler, 
and flocking-fowl. See cut under scaup Red- 
headed raft-duck. Same as redhead, 2. 
raftet. Au obsolete preterit and past participle 
of reuvc. t'liaiicer. 
rafter 1 (rafter), H. [< ME. rafter, reftrr, < 
AS. rseftcr, pi. rseftras, reftres (= MD. rafter = 
MLG. rafter, raffert), a beam, rafter; with for- 
mative -cr, from *reeft = Icel. raptr (raftr) = 
Sw. Dan. raft, a rafter, beam: see raft.~\ 1. In 
building, one of the beams which give the slope 
of a roof, and to which is secured the lath or 
other framework upon which the slate or other 
outer covering is nailed. The rafters extend from 
the eaves to the ridge of the roof, abutting at their upper 
endson corresponding rafters rising from theopimsite side 
of the roof, or resting again-st a iTowu-jilate or ridge- plate 
as the case may be. For the different kinds of rafters in 
a structure, see roof, and cuts under curb-roof, jack-rafter, 
and pontoon. 
Shepherd, I take thy word, 
And trust thy honest offer'd courtesy, 
Which oft is sooner found in lowly sheds 
With smoky rafters than in tap'stry halls. 
Milton, Comus, 1. 324. 
2. Same as carliiie*, 2. 3. In anat., a trabecule 
or trabeculum : as, the rafters of the embryonic 
skull. -Binding-rafter. See binding. Intermediate 
rafter, a rafter placed between the ordinary rafters, or 
between principal rafters, to strengthen a roof. Prin- 
cipal rafter, a main timber in an assemblage of car- 
pentry ; especially, one of those rafters which are larger 
than the common rafters, and are framed at their lower 
ends into the tie-beam, and either abut at their upper ends 
against thtTking-post or receive the ends of the straining- 
beams when queen-posts are used. The principal rafters 
support the purlins, which again carry the common raf- 
ters : thus the whole weight of tile roof is sustained by 
the principal rafters. 
rafter 1 (rafter), u. (. [< rafter^, .] 1. To 
form into or like rafters : as, to rafter timber. 
2. To furnish or build with rafters: as, to 
rafter a house. 
Buildyng an hous euen from the foundacion vnto the 
vttermoste raftreyng and reiring of the roofe. 
Udall, tr. of Apophthegms of Erasmus, p. 260. (Davies.) 
3. In ayri., to plow, as a piece of land, by turn- 
ing the grass side of the plowed furrow on a 
strip of ground left unplowed. 
rafter 2 (rafter), re. [< raffl + -er 1 .] One who 
is employed in rafting timber, or transporting 
it in rafts, as from a ship to the shore. 
How the 900 casual deal-porters and rafters live during 
. . . six months of the year ... I cannot conceive. 
Mayhew, London Labour and London Poor, III. 293. 
rafter-bird (raf ter-berd), n. The beam-bird 
or wall-bird, Muscica]>a yrisola; the spotted 
flycatcher: from the site of its nest. [Eng.] 
rafting-dog (rafting-dog), . Same as raft- 
dog. 
raft-like (raft'lik), . Flat-bottomed or keel- 
less, as the breast-bone of a bird ; ratite. 
raft-merchant (raft'iner' ! 'chant), . Same as 
raff-merchant. 
raft-port (raft'port), n. In some ships, a large 
square hole framed and cut immediately under 
the counter, or forward between the breast- 
hooks of the bow, for loading or unloading tim- 
ber. See cut under lumber-port. 
raft-rope (raft'rop), H. A rope about three 
fathoms long, with an eye-splice, used for string- 
ing seal-blubber to be 'towed to a whaling-ves- 
sel. A raft-rope is also sometimes used by a 
blubber-logged vessel for rafting or towing 
whale-blubber. 
Thehorse-pieces [blubber of the sea-elephant] are strung 
on a raft-rope . . . and taken to the edge of the surf. 
C. .!/. Scamtnon, Marine Mammals, p. 119. 
raftsman (rafts'man), n.; pi. raftumcii (-men). 
[< raft's, poss. of raft 1 , + man.] A man em- 
ployed in the management of a raft. 
rafty (rafti), . [< raffi + -0 1 .] 1. Musty; 
stale. 2. Damp: muggy. 3. High-tempered; 
violent. [Prov. Eng. in all senses.] 
rag 1 (rag), . and a. [< ME. ragge, pi. ranges, 
shred of cloth, rag; cf. AS. 'ratjyiy, in neut. pi. 
raggie, shaggy, bristly, ragged, as applied to 
the rough coat of a horse (as if from an AS. 
noun, but prob. from the Scand. adj.); < Icel. 
rogg, shagginess (raggatlir, shaggy), = Sw. rayy, 
rough hair (Sw. raggig, shaggy, Sw. dial, rag- 
gi, having rough hair, slovenly), = Norw. ragg t 
rough hair (raggad, shaggy); root unknown. 
The orig. sense 'shagginess' or 'roughness' is 
now more obvious in uses of ragged.'] I. M.I. 
A sharp or jagged fragment rising from a sur- 
face or edge : as, a rag on a metal plate ; hence, 
a jagged face of rock; a rocky headland; a cliff; 
a crag. 
And taking up their standing upon the craggie rockes 
and ragges round about, with all their might and maine 
defended their goods. 
Holland, tr. of Ammianus llarcellinus (1609). (Narei.) 
2. A rock having or weathering with a rough 
irregular surface. [Eng.] 
The material is Kentish ray, laid in regular courses, 
with fine joints. Quoted In N. and Q., 7th 8er., V. 466. 
We wound 
About the cliffs, the copses, out and in, 
Hammering and clinking, chattering stony names 
Of shale and hornblende, rag and trap and tuff. 
Tennyson, Princess, iti. 
3. In hot.: (a) A lichen, Htictu imlniHiiaria (see 
luccl-crottles). (V) Another lichen, I'armelia 
rag 
xitjcatilix (stone-rag). (<) A catkin of the hazel, 
or of the willow, tialixcajiri'ii. Also . [Prov. 
Eng.] 4. A torn, worn, or formless fragment 
or shred of cloth; a comparatively worthless 
pircc of any textile fabric, either wholly or part- 
ly detached from its connection by violence or 
abrasion: as, his coat was in ruyx; cotton and 
linen rays are used to make paper, and woolen 
1'ttijx to make shoddy. 
Hlr raggei thei anone of drawe, . . . 
She had bathe, she had reste, 
And was arraied to the beste. 
Goicer, Conf. Amant. , i. 
Cowls, hoods, and habits with their wearers toss'd, 
And flutter'd into rajs. Milton, P. L., UL 491. 
5. A worn, torn, ormean garment; in the plural, 
shabby or worn-out clothes, showing rents and 
patches. 
If you will embrace Christ in his robes, you must not 
think scorn of him in his rays. 
J. Bradford, Letters (Parker Soc., 1853), II. 111. 
Drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags. 
Prov. xxiii. 21. 
Trust me, I prize poor virtue with a ray 
Better than vice with both the Indies. 
Beau, and Ft. (7), Faithful Friends, IT. 4. 
The poore inhabitants were dispers'd, . . . some un- 
der tents, some under miserable hutts aud novella, many 
without a rag or any necessary utensills. 
Evelyn, Diary, Sept. 5, 1666. 
The man forget not, though in rags he lies, 
And know the mortal through a crown's disguise. 
Akenside, Epistle to Curio. 
6. Any separate fragment or shred of cloth, 
or of something like or likened to it : often 
applied disparagingly or playfully to a hand- 
kerchief, a flag or banner, a sail, the curtain 
of a theater, a newspaper, etc. 
It cost three men's lives to get back that four-by-three 
flag to tear it from the breast of a dead rebel for the 
name of getting their little rag back again. 
Walt Whitman, The Century, XXXVI. 827. 
7. Figuratively, a severed fragment ; a rem- 
nant ; a scrap ; a bit. 
So he up with his rusty sword, 
And chopped the old saddle to rays. 
Saddle to Rags (Child's Ballads, VIII. 267). 
They [fathers] were not hearkened to, when they were 
heard, but heard perfunctorily, fragmentarily, here and 
there a rag, a piece of a sentence. Donne, Sermons, v. 
Not hairing otherwise any rag of legality to cover the 
shame of their cruelty. Fuller. 
8. A base, beggarly person; a ragamuffin; a 
tatterdemalion. [Colloq.] 
Lash hence these overweening rays of France, 
These famish'd beggars, weary of their lives. 
Shak., Rich. III., v. 3. 328. 
Out of my doore, you Witch, you Ragge, you Baggage I 
Shak., M. W. of W. (folio 1623), iv. 2. 194. 
9. A farthing. Hallitcell. [Eng. cant.] 
Jac. 'Twere good she had a little foolish money 
To rub the time away with. 
Host. Not a raff, 
Not a denier. Beau, and Ft., Captain, Iv. 2. 
10f. A herd of colts. Mrutt. [Prov. Eng.] 11. 
In type-founding, the bur or rough edge left on 
imperfectly finished type Coral rag, one of the 
limestones of the Middle Oolite, consisting in part of con- 
tinuous beds of petrified corals. Hag, tag, and ragt. 
See hags. Kentish rag. See Kentish. Litmus on 
rags. See litmus. Rag, tag, and bobtail, a rabble; ev- 
erybody indiscriminately. See rag-tat/. [Colloq.] Row- 
ley rag, a basaltic rock occurring in the South Stafford- 
shire coal-field, much quarried for road-mending. See rag- 
stone. 
II. a. Made of or with rags; formed from or 
consistingof ref usepieces or fragments of cloth : 
as, rag pulp for paper-making; a rag carpet. 
' baby, (a) A doll made entirely of rags or scraps of 
cloth, usually in a very artless manner, (fo) In U. S. 
political slang, the paper currency of the government; 
greenback money : so called with reference to the con- 
tention of the Greenback party, before and after the re- 
sumption of specie payments in 1879, in favor of mak- 
ing such money a full legal tender for the national debt 
and all other purposes. 
Fortunately, the "specie basis "of the national banks is 
now chiefly paper the rag-baby three hundred and 
forty-six millions of greenbacks ! X. A. Hen., CXLI. 207. 
Rag carpet, a cheap kind of carpeting woven with strips 
or shreds of woolen and other cloth, usually from worn- 
out garments, for the weft. A better kind is made with 
strips of list from new cloth, when it is also called list 
carpet. Rag money, rag currency, paper money ; cir- 
dilating notes issued by United States banks or by the gov- 
ernment : so called in depreciation or contempt, in allu- 
sion to the origin of the material, to the ragged appear- 
ance of paper money when much handled, and to its in- 
trinsic worthlessness. [Slang.] 
All true Democrats were clamorous for "hard-money" 
and against rag-money. The Nation, July29, 1875, p. 66. 
Rag paper. See paper. 
rag 1 (rag), '. ; pret. and pp. ragged, ppr. raggiiit/. 
[< rag 1 , .] I. intrants. 1. To become ragged ; 
fray: with out. 
