BLA 
BLA 
but rises higher when it remains a climber, 
in which state it continues some time. It 
is one of the most beautiful productions of 
America. It supports itself for a time by 
the help of some neighbouring shrub or 
tree, but it grows gradually more robust, 
and at length acquires a pretty moderate 
stem, which divides into a thousand weakly 
declining branches, well supplied with beau- 
tiful rosy blossoms on all sides. It is a 
native of Jamaica, in cool moist shady 
places. 
BLANCHING of copper is done various 
ways, so as to make it resemble silver. If 
it be done for sale, it is felony by 8 and 9 
William III. cli. xxvi. 
Blanching, in coinage, the operation 
performed on the planchets or pieces of sil- 
ver, to give them the requisite lustre and 
brightness. They also blanch pieces of 
plate, when they would have them continue 
white, or have only some parts of them 
burnished. 
Blanching, as it is now practised, is per- 
formed by heating the pieces on a kind of 
peel with a wood-fire, in the manner of a 
reverberatory : so that the flame passes 
over the peel. The pieces being sufficiently 
heated and cooled again, are put succes- 
sively to boil in two pans, which are of cop- 
per: in these they put water, common salt, 
and tartar of Montpelier. When they have 
been well drained of this water in a copper 
sieve, they throw sand and fresh water over 
them’; and when dry, they are well rubbed 
with towels. 
Blanching, among gardeners, an opera- 
tion whereby certain sallets, roots, &c. 
are rendered whiter than they would other- 
wise be. It is this: after pruning off the 
tops and roots of the plants to be blanched, 
they plant them in trenches about ten inches 
wide, and as many deep, more or less, as is 
judged necessary; as they grow up, care is 
taken to cover them with earth, within four 
or five inches of their tops : this is repeated, 
from time to time, for five or six weeks, in 
which time they trill be fit for use, and of 
a whitish colour, where covered by the 
earth. 
BLANK, in commerce, a void or unwrit- 
ten place which merchants sometimes leave 
in their day-books or journals. It is also a 
piece of paper at the bottom of which a per- 
son has signed his name, the rest being void. 
These are commonly intrusted into the 
hands of arbiters, to be filled up as they 
shall think proper, to terminate any dispute 
or law -suit. 
Blank verse, in the modern poetry, that 
composed of a certain number of sylla- 
bles, without the assistance of rhyme. See 
Poetry. 
BLASIA, in botany, a genus of the Cryp- 
togamia Hepatic® class and order. Male 
solitary ; imbedded in the frond : female no 
calyx; capsule imbedded in the frond, 
oblique, one-celled, with a tubular mouth ; 
seeds numerous. There is one species, a 
native of England. 
BLASPHEMY, an indignity or injury 
offered to the Almighty, by denying what 
is his due, and of right belonging to him ; or 
by attributing to the creature that which is 
due only to the creator. 
Blasphemy, among the Jews, was punish- 
ed by stoning the offender to death. With 
us, it is punishable at common law, by fine 
and pillory. And by a statute of William III . 
if any person shall, by writing or speaking, 
deny any of the persons in the Trinity, he 
shall be incapable of any office ; and for the 
second offence, be disabled to sue in any 
actions, to be an executor, &c. 
BLAST, in a general sense, denotes any 
violent explosion of air, whether occasioned 
by gunpowder, or by the action of a pair of 
bellows. 
Blast, a disease in grain, trees, &c. The 
sugar-cane in the West Indies is very subject 
to a disease of this kind, occasioned perhaps 
by one or more species of the aphides. The 
disease is distinguished into the .black and 
yellow : the latter is the most destructive. 
It consists of insects invisible to the naked 
eye, whose proper food is the juice of the 
cane, in search of which they wound the 
tender blades, and in the end destroy the 
whole. 
BLASTING, a term used by miners for 
the tearing up rocks which lie in their way 
by the force of gunpowder. In order to do 
this, a long hole is made in the rock, which 
being charged with gunpowder, they fill it 
up ; leaving only a touch-hole, with a match 
to fire the charge. 
Blasting of wood, the rending in pieces 
logs of wood, such as roots of trees, &c. by 
means of gunpowder. A method has been 
lately described by Mr. Knight, which is 
simple, and easily effected. The instrument 
used is a screw, with a small hole drilled 
through its centre. The head of the screw 
is formed into two strong horns, for the more 
ready admission of the lever with which it is 
to be turned, and a wire, for the purpose of 
occasionally clearing the touch-hole. When 
a block of wood is to be broken, a hole is 
