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Extend, leaving about four feet of it out of the beach. Thetops of these two piles may be taken for the general slope of theSfoin, unless the beach should be very steep, and much curved,111 which case it becomes necessary to follow its curvature in®ome degree. From the high-water mark of neap-tides, thePiles are carried back nearly level to that of spring-tides, andas much further as may be considered necessary. The pilesare driven four feet asunder from centre to centre, andI so as to admit the planking between them alternately,and they should be sunk about two-thirds of their length.The longest piles are placed between the high-water mark ofneap-tides and the bottom of the shingle, particularly from20 to 40 feet below the former point. The planking is, ifPossible, carried down to about two-tliirds from the tops ofpiles, and kept parallel with them. The land-ties arePlaced about one-third from the top of the planking (suppos-ln g the latter to commence from the tops of the piles,) andtheir tails are sunk to the level of the bottom of the planking,or as nearly so as possible.”

GROOVE, a channel cut in a piece of wood by takinga Way a rectangular prism, one of the sides of which is aPortion of the side of the wood in which the excavation is made.A groove therefore forms two external, and two internal angles.It differs from the rebate thus : the rebate is formed bytaking away a rectangular prism at the angle, and conse-quently the part taken away has two of its sides common tothose of the piece, with one internal, and two externalat >gles.

A groove is made in joinery by a plough, which is move-a hle so as to admit of the excavation being run at anydistance from the arris.

Grooves are frequently used in order to insert a tongue in'he joint of two pieces of wood, intended to be united. Theyar e also used for inserting the panels in framed work, as indoors, shutters, partitions, &c.

In the present day, grooves are among the most fashionablefilaments ; but there are few or no instances of their deco-rative use among the ancient Greeks and Romans.

GROTESQUE, that beautiful light style of ornamenta 3ed by the ancient Romans, in the decoration of theirPalaces, baths, and villas. It is also to be seen in some°f their amphitheatres, temples, and tombs, the greatest part°f which being vaulted, and covered with ruins, have beendug up and cleared by the modern Italians , who for thesereasons gave them the name of grotte, which is perhaps aJ^rruption of the Latin cryptce, a word borrowed from theGreeks, as the Romans did most of their terms in archi-tecture : and hence the modern word grotesque, and theEnglish word grotto, signifying a cave.

In the time of Raphael, Michael Angelo, Julio, Romano,lolidore, Giovanni d’Udine, Vasaro, Zuchero, and Algerdi,there is no doubt but there were much greater remains of the! 8 r otte than what are now to be seen, and in imitation of themi t Vere decorated the loggias of the Vatican, the villas of| Madonna, Pamfili, Capraola, the old palace at Florence, and| In deed whatever else is elegant or admirable in the finishing; °I modern Italy .

This classical style of ornament, by far the most perfecti that has ever appeared for inside decorations, and which hasi ®tood the test for so many ages, like other works of genius,

| Requires not only fancy and imagination in the composition,

: hut taste and judgment in the application, and when theseafe happily combined, this gay and elegant mode is capable°I inimitable beauties.

Vitruvius , with great reason, condemns an over licentious-h e ®s of this kind, and blames the painters of his time forI 'htroducing monstrous extravagances. We do not mean to

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vindicate anything that deserves such appellations; but surelyin light and gay compositions, designed merely to amuse, it isnot altogether necessary to exclude the whimsical.

Its origin is discernible in the Egyptian hieroglyphicwriting, where the heads and limbs of men and beasts areattached to blocks of stone, to vases, or to foliage, &c., therebycharacterizing the inclinations and the powers of the deity orperson whose history they record, or whose peculiar trans-actions they are intended to preserve in the remembrance offuture ages.

With the Egyptians it remained rude and unpolished ; butwhen the Greeks adopted it, they made an ornamental use ofit, and it became a medium to exhibit their general knowledgeof nature. The taste with which they united in one form, notonly parts of various animals, but objects so totally diversein their nature and appearance, as the productions of theanimal and vegetable kingdoms, is in the highest degreedelightful to contemplate. The formation of chimericalbeings, as the dragon, the sphinx, the griffin, &c., owe theirorigin to this taste ; which received much of its force andinterest in heathen days, from the mythological enigmascouched under these compound forms. Such is the character ofthat ornament so common on Egyptian structures, the wingedserpent surrounding an egg. Now that these mysteriousemblematic meanings are disregarded, and no longer treatedwith reverence, grotesque painting and sculpture are con-tinued in use merely because the forms they produce arepleasing to the eye ; and although the understanding isinsulted by them, such is the power of the beauty of form,that we are gratified by it, in spite of our reason.

Those who wish to make themselves acquainted with it,will find the best exemplars on ancient Greek sarcophagi,altars, vases, friezes, &c., of which Piranesi and Rocchegianihave given an ample store to the public in their valuableworks. Mr. C. H. Tatham has given likewise a tasteful andjudicious series of examples of this kind, in his Collection ofEtchings of Ornamental Architecture , from the Antique atRome . Le Roy’s, Le Potre’s, and many other works of thelike kind, may also be consulted with advantage.

GROTTO (from the French , grotte ) is used for a littleartificial edifice made in a garden, in imitation of a naturalgrotto.

The outsides of these grottos are usually adorned withrustic architecture, and their inside with shell-work, fossils,&c. finished likewise with yets tTeau, or fountains, &c.

A cement for artificial grottos may be made thus : taketwo parts of white rosin, melt it clear, and add to it four partsof bees’ wax; when melted together, add two or three parts ofthe powder of the stone you design to cement, or so muchas will give the cement the colour of the stone ; to this addone part of flour of sulphur ; incorporate all together oVer agentle fire, and afterwards knead them with the hands inwarm water. With this cement, the stones, shells, &c., afterbeing well dried before the fire, may be cemented.

Artificial red coral branches, for the embellishment ofgrottos, may be made in the following manner : take clearrosin, dissolve it in a brass pan ; to every ounce of which addtwo drams of the finest vermilion ; when you have stirredthem well together, and have chosen your twigs and branches,peeled and dried, take a pencil, and paint the branches all overwhilst the composition is warm : afterwards shape them inimitation of natural coral. This done, bold the branchesover a gentle coal fire, till all is smooth and even as ifpolished.

In the same manner white coral may be prepared withwhite lead, and black coral with lamp-back. A grotto maybe built, with little expense, of glass, cinders, pebbles, pieces