B R E
Breast-/)/*;/.-, among artificers, denotes a drill-plate, againft which to fet the blunt end of the drill. Moxon, Median. Ex- ercif. P. i. p. 7. , ,
Breasts 0/ ajaddle, are part of the bow, being the two tides ot it down from the arch or upper part. See the article Bow.
BREAST-wori, in the military art. See the articles Parapet, and Losica, Cyd.
BREATH, the wind or air which is received and expelled by the mouth and noftrils, in the act of refpiration. See Air, Wind, Respiration, Cyd. and Suppl.
In which fenfe, the word amounts to the fame with the Greek Mile*, and Latin Jpiritus. Cajl. Lex. Med. p. 595. voc. Preunta.
The breath of a leper is faid to be infectious. See the article Leprosy, Cyd.
It lias been generally held, tho' without foundation, that the breath of a menffruous woman had a malignity in it. fund. Confp. Phyfiol. tab. 24. p. 343. See the article Menses, Cyel. and Suppl.
Charas, and fome others, attribute the poifon of the viper to a malignity in its breath, which they call halitus teter, and afflatus maligna:. Philof. Tranfad. N° 77. p 3014. A ftinkins breath, called A, or faster oris, is one of the fym- ptoms ufually preceding the accefs of an intermitting fever. Celf. I.-3. c II. Cajt. Lex. Med p. 554. voc. Oxe. In fome perfons, a (linking treath is an indication of themen- fes being at hand. God. Hift. Anat. p. 2 2 1 , feq. 'Tis uifj-uted among the civilians, whether a ftinking breath, called fcabto, owing to rotten teeth or gums, be to be reputed a difeafe. Calv. Lex. Jur. p. 831. voc. Seabro.
Br e a t h is more particularly ufed to denote a ffrength of lungs, whereby a man is enabled to hold out without taking wind fo often.
Ill this fenfe, we fay, a long, a fliort breath. The ordinary term of holding the breath does not exceed one third of a mi- nute. Bae. HTft. Life and Death, ap. Works, T. 2. p. 176. For the pearl iifhery they chufe flaves who have the beft breath, or can continue longeft under water without fetching their breath. Pechlin has a difl'ertation exprefs on living long with- out breathing. J. Mr. Peehlin de Acris & Alimenti Defeflu & Vita fub Aquis diuturna, Meditatio ad Joel Langelot, 1676. Trev Diet. Univ. T. 3. p. A&6. voc Haleiie. The antients were very watchful over the lad breath of dying perfons ; which the ncareft relations, as the mother, father, brother, or the like, received in their mouths. Pitife. Lex. Antiq. T. 2. p. 830. lOC.Spirhlts.
Breath is alfo fomctimes extended to the odorous effluvia of plants, and even exhalations of minerals. See Effluvia, Cyel. and Suppl.
BREATHING, Ex/ufflaiio, a ceremony in baptifm. See Bap- tism, and Blowing.
Difficulty of Breathing, in medicine, a difeafe called by phy- cians dyjpnaa. See the article Dyspnea. Fighting a cock to breathe him, is called /paring. See the ar- ticle Sparing.
To breathe a running horfe, and bring him to his wind, they give him heats. See the article Heat, Cyd.
BREDEWITE, in antient law-writers, an amercement arifing from fome default in the affize of bread. Kenn. Gloff. ad Pa- roch. Antiq. in voc.
BREECHES, a garment worn by males, reaching from the gir- dle to the knees, and ferving to cover the hips, thighs, C3V. The antient Romans had nothing in their drefs anfwering to our breeches ant! ftockings ; infread of which, under their lower tunics and waiftcoats, they fomctimes hound their thighs and legs round with filken fcarves, or laicise, called tibialia and fe~ moralia. Salmuth. ad Pancirol. P. 1. p. 161. Pitife. Lex Ant. T. 1. p. 292, feq. Kenn. Rom. Antiq. Not. P. 2. 1. 5. c. S. p. 219.
Breeches appear to be a habit peculiar to the barbarous nations, efpecially thofe inhabiting the colder countries of the north ; whence Tacitus calls them barbarian tegmen \ We find men- tion made of them among the antient Gette, Sannatae, Gauls, Germans and Britons ; they alfo obtained among the Medes b and Perfians % as being a people of Scythian origin : they alfo afterwards got footing in Italy, fome pretend as early as the time of Auguftus j but without much foundation, that empe- ror's breeches, mentioned by Suetonius, being apparently only fwaths tied over his thighs d . — [ 3 Tacit. Hift. 1. z. c. 20. 6 Per/. Sat. 3. v. 51. ' Ovid. Trift. 1. 5. Eleg. 11. d Suet. in Auguft. c. 82. n. I.]
However this be, breeches were at length received into Italy, and grew fo highly into fafllion, that it was thought neceffary, under Honorius and Arcadius, to reftrain them by law, and expel the bracearii, or brcechcs-mvkzrs, out of the city ; it ap- pearing a thing unworthy, that a nation, which commanded the world, mould wear the habit of barbarians. Vid. La/aub. ad Suet. c. 82. n. 1. Salma/ ill Lamprid. Alex. Sever, c. 40. Guver.h 1. c. 16. Ant. Germ. p. 7c, & 140. Rhodig. Leer. Ant. I. 18. c. 21. Fab. Thef. p. 373, feq. voc. Bracca. Pili/c. Lex. Antiq. T. I. p. 293. voc. Bracearii. We find frequent mention of braae, bracca, or bracehte, in claffic writers ; but the form of this habit is not agreed on : fome will have it to have been a rough party-coloured coat,
BRE
with a long nap ; others reprefent the Iraca as a coat, with breeches annexed, or covering both the breaft, hips and legs j fuch as that ftill in ufe among the peafants of Suabia ; and what feems to confirm this conjecture is, that Orpheus is reprefented in fome antient monuments in the Roma Subterranca, in fuch a habit ; agreeing well enough to Ovid and Mela's defcrip- tion. Aquin. Lex. Milit. T. r. p. 136. voc. Braccia, Mela de Situ Orbis, I. 2. c. 1. Ovid. Trift. 1. 3. Eleg. 10.
Breech of a gun, among engineers, denotes the end next the touch-hole.
The breech contains the touch-hole, plat-band, and bottom, or cafcabel. It is of folid metal, and ferves to terminate and de- fend the extremity of the chafe. Moor. Treat, of Artill. P. 1. c. 1. p. 2.
For brafs guns, the breech has been ufually allowed to be as thick as the diameter of the bullet. Manwayr. Sea Diet. p. 1 5 voc. Breech.
Engineers have contrived a fort of cannons, which are charged by the breech. Trev. Diet. Univ. T. 2. p. 439. voc. Cu- laffi.
BREECHINGS, in the fea language, thofe ropes with which the great guns are lafhed, or fattened to the fhip's fide. Guilt. Gent. Diet. P. 3. in voc.
They are thus called, becaufe brought about the breech of the piece, and are not ufed in fight, but chiefly in foul weather. Manwayr. Sea Diet. p. 15. voc. Brcechings.
BREEDING {Cyci) is ufed for the care of rearing or bringing up the young of divers animals.
We find divers inftructions for the breeding of horfes a , kine b , fheep c , dogs d , cocks % chickens f , turkeys £, filkworms, fpi- ders h , oyfters ', and the like.— [ a Mortim. Art of Hufbandry, I. 6. c. 2. T. 1. p. 205. Cox, Gent. Recr. P. 4. c. 2. p. 7, 1 1, feq. b Bought. Collea. T. 4. p. 362. It. T. 1. N D 105, feq. p. 278, & 285, feq. c Mortim. lib. cit. p. 240. d Cox y lib. cit. P. 1 . p. 25, & p. 40. e Compl. Gam. p. 200. f Diet. Ruft. T. 1. invoc. s Phil. Tranfact. N y 5. p. 87. h Mem. Acad. Scienc, an. 17 10. p. 507. i Hought. Collect. T. 3. N° 528. p. 265, and 268.]
Among the Mahometans, there are certain privileges and re- wards allotted to fheep or camels, after having bred a certain number of young : they are called bahira^ faiba, wafila, and hand. Sale, Prelim. Diic. to Koran, fee. 5. p. 1 28, feq. See Bahira, fcff.
Breeding, in a moral fenfe, denotes a perfon's deportment or behaviour in the external offices and decorums of focial life. In this fenfe, we fay, -woiVbred, \\\-bred, a man of breeding, &c. Good breeding is hard to define ; none can underftand the fpe- culation, but thofe who have the practice *. Good breeding amounts to Much the fame with what is otherwife called pc- litenefs, among the antient Romans, urbanity b . — [ a Shaftsb. Charact. T. 1. p. 64, feq. b Hift. Acad. Infer. T. 1. p. 84.] Good-breeding is near to virtue, and will of itfelf lead a man a great part of the way towards the fame ; it teaches him to rejoice in acts of civility, to feek out objects of compaflion, and he pleafed with every occafion of doing good offices. Sbaftesb. Charact. T. 2, p. 242.
Lord Shaftefbury compares the wel!-£m/ man with the real philofopher: both characters aim at what is excellent, afpire to a juft tafle, and carry in view the model of what is beautiful and becoming. The conduct and manners of the one is form- ed according to the moft perfect eafe, and good entertainment of company ; of the other, according to the ftricteft intereft of mankind ; the one according to his rank and quality in his pri- vate ftation, the other according to his rank and dignity in na- ture c . Horace feems to have united both characters d .
§htid verum atque decern euro iff rogo, & omnls in hoc fum. [ c Sbaftesb. Charact. T. 3. p. 161, feq. Item, T. 1. p, 129, feq. d Hor. 1. 1. ep. 1. v. 11.]
Breeding^k^, in mineralogy, a fort of mafs of pebbles, join- ed by a fparry cement; frequent in divers parts of Hertfordfhire. Woodw. Nat. Hift. Englifh Foffils, T. 2. p. 66. See Pebble.
Breeding of fijh. — The neceflary qualities for a pond, in order to its ferving well for breeding fifh, are very different from thofe which are to make it ferve for the feeding of them ; info- much that fome particular ponds ferve only for one of thefe purpofes, and others for the other ; and fcarce ever the fame pond is found to ferve for both. In general, it is much more rare to find a good breeding pond than a good feeding one. The beft indications for a breeding pond are thefe ; that there be a good quantity of rufhes and grafs about its fides, with gravelly fhoals, fuch as horfe-ponds ufually have : when a pond has this property, and takes to the breeding of fifh, it is amazing what a progrefs will be made in a little time. The fpawn of fifh is prodigious in quantity, and where it fucceeds, one is able to produce many millions : thus, in one of thefe breeding ponds, two or three melters, and as many fpawners, ■ will, in a very little time, ftock the whole country. When thefe ponds are not meant entirely for breeding, but the owner would have the fifh grow to fome fize in them, the method is to thin the numbers, becaufe they otherwife ftarve one another, and to put in other fifh that will prey upon the young, and thin them in the qutckeft manner. Eels and pearch are the moft ufeful on this account ; for they prey not only upon the fpawn itfelf* but on the young fry, from the firft hatching to the time
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