WES
Torbay, ebbs and flows very often every Hour ; tho fome- what oftener in Winter than Summer. Dr. Oliver obferves, its Flux and Reflux fometimes return every Minute, tho fometimes not above zS or 10 times an Hour. Philofoph. Tranfatl. N n 104.
Well-JFb/w is not fo wholefom or good for molt Ufes, as River-Water. See Water.
WEt.r.-.Hofe.in Building, is the Hole left in a Floor for the Stairs to come up thro'. See Stairs.
Well, in the Military Art, is a Depth which the Miner finks into the Ground, to prepare a Mine, or find our and difappoint the Enemy's Mine. See Mine, Sap, gjc.
WEN, a Tumor, or Excrcfcence growing on divers Parts of the Body ; confiding of a Cyftis, or Bag, fill'd with fome peculiar Matter. See Tumor, and Excrescence.
Of this, Phyficians ufually reckon three Kinds, according to the Matter it is form'd of, 1. e. the Humour contain'd therein.— If Toft, refembling a Pulp, the Wen is call'd Athe- roma ; if Honey, Meliceris ; and if Suet, Steatomtt,
M. Littre, in Mem. de I' Acad, del Sciences, adds a fourth Kind, which he calls Lipoma ; by reafon, the Wen is form'd of foft Fat.
They are all, ufually, of the like Colour with the reft of the Body ; begin from very little, and grow gradually. They are not dangerous, but frequently laft a long while. Some- times they degenerate into Abfceffes.
The Cure is, to cut off the Cyftis by the Root, which is always narrow.
In the 'Philosophical TranfaSions, we have an Account of a very extraordinary Wen, on the lower Jaw of one Alex. 'Palmer of Keith in Scotland. — It was 27 Years a-growing : at length, its enormous Bulk, and the Pain it gave him, toge- ther with its emaciating him exceedingly, determin'd him to have it cut off. Dr. Sowers affures us, its Balis was five Inches over, which ihould feem toolarge for the whole Face, and that with Blood and all, it weigh 'd one or two and twenty Pounds. Its form was Spheroidal ; and when meafur'd, was 54. Inches abour, one way, and 28 another. It feem'd to be an Atheroma ; being a glandulous Subltance, with fcveral big Blood- Veffels in it ; and Hair growing on it. It was as fenfible as any other Part. — The Hemorrhage, after cutting it off, was ftop'd by the Vitriolic Pouder, and the ordinary Drefiing being us'd, a Cure was compleated in fix Weeks time.
WERE, or Werre, in our old Law-Books, fignifies as much as JEftimatio Capitis, or Pretium hominis ; that is, fo much as was antiently paid for killing a Man. When fuch Crimes were punifti'd with pecuniary Mulcts, nor Death 5 the Price was fet on every Man's Head, according to his
Condition and Quality. -Were fitum, id eft, tretium fu<s
redemptions, his Ranfom. See Ransom.
WERELADA, from rhe Saxon Were and ladian, to purge ; was thus : Where a Man was flain, the Price at which he was valu'd was to be paid to his Relations. For in the Time of the Saxons, the killing a Man was not pu- nifti'd by Death, but by a pecuniary Mulct, call'd Wera See Were.
WERGILD, Wergeld, in our.,antient Cuftoms, pre- tium feu Valor hominis occifi, homieidii pretium ; which was paid partly to the King for the Lofs of his Subject, partly to the Lord whofe Vaffal he was, and partly to the
next of kin. -f^tiredam Crimina emendari non pojj'unt ;
que [ant Husbrech, Bernet, £? Openchef, £? Everemord, £? Latordfith, £5 infratlio pads Ecclefi£, vel per Mantis Regis per homici drum, L. L. Hen. I. c. 12. — Where are likewife enumerated the Crimes that might be redeemed per Weram.
■'Dc unoquoque jure per totam fcotiam efl Wergelt 30
Vacc<£ S-J una Juwnca, five filer it liber homo five fervus.
The Wergeld of an Archbifhop and of an Earl, was rjooo Thrimfa's. Selden's Titles of Honour.
If the Party deny'd the Fact, he was to purge himfelf by rhe Oaths of feveral Perfons, according to his Degree and Quality. — If the Guilt amounted to four Pounds, he was to have 18 Jurors on his Father's fide, and four on his Mother's: If to 14 Pounds, he was to have fixty Jurors. And this was called Werelada. — Homicidium Wera folvatur aut Were- lada negetur.
WEST, Occidens, Occafus, in Cofmography, one of the Cardinal Points of the Horizon ; diametrically oppofite to the Eaft. See CARniNAt 'Point, East, j^c.
Weft is, ftriflly defined, the Inteifeftion of the Prime Ver- tical with the Horizon, on that fide the Sun fets in. See Set- ting.
To draw a true Weft- .£/»,?. See Meridian.
In AHronomy, Weft is chiefly ufed for the Places in or to-
watds which, the Sun or Stars fink under the Horizon.
Thus, we fay, the Situ, Mars, &c. are in the Weft.
The Point the Sun fets in, when in the Equator, is parti- cularly call'd the EquinoBial Weft, or 'Point of 'true Weft. See EojjiNOCTiAL.
In Geography, Weft and Weftem are applied to certain Countries, S?c fituate towatds the Point of Sun-fettina with
C 3*3]
W H E
refpefl to certain others.— Thus, the Empire of Rome, an- tiently, and of Germany, at prefent, are called the Empire of the Weft, or Weftem Empire ; in oppofition to that of Con- stantinople, which is call'd the Empire of the Eaft. See Empire. z j
The Latin or Roman Church, is called the Weftem Church ■ in oppofition to the Greek Church.— The French, Spaniards, Italians, &ic. are called Weftem Nations, in re- 'P™* ' t0 r th , e Mattch ; mi America rhe Weft-Indies, in refpect of the Eaft-Indies.
Wzsr-Wind, is alio called Zcphyrus, and Fa-jouius. See Wind.
VJusr-Saxonlage, or Wzsr-Saxonlaita, the Law of the Weft-Saxons. See Law, Merchenlage, tic.
WESTPHALIA Ham. See Ham.
WETG/mw-, a Dreffer of the Skins of Sheep, Lambs, Goats, tyc. which are (lender, thin, and gentle. See Glove, Skin, $yc.
WHALE, in Aftronomy, one of the Conftellations. See Cetus.
Whale- Soar, a Commodity got from the Whale, ufed as Stiffening in Stays, Fans, Busk's,' Skreens, tfc.
There are two Kinds of Whales ; the one retaining that Name, the other called Cachalot. Their Difference conlifts in this, that the Cachalot has Teeth, and the Whale, pro- perly fo call'd, inflead of Teeth, has a kind of Whilkers in his Throat, about a Span broad and 1 5 Foot long, ending in a kind of Fringe, much like Swines BrilHes.
They are fet in the Palate, and do in fome meafure the Office of Teeth.— There Whilkers, fplit and fafhion'd, are what we call Whalebone.-— The Pizzle or Genital Member of the Animal ferves likewife for the fame Purpofe.
Wiiale-F//W)i. See Fisherv.
WHARF, a Space on the Banks of a Haven, Creek, or Hithe ; provided for the convenient loading and unloading of Veffels upon. See Haven, Hithe, t£c.
The Fee paid for the Landing of Goods on a Wharf, or for Shipping them off, is call'd Wimrfage.— And the Perlon who has the Overfight and Direction of the Wharf, receives Wharfage, £?c. is called the Wharfinger. See Kei.
WHARLS of Flower s, among Herbalifts, are Rows of leffer Flowers, fet at certain Dilhmces about the main Stalk or Spike. See Flower.
WHEAT. See Corn.
WHEEL, Rota, in Mechanicks, a fimple Machine, con- fining of a round piece of Wood, Metal, or other Matter 5 turning round on an Axis. See Axis.
The Wheel is one of the principal Mechanick Powers. — It has place in moft Engines; and, in erfta, 'tis of an Af- femblage of Wheels, that moft of our chief Engines are
compoied. Witnefs Clocks, Mills, S£c. See Clock,
Mill, igc.
Its form is various, according to the Motions it is to have ; and the Ufe it is to anfwer.— By this it is diftinguifh'd into Simple and Tiented.
Simple Wheels, are thofe whofe Circumference and Axis is uniform, and which are ufed fingly, and not combined. — Such are Wheels of Carriages 5 which are ro have a double Motion : the one circular, about their Axis 5 the other rec- tilinear ; by which they advance along the Road, t$c. which two Motions they appear to have ; tho, in eB-cft, they have but one : It being impoflible the fame Thing fhould move or be agitated two different ways at the fame time.
This one is a fpiral Motion ; as is eafily feen by fixing a piece of Chalk on the Face of a Wheel, fo as it may draw a Line on a Wall, as the Wheel moves.— The Line it here traces is a juft Spiral, and ftill the more Curve as the Chalk is fix'd nearer rhe Axis.
For a very nice Phamomenon in the Motion of thefe Wheels, fee Ariftctle's Wheel.
We fhall add, that in Wheels of this kind, the Height Ihould always be proportion'd to the Stature of the Animal that draws or moves them. — The Rule is, that the Load and the Axis of the Wheels, be of the fame Height with the Force that moves them : Otherwife, the Axis being higher than the Beaft, part of the Load will lie on him ; or, if ic be lower, he pulls to difadvantage, andmuft exert a greater Force. Tho, Stevinus, Dr. Wallis, &c. Jhew, rhat to dtaw a Vehicle, &c. over wafte, uneven Places, it were beft to fix the Traces to the Wheels lower than the Horfe's Breaft.
The Power of thefc Wheels refults from the Difference of the Radii of the Axis, and Circumference. — The Canon is this : As the Radius of the Axis is to that of the Circum- ference, So is any Power, ro the Weight it can fuftain hereby.
This is alfo the Rule in the Axis in 'Peritrochio ; and, in effea, rhe Wheel, and the Axis in 'Peritrcchio, are the fame thing ; only, in Theory it is ufually call'd by the for- mer Name, and in Praaice by the latter. See Axis in Pe- ritrochio.
(Dented Wheels, are thofe whofe Circumference, or elfc Axis, is cut into Teeth, by which they are capable of mov- ing and aaing on one another, and of being combined to- gether. See Dented, Teeth, He The
