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lebrated by many writers. Its velocity with a strong wind is saidto be so great, that it would carry nine or ten persons from Sche-veling to-Putten , which is forty-two English miles distant, in twohours. Carriages of this kind are said to be frequent in China :and in any wide level country, must be sometimes both pleasantand profitable. The great inconvenience attending them is, thatthey can only go in the direction the wind blows, and even notthen unless it blows strong : so that, after one has got some way onhis journey, if the wind should fail, or change, he must either pro-ceed on foot or go hack. To remedy this inconvenience, theHollanders have, or had, small vessels of this kind, that carry oneor two persons on the ice, having a sledge at bottom instead ofwheels: and being made in the form of a boat, if the ice breakthe passengers are secured from drowning. To sail against thewind : let AI3CD, (fig. 12,) be the body of a sailing chariot : Mthe mast, to which are fixed the wings or sails EFGH ; the twofirst of which, EF, are here supposed to be expanded by the wind ;E. is the rudder by which it is guided. Therefore the wind driv-ing the sails round, with the mast M, and the cog-wheel K, takethe teeth placed perpendicular to the sides of the two fore-wheelsof the cariage, and consequently keep it in continual motion.The body of this machine should not be large, nor placed veryhigh, not oniy to prevent overturning, but that its motion may notbe thereby impeded; for the velocity will be in proportion to theforce of the wind on (he sails to that on (he body of the machine.Therefore, if they he both equal, it will stand still ; or if the forceon the body be greatest, it will go backwards; unless there be a■contrivance to lock the wheels. The upper part of the machinenext A, may be made to take off when the wind is contrary ; andthere may be another set of sails placed between the two hind-wheels, which will considerably increase ils velocity. But afterall, for general use, a common carriage must be preferable: forthis cannot he expected to go up a moderate ascent without greatdifficulty ; nor down a declivity, when there is a strong wind,without danger; and even on level ground, if the road be in tinydegree rough, its progress must be very slow, attended both withdifficulty and danger. In an open country, however, where thereis a large tract of level and smooth ground, and frequent strongwinds, a machine of this sort will certainly he very convenient;and in most countries, when made of a small size, may be usefulto young people, by affording them a pleasant and healthfulexercise.
WHEEL, in mechanics, is a simple machine , consisting of around piece of wood, metal, or other matter, which revolves onits axis. See Mechanics, Clock , and Watch.
Wheel, is also the name of a barbarous kind of punishment towhich great criminals are put in divers countries. In some as-sassins, parricides, and robbers on the highway, are condemned tothe wheel, when they are to have their bones first broken with aniron-baron a scaffold, and then to be exposed, and left to expireon a wheel. Tn Germany they break their bones on the wheel itself.This cruel punishment was first used in Germany , and was rarely-practised any where else, till Francis I. appointed it to he inflictedon robbers.
W heel-Drag, an implement of iron, which being chained tothe wheel of a cart or waggon supports it, while the horses stopupon a hill. The wheel-drag is represented in Plate CL1X. fig.■6, where a, a, a, a, is a piece of wrought iron, curved to the ex-act form of a chart-wheel, 1, 2, 3, 4, are shoulders, that keep thewheel within the drag, c, is the wheel which runs on its axis at d,and e is thechain to be fastened to the near shaft.
WHEELING, a motion in the military art, a motion madeeither to the right and left, or to the right and left about. Thesemotions are made both by horse and foot.
Wheeling, General Rules tor. The circle is divided intofour equal points: thence, wheeling to the right or left if only aquarter of the circle; wheeling to the right or left about is onehalf of the circle. When you wheel to the right, you are to closeto the right, so near as to touch your right-hand man, but withoutpressing him; and to look to the left, in order to bring the rankabout even. When you wheel to the left, you are to close to theleft, and look to the right as above directed. This rule will servefor all the wheeling by ranks; as when a battalion is marching by-subdivisions with their ranks open, then each rank wheels dis-tinctly by itself, when it comes to the ground on which the ranks
before it wheeled, but not before. In wheeling, the men are totake particular care neither to open nor close their ranks, and tocarry their arms well. In wheeling the motion of each man isquicker or slower, according to the distance he is from the right orthe left: thus when you wheel to the right, each man movesquicker than his right-hand man, and wheeling to the left, eachman moves quicker than his left-hand man ; the circle that everyman wheels being larger, according to the distance he is from thehand he wheels to ; as may be seen by describing several circleswithin one another, at two feet distance from each, which is nearlythe space every man is supposed to take up.
WHEELWRIGHT , one who makes spinning wheels, &c.
WHELPS, in a ship, the seaman’s term for those bracketswhich are set up on the capstan close under the bars ; they givethe sweep to it, and are so contrived that the cable winding aboutthem may not surge so much as it might otherwise do if the bodyof the capstan were quite round and smooth.
WHEY, is the serum or watery part of milk, which remainsafter the cream and coagulable matter of that fluid are removed,either by churning, or by separating it with rennet, vinegar, creamof tartar, &c. Whey is an agreeable and wholesome liquid : thebest is that separated by rennet ; as a considerable portion of curdand saccharine particles are suspended in it; whereas the serum,arising from the spontaneous decomposition of milk, possesses anacid taste, is totally divested of the nourishing properties of milk ;and ought to be used only in certain cases of fever, or inflamma-tion. On the other hand, the latter is a pleasant, cooling, beve-rage, during the heat of summer, and may be advantageouslydrunk by the scorbutic and consumptive.
WHIDAH, a kingdom of Africa, on the coast of Guinea , andto the west of the Gold Coast; extending about ten miles alongthe sea. It is a populous country. The fields are always green.
WHIG, a party in England, opposite to the tories, from whomthey differ chiefly in their political principles. Seel ores. Thenames of whig and tory were not known till about the middle ofthe reign of Charles II . when these were given as party-distinc-tions. These parties may be considered either with regard to thestate, or to religion. The state-tories are either violent or mode-rate : the first would have the king to be absolute, and thereforeplead for passive obedience, non-resistance, and the- hereditaryright of the house of Steuart. The moderate tories would notsuffer the king to lose any of his prerogative; but then they wouldnot sacrifice those of the people. The state-whigs are either strongrepublicans or moderate ones. The first, says Rapin, are the re-mains of the party of the long parliament, who attempted to changethe monarchy to a commonwealth; but these make so slender afigure, that they only serve to strengthen the party of the otherwhigs. The tories would persuade the world, that all the whigsare of this kind ; as the whigs would make us believe that all thetories are violent. The moderate state-whigs are much in tljesame sentiments with the moderate tories, and desire that the go-vernment may be maintained on the ancient foundation ; all thedifference is, that the first bear a little more to the parliament andpeople, and the latter to that of the king. In short, the old whigswere always jealous of the encroachments of the royal prerogative,and watchful over the preservation of the liberties and propertiesof the people. In regard to religion, the whigs have always beenfor limiting the power of the bishops, and abolishing the convo-cation.
WHINE, a hunting term, used for the cry of an otter.
WHIP, or WIIIP-STAFF, in a ship, a piece of timber, inform or a strong staff, fastened into the helm, for the steersman, insmall ships, to hold in his hand, in order to move the rudder anddirect the ship.
WHIPPING, in angling, is the fastening a line to the hook orto the rod. It is also used for the casting in of the hook, anddrawing it gently on the water.
Whipping of Boys, in Pagan worship, a most horrible pieceof barbarity, committed under pretence of religion, sometimes tothe privation of life, among the ancient Spartans.
WHIRLPOOL, an eddy, vortex, or gulf, where the water iscontinually turning round. Those in rivers are very common,from various accidents, and are usually very trivial, and of l'-ttleconsequence. In the sea they are more rare, but more dam^rom.