G   RO


( i87)


GRO


this is a wooden Plank, cemented thereto; and upon this are
proper Weights applied to promote theTriture: The Plank
-orlfable, beins fafien'd to a Wheel, which gives it a Motion.
-This Whee, which is at lead 5 or 6 Inches Diameter, is
made of very hard but light Wood, and is wrought by two
Workmen placed againQ each other, who pufh and pull it
alternately; and fometines, when the Work requires it,
turn it round. By fuch means, a conflant mutual Attrition
is produced between the two Glaffes, which is favour'd by
Water and Sands of feveral Kinds beflowed between; Sand
flill finer and finer being applied, as the grinding is more
advanced: At lafi Emery is ufed. We need not add, that
as the upper or incumbent Glafs polifhes and grows fmoo-
ther, it mufil be lhifted from time to time, and others put
in its Place.
It is to be noted, that only the largefl Size Glaffes are thus
ground with a Mill; for the middling and finaller Sorts are
wrought by the Hand, to which End there are four wooden
Handles at the four Corners of the upper Stone, or Carri-
age, for the Workmen to take hold of, and give it Motion.
What remains to the Perfedtion of Glafs, comes ender
the Denomination of Polifhilg. See POLISHING.
GRIP, or GRIPE, iS a fmall Ditch cut a-crofs a Meadow,
or ploughed Land; in order to drain it: It alfo fignifies an
Handful; as, a Gripe of Corn.
GRIPE of a Ship, is the Compafs or Sharpnefs of her
Stem under Water; chiefly towards the bottom of her
Stem. See SHIP.
The Defign of fharping her fo, is to make her gripe the
more, or keep a good Wind; for which purpofe Sometimes
a falfe Stem is put on upon the true one.
GRIPE is alfo a Sea-Phrafe for a Ship's being apt to run
her Head or Nofe too much into the Wind: In fuch Cafe
they fay, fhe gripes; of which there are two Caufes, either
over-loading her a-head, the Weight of which preffes her
Head fo down, that it is not apt to fall off from the Wind;
or the flaying or fetting her Mafls too much aft; which will
always be a Fault in a fmall Ship that draws much Water,
and will caufe her to be continually running into the Wind.
In floaty Ships, if the Ma{ls be not rayed very far aft,
they will never keep a good Wind.
GRIPES, tormina Ventris, in Medicine, a fort of Co-
lick, or painful Diforder of the Lower Belly, occasioned by
fome fharp pungent Matters vellicating the Parts, or lay
Winds pent up in the Inteflines. See COLICX.
The Gripes are a very common Symptom in young Chil-
dren, and may be caulfd by the Aliment they ufe, which
is confiderably different from what they had been accuflom'd
to in the Uterus.  See CyiiI DR RN.
The Retention of a Part o. the Mecoium may alfo give
occarion hereto, as being fomewhat acrimonious. See ME-
CONI17M.
This Diforder Sometimes proves fo violent, as to throw
the Child into univerfal Convulfions, or to caufe what is vul-
garly called Convulfions of the Bowels.
GRIST is Corn ground, or fit for grinding. See FLOW-
ER, MEAL.
GROANING, in Heraldry, a Term ufed for the Cry or
Noife of a Buck. See HUNTING.
GROAT, an Evglifh Money of Account, equal to Four-
Pence. See PENNY.
Other Nations, as the fDutch, Polanders, Saxons, .'obe-
minus, French, &c. have likewife their Groats, Groots, Gro-
ches, Gros, &c. See MONEY and COIN.
We had no Silver Money in the Saxon Times bigger than
a Penny; nor after the Conquefl, till Fdward If l. who
about the Year 1 3 5 r, coin'd Gro/jes, i. e. Groats, or great
Pieces, which went for 4d. a-piece; and fo the Matter
flood till the Reign of Henry VII. who, in 1504, firif coin-
cdShillings. See SHILLING.
GROCERS, by the Stat. 37 Edw. II. cap. 5. were ufed
for thofe who engroffed Merchandize. See ENGROSSING.
GROGRAM, in the Manufadfories, a fort of Stuff, all
Silk; being in Reality no more than a Taffhty, coarfer and
thicker than ordinary. See TAFVETY.
GROOM, properly denotes a Servant appointed to attend
on Horfes; the Word being formed of the German Groin,
Boy, Youth. See EQZuERRY.
GROOM is alfo the Denomination of feveral Officers and
Servants in the King's Jloulhold. See HOUSHOLD.
There are (roois of the Almonry, Grooms in the Comp-
ting-Houfe, Grooms of the Chamber, the Privy-Chamber,
Grooms of the Robes, of the Wardrobe, dc. See AL-
MONRY, CHAMBER, WARDROBE, a'c.
GROOM of the Stole. See STOLE.
GRoOM-Porter is an Officer o the Houihold, whofe
Bufinefs is to fee the King's Lodging furnifhed with Ta-
bles, Chairs, Stools, and Piring; to provide Cards, Dice, L5c.
and to decide Difputes arifing at Cards, Dice, Bowling,
fec.
GROS, a foreign Money, in divers Countries, anfwering
to our Groat. See GA'OAT.


A Pound GAos, Livre de Gros; See POU         nd it-
VR E.
GROSS ib the Quantity of twelve Dozen. See 'DOZEN.
GROSSA, a Groat-Conceia efd Regi tuna Groffa qta'
continet quatuor denarios de quotibet viro & muliere.
Knighton. Anto 1 3378.
GRossE-Bois, in our antient Law-Books, fignifies fuch
Wood as hath been, or is, either by the Common Law, or
Cuflom of the Country, reputed Timber. See TIMBER,
GROSSUS, in our antient Writers, denotes a thing en-
tire, and not depending on another.
Thus, Vi[lanus in Grofl-, was a Servant, who did non
belong to the Land, but immediately to the Perlon of thd
Lord: So, an Advowfon in Gro/}o, is a Right of Patronage
not annexed to the Fee or Manor, but belonging to the
Patron bimfelf, diflin& from the Manor. See AbvOwSoNi
VILLAIN, SC.
GRoss-Weigbt is the Weight of Merchandizes, and GoodA
with their Dulf and Drofs, as alFo of the Bag, Cask, Cheff;
&gc. wherein they are contained; out olwhich Grofs-Weight,
Allowance is to be made for Tare and Tret. See TARE
and TRET.
GROTESQUE, or GRoTEsiR, or GROTTESQUE; a wild
whimfical Figure of a Painter, or Engraver; having fomne-
thing ridiculous, extravagant, and even monftrous in it.
The Name arifes hence, that Figures of this Kind were
antiently much ufed toadorn the Grotto's wherein theTombs
of eminent Perfons, or Famnilies were inclofed. Such was
that of Ovid, whofe Grotto was dif'cver'd near Rome about
50 Years ago. See GrOTTo.
Calot a celebrated Engraver ofLorrain had a wonderful
Genius for defigning Grotefquess: the li  id of Leonardo
da Vinci.
We alCo extend the, Word to any Thing  iifical, o wild-
ly plealant, in a Perfon's Drt-fs, Dilcourfe, Cèc.-Malquerade
Habits are the more valued, the more Gr oteraue they are:
Our Theatres prefent us with Entertainments in Groteique
Charaalers, i. e. Perfons quaintly dreis'd ; as Ilarlequins,
Scaramouches, &c.
Planudes has given us a very Grotesk Piaure of ffp.
A!rioJfo and the Italian Poets are full of Groteftlue Defcrip-
tions.
GPROTESQoJE-Work, GROTESK-Work, or Grottefco, is a
Work or Compofition in Painting, and Sculpture, in the Gro-
tefque Manner or Taile; confifding either of Things which
are merely imaginary, and have no Exiflence in Nature, or
of Things turn'd and diflorted out of the way of Nature,
fo as to raife Surprize and Ridicule.
Grotejsqzteork is the fame with what we Sometimes
call Antique. See ANTIrUE. See alfo MORESQUE.
GROTEsqUEs, or GROTESKS, are particularly ufed forlittle
fanciful Ornaments, of Animals, compounded with Foliages,
Fruit, &c,
Such are thofe painted by Raphael in the Apartments of
the Vatican; and thofe carved by Michael Angelo in the
Ceilings of the Portico of the Capitol.
Vitruvius calls Compartments ofthis kind Harpagenituli.
GROTTO, or GROT TA, in natural Hiflory, a large deep
Cavern or Den in a Mountain or Rock. See STONE.
The antient A4nchorites retired into Dens, and Grotto's,
to apply themselves the more attentively to Meditation, ic.
See ANCHOORITE, HER MIT, rcc.
In Grottos are frequently found Cryflals of the Rock, Sta-
lactites, and other natural Conglaciations; fee CRYSTAL,
STALACTITES, PETRIFACTION, CC.-
The Word is Italian, Grotta, form'd according to Me-
nage, &)c. from the Latin Crypta. fDu Cange obferves, that
Grota was ufed in the corrupt Latin.
M. Homberg conjedures, from feveral Circumfiancesi,
that the Marble Pillars in the Grotto of Antiparos, vegi-
tate or grow.
That Author looks on this Grotto as a Garden, whereof
the Pieces of Marble are the Plants; and endeavours to
fhew that they could only be produced by fome vegetative
Principles. Memdel. Acad. Anno i70oz.
At Foligno in Italy, is another Grotto, confifling of PilF
lars and Orders of Architedure of Marble, with their Orna-
naments, 0Sc. fcarce inferior to thofe of Art'i but they all
grow downwards : So that if this too be a Garden, the
Plants are turn'd upfide down. Memdel. Acad. .nno 17 I.-
The zirchnitzer-Sea, or Lake, in Carniola, famous for
being full of Water, Fifh, 8tc. the beal part of the Year,
and quite dry, and bearing Grafs, Corn, Arc. the ref 5 pro-
ceeds from fome fubterraneous Grotto or Lake; as is made
highly probable by Mr. Talvafer; Philofoph.Tranf. NQ I9.
We have feveral Grotto's famous in Natural Hiflory; as;
GROTTA de! Cane, a little Cavern near PZmmuoli, foui
Leagues from Naples, the Steams whereof are of a mephi-
tical or noxious Quality; whence alfo it is called $'occa Ye-
nenofa, the poifonous Aouth. See MEPITITES.
Two Miles from Naples, ays Dr. Mead, jult by the Lago
d'Apnano is a celebrated  Mogfta,commonly called L Grotta
dem