Castration, nicking, docking, punctures, particularly of the feet;
lacerations, and even contusions, will bring it on. I have seen it
follow a fall, which presented nothing more than a moderate contusion in
the shoulder. In America, it is not an unfrequent result of castration;
and in some tropical climates compression of the cord in the operation
must always be avoided, so apt is any irritation to produce it in these
regions. It is considered as most apt to follow wounds of tendinous and
ligamentous parts.
It commences usually by a certain stiffness about the throat, and
difficulty in swallowing, or in turning the head, which soon extends
itself to the jaws, and occasions a contracted state of the mouth, with
the usual inclination to masticate, but painfully and imperfectly
performed. As this increases, the jaws can hardly be separated at all,
when farriers say the horse is ‘jaw set.’ By the tetanic action of the
retractor muscle, the haw is drawn partly over the globe, at the same
time that the tension of the other ocular muscles gives the eyes a vivid
appearance and retroverted aspect, which ill accords with the more
placid effect of a protruded haw. As the disease extends over the
voluntary muscles of the trunk and extremities, the appearances are
distressing in the extreme. The head is raised, the ears pointed
forwards, the nostrils dilated, and the nose is carried out. The legs
straddle wide, the tail is cocked, and quivers with the constant fatigue
of the levator muscles; and the abdominal muscles are drawn tight over
the belly, giving to the horse an appearance of having just completed
some extraordinary exertion. The complaint presents a few moments of
relaxation sometimes, from the extreme and powerful contractions of the
over-strained muscles; while profuse sweats mark the distress and
exertions of convulsion. The circulation is, in most instances, at first
not much affected; but as the disease increases, the pulse quickens, and
becomes tremulous and irregular. The respiration also gradually becomes
hurried and irregular; costiveness is usually present, and the urine is
sparingly made. In this state the suffering animal may remain from six
to ten days, when, worn out by inanition and irritation, he often falls
lifeless, or expires after a short state of convulsion.
The general curative practice in tetanic cases among veterinarians,
foreign and English, of the present day, leans to the free use of the
lancet, to complete opening of the bowels, and to a liberal
administration of opiates, as being every one of them powerful
antispasmodics singly, but in this painful affection proving doubly so
conjointly; to which are added, blistering the spine; and the beneficial
effects of this practice, as exemplified by experience, warrant its
being at once proceeded on to the exclusion of every other, until it has
totally failed.—_Blaine._
LODGE, _s._ A small house in a park or forest; a keeper’s hut.
LOGGATS, _s._ A play or game, now called skittles.
LOGWOOD, _s._ A wood much used in dyeing.
LOIN, _s._ The back of an animal; loins, the reins.
The loins occupy the attention of all good judges in their consideration
of a horse, and for the purposes of strength they can hardly be too
broad: the back extends to the posterior part of a common sized saddle,
and where the back ends, the loins begin. Sometimes, from a defect in
the sacral processes of the vertebræ, this junction of the back and
loins presents an indentation, as though the union was incomplete. This
may be considered, in some degree, as a defect, inasmuch as it deprives
the part of muscular attachment, and such horses are said to be badly
loined. The strength of the loins depends on the length of the
transverse processes of the lumbar vertebræ, which should be long, that
there may be an extensive surface for the attachment of the muscles of
the back: the muscles themselves should also be powerful on each side,
giving width to the loins, and seeming by their enlargement, as it were,
to swallow the back bone. When the protuberances of the ilium are very
prominent, the horse is called ragged hipped, which is injurious to the
appearance only, except in cases where it seems to arise from a paucity
of muscle to fill up the intervening spaces. From the loins to the
setting on of the tail, the line should be long and very slightly
rounded; by which means, also, the distance between the hip and the
point of the buttock will be considerable. This formation is peculiar to
the improved or blood breed, and in every point of view appears the most
perfect; for it affords a very increased surface for the insertion of
the powerful muscles of these parts.—_Blaine._
LONGOPEN, _s._ The second long feather in the hawk’s wing.
LOO, _s._ A game at cards.
Loo or lue, subdivided into limited and unlimited loo, a game, the
complete knowledge of which can be easily acquired, is played with five
or three cards, though most commonly with five, dealt from a whole pack,
either first three and then two, or by one at a time. Several persons
may play together, but the greatest number can be admitted when played
with three cards only.
After five cards have been given to each player, another is turned up
for trump; the knave of clubs generally, or sometimes the knave of the
trump suit, as agreed upon, is the highest card, and styled Pam; the ace
of trumps is next in value, and the rest in succession, as at whist.
Each player has the liberty of changing for others from the pack all or
any of the five cards dealt, or of throwing up the hand in order to
escape being looed. Those who play their cards either with or without
changing, and do not gain a trick, are looed; as likewise is the case
with all who have stood the game, if a flush occur, which obliges each,
except a player holding Pam, or an inferior flush, to deposit a stake to
be divided among the winners at the ensuing deal, according to the
tricks which may then be made. For instance, if every one at dealing
should stake half-a-crown, the tricks are entitled to sixpence apiece,
and whoever is looed must put down half-a-crown, exclusive of the deal:
sometimes it is settled that each person looed shall pay a sum equal to
what happens to be on the table at the time. Five cards of a suit, or
four with Pam, compose a flush, which sweeps the board, and yields only
to a superior flush, or an equal one in the elder hand. When the ace of
trumps is led, it is usual to say “Pam be civil,” the holder of Pam is
then expected to let the ace pass.
When loo is played with three cards, they are dealt by one at a time,
Pam is omitted, and the cards are not exchanged, nor permitted to be
thrown up.—_Hoyle._
LOOM, _s._ A bird.
LOOP, _s._ A double through which a string or lace is drawn, an
ornamental double or fringe. LOOPS or RINGS are placed along the
fishing rod to conduct the line from the reel to the upper
extremity.
LORD-WARDEN, _s._ An officer in forestry.
Under him are two distinct appointments of officers, the one to preserve
the venison of the forest, and the other to preserve its vert: the
former term, in the language of the forest law, comprehends every
species of game; the latter signifies every thing that bears a green
leaf within a forest that may cover a deer, but especially great and
thick coverts.
LORE, (_Lorum_, LINN.) in ornithology, is the space between the bill
and the eye, which in the grebe genus is bare, but in other
birds is generally covered with feathers.
LORIMER or LORINER, _s._ Bridle cutter.
LOT, _s._ Fortune; a chance; a die, or anything used in determining
chances.
LOUGH, _s._ A lake, a large inland standing water.
LOWBELL, _s._ A kind of fowling in the night, in which the birds are
awakened by a bell, and lured by a flame.
LOWLAND, _s._ The country that is low in respect of neighbouring
hills.
LUBRICITATE, _v._ To smooth, to make slippery.
LUCK, _s._ Chance, accident, fortune, hap; fortune, good or bad.
LUG, _s._ A land measure, a pole or perch; a worm found by digging
in oozy sand, an excellent bait for flat fish; the sail of a
lugger.
LUGGER, _s._ A fast-sailing vessel with three masts, much used for
smuggling and privateering. They vary in size from fifty to one
hundred and fifty tons, and are useful vessels for any purposes
requiring dispatch.
[Illustration]
The lugger is, I think, the most inconvenient rig, especially for a
yacht; the spars are so heavy that they require all hands to move them.
They generally have two sets of lugs—large ones, which require dipping
every time you tack; and small working lugs, which do not require
dipping, the tack coming to the foot of the mast. The latter are
generally used, except in making long reaches, as across Channel, &c.
&c.
Another great objection to a lugger is, your decks are so encumbered
with the spare spars and sails, which take up a great deal of room;
besides the latter being exposed almost continually to the weather,
which they must be while kept bent ready for setting; and, thirdly, a
lugger is seldom fit to be altered to any thing but a schooner, not
having breadth enough for one mast, which, after all, for beauty and
speed, is the best: indeed, sailing men are so perfectly aware of this
now, that you never see a schooner or lugger enter against a cutter at
all near their tonnage. Take them to sea, and they might have a
chance; though even there (setting aside accidents) I would back the
cutter in a trial; but in fine weather or smooth water there is no
comparison.—_Sport. Mag._
LUMPFISH, _s._ A sort of fish.
LUNAR, _a._ Relating to the moon, under the dominion of the moon.
LUNGS, _s._ The lights, the organs of respiration.
Each side of the cavity of the chest is occupied by soft, spongy, and
slightly elastic masses, called lungs, having the heart appended between
them. In a state of distension they completely fill the parietes of the
thorax, to which their figure is exactly adapted. The lungs have a
distinct division into a right and left mass, each of which presents
deep fissures, partially dividing its substance into what are called its
lobes. These divisions are not always the same in every subject, but in
the majority of instances the right and largest lung presents three
lobuli, the left two only. As already described, the pleura first lines
the thoracic cavity, and is then reflected over the lungs, affording
them a dense covering: a second reflection from each lung by a union of
its laminæ, forms a septum, or a complete division of the chest, into
two distinct cavities, and thus effectually shuts out all communication
between one lung and the other, except by their vessels. The colour of
the lungs varies considerably: in the colt they present a lively pinky
hue; in the adult horse they are darker, and in very old subjects they
have a greyish cast and granulated appearance.—_Blaine._
LURCH, _s._ A term at cards.
LURCH, _v._ To win two games instead of one at cards.
LURCHER (_Canis indagator_), _s._ A dog.
[Illustration]
This variety is smaller than the greyhound, with its limbs stronger and
shorter, the head less acute, with short, erect, and half-pricked ears;
the whole body and tail are covered with rough coarse hair; it is
grizzly about the muzzle, and is of a pale sand colour, or iron grey.
The lurcher is supposed to be originally produced, first, by a cross of
the greyhound and harrier, and afterwards re-crossed with the terrier;
hence the quickness of his scent, which he possesses in a strong degree.
The habits of this dog lead him to concealment and cunning; and he is
often employed in killing hares and rabbits under the cloud of night,
for which nature seems eminently to have fitted him. When taken to the
warren, he lies squat, or steals out with the utmost precaution, when he
either sees or scents the rabbits feeding, and, like his progenitor, the
greyhound, darts upon them with exceeding quickness, without barking or
making the least noise. He is trained to bring the booty to his master,
who often waits at some distance to receive it. One of these dogs will
kill a great many rabbits in the course of a night. Bewick says, that
they were so destructive, that they are now with great propriety
proscribed, and the breed is almost extinct.
LURE, _s._ Something held out to call a hawk; any enticement.
The use of this important implement in breaking falcons, is thus
described by Sir John Sebright:—
The hawk is to be fed upon the lure, being first made to come to it when
held very near him, then when held a little farther off; it is to be
next thrown upon the ground to a small distance, and thus he is to be
brought by degrees to fly to it, and to seize it eagerly, however far it
may be thrown.
An assistant is now to swing the lure at some distance from the
falconer, who casts off the hawk.
It is to be thrown into the air when the hawk is flying towards it, but
so that he cannot attain it until it falls to the ground, lest he should
be hurt by striking it in his flight.
When this lesson has been repeated, until the hawk has become eager to
take the lure, the assistant is to swing it as before, but is to take it
into his hand when the hawk is coming; he is then to swing it again as
soon as the hawk has passed; and finally, to throw it upon the ground,
when the hawk is returning towards him.
In this way the hawk will soon be taught to fly round the falconer,
bending his flight inwards when the lure is shown to him, or when he
hears the call of the falconer, who should always halloo when he is
luring. He may thus be made to follow the falconer wherever he pleases;
this is called waiting on.
When the hawk has alighted upon the lure, the falconer is to walk round
him, whistle to him while he is feeding, and reward him with a good meal
when he is taken up.
It is thus that hawks are made obedient to the lure, and that they are
exercised when they cannot be flown at game, but they must not be kept
too long upon the wing, or they would acquire the habit of flying low;
and it is the perfection of a slight falcon to soar as high as
possible.—_Sebright._
LURID, _a._ Gloomy, dismal; a yellow colour bordering on a blue.
LURK, _v._ To lie in wait, to lie hidden, to lie close.
LURKINGPLACE, _s._ Hiding place, secret place.
LUSTRE, _s._ Brightness, splendour, glitter; a sconce with lights;
the space of five years.
LUSTY, _a._ Stout, vigorous, healthy, able of body.
LUXATE, _v._ To put out of joint; to disjoint; to displace a limb.
LUXATION, _s._ The act of disjointing; anything disjointed; the
displacing a limb.
LUXURIANT, _a._ Exuberant, superfluous, plenteous.
LYMPHATIC, _s._ A vessel containing lymph.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MACAW, _s._ A foreign bird of the parrot kind; its plumage is very
splendid, and its feathers valuable in tying salmon flies. Shop
flies are frequently tied with imitation feathers, which, on
exposure to the sun, become faded and useless.
MACKEREL, _s._ A sea fish. _Vide_ SEA FISHING.
MACKEREL-GALE, _s._ A strong breeze, favourable for killing
mackerel.
MAD, _a._ Disordered in the mind; enraged, furious.
MADNESS, _s._ Distraction; fury, wildness, rage. _Vide_ HYDROPHOBIA.
MAGGOT, _s._ A small grub which turns into a fly.
MAGNETIC, _a._ Relating to the magnet; having powers correspondent
to those of the magnet; attractive, having the power to draw
things distant.
MAGPIE or PIANET (_Corvus pica_, LINN.; _La Pie_, BUFF.) _s._ A
bird.
[Illustration: THE MAGPIE.]
Its length is about eighteen inches; bill strong and black; eyes hazel;
the head, neck, and breast are of a deep black, which is finely
contrasted with the snowy whiteness of the under parts and scapulars;
the neck-feathers are long, as are also those on the back, which extend
towards the rump, leaving only a small space, of a greyish ash-colour,
between them and the tail coverts, which are black; the plumage in
general is glossed with green, purple, and blue, which catch the eye in
different lights; the tail is very long, and rather wedge-shaped; the
under-tail coverts, thighs, and legs are black: on the throat and part
of the neck there is a kind of feathers, mixed with the others,
resembling strong, whitish hairs.
This beautiful bird is everywhere common in England; it is likewise
found in various parts of the continent, but not so far north as
Lapland, nor farther south than Italy: it is met with in America, but
not commonly, and is migratory there. It feeds, like the crow, on almost
every thing animal as well as vegetable. The female builds her nest with
great art, leaving a hole in the side for her admittance, and covering
the whole upper-part with an interweaving of thorny twigs, closely
entangled, thereby securing her retreat from the rude attacks of other
birds: but it is not safety alone she consults; the inside is furnished
with a sort of mattrass, composed of wool and other soft materials, on
which her young repose: she lays seven or eight eggs, of a pale
green-colour, spotted with black.
The magpie is crafty and familiar, and may be taught to pronounce words,
and even short sentences, and will imitate any particular noise which it
hears. It is addicted, like other birds of its kind, to stealing, and
will hoard up its provisions. It is smaller than the jackdaw, and its
wings are shorter in proportion; accordingly its flight is not so lofty,
nor so well supported: it never undertakes long journeys, but flies only
from tree to tree, at moderate distances.
* * * * *
_To destroy magpies._—Wait till the female sits hard on her eggs; and
then go, late in the evening, with some large shot in a duck-gun, by
which means you may either take her as she flies out of the tree, or
blow up the whole concern by firing through the nest.—_Bewick_—_Hawker._