Chapter 19

||Fiord (fy&?;rd; i or y consonant, ß 272), n. [Dan. & Norw. fiord. See ||Frith.] A narrow inlet of the sea, penetrating between high banks or ||rocks, as on the coasts of Norway and Alaska. [Written also fjord.]

Fi"o*rin (?), n. [Cf. Ir. fiothran a sort of grass.] (Bot.) A species of creeping bent grass (Agrostis alba); -- called also fiorin grass.

Fi"o*rite (?), n. (Min.) A variety of opal occuring in the cavities of volcanic tufa, in smooth and shining globular and botryoidal masses, having a pearly luster; - - so called from Fiora, in Ischia.

||Fio`ri*tu"re (?), n. pl. [It., pl. of fioritura a flowering.] (Mus.) ||Little flowers of ornament introduced into a melody by a singer or ||player.

Fip"pen*ny bit` (? or ?). [Corruption of five penny bit.] The Spanish half real, or one sixteenth of a dollar, - - so called in Pennsylvania and the adjacent States. [Obs.]

Before the act of Congress, Feb. 21, 1857, caused the adoption of decimal coins and the withdrawal of foreign coinage from circulation, this coin passed currently for 6º cents, and was called in New England a fourpence ha'penny or fourpence; in New York a sixpence; in Pennsylvania, Virginia, etc., a fip; and in Louisiana, a picayune.

Fip"ple (fr), n. [perh. fr. L. fibula a clasp, a pin; cf. Prov. E. fible a stick used to stir pottage.] A stopper, as in a wind instrument of music. [Obs.] Bacon.

Fir (fr), n. [Dan. fyr, fyrr; akin to Sw. furu, Icel. fura, AS. furh in furhwudu fir wood, G. fˆhre, OHG. forha pine, vereheih a sort of oak, L. quercus oak.] (Bot.) A genus (Abies) of coniferous trees, often of large size and elegant shape, some of them valued for their timber and others for their resin. The species are distinguished as the balsam fir, the silver fir, the red fir, etc. The Scotch fir is a Pinus.

Fir in the Bible means any one of several coniferous trees, including, cedar, cypress, and probably three species of pine. J. D. Hooker.

Fire (fr), n. [OE. fir, fyr, fur AS. fr; akin to D. vuur, OS. & OHG. fiur, G. feuer, Icel. fri, frr, Gr. py^r, and perh. to L. purus pure, E. pure Cf. Empyrean, Pyre.] 1. The evolution of light and heat in the combustion of bodies; combustion; state of ignition.

The form of fire exhibited in the combustion of gases in an ascending stream or current is called flame. Anciently, fire, air, earth, and water were regarded as the four elements of which all things are composed.

2. Fuel in a state of combustion, as on a hearth, or in a stove or a furnace.

3. The burning of a house or town; a conflagration.

4. Anything which destroys or affects like fire.

5. Ardor of passion, whether love or hate; excessive warmth; consuming violence of temper.

he had fire in his temper.

Atterbury.

6. Liveliness of imagination or fancy; intellectual and moral enthusiasm; capacity for ardor and zeal.

And bless their critic with a poet's fire.

Pope.

7. Splendor; brilliancy; luster; hence, a star.

Stars, hide your fires.

Shak.

As in a zodiac representing the heavenly fires.

Milton.

8. Torture by burning; severe trial or affliction.

9. The discharge of firearms; firing; as, the troops were exposed to a heavy fire.

Blue fire, Red fire, Green fire (Pyrotech.), compositions of various combustible substances, as sulphur, niter, lampblack, etc., the flames of which are colored by various metallic salts, as those of antimony, strontium, barium, etc. -- Fire alarm (a) A signal given on the breaking out of a fire. (b) An apparatus for giving such an alarm. -- Fire annihilator, a machine, device, or preparation to be kept at hand for extinguishing fire by smothering it with some incombustible vapor or gas, as carbonic acid. -- Fire balloon. (a) A balloon raised in the air by the buoyancy of air heated by a fire placed in the lower part. (b) A balloon sent up at night with fireworks which ignite at a regulated height. Simmonds. -- Fire bar, a grate bar. -- Fire basket, a portable grate; a cresset. Knight. -- Fire beetle. (Zoˆl.) See in the Vocabulary. -- Fire blast, a disease of plants which causes them to appear as if burnt by fire. -- Fire box, the chamber of a furnace, steam boiler, etc., for the fire. -- Fire brick, a refractory brick, capable of sustaining intense heat without fusion, usually made of fire clay or of siliceous material, with some cementing substance, and used for lining fire boxes, etc. -- Fire brigade, an organized body of men for extinguished fires. -- Fire bucket. See under Bucket. -- Fire bug, an incendiary; one who, from malice or through mania, persistently sets fire to property; a pyromaniac. [U.S.] -- Fire clay. See under Clay. -- Fire company, a company of men managing an engine in extinguishing fires. -- Fire cross. See Fiery cross. [Obs.] Milton. -- Fire damp. See under Damp. -- Fire dog. See Firedog, in the Vocabulary. -- Fire drill. (a) A series of evolutions performed by fireman for practice. (b) An apparatus for producing fire by friction, by rapidly twirling a wooden pin in a wooden socket; -- used by the Hindoos during all historic time, and by many savage peoples. -- Fire eater. (a) A juggler who pretends to eat fire. (b) A quarrelsome person who seeks affrays; a hotspur. [Colloq.] -- Fire engine, a portable forcing pump, usually on wheels, for throwing water to extinguish fire. -- Fire escape, a contrivance for facilitating escape from burning buildings. -- Fire gilding (Fine Arts), a mode of gilding with an amalgam of gold and quicksilver, the latter metal being driven off afterward by heat. -- Fire gilt (Fine Arts), gold laid on by the process of fire gilding. -- Fire insurance, the act or system of insuring against fire; also, a contract by which an insurance company undertakes, in consideration of the payment of a premium or small percentage -- usually made periodically -- to indemnify an owner of property from loss by fire during a specified period. -- Fire irons, utensils for a fireplace or grate, as tongs, poker, and shovel. -- Fire main, a pipe for water, to be used in putting out fire. -- Fire master (Mil), an artillery officer who formerly supervised the composition of fireworks. -- Fire office, an office at which to effect insurance against fire. -- Fire opal, a variety of opal giving firelike reflections. -- Fire ordeal, an ancient mode of trial, in which the test was the ability of the accused to handle or tread upon red-hot irons. Abbot. -- Fire pan, a pan for holding or conveying fire, especially the receptacle for the priming of a gun. -- Fire plug, a plug or hydrant for drawing water from the main pipes in a street, building, etc., for extinguishing fires. -- Fire policy, the writing or instrument expressing the contract of insurance against loss by fire. -- Fire pot. (a) (Mil.) A small earthen pot filled with combustibles, formerly used as a missile in war. (b) The cast iron vessel which holds the fuel or fire in a furnace. (c) A crucible. (d) A solderer's furnace. -- Fire raft, a raft laden with combustibles, used for setting fire to an enemy's ships. -- Fire roll, a peculiar beat of the drum to summon men to their quarters in case of fire. -- Fire setting (Mining), the process of softening or cracking the working face of a lode, to facilitate excavation, by exposing it to the action of fire; -- now generally superseded by the use of explosives. Raymond. -- Fire ship, a vessel filled with combustibles, for setting fire to an enemy's ships. -- Fire shovel, a shovel for taking up coals of fire. -- Fire stink, the stench from decomposing iron pyrites, caused by the formation of sulphureted hydrogen. Raymond. -- Fire surface, the surfaces of a steam boiler which are exposed to the direct heat of the fuel and the products of combustion; heating surface. -- Fire swab, a swab saturated with water, for cooling a gun in action and clearing away particles of powder, etc. Farrow. -- Fire teaser, in England, the fireman of a steam emgine. -- Fire water, ardent spirits; -- so called by the American Indians. -- Fire worship, the worship of fire, which prevails chiefly in Persia, among the followers of Zoroaster, called Chebers, or Guebers, and among the Parsees of India. -- Greek fire. See under Greek. -- On fire, burning; hence, ardent; passionate; eager; zealous. -- Running fire, the rapid discharge of firearms in succession by a line of troops. -- St. Anthony's fire, erysipelas; -- an eruptive fever which St. Anthony was supposed to cure miraculously. Hoblyn. -- St. Elmo's fire. See under Saint Elmo. -- To set on fire, to inflame; to kindle. -- To take fire, to begin to burn; to fly into a passion.

Fire (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Fired (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Fring.] 1. To set on fire; to kindle; as, to fire a house or chimney; to fire a pile.

2. To subject to intense heat; to bake; to burn in a kiln; as, to fire pottery.

3. To inflame; to irritate, as the passions; as, to fire the soul with anger, pride, or revenge.

Love had fired my mind.

Dryden.

4. To animate; to give life or spirit to; as, to fire the genius of a young man.

5. To feed or serve the fire of; as, to fire a boiler.

6. To light up as if by fire; to illuminate.

[The sun] fires the proud tops of the eastern pines.

Shak.

7. To cause to explode; as, to fire a torpedo; to disharge; as, to fire a musket or cannon; to fire cannon balls, rockets, etc.

8. To drive by fire. [Obs.]

Till my bad angel fire my good one out.

Shak.

9. (Far.) To cauterize.

To fire up, to light up the fires of, as of an engine.

Fire, v. i. 1. To take fire; to be kindled; to kindle.

2. To be irritated or inflamed with passion.

3. To discharge artillery or firearms; as, they fired on the town.

To fire up, to grow irritated or angry. "He . . . fired up, and stood vigorously on his defense." Macaulay.

Fire"arm` (-‰rm`), n. A gun, pistol, or any weapon from which a shot is discharged by the force of an explosive substance, as gunpowder.

Fire"back` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) One of several species of pheasants of the genus Euplocamus, having the lower back a bright, fiery red. They inhabit Southern Asia and the East Indies.

Fire"ball` (?), n. (a) (Mil.) A ball filled with powder or other combustibles, intended to be thrown among enemies, and to injure by explosion; also, to set fire to their works and light them up, so that movements may be seen. (b) A luminous meteor, resembling a ball of fire passing rapidly through the air, and sometimes exploding.

Fire"bare` (?), n. A beacon. [Obs.] Burrill.

Fire" bee`tle (?). (Zoˆl.) A very brilliantly luminous beetle (Pyrophorus noctilucus), one of the elaters, found in Central and South America; -- called also cucujo. The name is also applied to other species. See Firefly.

Fire"bird` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) The Baltimore oriole.

Fire"board` (?), n. A chimney board or screen to close a fireplace when not in use.

Fire"bote` (?), n. (O. Eng. Law) An allowance of fuel. See Bote.

Fire"brand` (?), n. 1. A piece of burning wood. L'Estrange.

2. One who inflames factions, or causes contention and mischief; an incendiary. Bacon.

Fire"crack`er (?), n. See Cracker., n., 3.

Fire"crest` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) A small European kinglet (Regulus ignicapillus), having a bright red crest; -- called also fire-crested wren.

Fire"dog` (?), n. A support for wood in a fireplace; an andiron.

Fire"drake` (?), n. [AS. frdraca; fr fire + draca a dragon. See Fire, and Drake a dragon.] [Obs.] 1. A fiery dragon. Beau. & Fl.

2. A fiery meteor; an ignis fatuus; a rocket.

3. A worker at a furnace or fire. B. Jonson.

Fire"-fanged` (?), a. [Fire + fanged seized.] Injured as by fire; burned; -- said of manure which has lost its goodness and acquired an ashy hue in consequence of heat generated by decomposition.

Fire"fish` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) A singular marine fish of the genus Pterois, family ScorpÊnidÊ, of several species, inhabiting the Indo-Pacific region. They are usually red, and have very large spinose pectoral and dorsal fins.

Fire"flaire` (?), n. [Fire + Prov. E. flaire a ray.] (Zoˆl.) A European sting ray of the genus Trygon (T. pastinaca); -- called also fireflare and fiery flaw.

Fire"flame` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) The European band fish (Cepola rubescens).

Fire"fly` (?), n.; pl. Fireflies (&?;). (Zoˆl.) Any luminous winged insect, esp. luminous beetles of the family LampyridÊ.

The common American species belong to the genera Photinus and Photuris, in which both sexes are winged. The name is also applied to luminous species of ElateridÊ. See Fire beetle.

Fire"less, a. Destitute of fire.

Fire"lock`, n. An old form of gunlock, as the flintlock, which ignites the priming by a spark; perhaps originally, a matchlock. Hence, a gun having such a lock.

Fire"man (?), n.; pl. Firemen (-men). 1. A man whose business is to extinguish fires in towns; a member of a fire company.

2. A man who tends the fires, as of a steam engine; a stocker.

Fire"-new` (?), a. Fresh from the forge; bright; quite new; brand-new. Charles reade.

Your fire-new stamp of honor is scarce current.

Shak.

Fire"place` (?), n. The part a chimney appropriated to the fire; a hearth; -- usually an open recess in a wall, in which a fire may be built.

Fire"proof` (?), a. Proof against fire; incombustible.

Fire"proof`ing (?), n. The act or process of rendering anything incombustible; also, the materials used in the process.

Fir"er (?), n. One who fires or sets fire to anything; an incendiary. [R.] R. Carew.

Fire"-set` (?), n. A set of fire irons, including, commonly, tongs, shovel, and poker.

Fire"side` (?), n. A place near the fire or hearth; home; domestic life or retirement.

Fire"stone` (?; 110), n. [AS. frstn flint; fr fire + stn stone.] 1. Iron pyrites, formerly used for striking fire; also, a flint.

2. A stone which will bear the heat of a furnace without injury; -- especially applied to the sandstone at the top of the upper greensand in the south of England, used for lining kilns and furnaces. Ure.

Fire"tail` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) The European redstart; -- called also fireflirt. [prov. Eng.]

Fire"ward`en (?), n. An officer who has authority to direct in the extinguishing of fires, or to order what precautions shall be taken against fires; -- called also fireward.

Fire"weed` (?), n. (Bot.) (a) An American plant (Erechthites hiercifolia), very troublesome in spots where brushwood has been burned. (b) The great willow-herb (Epilobium spicatum).

Fire"wood` (?), n. Wood for fuel.

Fire"work` (?), n. 1. A device for producing a striking display of light, or a figure or figures in plain or colored fire, by the combustion of materials that burn in some peculiar manner, as gunpowder, sulphur, metallic filings, and various salts. The most common feature of fireworks is a paper or pasteboard tube filled with the combustible material. A number of these tubes or cases are often combined so as to make, when kindled, a great variety of figures in fire, often variously colored. The skyrocket is a common form of firework. The name is also given to various combustible preparations used in war. [1913 Webster]

2. pl. A pyrotechnic exhibition. [Obs. in the sing.]

Night before last, the Duke of Richmond gave a firework.

Walpole.

Fire"worm` (?), n. (Zoˆl.) The larva of a small tortricid moth which eats the leaves of the cranberry, so that the vines look as if burned; -- called also cranberry worm.

Fir"ing, n. 1. The act of discharging firearms.

2. The mode of introducing fuel into the furnace and working it. Knight.

3. The application of fire, or of a cautery. Dunglison.

4. The process of partly vitrifying pottery by exposing it to intense heat in a kiln.

5. Fuel; firewood or coal. [Obs.] Mortimer.

Firing iron, an instrument used in cauterizing.

<! p. 563 !>

Firk (?), v. t. [Cf. OE. ferken to proceed, hasten, AS. fercian to bring, assist; perh. akin to faran to go, E. fare.] To beat; to strike; to chastise. [Obs.]

I'll fer him, and firk him, and ferret him.

Shak.

Firk, v. i. To fly out; to turn out; to go off. [Obs.]

A wench is a rare bait, with which a man

No sooner's taken but he straight firks mad.B.Jonson.

Firk, n. A freak; trick; quirk. [Obs.] Ford.

Fir"kin (?), n. [From AS. feÛwer four (or an allied word, perh. Dutch or Danish) + -kin. See Four.] 1. A varying measure of capacity, usually being the fourth part of a barrel; specifically, a measure equal to nine imperial gallons. [Eng.]

2. A small wooden vessel or cask of indeterminate size, -- used for butter, lard, etc. [U.S.]

Fir"lot (?), n. [Scot., the fourth part of a boll of grain, from a word equiv. to E. four + lot part, portion. See Firkin.] A dry measure formerly used in Scotland; the fourth part of a boll of grain or meal. The Linlithgow wheat firlot was to the imperial bushel as 998 to 1000; the barley firlot as 1456 to 1000. Brande & C.

Firm (?), a. [Compar. Firmer (?); superl. Firmest.] [OE. ferme, F. ferme, fr.L. firmus; cf. Skr. dharman support, law, order, dh&?; to hold fast, carry. Cf. Farm, Throne.] 1. Fixed; hence, closely compressed; compact; substantial; hard; solid; -- applied to the matter of bodies; as, firm flesh; firm muscles, firm wood.

2. Not easily excited or disturbed; unchanging in purpose; fixed; steady; constant; stable; unshaken; not easily changed in feelings or will; strong; as, a firm believer; a firm friend; a firm adherent.

Under spread ensigns, moving nigh, in slow But firm battalion.

Milton.

By one man's firm obediency fully tried.

Milton.

3. Solid; -- opposed to fluid; as, firm land.

4. Indicating firmness; as, a firm tread; a firm countenance.

Syn. -- Compact; dense; hard; solid; stanch; robust; strong; sturdly; fixed; steady; resolute; constant.

Firm, n. [It. firma the (firm, sure, or confirming) signature or subscription, or Pg. firma signature, firm, cf. Sp. firma signature; all fr. L. firmus, adj., firm. See Firm, a.] The name, title, or style, under which a company transacts business; a partnership of two or more persons; a commercial house; as, the firm of Hope & Co.

Firm, v. t. [OE. fermen to make firm, F. fermer, fr. L. firmare to make firm. See Firm, a.] 1. To fix; to settle; to confirm; to establish. [Obs.]

And Jove has firmed it with an awful nod.

Dryden.

2. To fix or direct with firmness. [Obs.]

He on his card and compass firms his eye.

Spenser.

Fir"ma*ment (?), n. [L. firmamentum, fr. firmare to make firm: cf. F. firmament. See Firm, v. & a.] 1. Fixed foundation; established basis. [Obs.]

Custom is the . . . firmament of the law.

Jer. Taylor.

2. The region of the air; the sky or heavens.

And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

Gen. i. 6.

And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament.

Gen. i. 14.

In Scripture, the word denotes an expanse, a wide extent; the great arch or expanse over out heads, in which are placed the atmosphere and the clouds, and in which the stars appear to be placed, and are really seen.

3. (Old Astron.) The orb of the fixed stars; the most rmote of the celestial spheres.

Fir`ma*men"tal (?), a. Pertaining to the firmament; celestial; being of the upper regions. Dryden.

Fir"man (? or ?), n.; pl. Firmans (#) or (#). [Pers. fermn.] In Turkey and some other Oriental countries, a decree or mandate issued by the sovereign; a royal order or grant; -- generally given for special objects, as to a traveler to insure him protection and assistance. [Written also firmaun.]

Firm"er-chis"el (?), n. A chisel, thin in proportion to its width. It has a tang to enter the handle instead of a socket for receiving it. Knight.

Firm"i*tude (?), n. [L. firmitudo. See Firm.] Strength; stability. [Obs.] Bp. Hall.

Firm"i*ty (?), n. [L. firmitas.] Strength; firmness; stability. [Obs.] Chillingworth.

Firm"less, a. 1. Detached from substance. [Obs.]

Does passion still the firmless mind control?

Pope.

2. Infirm; unstable. "Firmless sands." Sylvester.

Firm"ly, adv. In a firm manner.

Firm"ness, n. The state or quality of being firm.

Syn. -- Firmness, Constancy. Firmness belongs to the will, and constancy to the affections and principles; the former prevents us from yielding, and the latter from fluctuating. Without firmness a man has no character; "without constancy," says Addison, "there is neither love, friendship, nor virtue in the world."

Firms (?), n. pl. [From Firm, a.] (Arch.) The principal rafters of a roof, especially a pair of rafters taken together. [Obs.]

Fir"ring (?), n. (Arch.) See Furring.

Fir"ry (?), a. Made of fir; abounding in firs.

In firry woodlands making moan.

Tennyson.

First (?), a. [OE. first, furst, AS. fyrst; akin to Icel. fyrstr, Sw. & Dan. fˆrste, OHG. furist, G. f¸rst prince; a superlatiye form of E. for, fore. See For, Fore, and cf. Formeer, Foremost.] 1. Preceding all others of a series or kind; the ordinal of one; earliest; as, the first day of a month; the first year of a reign.

2. Foremost; in front of, or in advance of, all others.

3. Most eminent or exalted; most excellent; chief; highest; as, Demosthenes was the first orator of Greece.

At first blush. See under Blush. -- At first hand, from the first or original source; without the intervention of any agent.

It is the intention of the person to reveal it at first hand, by way of mouth, to yourself.

Dickens.

-- First coat (Plastering), the solid foundation of coarse stuff, on which the rest is placed; it is thick, and crossed with lines, so as to give a bond for the next coat. -- First day, Sunday; -- so called by the Friends. -- First floor. (a) The ground floor. [U.S.] (b) The floor next above the ground floor. [Eng.] -- First fruit or fruits. (a) The fruits of the season earliest gathered. (b) (Feudal Law) One year's profits of lands belonging to the king on the death of a tenant who held directly from him. (c) (Eng. Eccl. Law) The first year's whole profits of a benefice or spiritual living. (d) The earliest effects or results.

See, Father, what first fruits on earth are sprung From thy implanted grace in man!

Milton.

-- First mate, an officer in a merchant vessel next in rank to the captain. -- First name, same as Christian name. See under Name, n. -- First officer (Naut.), in the merchant service, same as First mate (above). -- First sergeant (Mil.), the ranking non-commissioned officer in a company; the orderly sergeant. Farrow. -- First watch (Naut.), the watch from eight to twelve at midnight; also, the men on duty during that time. -- First water, the highest quality or purest luster; -- said of gems, especially of diamond and pearls.

Syn. -- Primary; primordial; primitive; primeval; pristine; highest; chief; principal; foremost.

First (?), adv. Before any other person or thing in time, space, rank, etc.; -- much used in composition with adjectives and participles.

Adam was first formed, then Eve.

1 Tim. ii. 13.

At first, At the first, at the beginning or origin. -- First or last, at one time or another; at the beginning or end.

And all are fools and lovers first or last.

Dryden.

First, n. (Mus.) The upper part of a duet, trio, etc., either vocal or instrumental; -- so called because it generally expresses the air, and has a preÎminence in the combined effect.

First"born` (?), a. First brought forth; first in the order of nativity; eldest; hence, most excellent; most distinguished or exalted.

First"-class` (?), a. Of the best class; of the highest rank; in the first division; of the best quality; first-rate; as, a first-class telescope.

First-class car or First-class railway carriage, any passenger car of the highest regular class, and intended for passengers who pay the highest regular rate; -- distinguished from a second-class car.

First"-hand` (?), a. Obtained directly from the first or original source; hence, without the intervention of an agent.

One sphere there is . . . where the apprehension of him is first-hand and direct; and that is the sphere of our own mind.

J. Martineau.