the taking or giving of a reward for 
a public office. In England, this offence 
of taking bribes is punished, in inferior 
officers, with fine and imprisonment ; and 
in those who offer a bribe, though not 
taken, the same. But in judges, especially 
the superior ones, it has always been re- 
garded as a very heinous offence ; insomuch 
that anciently it was punished as high trea- 
son, and the chief justice Thorp was hang- 
ed for it in the reign of Edward III. and at 
this day it is punishable with forfeiture of 
office, tine, and imprisonment. Officers of 
the customs taking any bribe, whereby the 
crown may be defrauded, forfeit 100Z. and 
are rendered incapable of any office ; and 
the person giving the bribe, or offering any 
bribe to officers of the customs, to induce 
them to connive at the running of goods, 
shall forfeit 50 1. Candidates that bribe 
electors, after the date or teste of the writs, 
or after the vacancy, by giving or promising 
any money or entertainment, are disabled 
to serve for that place in parliament; and 
he that takes as well as he that offers a 
bribe forfeits 500Z. and is for ever disabled 
from voting, and holding any office in any 
corporation, unless, before conviction, fie 
discovers some other offender of the same 
kind, whereby he is indemnified for his own 
offence. 
BRICK, a well-known substance, four 
inches broad, and eight or nine long, made 
by means of a wooden mould, and then 
baked or burnt in a kiln, to serve the pur- 
poses of building. 
Bricks are of great antiquity, as appeal’s 
by the sacred writings, the tower and walls 
of Babylon being built with them. In the 
east they baked their bricks in the sun ; the 
Romans used them unburnt, only leaving 
them to dry for four or five years in the 
air. 
The general process of the manufacture 
of bricks here is as follows : the earth 
should be dug in the autumn ; it should lie 
during the whole of the winter exposed to 
the frost, as the action of the air, in pene- 
trating and dividing the particles of the 
earth, facilitates the subsequent operations 
of mixing and tempering. During this time 
the earth should be repeatedly turned and 
worked with the spade. In the spring the 
clay is broken in pieces and thrown into 
shallow pits, where it is watered and suffer- 
ed to remain soaking for several days; The 
next step is that of tempering the clay, 
which is generally performed by the tread- 
ing of men or oxen. In die neighbourhood 
of London, however, this operation is per- 
formed by means of a horse-mill. The tem- 
pering of the clay is the most laborious part 
of the process, and that on which the perfec- 
tion of the manufacture essentially depends. 
It is to neglect in this part that we are chiefly 
to attribute the bad quality of modern 
bricks, in comparison with the ancient. 
All the stones should be removed and the 
clay brought to a perfectly homogeneous 
paste, using the least possible quantity of 
water. The earth, being sufficiently pre- 
pared in the pits, is brought to the bench of 
the moulder, who works the clay into the 
brick-moulds and strikes off the superfluous 
earth. The bricks are delivered from the 
mould and ranged on the ground; and when 
they have acquired a sufficient hardness to 
admit of handling they are dressed with a 
knife, and stacked or built up in long dwarf 
walls, and thatched over, where they remain 
to dry. 
The method of burning bricks. Bricks 
are burnt either in a kiln or clamp. Those 
that are burnt in a kiln, are first set or 
placed in it, and then the kiln being co- 
vered with pieces of bricks, they put in 
some wood, to dry them with a gentle 
fire ; and this they continue till the bricks 
are pretty dry, which is very easily known 
by those accustomed to the business : 
they then leave off putting in w’ood, and 
proceed to make ready for burning, which 
is performed by putting in brush, furze, 
spray, heath, brake, or fern faggots; 
but before they put in any faggots, they 
dam up the mouth or mouths of the kiln 
with pieces of bricks, piled up one upon 
another, and close it up with wet brick- 
earth, instead of mortar ; then they proceed 
to put in more faggots, till the kiln and its 
arches look white, and the fire appears at 
the top of the kiln ; upon which they slacken 
the fire for an hour, and let all cool by de- 
grees. This they continue to do, alter- 
nately heating and slaking, till the ware 
be thoroughly burnt, which is usually effect- 
ed in forty-eight hours. 
About London they chiefly burn in 
clamps, built of the bricks themselves, after 
the manner of arches in kilns, with a va- 
cancy between each brick, for the fire to 
play through ; but with this difference, that 
instead of arching, they span it over by 
making the bricks project one over an- 
other, on both, sides of the place, for the 
wood and coals to lie in till they meet, and 
are bounded by the bricks at the top, 
which close all up. The place for the fuel is 
» S s 3 
