B R I
B R I
ERiCK-i«/?. — It is a cuftom with (ome perfons to reduce tins fubftance to a very fine powder, and give it, inftead of chalk, in the heart-burn. Many of the lozenges, fo much famed for the cure of this diforder, and fold under the pompous names of coral lozenges, are only made of a mixture of this uncouth medicine, and fugar made into the confiftence of a pafte, with gum tragacanth reduced to a mucilage, with rofe-water. But it is to be obferved, that this, as well as chalk, is a very dan- gerous remedy. It has grown into an opinion, that the fole caufe of this complaint was an acid humour in the ftomach, and thence an abforbent was judged alone fufKcient for a cure: chalk was the firft fubftance pitched upon for this purpofe ; but fome mifchievous events having happened from the taking it, recourfe was had by fome to this odd medicine. But fuch mould have obferved, that as chalk did all its mifchief by being an aftringent, this new medicine was qualified to do much more harm, on the fame principle ; it being a much more powerful one. Junck. Med. Confp. p. 589.
Jiz.icK.-cartb, in agriculture. See the article Brick'ifh Soil.
BB.1CK.-Hln, a place to burn bricks in. See the article Brick.
BkicK-layer, an artificer whofe bufmefs is to build with bricks, or make brick-work. See the articles Brick, and Brick. - hying.
Brick-layers work or bufinefs, in London, includes tyling, walling, chimney-work, and paving with bricks and tyles. In the country, it alfo includes the mafons and plaifterers bufinefs. Neve, Build. Diet, in voc.
There is fome difpute, as to the point of priority, between the white mafon, or hewer of ftone, and the red mafon, or hewer of bricks : Scripture, it feems, favours the latter, making men- tion of making bricks, before any account of digging or hew- ing of ftones. Moxons Mechan. Exerc. p. 237. See the ar- ticle Mason, Cycl.
The materials ufed by bricklayers, are bricks, tyles, mortar, laths, nails, and tyle-pins.
Their tools are, a brick-truel, wherewith to take up mortar; a brick-ax, to cut bricks to the determined fhape; a faw, for fawing bricks ; a rub-ftone, on which to rub them; alfo a fquare, wherewith to lay the bed or bottom, and face or fur- face of the brick, to fee whether they be at right angles ; a bevel, by which to cut the under-fides of bricks to the angles required ; a fmall trannel of iron, wherewith to mark the bricks; a fioat-flone, with which to rub a moulding of brick to the pattern defcribed ; a banker, to cut the bricks on ; line-pins, to lay their rows or courfes by ; plumb-rule, where- by to carry their work upright; level, to conduct it horizon- tal ; fquare, to fet off right angles ; ten foot rod, wherewith to take dimenfions ; jointer, wherewith to run the long joints; rammer, wherewith to beat the foundation ; crow and pick-ax, wherewith to dig through walls. Moxon, lib. cit. p. 245,
1 he London brick-layers make a regular company, which was incorporated in 1568, and confifts of a matter, two wardens, twenty afliftants, and feventy-eight on the livery. New View of London, feci. 3. p. 598. BRiCK-tayir/g y the art of framing edifices of bricks.
Brick-laying is one of the arts fubfervient to architecture. Moxon has an exercife exprefs on the art of brick-laying, where- in he defcribes the materials, tools, and methods of working ufed by brick-layers. Moxon, Mechan. Exerc. p. 237, feq. Great care is to be taken, that bricks be laid joint on joint in the middle of walls, as feldom as may be ; and that there be good bond made there, as well as on the outfides. Some brick -layers, in working a brick and half wall, lay the header on one fide of the wall, perpendicular on the header on the other fide, and fo all along through the whole courfe; where- as, if the header on one fide of the wall were toothed as much as the ftretcher on the other fide, it would be a ftronger tooth- ing, and the joints of the headers of one fide would be in the middle of the headers of the courfe they He upon of the other fide. Moxoris Mechan. Exerc. p. 260, feq. Neve, ubi fupra. If bricks be laid in winter, let them be kept as dry as poffible ; if in fummer, it will quit coft to employ boys to wet them, for that they will then unite with the mortar better than if dry, and will make the work ftronger. In large buildings, or where it is thought too much trouble to dip all the bricks feparately, water may be thrown on each courfe after they are laid, as was done at the building of the Phyficians college in Warwick- lane, by order of Dr. Hooke.
If bricks be laid in fummer, they are to be covered ; for if the mortar dries too haftily, it will not bind fo firmly to the bricks, as when left to dry more gradually. If the bricks be laid in winter, they are alfo to be covered well, to protect them from rain, fnow and froft; which laft is a mortal enemy to mor- tar, efpecially to all fuch as has been wetted juft before the froft aflaults it. Boyle, Philof. Works abr. T. 1. p. 608, feq.
A brick- layer and his labourer will lay in a day about a thou- sand bricks, in whole work on a folia plane. Neve, ubi fop. for the number of bricks required in a building, it is impoflible exactly to determine, even though the bricks were all made in the fame mould, and burnt in the fame clamp or kiln. The reafons are, that the brick-layer's hand may vary in laying his mortar ; that many of the bricks are warped in burning ; that Suppl. Vol- I,
fome are fpoiled in every carriage ; that the tale is generally fhort, if not well looked to ; befides all which, when bricks are dear, and lime cheap, if work be put out by the great, or by meafure, and the workman be to find materials, he will u'e the more mortar, and make great joints, which is a defect in building.
Brick walls are fometirnes wrought part of the way two Inches thicker than the reft of the work, to ferve for a water table to the wall.
BRICKING popularly fignifies building a thing up with brick ; but, more properly, the act or art of counterfeiting of brick on plaifter, by fmeering it over with a red oker colour, and mark- ing the joints with an edged inftrument. Davil Exph Term. d' Architect, p. 43 6. voc. Briqueter. Ejufd.Cours d J Architect. P- 337-
This anfwers to what the French call briqueier, which is fome- tirnes alfo performed by ufing a layer of plaifter, mixed with red oker, and, while it is frefh laid on, drawing deep lines for joints, and then filling them with fine plaifter. Some evert fmeer bricks themfelves with a red colour, and repair the joints with plaifter, to make an antiquated building look freih. Id. ibid.
BRIDE, a woman juft married, or a wife in the firft days of her matrimonial ftate. See the article Marriage, Cycl. and Suppl.
Among the Romans, the maid efpoufed remained a bride, fponfa, till flie entered the hufband's houfe ; from which time fhe commenced a wife, uxor. Pitifc. Lex. Antiq. T. 2. p. 833. voc. Bpojifa.
The bridegroom was attended by a brideman, paranymphus a ; the bride by a pronuba, •jrftfamr&a, or bridemaid b , whofe bufi- nefs was to inftruct her young miftrefs in the duties of the ge- nial bed, and to prepare every thing for a profperous copu- lation c .— [ a Trev. Diet. Univ. T. 4. p. 2058. Du Cange t Gloff. Lat. T. 4. p. 150. Pitifc. Lex. Ant. T. 2. p. 375. Calv. Lex. Jurid. p. 670. voc. Paranymphus. b Pitifc. lib* cit. p. 546. Trev. Diet, ubi fup. c Cajt. Lex. Med. p. 609. voc. Pronuba.']
The antient ceremonies pradtifed in refpect of a bride were nu- merous ; moft of them emblematical, or fignlficant of fome part of her duty : as, drefling her hair after a peculiar man- ner, and parting it with afpear; putting on her a crown; girding her with a girdle, which the bridegroom was toloofen ; pitting a yoak on her neck ; dreffing her in yellow focks ; veiling her with the flammeum. She was to feem to be raviih- ed or torn by force from her mother, in memory of the rape of the Sabines under Romulus; fhe was to be carried home in the night-time to the bridegroom's houfe, accompanied by three boys, called patrimi and matrimi ; one whereof carried a torch, and the other two, called parav.yrr.phi, led the bride d ; a fpindle and a diftaff being carried with her : fhe broughtthree pieces of money, called affes, in her hand to the bridegroom, whofe doors, on this occafion, were adorned with flowers and branches of trees : being here interrogated who fhe was, fhe was to anfwer, Caia, in memory of Caia Czecilia, wife of Tar- quin the elder, who was an excellent lanifica, or fpinftrefs c j for the like reafon, before her entrance, fhe lined the door-pofts with wool, and fmeered them with greafe f . — [ d Potter, Ar- chsol. 1. 4. c. 11. T. 2. p. 286. c Val. Max. 10. Plut. Quasft. Rom. 30, f Serv. ad JEn. 1. 4. v. 450.] Fire and water being fet on the tbrefhold, fhe touched both ; but, ftarting back from the door, refufed to enter, till at length fhe patted the threfhold, being careful to ftep over, without touching it : here the keys were given her; a nuptial fupper was prepared for her, and minftrels to divert her; fhe was feated on the figure of a Priapus, and here the patrimi and matrimi refigned her to the prcnuba?, who brought her into the nuptial chamber, and put her into the genial bed ; this office was to be performed by matrons who had only been once mar- ried, to denote that the marriage was to be for perpetuity. When the bridegroom was brought to her, to drown the cries and fqualling of a coy maid at the firft conflict, epithalamia were fung by the women, who were divided for that purpofe into two bands, one whereof fung in the evening, the other the next morning ; and, for the like purpofe, nuts were alfo thrown about for the boys to fcramble for. Salmutb. ad Pancirol. P. 1. tit. 59. p. 316. Kenn. Rom. Ant. P. 2. 1. 5. c. 9. p. 327, feq. Pitifc. Lex. Ant. T. 2. p. 292, feq. voc. Nupia. Fabric. Bibl. Ant. c. iq. §.5. p. 577.
BRIDEGROOM, the fpoufe or mate of a bride.
Among the Romans, the bridegroom was decked to receive his bride ; his hair was combed and cut in a peculiar form 5 he had a coronet or chaplet on his head, and was dreffed in a white garment. Pitifc. Lex. Antiq. T. 1. p, 836. voc. Sponfus. x
By the antient canons, the bridegroo77i was to forbear the en- joyment of his bride the firft night, in honour of the nuptial benediction given by the prieft on that day. Johnf. Ecclef. Law, an. 740. §. 88.
In Scotland, and perhaps alfo fome parts of England, a cuf- tom called marchet, obtained, by which the lord of the manor was entitled to the firft night's habitation with his tenants brides. Spelm. GlofT. p. 397. voc. Marchet. Menag. Orig. p. 483. voc, Marquette. See the article^ Marchet, Cycl.
5 O BRIDE-
