sawbelly 
sawbelly (sa'bel"i), . Tlie blue-backed her- 
ring, or glut-herring, Pomiilahnx H'xiirulix. [Lo- 
cal, U. 8.] 
saw-bench (sa'bench), . In wood-working. 
form of table on which the work is supported 
while being presented to a circular saw. it is 
fitted with fences and gages for sawing dimension-stuff, 
and is sometimes pivoted for bevel-sawing. E. H. Ktivjht. 
sawbill (sa'bil), n. One of several different 
saw-billed birds, (a) Any motmot. See cut under 
Momolus. (6) A humming-bird of the genus Rhampfw- 
don or Urypus, having the long bill finely serrulate along 
the cutting edges, (c) A merganser or goosander : some- 
times called jack-saw. See cut under merganser. 
saw-billed (sa'bild), a. Same as saw-beaked. 
See cut under serratirostraJ. 
saw-block (sa'blok), n. A square channel of 
wood or iron, with parallel slots at various an- 
gles, which guide the saw in cutting wood to 
exact miters. 
sawbones (sa'bonz), . [< sawl, v., + obj. 
bones.'} A surgeon. [Slang.] 
"Wosyou ever called in, "inquired Sam, . , . "wosyou 
ever called in, ven you wos 'prentice to a sawbones, to 
wisit a post-boy?" Dickens, Pickwick, li. 
sawbuck (sa'buk), H. [= D. zaaabok; as sate 1 
+ buck 1 .'] Same as sawhorse. [U. S.] 
sawcet, a. and v. An obsolete form of sauce. 
sawcert, . An obsolete form of saucer. 
saw-clamp (sa'klamp), n. A frame for holding 
saws while they are filed. Also called horse. 
sawder (sa'der), n. [Also pronounced as if 
spelled *sod<ler; a contraction of solder. ~\ Flat- 
tery; blarney: used in the phrase soft sawder. 
[Slang.] 
This is all your fault. Why did not you go and talk to 
that brute of a boy, and that dolt of a woman ? You've 
got soft sawder enough, as Frank calls it in his new-fash- 
ioned slang. Buluier, My Novel, iii. 13. 
My Lord Jermyn seems to have his insolence as ready 
as his soft sawder. George Eliot, Felix Holt, xxi. 
She . . . sent in a note explaining who she was, with a 
bit of soft sawder, and asked to see Alfred. 
C. Reade, Hard Cash, xli. 
saw-doctor (sa'dok'tgr), n. Same as saw- 
f/iimmer. 
sawdont, . An obsolete form of sultan. 
sawdust (sa'dust), . Dust or small fragments 
of wood, stone, or other material, but particu- 
larly of wood, produced by the attrition of a 
saw. Wood sawdust is used by jewelers, brass-finishers, 
etc., to dry metals which have been pickled and washed. 
Boxwood sawdust is considered the best for jewelry, be- 
cause it is free from turpentine or resinous matter. That 
of beechwood is the next best. Sawdust is used for pack- 
ing, and, on account of its properties as a non-conductor 
of heat, as filling in walls, etc. 
sawdust-carrier (sa'dust-kar"i-er), . A trough 
or tube for conducting away the sawdust from 
a machine-saw. E. H. Knight. 
sawer 1 (sa'er), n. [< ME. sawer; < saw 1 , v., + 
-erl. Cf. sawyer.] One who saws; a sawyer. 
Cath. Ang., p. 319. 
sawer' 2 t, A Middle English form of sower. 
sawft, n. An obsolete form of salve 1 . 
Sawf-DOXt (saf'boks), n. An obsolete form of 
salve-box. 
saw-file (sa'fil), n. A file specially adapted for 
filing saws. Triangular files are used for all 
small saws ; for mill-saws, etc., the files are flat. 
saw-fish (sa'fish), H. 1. An elasmobranchiate 
or selachian fish of the family Pristidse, having 
the snout prolonged into a flat saw or serra be- 
set on each side with horizontal teeth pointing 
sidewise. The body is elongate like that of a shark, but 
is depressed, and the branchial apertures are inferior. The 
first dorsal is opposite or a little back of the bases of the 
ventrals. Five or six species of the genus are known ; they 
are chiefly inhabitants of the tropical oceans, but occasion- 
ally wander beyond their ordinary limits. The European 
species is Prfftis antiquorum, the pristis of the ancients, 
of the Atlantic Ocean, attaining a length of from 10 to 20 
feet, and of a grayish color. The common American saw- 
Saw-flsli (Prints ^tcffnatm). i, side view ; 2, under view. 
fish is Pristix pectinatw. The saw attains a length of a 
yard or more, and is straight, flat, a few inches wide, ob- 
tuse at the end, and furnished in the European species 
with from sixteen to twenty pairs, and in the American 
with from twenty-four to thirty-two pairs of stout sharp 
teeth, firmly implanted at some distance apart ; it is usnl 
as a weapon of offense and defense, especially in killiiin 
prey. See also cut under 1'ristis. 
Hence also 2. By extension, one of the dif- 
ferent selachians <>f the family PrisHophoridee, 
337 
5361 
having a similar saw-like appendage, which 
never readies such a size as in the Prixtidee, or 
true saw-fishes. They are confined to the Pa- 
cific. See cut under Prittioplnfmg. 
saw-fly (sa'fli), n. A hymenopterous insect of 
the family Tenthrcdinidee, so called from the 
peculiar construction of the ovipositor (saw or 
tcrebra), witli which they cut or pierce plants. 
Two plates of this instrument have serrate or toothed 
edges. The turnip saw-fly is Athalia centifolia ; the goose- 
berry saw-fly, Nemat-wt rrrossulariae ; the sweet-potato saw- 
fly, Schizocerus ebenew ; the wheat or corn saw-fly, Cephus 
pygrn&us; the rose saw-fly, Motiostfyia (or Hylotoma) rogse; 
the willow saw-fly, Nematus ventricosux. The pear-slug is 
the larva of Selandria cerasi. The wheat or corn saw-fly 
is exceedingly injurious to wheat and rye, the female de- 
positing her eggs in the stalk, which the larva destroys. 
It is about half an inch long. The Scotch saw-fly is a mem- 
ber of the genus LophyruJt. See cuts under Hylotoma, 
Lyda, rose-slug, and Securifera. 
In the case of the larch saw-fly (Nematus erichsonii. 
Hartig), the two sets of serrated blades of the ovipositor 
are thrust obliquely into the shoot by a sawing movement; 
the lower set of blades is most active, sliding in and out 
alternately, the general motion of each set of blades being 
like that of a back-set saw. 
Packard, Entomology for Beginners, p. 166. 
saw-frame (sa'fram), H. The frame in which 
a saw is set; a saw-sash. 
saw-gage (sa'gaj), n. 1. () A steel test-plate 
or standard gage for testing the thickness of 
saw-blades. (6) A straight-edge laid over the 
edge of a saw-blade to determine whether the 
teeth are in line, (c) A test for the range of 
the tooth-points of a saw in their distance from 
the center of rotation. 2. An attachment to 
a saw-bench for adjusting the stuff to be cut 
to the saw, the gage determining the width of 
cut. 3. A device for adjusting the depth of a 
saw-cut. 
Also sowing-machine gage. 
saw-gate (sa'gat), . 1 . The rectangular frame 
in which a mill-saw or gang of mill-saws is 
stretched. Also sawmill-gate, saw-sash. 2f. 
The motion or progress of a saw (?). Encyc. 
Diet. 
The oke and the boxwood, . . . although they be greene, 
doe stiffely withstand the saw-gate, choking and filling up 
their teeth even. 
Holland, tr. of Pliny, xvi. 43. (Richardson.) 
saw-gin (sa'jin), n. A machine used to divest 
cotton of its husk and other superfluous parts. 
See cotton-gin. 
saw-grass (sa'gras), . A cyperaceous plant 
of the genus Cladiiim, especially C. Mariscnx 
(or, if distinct, C. effusum). It is a marsh-plant 
with culms from 4 to 8 feet high, and long slen- 
der saw-toothed leaves. [Southern U. S.] 
saw-guide (sa'gid), . A form of adjustable 
fence for a saw-bench. 
saw-gummer (sa'gum"er). . A punching- or 
grinding-machine for cutting out the spaces 
between the teeth of a saw ; a gummer. Also 
saw-doctor^. 
saw-hanging (sa'haug"ing), . Any device by 
which a mill-saw is strained in its gate. 
sawhorn (sa'h&rn), n. Any insect with serrate 
antennse : specifically, a beetle of the serricoru 
series. See Serricornia. 
saw-horned (sa'h&rnd), a. Having serrate an- 
tenna?, as the beetles of the series Serricornia. 
sawhorse (sa'h6rs), . A support or rack for 
holding wood while it is 
cut by a wood-saw. Also 
called sawbuck or buck. 
sawing-block (sa ' ing - 
blok), M. A miter-box. 
sa wing-machine ( sa ' - 
ing-ma-shen"), . Ama- 
chine for operating a saw 
organgof saws. Alsooften 
called simply saw, generally, 
however, with a prefix indi- 
cating the kind of machine : 
as, scroll-saw, gang-saw, band-saw, etc. Lath-sawing 
machine. See JoiAi. Sawlng-machine gage. Same 
as saw-gage. Traversing sawing-machine, a sawing- 
machine in which the work remains stationary, and the 
saw travels over it. 
saw-jointer (sa'join"ter), n. An apparatus by 
which the jointing of gang-saws (that is, the 
filing and setting of the teeth) is performed with 
proper allowance for change of shape resulting 
from unequal strains in the saw-gate, so that 
parallelism of the breast-line and rake mav be 
secured when the saws are put under tension. 
The main features of the apparatus are a guiding-frame 
for holding the saw during the operation of jointing, 
which moves upon adjustable ways in such manner as to 
gage the filing of the teeth so that their points will lie in 
the arc of a circle of considerable radius. Saws so jointed 
may have the tension adjusted in the gate in a manner 
that will secure the straight breast-line and uniform rake 
necessary for uniformity in their action in the gang. 
saw-table 
saw-jumper (sa'jum"per), n. Same as saie- 
swage. 
saw-like (sa'lik), Sharp and wiry or rasping 
in tone, as a bird's note ; sounding like a saw 
in use or being sharpened. 
The mw-like note of this bird foretells rnin. 
C. Swainson, British Birds, p. 33. 
sawlog (sa'log), n. A log cut to the proper 
length for sawing in a sawmill. 
saw-mandrel (sa'man"drel), H. A saw-arbor. 
sawmill (sa'mil), n. A mill, driven by water or 
steam, for sawing timber into boards, planks, 
etc., suitable for building and other purposes. 
The saws used are of two distinct kinds, the cimuar and 
reciprocating (see awl , n.). In many of the larger sawmills 
of modern times many accessory machines are used, as 
shingle-, lath-, and planing-machines. 
The Ilande of Medera . . . hath in it many springes of 
fresshe water and goodly ryuers, vpon the which are bylded 
manye save tnylles, wherewith manye fayre trees, lyke viito 
L'eder and Cypresse trees, are sawed and cut in sunder. 
R. Eden, tr. of Sebastian Munster (First Books on Amer- 
[ica, ed. Arber, p. 40). 
sawmill-gate (sa'mil -gat). . Same as saw- 
gate, 1. 
sawn (san). A past participle of SM>I. 
sawndrest, Same as sandersi for sandal*. 
Sawney, Sawny (sa'ni), M. [A further corrup- 
tion of /Sandy (ME. Saunder, Saiemler), which is 
a corrupted abbr. of Alexander.'} A Scotsman : 
a nickname due to the frequent use of the name 
Alexander in Scotland, or to the characteristic 
Scotch pronunciation of the abbreviation. 
saw-pad (s-a/pad), n. A device used as a guide 
for the web of a lock-saw or compass-saw in 
cutting out small holes. 
saw-palmetto (sa'pal-met"6), . See Serenoa. 
saw-pierced (sa'perst), a. Cut out, like fret- 
work, by the use of the band-saw or jig-saw, 
as in woodwork: also noting similar work on a 
much smaller scale in metal, as in gold jewelry. 
saw-pit (sa'pit), n. A pit over which timber is 
sawed by two men, one standing below the tim- 
ber and the other above. 
Thither [to the ale-house] he kindly invited me, to a place 
as good as a death's head, or memento for mortality ; top, 
sole, and sides being all earth, and the beds no bigger than 
so many large coffins. Indeed it was, for beauty and con- 
veniency, like a covered savpit. 
Court and Times of Charles I., II. 285. 
saw-sash (sa'sash), n. Same as yaw-gate, 1. 
sawset, n. A Middle English form of sauce. 
sawsert, A Middle English form of saucer. 
saw-set (sa'set), u. An instrument used to 
Wood-saw and Sawhorse. 
Saw-sets. 
b, anvil used for setting saws in saw-factories, the setting ___ r __ 
formed by blows of the peculiarly shaped hammer a. Every second 
tooth is set in one direction, and, the saw-blade being turned over, 
the intervening teeth are set in the reverse direction ; c and tt are 
notched levers by which in ordinary setting the alternate teeth are 
set in opposite directions. 
wrest or turn the teeth of saws alternately to 
the right and left so that they may make a 
kerf somewhat wider 
than the thickness 
of the blade. Also 
called saw -wrest. 
Saw-set pliers. See 
plier. 
saw-sharpener (sa'- 
sharp'ner), n. The 
greater titmouse, Pa- 
rus major: so called 
from its sharp wiry 
notes. Also sharp- 
saw. See cut under 
Saw-set for a Work-bench. 
A, shank for fixing the implement 
D, gage wl 
lay be adjusted for different-sized 
teeth. The blade is moved along 
to bring alternate teeth under the 
punch, which is struck with a ham- 
ParUS. [Local, Scot- to a' bench ; C, punch, hinged to a 
lalltl. 1 base H at E. and pressed upward 
A V by springs ; //, screw-support for the 
SaWSieget, . AllOb- bacf of the blade ; D, gage which 
solete form of sau- 
sage. Baret, 1580. 
saw-spindle (sa'- 
spin"dl), . The 
shaft which carries a circular saw ; a saw-arbor. 
saw-swage (sa'swaj), n. A form of punch or 
striker for flattening the end of a saw-tooth to 
give it width and set. E. H. Knight. 
sawtt, ". See saulti. 
saw-table (sa'ta/'bl), . 1. The table or plat- 
form of a sa wing-machine, on which material to 
be sawn is held or clamped while sawing it. 2. 
A form of power sa wing-machine for trimming 
the edges of stereotype plates. E. H. Knight. 
