BOAST-BOATING.

The boar's head 'erased,' according to heraldic phraseology, is a well-known cognizance of a number of old families, particularly the Gordons; it also formed the sign of a tavern at Eastcheap, London, which has been immortalised by Shakspeare. On the site of this famed tavern now stands the statue of William IV.

BOAST (Fr. Ebaucher), a word in use with sculptors. To B., as its French original implies, is to block out a piece of stone or wood, so as to form a rude approach to the ultimate figure, leaving the smaller details to be worked out afterwards. Ornamental portions of buildings are often inserted in their places in this condition, and frequently remain so if they are in an obscure position.

provisions: When a B. belongs to any ship or other vessel, the name of the vessel and of the place to which she belongs must be painted on the outside of the stern of the B., and the master's name within side the transom-the letters to be white or yellow on a black ground. Boats not belonging to ships or other vessels must be inscribed with the name of the owners and the port to which they belong. All boats having double sides or bottoms, or any secret places adapted for the concealment of goods, are liable to forfeiture.

The boats intended for the rescue of shipwrecked persons, or crews and passengers exposed to that danger, are described under LIFE-BOAT.

BOA'T-FLY (Notonecta), a genus of insects of the order Hemiptera (q. v.), suborder, Heteroptera, and of the family of the Hydrocorisa, or Waterbugs (q. v.). All of them, like the rest of the family, are aquatic insects. Their English name is derived from their boat-like form, eminently adapted for progression in water, and probably also from their remarkable habit of always swimming on their back-peculiar to the genus Notonecta, as restricted by recent entomologists-and of resting in this posture suspended at the surface of the water. The known species of this genus are not numerous. One of them, N. glauca (sometimes called the Water Boatman), is common in Britain: it is about half an inch long, and varies considerably in colour; (N. glauca). colours being black, brown, and gray. They fly but exhibits a general greenish tinge, the other well, but seldom use their wings. They move with difficulty on dry ground. When they descend into the water, they carry down a supply of air for respiration in a hollow between their folded wings. They feed on animal substances, and often kill and devour those of their own species.

Water Boatman

BOAT is the general name for a small open vessel. Boats differ, however, greatly one from another. They may be slight or strong, sharp or flat-bottomed, decked or undecked, swift for despatch or roomy for cargo, ornamental for pleasure or plain for hard service, deep or light of draught for deep or shallow water. The chief varieties supplied to ships of war are the following-Long-B.: the largest B. of a ship, furnished with mast and sails; it is either armed and equipped, to render warlike service in certain situations, or it is employed to fetch water, wood, provisions, and heavy stores on board. Launch: longer and more flat-bottomed than the long-B.; being rowed with a greater number of oars, it makes more rapid progress up rivers. Barge: a long, narrow, light B., employed in carrying the principal officers to and from the ship; for other kinds of boats or vessels under this name, see BARGE. Pinnace: a B. for the accommodation of the inferior officers; it has usually eight oars, whereas the barge has ten or more. Cutter: broader, deeper, and shorter than the barge or pinnace; it is rowed with six oars, sometimes hoisting a sail, and is chiefly employed in carrying light stores, provisions, and crew. Jolly-B.: a smaller cutter, rowed with four oars instead of six. Yawl: small in size, and used for nearly the same purposes as cutters and jolly-boats. Gig: a long narrow B., rowed with six or eight oars, and employed by the chief officer on expeditions requiring speed. Some of the above-eight passengers. It is usually managed by one named boats are diagonal-built for strength; the others are clincher-built, to be as light as possible. The largest ships of war carry boats of all these various kinds, varying in weight from 110 cwt. down to 10 cwt.; the smaller ships carry fewer; while merchant-ships have seldom more than threeexcept passenger-ships, which are bound by law to carry boats enough to save all the passengers and crew in case of disaster. There are other kinds of boats which do not belong to ships. See BOATING.

BOATING, the art of managing and propelling a boat. This is done either by means of oars or sails. As sailing is fully treated under the head of YACHTING, rowing only is dealt with here. The most ancient form of boat known to have been used in the British Islands is the coracle; it is still much used in Wales. The coracle is but a large wickerwork basket, covered with skins, or some thin waterproof substance stretched over the wicker-work, strengthened by a cross seat. Seated in one of these rude boats, with but a single paddle, it is astonishing with what dexterity the paddler will skim over broken water, and avoid dangers which would infallibly destroy a heavier or less manageable craft. From the coracle spring all the varied classes of boats now in use, either as pendants to ships, or as used for pleasure traffic or a means of conveyance upon our rivers and inland waters. The wherry next claims attention. There are many kinds of wherries, but we only notice the Thames wherry. This is stoutly built, and is constructed to carry about

In reference to the legal regulation of boats in the merchant-service, the following are the chief

sculler or two oarsmen; it is almost entirely employed by watermen for the conveyance of passengers or pleasure-parties. The boats used for rowing as a sport or pastime are of a much lighter and sharper build. They are constructed of all sizes, to carry from eight oarsmen down to a single sculler. Of this class of boats, for racing purposes, we have the 8, 6, 4, 2, and single pair oared boats; while in contests between single scullers, we have what is denominated the wager-boat-a boat so frail and light in its proportions, that none but a most experienced sculler can sit in one without danger of upsetting. For pleasure, we have another class of

BOATING-BOAT-LOWERING APPARATUS.

boats denominated gigs, of stouter and more capa- men's apprentices, on the 1st of August. It is a cious build; they are constructed either for four prize held in high estimation by young aspirants oars, a pair of oars, or single sculls. Boat-racing to rowing honours. But the events of most note is a practice of some antiquity, but it has only culminated in our day. Many prizes have been given from time to time for competition, some of which have been made annual. Perhaps the most famous of all these is Dogget's coat and badge, which is rowed for yearly on the Thames by water.

in the rowing world are the Oxford and Cam-
bridge 8-oared match, rowed annually upon the
This match
Thames, from Putney to Mortlake.
has not been a regular yearly match, there having
been occasional intervals at times of a year or two.
In 1829, 1842, 1849, 1852, 1854, 1857, and 1859,

Four-oared Racing-boat.

the Oxford boat carried off the prize; Cambridge | to his titles champion of the Thames also. So much having wrested it from Oxford in the years 1836, is B. favoured at our universities, that almost every 1839, 1840, 1841, 1845, 1846, 1849, 1856, 1858, college has its club. 1860. 17 matches have come off in 32 years, the BOAT-LOWERING APPARATUS is the name balance being still on the side of Cambridge. It given to certain ropes and pulleys for lowering boats will be noticed that two matches were rowed in from ships quickly and safely, in case of emergency. 1849. The best picked men from each university are Every passenger-ship is compelled by law to carry a selected to contest this great event, and the hardest certain number of boats, depending on the tonnage; exercise and the severest training gone through by and every ship of war necessarily carries boats (see the crews, to improve their wind, strength, and BOAT) for minor services; but until recent years the endurance, for months before the day of rowing; apparatus was very inefficient for lowering these their diet consisting mainly of the plainest cooked boats from the davits or cranes by which they are lean meat and potatoes, with malt liquors, spirituous usually suspended. In shipwreck or other emerdrinks being prohibited, and the duties of temper-gencies at sea, the boats were, until recent years, ance, soberness, and chastity strictly enforced. It often so difficult to extricate that they could not be was at one time thought that light men stood the lowered in time to save the crew and passengers; best chance in these matches, and men weighing or in lowering they capsized, and plunged the nine and ten stone were preferred; but experience unhappy persons into the sea. Many inventors has shewn this to be an error, and ten, eleven, and have recently directed their ingenuity to this subtwelve stone men are now chiefly selected. The ject, with a hope of devising a remedy. In Lacon's distance rowed upon this course, which is called apparatus, the principal feature is the employment 5 miles, is about 44. The time chosen is usually of a friction-brake, by which one man can regulate at slack-tide, and the time taken in rowing varies the rate of descent to varying degrees of speed. according as there is little or no tide or wind, or the Captain Kynaston's disengaging hooks are intended reverse, from 19 to 26 minutes. Robert Coombes is not only to lower boats quickly and safely when said to have rowed it on one occasion in 18 minutes. suspended over the side of the ship, but also to hoist The Cambridge boat, in a closely contested race them out quickly when they happen to be stowed in 1860, did the distance in 26 minutes 5 seconds, in-board. Wood and Rogers's apparatus resembles having previously, in one of their trials, rowed it Kynaston's in this: that the actual lowering from in 21, the young ebb-tide, on the day of the match, the ship is effected by the crew on shipboard, leaving being against them upon the latter half of the course. to the person or persons in the boat only the duty of From 36 to 44 strokes of the oar taken per minute is disengaging it from the tackle. But the apparatus held to be fair racing-pace; and a long steady even which now engages most attention is Clifford's, the stroke the blade of the oar not being dipped too leading principle of which is, that the lowering and deeply in the water, or thrown too high above the disengaging are both effected by one man seated the surface when withdrawn, the arms being well in the boat. Two ropes or lowering pendants, c and extended in taking the stroke, and the elbows d (see fig.), descend from two davits; pass through brought well home to the sides at the conclusion-blocks or sheaves, f; then through other blocks, h, is the kind of stroke now preferred by connoisseurs. within and near the keel of the boat; and finally, The other great events of the boat-racing world are round a roller, a, placed horizontally beneath the the regattas of Henley and Putney. At the former, seat on which the manager of the boat takes his the Oxford and Cambridge crews usually fight their place. By means of a winding-rope, b, held in one battle over again in conjunction with others for hand, he can regulate the speed with which the the challenge-cup; and at these also many scullers' other two ropes uncoil themselves from the roller, matches are rowed, though single scullers' races for thus graduating the boat's descent to the water's the championship of the Thames, &c., are usually level. When lowered, the two ropes can be events of themselves. The most renowned champion thrown off and the boat set free. The slings or of the Thames was Robert Coombes, who wrested lifts, g, are intended to prevent the canting or the championship from Charles Campbell on the upsetting of the boat. The lanyard, m, belongs to 20th of August 1846, having previously defeated the lashings, i, which hold the boat to the side of all the best men. He held it unbeaten for above six the ship; but by the thimbles, k, slipping off the years. He at length succumbed to the prowess of Cole prongs, o, the boat is liberated. The efficiency of in 1852. Cole, in 1854, was beaten by Messenger; the apparatus is most remarkable. In 1856, by Messenger yielded the palm to Kelly in 1856; and order of the Admiralty, experiments were made Kelly was at length, in 1859, beaten by Robert with the starboard-cutter of Ĥ.M.S. Princess Royal. Chambers, the champion of the Tyne, who now adds Twelve men got into the boat while it was hanging

BOATSWAIN-BOBBINS.

the davits to the water. Many other experiments of similar kind were made. Clifford's apparatus is now supplied to many ships of war and merchantvessels; and many lives have been saved by its CLIFFORD'S BOAT-LOWERING APPARATUS.

BOBBIO-BOCCACCIO.

about 100 gross in 10 hours, thereby effecting a saving of about sixteenfold, as compared with hand-government of Minsk, and 88 miles south-east of turning; whilst the attendant has nothing to do but the city of that name. It is situated on the right feed the machine, by dropping the blocks into a bank of the Beresina, and is a station for the steamhopper, from which they pass singly into the lathe, packets navigating the Dnieper and Beresina. where they are finished and dropped one by one out was besieged ineffectually by the French in 1812. of the machine. Pop. stated at 10,000.

BOCCAGE-BOCKH.

be an illegitimate daughter of King Robert. His passion was returned, and to gratify his mistress, B. wrote Il Filocopo, a prose-romance, and afterwards La Teseide, the first attempt at romantic epic poetry, and written in ottava rima, of which B. may be considered the inventor. In 1342, he returned to Florence, but in 1344, went back to Naples, where he wrote his Amorosa Fiammetta, Il Filostrato, and L'Amorosa Visione. Here also he composed his famous Decamerone, to please Joanna, the daughter and successor of King Robert. It consists of 100 stories, ten of which are told each day by seven ladies and three gentlemen, who had fled from Florence during the frightful plague of 1348, to a country villa, and who try to banish fear by abandoning every moment to delicious gaiety. It is impossible to exaggerate the literary merits of the book. In abundance of incident especially, it is almost inexhaustible, though many of the stories are taken from older collections of Contes et Fabliaux. It is, however, unfortunately steeped in impurity. B. once more returned to Florence about 1350. He was now honoured with several diplomatic appointments by his fellow-citizens, and subsequently even thought of entering into holy orders as a penance for the immoral life he had previously led. From this artificial course of repentance he was wisely dissuaded by Petrarch, who advised him to be content with changing his conduct. In 1373, B. was appointed Dantean professor at Florence; that is to say, he was to deliver elucidatory lectures on the Divina Commedia of the great poet, and zealously devoted himself to the difficult task thus imposed on him; but his health failing, he resigned the office, and retired to his little property at Certaldo, where he died, December 21, 1375, 16 months after his friend Petrarch. Besides those works we have already mentioned, B. wrote Origine, Vita e Costumi di Dante Alighieri, and Commento sopra la Commedia di Dante. This commentary on the Divine Comedy extends only to the 17th canto of the Inferno. In Latin, B. wrote, beside the Genealogia Deorum, a work arranged in alphabetical order, De Montibus, Silvis, Fontibus, Lacubus, Fluminibus, &c.; De Casibus Virorum et Fœminarum Illustrium; De Claris Mulieribus, &c.

education at Leyden, he was chosen pastor of the Protestant church at Caen, where he became very popular. In 1629, he gained great reputation by his victory, in a public discussion of several days' duration, over the famous Jesuit, Doctor Verin. The meetings gained additional éclat from the occasional presence of the Viceroy of Normandy, the Duke of Longueville. In 1646, appeared his Sacred Geography, bearing the title of Phaleg and Canaan. His Hierozoicon, or Scripture Zoology, to which he devoted many years of his life, appeared posthumously in 1675. In 1652, B. was invited to Stockholm by Queen Christina, and went thither accompanied by his friend Huet. The court-life, however, did not suit him, and his visit was short. He died suddenly, in 1667, while speaking at a meeting of the Caen Academy of Antiquaries. A complete edition of his works, with a life by Morin, was published at Leyden in 1712; and a new improved edition of the Hierozoicon, his most valuable work, at Leipsic, in 3 vols. 4to (1793— 1796), by Rosenmüller.

BO'CHNIA, a town of Austrian Galicia, capital of south-east of Cracow. The houses are built chiefly a circle of the same name, and about 25 miles eastof wood. There are extensive mines of rock-salt in its vicinity, which employ upwards of 500 miners, and yield annually about 13,000 tons of salt. Pop.

5300.

BÖCKH, AUGUSTUS, the most erudite classical antiquary of Germany at the present day, was born 24th November 1785, at Carlsruhe, and entered the university of Halle in 1803. The prelections of Wolf determined him to the science of philology. His first publication was Commentatio in Platonis qui vulgo fertur Minoem (Halle, 1806). In 1808, appeared his Græcæ Tragœdiæ Principum, Eschyli, Sophoclis, Euripidis, num ea quæ supersunt et genuina omnia sint. In 1809, he became ordinary professor at the university of Heidelberg; and in 1811, he was translated to the chair of Rhetoric and Ancient Literature, at Berlin, where he has taught for upwards of forty years, forming many excellent scholars, and extending his reputation through all the learned circles of Europe. His conception of BOCCAGE, MARIE Anne FIQUET DU, a French philology as an organically constructed whole, which poetess, was born at Rouen, 22d October 1710, and of antiquity, excited for a long time great opposition aims at nothing short of an intellectual reproduction received her education in the monastery of the Assumption at Paris, where her poetic tendencies among his professional contemporaries, but has early developed themselves, though only furtively. undoubtedly given an impetus to a deeper study of She first appeared as an authoress in a small volume the old classical world. His lectures include not poems, published in 1746; next as an imitator of merely a grammatico-historical interpretation of the Milton in her Paradis Terrestre (1748); and in ancient authors, but also archeology proper, the 1756, issued her most important work, La Colom- history of ancient literature, philosophy, politics, The letters which she addressed to her religion, and social life. The four great works of B. which have, in fact, opened up new paths in the sister, Madame Duperron, while travelling through England, Holland, and Italy, are the most inter-study of antiquity, are, 1st, his edition of Pindar (2 vols., Leip. 1811-1822), in which the metre and esting things which have fallen from her pen. During her life, she was excessively admired and rhythm of the poet, as well as his artistic skill, are bepraised, especially by Voltaire, Fontenelle, and investigated and discussed with profound knowledge Clairaut. She used to be described as Forma Venus, (2 vols., Berlin, 1817), a work which remains unsurof the subject. 2d, The Political Economy of Athens arte Minerva! The complimentary poems addressed to her would, if collected, fill many volumes. She passed for subtle research, surprising results, and was elected member of the academies of Rome, clear exposition. It treats of the prices of goods, Bologna, Padua, Lyon, and Rouen. She died 8th rate of workmen's wages, rent of houses and land, August 1802. Her poems fail now to explain the of the larger questions of the state income and and other points of commercial economy, as well as reputation she once enjoyed, and dispose us to believe that her personal attractions must have expenditure. It has been translated into English by Sir George Cornewall Lewis, under the title given a charm to her verses. of The Public Economy of Athens (Lond. 2d edit. revised, 1842). 3d, Investigations concerning the Weights, Coins, and Measures of Antiquity (Berl. 1838). 4th, Records of the Maritime Affairs of Attica (Berl. 1840). The most important of his lesser works are the Development of the Doctrines of Philolaus,

of

biade.

BOCHART, SAMUEL, a learned Protestant divine, was born of an ancient family at Rouen, in 1599. He very early exhibited remarkable talent, chiefly philological After studying at Paris, Sedan, and Saumur, visiting England in 1621, and finishing his