_Sinclair, Sir John_, of whom it was said, "There is no greater name in the annals of agriculture, than his," was born in Caithness, Scotland, May 10, 1754, and became a member of the British Parliament in 1780. He was strongly opposed to the measures of the British Government towards America, which produced the American Revolution. He was author of many valuable publications, on various subjects. He died December 21, 1835.
_Sirloin_, the loin of beef. The appellation "Sir" is the t.i.tle of a knight, or baronet; and has been added to the word "loin," when applied to beef, because a King of England, in a freak of good humor, once conferred the honor of knighthood upon a loin of beef.
_Slack_, to loosen, to relax, to deprive of cohesion.
_Soda_, an alkali, usually obtained from the ashes of marine plants.
To _Spade_, to throw out earth with a spade.
_Spermaceti_, an oily substance, found in the head of a species of whale, called the spermaceti whale.
_Spindling_, see page 124.
_Spinous process_, a process or bony protuberance, resembling a spine or thorn, whence it derives its name.
_Spool_, a piece of cane or reed, or a hollow cylinder of wood, with a ridge at each end, used to wind yarn and thread upon.
_Stamen_, (plural _stamens_ and _stamina_,) in _weaving_, the warp, the thread, any thing made of threads. In _botany_, that part of a flower, on which the artificial cla.s.sification is founded, consisting of the filament or stalk, and the anther, which contains the pollen, or fructifying powder.
_Stigma_, (plural _stigmas_ and _stigmata_,) the summit or top of the pistil of a flower.
_Style_, or _Stile_, the part of the pistil between the germ and the stigma.
_Sub-carbonate_, an imperfect carbonate.
_Sulphates_, _Sulphats_, _Sulphites_, salts formed by the combination of some base with sulphuric acid, as _Sulphate of copper_, (blue vitriol, or blue stone,) a combination of sulphuric acid with copper. _Sulphate of iron_, copperas, or green vitriol. _Sulphate of lime_, gypsum, or plaster of Paris. _Sulphate of magnesia_, Epsom salts. _Sulphate of potash_, a chemical salt, composed of sulphuric acid and potash.
_Sulphate of soda_, Glauber"s salts. _Sulphate of zinc_, white vitriol.
_Sulphuret_, a combination of an alkaline earth or metal with sulphur as, _Sulphuret of iron_, a combination of iron and sulphur.
_Sulphuric acid_, oil of vitriol, vitriolic acid.
_Suture_, a sewing; the uniting of parts by st.i.tching; the seam or joint which unites the flat bones of the skull, which are notched like the teeth of a saw, and the notches, being united together, present the appearance of a seam.
_Tartar_, a substance, deposited on the inside of wine casks, consisting chiefly of tartaric acid and potash. _Cream of tartar_, the crude tartar separated from all its impurities, by being dissolved in water and then crystallized, when it becomes a perfectly white powder.
_Tartaric acid_, a vegetable acid which exists in the grape.
_Technology_, a description of the arts, considered generally, in their theory and practice, as connected with moral, political, and physical science.
_Three great Jewish yearly festivals_, see _Festivals_.
_Three-ply_, or triple ingrain, a kind of carpeting, in which the threads are woven in such a manner as to make three thicknesses of the cloth.
_Tic douloureux_, a painful affection of the nerves, mostly those of the face.
_Tocqueville_, (Alexis de,) a celebrated living statesman and writer of France, and author of volumes on the Political Condition, and the Penitentiaries, of the United States, and other works.
_Trachea_, the windpipe, so named (from a Greek word signifying _rough_) from the roughness, or inequalities, of the cartilages of which it is formed.
_Truckle-bed_, or _trundle-bed_, a bed that runs on wheels.
_Tuber_, a solid, fleshy, roundish root, like the potato. _Tuberous_, thick and fleshy; composed of, or having, tubers.
_Tucks_, (improperly tacks,) folds in garments.
_Turmeric_, the root of a plant called _Curc.u.ma longa_, a native of the East Indies, used as a yellow dye.
_Twaddle_, idle, foolish talk, or conversation.
_Unbolted_, unsifted.
_Unslacked_, not loosened, or deprived of cohesion. Lime, when it has been slacked, crumbles to powder, from being deprived of cohesion.
_Valance_, the drapery or fringe hanging round the cover of a bed, couch, or other similar article.
_Vascular_, relating to, or full of, vessels.
_Venetian_, a kind of carpeting, composed of a striped woollen warp on a thick woof of linen thread.
_Verisimilitude_, probability, resemblance to truth.
_Verbatim_, word for word.
_Vice versa_, the side being changed, or the question reversed, or the terms being exchanged.
_Viscera_, (plural of _viscus_,) organs contained in the abdomen and in the chest.
_Vitriol_, a compound mineral salt, of a very caustic taste. _Blue vitriol_, sulphate of copper. _Green vitriol_, see _Copperas_. _Oil of vitriol_, sulphuric acid. _White vitriol_, sulphate of zinc.
_Waffle-iron_, an iron utensil for the purpose of baking waffles, which are thin and soft cakes indented by the iron in which they are baked.
_Washleather_, a soft, pliable leather, dressed with oil, and in such a way, that it may be washed, without shrinking. It is used for various articles of dress, as under-shirts, drawers, &c., and also for rubbing silver, and other articles having a high polish. The article known, in commerce, as chamois, or shammy, leather, is also called wash-leather.
_Welting cord_, a cord sewed into the welt or border of a garment.
The _West_, or _Western World_. When used in Europe, or in distinction from the Eastern World, it means America. When used in this Country, the West refers to the Western States of the Union. _Western Wilds_, the wild, thinly-settled lands of the Western States.
_White vitriol_, see _Zinc_.
_Wilton carpet_, a kind of carpets, made in England, and so called from the place which is the chief seat of their manufacture. They are woollen velvets, with variegated colors.
_Writ of lunacy_, see _Lunacy_.
_Xantippe_, the wife of Socrates, noted for her violent temper and scolding propensities. The name is frequently applied to a shrew, or peevish, turbulent, scolding woman.
_Zinc_, a blueish-white metal, which is used as a const.i.tuent of bra.s.s, and some other alloys. _Sulphate of zinc_, or _White vitriol_, a combination of zinc with sulphuric acid.