D E P 
Upper and Lower Deptford. It contains about two thou- 
fand houfes, many of whicli are neat and well-built. 
The greatert fupport and confequence of Deptford arifes 
fromitsdock. It has a wet dock, of two acres, forlhips; 
and another, of one acre and a half, well provided with 
timber and all forts of naval rtores. Behdes the national 
docks, there are feveral others belonging to (hip-builders 
for merchants’ vefTels. Adjoining to the naval dock, is 
Say’s Court, which was the feat of John Evelyn, efquire, 
author of Sylva, and wherein the czar Peter the Great 
refided for fome time, to complete his knowledge in the 
practical part of naval architecture. By an order from 
queen Elizabth, the rttip Pelican, in which fir Francis 
Drake failed round the globe, was laid up in the raaft- 
dock belonging to this yard ; and out of her remains a 
chair was made, and prefented to the univerfity of Ox¬ 
ford. At Deptford is the fociety of the Trinity Houfe; 
founded, in the year 1515, by fir Thomas Spert, knight, 
commander of the great lhip Henry Grace de Dieu, and 
comptroller of the navy to Henry VIII. for the regula¬ 
tion of feamen, and the convenience of fliips and mari¬ 
ners on the coaft, and incorporated by the above-men¬ 
tioned prince, who confirmed to them, not only the 
rights and privileges of the company of mariners of 
England, but their feveral pofleflions at Deptford ; 
which, together with the grants of queen Elizabeth and 
Charles II. were alfo confirmed by letters patent of the 
firrt of James II. in 1685, by the name of “The Mailer, 
Wardens, and AlTifiants, of tire Guild or Fraternity ot 
the molt glorious and undivided Trinity, and of St. Cle¬ 
ment, in the parifli of Deptford Strond, in the county of 
Kent.” This corporation is governed by a mailer, four 
■wardens, eight afiiltants, and eighteen elder brothers; 
but the inferior members of the fraternity, named younger 
brethren, are of an unlimited number ; for every mailer, 
or mate, expert in navigation, may be admitted as fuch; 
and thefe ferve as a continual nurfery to fupply the va¬ 
cancies among the elder brethren, when removed by 
death, or otherwife. The matter, wardens, afiiltants, 
and elder brethren, are by charter inverted with the fol¬ 
lowing powers : that of examining the mathematical 
children of Chrift’s Hofpital; the examining of the 
mailers of his majefty’s (hips; the appointing pilots to 
conduft ihips in and out the river Thames; and the 
amercing all fuch as lhall prefume to act as mailer of a 
Chip of war, or pilot, without their approbation, in a pe¬ 
cuniary mulct of twenty (hillings ; fettling the feveral 
rates of pilotage, and erebling light-houfes, and other 
fea marks, upon the feveral coafts of the kingdom, for 
the fecurity of navigation, to which light-houfes all Ihips 
pay one halfpenny a ton; granting licences to poor feamen, 
not free of the city, torow on the river Tharries for their 
fupport, in the intervals of fea fervice, or when part go¬ 
ing to fea ; the preventing of aliens from ferving on-board 
Englilh fliips, without their licence, upon the penalty of 
five pounds for each offence ; punifhing of feamen for 
defertion, or mutiny, in the merchants’ fervice ; and the 
hearing and determining the complaints of officers and 
feamen in the merchants’ fervice ; but fubjebl to an ap¬ 
peal to the lords of the admiralty, or the judge of the 
cottrt of admiralty. To this company belongs the ballad- 
office,. for clearing and deepening the river Thames, by 
taking from thence a fufficient quantity of ballad, for the 
fupply of all fliips that fail out of that river; in which 
fervice fixty barges, with two men each, are conftantly 
employed, and all fliips that take in ballad pay them one 
Hulling a ton, for which it is brought to the Ihips’ lides. 
In conlideration of the increafe of the poor of this fra¬ 
ternity, they are, by their charter, impowered to pur- 
chafe in mortmain lands, tenements, &c. to the amount 
of 500I. per annum; and alfo to receive charitable bene¬ 
factions of well-difpofed perfons, to the amount of 500I. 
per annum, clear of reprizes. There are annually re¬ 
lieved by this company about 3000 poor feamen, their 
widows, and orphans, at the expence of 6000I. 
1. 
D E P 7g) 
DEPT'FORD, a townlhip of the American States, in 
Gloucerter county, New Jerfey. 
DEPTH, J. [from deep, of diep, Dut.] Deepnefs ; the 
meafure of any thing from the furface downwards.—We 
have large and deep caves of feveral depths; the deeped 
are funk fix hundred fathoms. Bacon. 
The left to that unhappy region tends, 
Which to the depth of Tartarus defcends. Dryden . 
Deep place ; not a flioal: 
The falfe tides Ikim o’er the cover’d land, 
And feamen with diffembled depths betray. Dryden. 
The abyfs ; a gulf of infinite profundity.—When he pre¬ 
pared the heavens I was there, when he let a compafs 
upon the face of the depth. Prov. viii. 27.—The middle 
or height of a feafon.—The earl of Newcadle, in the 
depth of winter, refeued the city of York from the rebels. 
Clarendon. 
And in the depth of winter, in the night, 
You plough the raging leas to coalls unknown. Denham. 
Abdrufenefs; obfeurity.—There are greater depths and 
obfeurities in an elaborate and well-written piece of non- 
fenfe, than in the mod abdrufe tradl of fchool divinity. 
Addifon. 
Depth of a Squadron or Battalion, is the number of men 
in the file. 
To DEP'THEN, v. a. [diepen, Dut.] To deepen; to 
make deeper. 
To DEPU'CELATE, v. a. [depuceler, Fr.] To de¬ 
flower ; to bereave of virginity. 
To DEPU'DICATE, v. a. [of the Lat. de, from ; and 
pudeo, to be alhamed.] To deflower. 
DEPUDICA'TION,/ The aft of deflowering. Net 
much ufed. 
DEPUL'STON,y. [jdcpuljio, Lat.] A beating or thru fl¬ 
ing away. 
DEPUL'SORY, adj. [from depulfus, Lat.] Putting 
away; averting. 
To DE'PURATE, v. a. [depurer, Fr. from depurgo, 
Lat.] To purify ; to cleanfe ; to free any thing from its 
impurities.—Chemidry enabling 11s to depurate bodies, 
and in fome meafure to analize them, and take afunder 
their heterogeneous parts, in many chemical experiments 
we may, better than in others, know what manner of 
bodies we employ. Boyle. 
DE'PURATE, adj. CleanTed ; freed from dregs and 
impurities. Pure; not contaminated.—Neither can any 
boart a knowledge depurate from the defilement of a con¬ 
trary, within this atmofphere of flclli. Glanville. 
DEPUR A'I ION, J. [depuratio, Lat.] The a£l of fe 
parating the pure from the impure part of any thing.; 
clarification; defecation. See Pharmacy. —What hath 
been hitherto difcourfed, inclines us to look upon the 
ventilation and depuration, of the blood as one of the prin¬ 
cipal and condant ufes of refpiration. Boyle .—The cleanf- 
ing of a wound from its matter. 
DEPU'R ATORY, adj. Belonging to a particular kind 
of fever. Sydenham. 
To DEPU'RE, v. a. [depurer, Ft .] To cleanfe; to free 
from impurities.—To purge; to free from fome noxious 
quality.—It produced plants of fuch imperfection and 
harmful quality, as the waters of the general flood could 
not fo walh out or depure, but that the lame defection 
hath had continuance in the very generation and nature, 
of mankind. Raleigh. 
DEPUTAT ION, f. [deputation, Fr.} The act of op- 
podng by a fpecial. commillion; fuch as the authority 
given by the lord of a manor to his gamekeeper to kill 
game. See the article Game. Vicegerency; the pof- 
le|ion of any commillion given.—The authority of cpn- 
fcience Hands founded upon its vicegerency and deputa¬ 
tion under God. South. 
Cut.! 
