LEA 
LEA 
acetite of lead, is much used in calico- 
printing, and other' manufactures. 
LEAGUE, a measure of length, contain- 
ing more or less geometrical paces, accord- 
ing to the different us-ages and customs of 
countries. A league at sea, where it is 
chiefly used by us, being a land measure 
mostly peculiar to the French and Germans, 
contains 3,000 geometrical paces, or three 
English miles. The French league some- 
times contains the same measure, and in 
some parts of France it consists of 3,500 
paces : the mean or common league con- 
sists of 2,400 paces, and the little league of 
2,000. The Spanish leagues are largei- than 
the French, seventeen Spanish leagues mak- 
ing a degree, or twenty French leagues, or 
sixty-nine and an half English statute miles. 
The Dutch and German leagues contain 
each four geographical miles. The Persian 
leagues are pretty nearly of the same extent 
with the Spanish ; that is, Ihey are equal 
to four Italian miles ; which is nearly what 
Herodotus calls the length of the Persian 
parasang, that contained thirty stadia, 
eight whereof, according to Strabo, make 
a mile. 
LEAK, among seamen, is a hole in the 
ship through which the water comes in. To 
spring a leak, is said of a ship that begins to 
leak. To stop a leak, is to fill it with a 
plug wrapt in oakum and well tarred ; or 
putting in a tarpaulin clout, to keep the 
water out ; or nailing a piece of sheet-lead 
upon the place. 
LEAKAGE, the state of a vessel that 
leaks, or lets water, or other liquid, ouze 
in or out. See the preceding article. 
Leakage, in commerce, is an allowance of 
12 per cent in the customs, allowed to im- 
porters of wines for the waste and damage 
it is supposed to have received in the pas- 
sage : an allowance of two barrels in twenty - 
two is also made to the brewers of ale and 
beer by the excise-office. 
LEAP year, the same with bissextile. 
See Bissextile. Every centesimal, or 
hundredth year, is a leap year, according to 
the Julian account, but according to the 
Gregorian, it is always a common year, ex- 
cept when the miraber of centuries can be 
divided by four without a remainder, for 
then it is a leap year; but the intermediate 
centesimal years at e common ones : hence, 
to know if it he leap year, the rule is. If the 
year consists of complete centuries, and can 
be divided by 4, it is leap year ; as it is also 
when the inte.vinediate years can be divided 
by 4: thus the present year 1808 is a leap 
year ; for 8 may be divided by four without 
a remainder. If the intermediate years can- 
not be divided by 4, the remainder shows 
the number of years over leap year. 
LEASE, a conveyance of lands, or tene- 
ments, for a term of years, or during the 
continuance of a life or lives, in considera- 
tion of a stipulated rent or other recom- 
pense. 
The purchaser of a lease may be consi- 
dered as the purchaser of an annuity equal to 
the rack-rent, for whether he possesses the 
estate himself, or lets it out to another, he 
has an interest in the same equal to the 
annual rent thereof; therefore, from the 
principles on which the present value of 
annuities is ascertained, the value of leases 
is likewise found. VFhen a certain sum is 
paid down for the grant of a lease, it may 
he considered as so much money paid in ad- 
vance for the annual rents as they may be- 
come due ; therefore, in order to ascertain 
what the sum ought to be, it would be 
necessary to find, separately, the present 
value of each annual rent, or the sum which 
put out to interest at the given rate would 
amount to the rent at the time it became 
due ; and these separate values of each year’s 
rent added together would give the sum to 
be paid down as the present value of the 
lease. The rate of interest at which money 
is supposed to be improveable, affects the 
value of leases very materially, as the higher 
the current rate of interest is, the less will 
any one be disposed to give for payments to 
be received at future periods : thus if 6 per 
cent, interest can be readily obtained for 
money, no one will give the same sum for a 
certain yearly rent as if he could only make 
4 per cent, interest of his money. Having 
then determined on the rate of interest at 
which money is to he improved, it is only 
necessary to find, at that rate of interest, 
the present value of an annuity equal to the 
net yearly rent of the estate, in order to 
ascertain the value of the lease. This is 
given, at 5 per cent, interest, in Table II. 
article Annuities : but as most persons in 
the purchase of leases, particularly of houses, 
expect to make rather more than the cur- 
rent interest for money, the following table 
is better adapted for answering all practi- 
cal questions relating to this subject. 
