614 
P L A 
P L A 
and bound to other branches.—In the plafhing your 
quick, avoid laying of it too low and too thick, which 
makes the fap run all into the (hoots, and leaves the 
plajhes without nourifhment. Mortimer. 
PLASH'ING, f The method of interweaving branches 
in a fence. A fence made of living branches partly cut 
off and interwoven. 
PLASIi'Y, adj. Watery ; filled with puddles.—He 
fattened and filled up unfound and plajhy fens. Milton's 
Uijl. of Eng. 
A marifli, thick with fallows, food. 
Made plajhy by the interchanging flood. Sandys. 
PLASM, / [nhacrp.ci, Gr.] A mould; a matrix in 
which any thing is caff or formed.—The (hells ferved as 
plafms or moulds to thisfand, which, when confolidated, 
and freed from its inveffient (heli, is of the fame (hape 
with the cavity of the (hell. Woodward- 
PLAS'MA, J'. in mineralogy; the Chalcedonius macu- 
latus. See vol. xv. p.464. 
PLASMAT'ICAL, adj. Having the power of giving 
form.—Such is the entrance of Pfyche into the body of the 
univerfe, kindling and exciting the dead miff, the utmolt 
projeftion of her own life, into an ethereal vivacity ; and 
working in this, by her plafmatical fpirits, all the whole 
world into order and (hape. Mores Song• of the Soul, 1647. 
PLASMA'TOR, f. A potter. Cole. 
PLASMA'TURE, J'. The procefs of making earthen¬ 
ware. Cole. 
PLA'SO, f. in botany. (Rheede Hort.Mal. vi. 29.) See 
Eutea frondofa, vol. ii. 
PLASS, a town of Bohemia, in the circle of Rakonitz : 
eighteen miles fouth-weft of Rakonitz. 
PLASSAC', a town of France in the department of the 
Lower Charente: eight miles north of Mirambeau. - ' 
PLASS'EMBURG, a citadel of Germany, in the prin¬ 
cipality of Gulmbach : one mile eaff of Culmbach. 
PLASS'ENDAL, a fortrefs of France, fituated on the 
canal cut from Bruges to Offend; three miles eaff of 
Offend. 
PLASS'EY, a town of Hindooftan in Bengal, near 
which Col. Clive defeated the troops of Surajah Dowlah, 
in the year 1757: twenty-five miles louth of Moorlhedabad. 
The Britifh army confided of about 3200 men, of whom 
the Europeans did not exceed 900 ; while that of the 
nabob confided of 50,000 foot, and 18,000 horfe. Not- 
withftanding this great difproportion, however, Clive 
effectually routed the nabob and his forces, with thelofs 
of three Europeans and twenty fix fepoys killed, and five 
Europeans and forty fepoys wounded. See the article 
Hindoostan, vol. x. p. 87,8. 
PLAS'TER, f. [Saxon.] A glutinous or adhefive 
falve'j anciently emplafler. —Seeing the fore is whole, 
why retain we the plajler? Hooker. 
You rub the (ore. 
When you (hould bring th e plafer. Shakefpeare. 
PLAS'TER,/. [ plaftrc , old French; from the Gr. 
ir'ka.acu, to form.] Stibftance made of water and fome 
abforbent matter, fucli as chalk or lime well pulverifed, 
with which walls are overlaid or figures caff.—In the 
fame hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and wrote 
upon the plajler of the wall. Dan. v. 5. 
In the word inn’s worft room, with mat half hung, 
The floors of plafter, and the walls of dung. Pope. 
Parker's Roman Cement, a fort of plafter fo called, 
which well withftands our moift climate, is made by 
mixing one bufliel of lime flaked with three pounds and 
a half of green copperas, fifteen gallons of water, and 
half a bufliel of fine gravel fand. The copperas (hould 
be dilfolved in hot water; it muff be ftirred with a (tick, 
and kept ltirring continually while in ufe. Care (hould 
be taken to mix at once 3s much as may be requifite for 
one entire front, as it is very difficult to match the 
colour again j and it ought to be ufed the fame day as it 
is mixed. 
The fiiver medal of the Society of Arts was in the year 
1S11 voted to H. B. Way, efq. of Bridport harbour, for 
his method of preparing a cheap and durable plafter, or 
ltucco, for outfide walls of houfes much expofed to fea- 
breezes or bad weather. The following is the receipt: 
“ Three parts Bridport-harbour fand to one of lime, both 
finely lifted, and mixed with lime-water; if uled as 
ftucco, the firft coat to be laid on half the thicknefs of a 
crown-piece ; let it remain two days, then with a painter’s 
brufli wadi it over with ftrong lime-water, and lay on the 
fecond coat of the fame thicknefs.” Tranf. of theSoc. of 
Arts, vol. xxix. 
Plaster of Paris ; fee Gypsum, vol. ix. and vol. xv. 
p. 449. and for the procefs of making various other kinds 
of pialter, ftucco, &c. fee the article Mineralogy, vol. 
xv. p. 448,455. and Mortar, vol. xvi. p. 26-35. 
To PLAS'TER, v. a. To overlay as with plafter.—The 
harlot’s cheek beautied with plaftering art. SkakeJ'peare. 
— Plafer the chinky hives with clay. Dryden. — The 
brain is grown more dry in its confiftence, and receives 
not much more impreflion than if you wrote with your 
finger on a plajlered wall. Watts on the Mind. 
Boils and plagues 
Plafer you o’er, that one infeft another. Skakefpeare. 
To cover with a vifcotis falve or medicated plafter.—A 
fore that mult be plajlered. Beaum. and Fl.'s Tkier. and 
Theodoret. —There was no remedy by plaij'teriug, but by 
cutting off the fore. South's Serm. 
PLAS'TERER, / One whole trade is to overlay walls 
with plafter: 
Thy father was a plafierer, 
And thou thyfelf a (hearman. Skakefpeare's Hen. VI. 
One who forms figures in plafter.—The plajlerer makes 
his figures by addition, and the carver by fubftraftion. 
Wotton. 
PLAS'TERING, /. The aft of overlaying with mortar; 
that which is laid on as plafter. See Mortar, vol. xvi. p. 
33.—A heart fettled upon a thought of underftanding, is 
as a fair plaflcriny on the wall. Ecclus. xxii. 17. 
PLAS'TIC, or Plastical, adj. [irKaacrui, Gr. to form.] 
Having the power to give form.—The plajlical power of 
the fouls, that defcend from the world of life, did faith¬ 
fully and effeftually work thofe wife contrivances of 
male and female. More’s Conj. Cabb. 
Benign Creator, let thy plafich hand 
Difpofe its own effeft. Prior. 
PLAS'TICE,/. [Greek.] The plaftic art, a branch 
of fculpture ; being the art of forming figures of men, 
birds, beads, fifties, plants, &c. in plafter, clay, ftucco, or 
the like.— Plafice differs from carving, becaufe here the 
figures are made by the addition of fomething that is 
wanting; but in carving, always by (ubtraftion of what 
is fuperfluous. Chambers. 
PLAS'TRON, / in ancient armour, a breaft-plate of 
forged iron, occafior.ally put on under or between the 
hauberk and gambefon. In modern praftice, a piece of 
leather (luffed, which fencers ufe, when they teach their 
fcholars, in order to receive the pufttes made at them. 
Trevoux. 
Again ft the pod their wicker ftiields they crufli, 
Flourifti the fword, and at the plajlron pufit. Dryden. 
PLAS'WIG, a town of Pruflia, in the province of 
Ermeland : twenty-eight miles north-weft of HeiKberg. 
PLAT, /. [more properly plot, Dr. Johnfon fays, from 
the Saxon ; but plat, Teut. and Fr. level, plain, is moll 
probably the origin both of this word and of plot. Todd.] 
A fmall piece of ground ; ufually a fmooth or plain por¬ 
tion of ground.— It paffes through banks of violets and 
plats of willow of its own producing. Spectator. 
On a plat of rifing ground, 
I hear the far-off curfeu found. 
Over fome wide-water’d (hore, 
Swinging low with fullen roar. Milton's II Penferofo. 
3 PLAT, 
