Art. 41. All non-commissioned officers and soldiers, who shall be found one mile from the camp, without leave, in writing, from their commanding officer, shall suffer such punishment as shall be inflicted upon them by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art. 42. No officer, or soldier, shall be out of his quarters, garrison, or camp, without leave from his superior officer, upon penalty of being punished according to the nature of his offence, by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art. 43. Every non-commissioned officer and soldier shall retire to his quarters or tent, at the beating of the retreat; in default of which he shall be punished according to the nature of his offence.
Art. 44. No officer, non-commissioned officer, or soldier, shall fail in repairing, at the time fixed, to the place of parade, of exercise, or other rendezvous, appointed by his commanding officer, if not prevented by sickness, or some other evident necessity; or shall go from the said place of rendezvous, without leave from his commanding officer, before he shall be regularly dismissed or relieved, on the penalty of being punished according to the nature of his offence, by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art. 45. Any commissioned officer who shall be found drunk on his guard, party, or other duty, shall be cashiered. Any non-commissioned officer or soldier so offending, shall suffer such corporeal punishment as shall be inflicted by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art. 46. Any centinel who shall be found sleeping upon his post, or shall leave it before he shall be regularly relieved, shall suffer death, or such other punishment as shall be inflicted by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art 47. No soldier belonging to any regiment, troop, or company, shall hire another to do his duty for him, or be excused from duty, but in cases of sickness, disability, or leave of absence; and every such soldier found guilty of hiring his duty, as also the party so hired to do another’s duty, shall be punished at the discretion of a regimental court-martial.
Art. 48. And every non-commissioned officer conniving at such hiring of duty aforesaid, shall be reduced; and every commissioned officer, knowing and allowing such ill practices in the service, shall be punished by the judgment of a general court-martial.
Art. 49. Any officer belonging to the service of the United States, who, by discharging of fire arms, drawing of swords,beating of drums, or by any other means whatsoever, shall occasion false alarms in camp, garrison, or quarters, shall suffer death, or such other punishment as shall be ordered by the sentence of a general court-martial.
Art. 50. Any officer or soldier, who shall, without urgent necessity, or without the leave of his superior officer, quit his guard, platoon, or division, shall be punished according to the nature of his offence, by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art. 51. No officer or soldier shall do violence to any persons who brings provisions or other necessaries to the camp, garrison, or quarters, of the forces of the United States, employed in any parts out of the said states, upon pain of death, or such other punishment as a court-martial shall direct.
Art. 52. Any officer or soldier, who shall misbehave himself before the enemy, run away, or shamefully abandon any fort, post, or guard, which he or they may be commanded to defend, or speak words inducing others to do the like; or shall cast away his arms and ammunition, or who shall quit his post or colors to plunder and pillage, every such offender being duly convicted thereof, shall suffer death or such other punishment as shall be ordered by the sentence of a general court-martial.
Art. 53. Any person belonging to the armies of the United States, who shall make known the watch-word to any person who is not entitled to receive it, according to the rules and discipline of war, or shall presume to give a parole or watch-word, different from what he received, shall suffer death, or such other punishment as shall be ordered by the sentence of a general court-martial.
Art. 54. All officers and soldiers are to behave themselves orderly in quarters, and on their march; and whosoever shall commit any waste, or spoil, either in walks of trees, parks, warrens, fish ponds, houses, or gardens, corn-fields, enclosures of meadows, or shall maliciously destroy any property whatsoever, belonging to the inhabitants of the United States, unless by order of the then commander in chief of the armies of the said states, shall (besides such penalties as they are liable to by law,) be punished according to the nature and degree of the offence, by the judgment of a regimental or general court-martial.
Art. 55. Whosoever, belonging to the armies of the United States, employed in foreign parts, shall force a safe guard, shall suffer death.
Art. 56. Whosoever shall relieve the enemy with money, victuals, or ammunition, or shall knowingly harbor or protect an enemy, shall suffer death or such other punishment as shall be ordered by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art. 57. Whosoever shall be convicted of holding correspondence with, or giving intelligence to the enemy, either directly or indirectly, shall suffer death, or such other punishment as shall be ordered by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art. 58. All public stores taken in the enemy’s camp, towns, forts, or magazines, whether of artillery, ammunition, clothing, forage, or provisions, shall be secured for the service of the United States; for the neglect of which the commanding officer is to be answerable.
Art. 59. If any commander of any garrison, fortress, or post, shall be compelled, by the officers and soldiers under his command, to give up to the enemy, or to abandon it: the commissioned officers, non-commissioned officers, or soldiers, who shall be convicted of having so offended, shall suffer death, or such other punishment as shall be inflicted upon them by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art. 60. All suttlers and retainers to the camp, and all persons whatsoever, serving with the armies of the United States, in the field, though not inlisted soldiers, are to be subject to orders, according to the rules and discipline of war.
Art. 61. Officers having brevetts, or commissions, of a prior date to those of the regiment in which they serve, may take place in courts-martial and on detachments, when composed of different corps, according to the ranks given them in their brevetts, or dates of their former commissions; but in the regiment, troop, or company, to which such officers belong, they shall do duty and take rank, both in courts-martial and on detachments, which shall be composed only of their own corps, according to the commissions by which they are mustered in the said corps.
Art. 62. If upon marches, guards, or in quarters, different corps of the army shall happen to join, or do duty together, the officer highest in rank of the line of the army, marine corps, or militia, by commission there, on duty, or in quarters, shall command the whole, and give orders for what is needful to the service, unless otherwise specially directed by the president of the United States, according to the nature of the case.
Art. 63. The functions of the engineers being generally confined to the most elevated branch of military science, they are not to assume, nor are they subject to be ordered on any duty beyond the line of their immediate profession, except by the special order of the president of the United States; but they are to receive every mark of respect, to which their rank in the army may entitle them, respectively, and are liable to be transferred, at the discretion of the president, from one corps to another, regard being paid to rank.
Art. 64. General courts-martial may consist of any number of commissionedofficers, from five to thirteen, inclusively, but they shall not consist of less than thirteen, where that number can be convened, without manifest injury to the service.
Art. 65. Any general officer commanding an army, or colonel commanding a separate department, may appoint general courts-martial, whenever necessary. But no sentence of a court-martial shall be carried into execution until after the whole proceedings shall have been laid before the officer ordering the same, or the officer commanding the troops for the time being; neither shall any sentence of a general court-martial, in time of peace, extending to the loss of life, or the dismission of a commissioned officer, or which shall, either in time of peace or war, respect a general officer, be carried into execution, until after the whole proceedings shall have been transmitted to the secretary of war, to be laid before the president of the United States, for his confirmation or disapproval, and orders in the case. All other sentences may be confirmed and executed by the officer ordering the court to assemble, or the commanding officer for the time being, as the case may be.
Art. 66. Every officer commanding a regiment, or corps, may appoint, for his own regiment or corps, courts-martial, to consist of three commissioned officers, for the trial and punishment of offences, not capital, and decide upon their sentences. For the same purpose all officers, commanding any of the garrisons, forts, barracks, or other places where the troops consist of different corps, may assemble courts-martial, to consist of three commissioned officers, and decide upon their sentences.
Art. 67. No garrison, or regimental court-martial shall have the power to try capital cases, or commissioned officers; neither shall they inflict a fine exceeding one month’s pay, nor imprison, nor put to hard labor, any non-commissioned officer or soldier, for a longer time than one month.
Art. 68. Whenever it may be found convenient and necessary to the public service, the officers of the marines shall be associated with the officers of the land forces, for the purpose of holding courts-martial and trying offenders belonging to either; and in such cases the orders of the senior officers of either corps who may be present and duly authorised, shall be received and obeyed.
Art 69. The judge advocate, or some person deputed by him, or by the general, or officer commanding the army, detachment, or garrison, shall prosecute in the name of the United States, but shall so far consider himself as council for the prisoner, after the said prisoner shall have made his plea, as to object to any leading question to any of the witnesses, or any question to the prisoner, the answer to which might tend to criminate himself; and administer to each member of the court before they proceed upon any trial, the following oath, which shall also be taken by all members of the regimental and garrison courts-martial.
“You A. B. do swear that you will well and truly try and determine, according to evidence, the matter now before you, between the United States of America, and the prisoner to be tried, and that you will duly administer justice, according to the provisions of ‘An act establishing rules and articles for the government of the armies of the United States,’ without partiality, favor, or affection; and if any doubt shall arise, not explained by said articles, according to your conscience, the best of your understanding, and the custom of war, in like cases; and you do further swear, that you will not divulge the sentence of the court until it shall be published by the proper authority; neither will you disclose or discover the vote or opinion of any particular member of the court-martial, unless required to give evidence thereof as a witness, by a court of justice, in a due course of law.So help you God.”
And as soon as the said oath shall have been administered to the respective members, the president of the court shall administer to the judge advocate, or person officiating as such, an oath in the following words:
“You A. B. do swear, that you will not disclose or discover the vote or opinion of any particular member of the court martial, unless required to give evidence thereof as a witness, by a court of justice in due course of law. Nor divulge the sentence of the court to any but the proper authority, until it shall be duly disclosed by the same.So help you God.”
Art. 70. When any prisoner arraigned before a general court-martial shall, from obstinacy and deliberate design, stand mute or answer foreign to the purpose, the court may proceed to trial and judgment as if the prisoner had regularly pleaded not guilty.
Art. 71. When a member shall be challenged by a prisoner, he must state his cause of challenge, of which the court shall, after due deliberation determine the relevancy or validity, and decide accordingly; and no challenge to more than one member at a time shall be received by the court.
Art. 72. All the members of a court-martial are to behave with decency and calmness; and in giving their votes, are to begin with the youngest in commission.
Art. 73. All persons who give evidence before a court martial, are to be examined on oath or affirmation in the following form:
“You swear or affirm (as the case may be) the evidence you shall give in the cause now in hearing, shall be the truth,the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.So help you God.”
Art. 74. On the trials of cases not capital, before courts-martial, the deposition of witnesses not in the line or staff of the army, may be taken before some justice of the peace, and read in evidence; provided the prosecutor and the person accused are present at the taking the same, or are duly notified thereof.
Art. 75. No officer shall be tried but by a general court-martial, nor by officers of inferior rank, if it can be avoided. Nor shall any proceedings or trials be carried on excepting between the hours of eight in the morning, and three in the afternoon, excepting in cases, which, in the opinion of the officers appointing the court-martial, require immediate example.
Art. 76. No person whatsoever shall use any menacing words, signs, or gestures, in presence of a court-martial, or shall cause any disorder or riot, or disturb the proceedings, on the penalty of being punished at the discretion of the said court-martial.
Art. 77. Whenever any officer shall be charged with a crime, he shall be arrested and confined in his barracks, quarters, or tent, and deprived of his sword, by the commanding officer. And any officer who shall leave his confinement before he shall be set at liberty by his commanding officer, or by a superior officer, shall be cashiered.
Art. 78. Non-commissioned officers and soldiers, charged with crimes, shall be confined, until tried by a court-martial, or released by proper authority.
Art. 79. No officer or soldier who shall be put in arrest, shall continue in confinement more than eight days, or until such time as a court-martial can be assembled.
Art 80. No officer commanding a guard, or provost marshal, shall refuse to receive or keep any prisoner committed to his charge, by an officer belonging to the forces of the United States; provided the officer committing, shall, at the same time, deliver an account in writing, signed by himself, of the crime with which the said prisoner is charged.
Art. 81. No officer commanding a guard, or provost marshal, shall presume to release any person committed to his charge, without proper authority for so doing, nor shall he suffer any person to escape, on the penalty of being punished for it by the sentence of a court-martial.
Art. 82. Every officer or provost marshal, to whose charge prisoners shall be committed, shall, within twenty-four hours after such commitment, or as soon as he shall be relieved from his guard, make report in writing, to the commanding officer of their names, their crimes, and the names of the officers who committed them, on the penalty of being punished for disobedience or neglect, at the discretion of a court-martial. Art. 83. Any commissioned officer convicted before a general court-martial of conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman, shall be dismissed the service.
Art. 84. In cases where a court-martial may think it proper to sentence a commissioned officer to be suspended from command, they shall have power also to suspend his pay and emoluments for the same time, according to the nature and heinousness of the offence.
Art 85. In all cases where a commissioned officer is cashiered for cowardice or fraud, it shall be added in the sentence, that the crime, name, and place of abode and punishment of the delinquent, be published in the newspapers in and about the camp, and of the particular state from which the offender came, or where he usually resides, after which it shall be deemed scandalous for an officer to associate with him.
Art. 86. The commanding officer of any post or detachment, in which there shall not be a number of officers adequate to form a general court-martial, shall, in cases which require the cognizance of such a court, report to the commanding officer of the department, who shall order a court to be assembled at the nearest post or detachment, and the party accused, with necessary witnesses, to be transported to the place where the said court shall be assembled.
Art. 87. No person shall be sentenced to suffer death, but by the concurrence of two thirds of the members of a general court-martial, nor except in the cases herein expressly mentioned; nor shall more than fifty lashes be inflicted on any offender, at the discretion of a court-martial; and no officer, non-commissioned officer, soldier, or follower of the army, shall be tried a second time for the same offence.
Art. 88. No person shall be liable to be tried and punished by a general court-martial for any offence which shall appear to have been committed more than two years before the issuing of the order for such trial, unless the person, by reason of having absented himself or some other manifest impediment, shall not have been amenable to justice within that period.
Art. 89. Every officer authorised to order a general court-martial, shall have power to pardon or mitigate any punishment ordered by such court, except the sentence of death, or of cashiering an officer; which, in the cases where he has authority (byarticle 65) to carry them into execution, he may suspend, until the pleasure of the president of the United States can be known; which suspension, together with the copies of the proceedings of the court-martial, the said officer shall immediately transmit to the president, for his determination. And the colonel or commanding officer of the regimentor garrison where any regimental or garrison court-martial shall be held, may pardon or mitigate any punishment ordered by such court to be inflicted.
Art 90. Every judge advocate, or person officiating as such, at any general court-martial, shall transmit, with as much expedition as the opportunity of time and distance of place can admit, the original proceedings and sentence of such court-martial, to the secretary of war, which said original proceedings and sentence shall be carefully kept and preserved in the office of said secretary, to the end that the persons entitled thereto may be enabled, upon application to the said office, to obtain copies hereof.
The party tried by any general court-martial, shall, upon demand thereof made by himself or by any person or persons in his behalf, be entitled to a copy of the sentence and proceedings of such court-martial.
Art. 91. In cases where a general or commanding officer may order a court of inquiry to examine into the nature of any transaction, accusation, or imputation against any officer or soldier, the said court shall consist of one or more officers, not exceeding three, and a judge advocate, or other suitable person as a recorder, to reduce the proceedings and evidence to writing, all of whom shall be sworn to the faithful performance of their duty. This court shall have the same power to summon witnesses as a court-martial, and to examine them on oath. But they shall not give their opinion on the merits of the case, excepting they shall be thereto specially required. The parties accused shall also be permitted to cross examine and interrogate the witnesses, so as to investigate fully the circumstances in question.
Art. 92. The proceedings of a court of inquiry must be authenticated by the signature of the recorder and the president, and delivered to the commanding officer: and the said proceedings may be admitted as evidence by a court martial, in cases not capital, or extending to the dismission of an officer, provided that the circumstances are such, that oral testimony cannot be obtained. But as courts of inquiry may be perverted to dishonorable purposes, and may be considered as engines of destruction to military merit, in the hands of weak and envious commandants, they are hereby prohibited, unless directed by the president of the United States, or demanded by the accused.
Art. 93. The judge advocate, or recorder, shall administer to the members the following oath:
“You shall well and truly examine and inquire, according to your evidence, into the matter now before you, without partiality, favor, affection, prejudice, or hope of reward: So help you God.”
After which the president shall administer to the judge advocate, or recorder, the following oath:
“You A. B. do swear that you will, according to your best abilities, accurately and impartially record the proceedings of the court, and the evidence to be given in the case in hearing: So help you God.”
The witnesses shall take the same oath as witnesses sworn before a court-martial.
Art. 94. When any commissioned officer shall die or be killed in the service of the United States, the major of the regiment, or the officer doing the major’s duty in his absence, or in any post or garrison, the second officer in command, or the assistant military agent, shall immediately secure all his effects or equipage, then in camp or quarters, and shall make an inventory thereof, and forthwith transmit the same to the office of the department of war, to the end that his executors or administrators may receive the same.
Art. 95. When any non-commissioned officer, or soldier, shall die, or be killed in the service of the United States, the then commanding officer of the troop, or company, shall, in the presence of two other commissioned officers, take an account of what effects he died possessed of, above his arms and accoutrements, and transmit the same to the office of the department of war; which said effects are to be accounted for, and paid to the representatives of such deceased non-commissioned officer or soldier. And in case any of the officers, so authorised to take care of the effects of deceased officers and soldiers, should, before they have accounted to their representatives for the same, have occasion to leave the regiment, or post, by preferment or otherwise, they shall, before they be permitted to quit the same, deposit in the hands of the commanding officer, or of the assistant military agent, all the effects of such deceased non-commissioned officers and soldiers, in order that the same may be secured for, and paid to, their respective representatives.
Art. 96. All officers, conductors, gunners, matrosses, drivers, or other persons whatsoever, receiving pay or hire in the service of the artillery or corps of engineers of the United States, shall be governed by the aforesaid rules and articles, and shall be subject to be tried by courts-martial, in like manner with the officers and soldiers of the other troops in the service of the United States.
Art. 97. The officers and soldiers of any troops, whether militia or others, being mustered and in pay of the United States, shall, at all times, and in all places, when joined or acting in conjunction with the regular forces of the United States, be governed by these rules and articles of war, and shall be subject to be tried by courts-martial, in like manner with the officers and soldiers in the regular forces,save only that such courts-martial shall be composed entirely of militia officers.
Art. 98. All officers, serving by commission from the authority of any particular state, shall on all detachments, courts-martial, or other duty, wherein they may be employed in conjunction with the regular forces of the United States, take rank, next after all officers of the like grade in said regular forces, notwithstanding the commissions of such militia or state officers may be elder than the commissions of the officers of the regular forces of the United States.
Art. 99. All crimes not capital, and all disorders and neglects which officers and soldiers may be guilty of, to the prejudice of good order and military discipline, though not mentioned in the foregoing articles of war, are to be taken cognizance of by a general or regimental court-martial, according to the nature and degree of the offence, and be punished at their discretion.
Art. 100. The president of the United States, shall have power to prescribe the uniform of the army.
Art. 101. The foregoing articles are to be read and published once in every six months, to every garrison, regiment, troop or company, mustered or to be mustered in the service of the United States, and are to be duly observed and obeyed, by all officers and soldiers who are or shall be in said service.
Sec. II. That in time of war all persons not citizens of, or owing allegiance to the United States of America, who shall be found lurking as spies, in or about the fortifications or encampments of the armies of the United States, or any of them, shall suffer death, according to the law and usage of nations, by sentence of a general court-martial.
Sec. III. That the rules and regulations, by which the armies of the United States have heretofore been governed, and the resolves of congress thereunto annexed, and respecting the same, shall henceforth be void and of no effect, except so far as may relate to any transactions under them, prior to the promulgation of this act, at the several posts and garrisons respectively, occupied by any part of the army of the United States.
LAY.To lay down, implies to resign, as, the enemy laid down their arms; he means to lay down his commission.—To lay for, is to attempt something by ambuscade.
LAZARET,Fr.those large houses are so called which are built in the neighborhood of some sea-ports belonging to the Levant, for the purpose of lodging the people that are ordered to perform quarantine.
LAZARETTO, the same as lazaret.
LAZARUS,-LAZARO,
a military order instituted at Jerusalem by the Christians of the west, when they were masters of the Holy-Land, who received pilgrims under their care and guarded them on the roads from the insults of the Mahomedans. This order was instituted in the year 1119, and confirmed by a bull of Pope Alexander IV. in 1255, who gave it the rule of St. Augustine.
LEAD, a metal well known. It is employed for various mechanical uses; as in thin sheets for covering buildings, for pipes, pumps, shot, bullets, windows, for securing iron bars in hard stones, for sundry kinds of large vessels for evaporation, and many other purposes.
LEADER. SeeCommander.
FileLeader, the front man of a battalion or company, standing two or three deep.
LEADING-COLUMN, the first column that advances from the right, left, or centre of an army or battalion.
Leading-File, the first men of a battalion or company, that march from right, left, or centre, in files.
FlankLeading-File, the first man on the right, and the last man on the left of a battalion, company, or section, are so called.
CentreLeading-File, the last man of the right centre company, division, or section; and the first man of the left centre company, division, or section, are so called, when the line files from the centre to the front or rear. At close order, the colors stand between them.
LEAGUE, inmilitary history, a measure of length, containing more or less geometrical paces, according to the different usages and customs of countries. A league at sea, where it is chiefly used by us, being a land measure mostly peculiar to the French and Germans, contains 3000 geometrical paces, or 3 English miles.
The French league sometimes contains the same measure, and, in some parts of France, it consists of 3500 paces: the mean or common league consists of 2400 paces, and the little league of 2000. The Spanish leagues are larger than the French, 17 Spanish leagues making a degree, or 20 French leagues, or 69¹⁄₂ English statute miles. The German and Dutch leagues contain each 4 geographical miles. The Persian leagues are pretty near of the same extent with the Spanish; that is, they are equal to 4 Italian miles, which is pretty near to what Herodotus calls the length of the Persian parasang, which contained 30 stadia, 8 whereof, according to Strabo, make a mile. SeeMeasure.
Leaguealso denotes an alliance or confederacy between princes and states for their mutual aid, either in attacking some common enemy, or in defending themselves.
LEAVE, indulgence, licence, liberty.
Leaveof absence, a permission which is granted to officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers, to be absent from camp or quarters for any specific period.
GeneralLeave, an indulgence which is annually granted on home service, by the commander in chief, to a certain proportion of the army, to be absent from military duty. This generally occurs in the winter months, and ends on the 10th of March, and in time of peace only.
LECTURES. Lectures are read at the British establishment at Woolwich to the officers of artillery, and engineers, and cadets, on chemistry: lectures upon topography and upon other essential parts of military science are given at High Wycombe: British colleges.
LEEKUK,Ind.a secretary or writer.
LEFTgive point. SeeSword-Exercise.
Leftprotect. SeeSword-Exercise.
To put on theLEG, among cavalry, is to press the inside of the foot and leg against the horse’s flank. It is always used in passaging to direct the horse which way to passage, and again on the opposite flank to stop him after he has passaged to his place.
LEGATUS,in Roman antiquity, a military officer who commanded as deputy of the chief general.
Kennett, in his Antiquities, observes, that the design of the legati, at their first institution, was not so much to command as to advise. The senate selecting some of the oldest and most prudent members to assist the general in his councils.
Dionysius calls this the most honorable and sacred office among the Romans, bearing not only the authority of a commander, but with all, the sanctity and veneration of a priest.
Under the emperors there were two sorts oflegati,consularesandprætorii; the first of which commanded the whole armies, as the emperor’s lieutenant generals, and the other only particular legions.
Machiavel highly extols the wisdom of the Romans, in allowing their generals unlimited commissions.
LEGER. This word although it be not strictly military, is in some degree connected with the profession, as diplomacy is not wholly foreign to military negociation. A leger ambassador, or resident signifies any person acting in that capacity, who remains stationary.
Artillerie Légère,Fr.The light or horse artillery.
Cavalerie Légère,Fr.Light horse.
Un Cheval léger à la main,Fr.A horse which is easily managed, or is not hard mouthed.
Troupes Légères,Fr.Light troops, or such as act in desultory warfare.
LEGION, inRoman antiquity, a body of foot, which consisted of ten cohorts, or 5000 men.
The exact number contained in a legion, was fixed by Romulus at 3000; though Plutarch assures us, that, after the reception of the Sabines into Rome, he increased it to 6000. The common number afterwards, in the first times of the free state, was 4000; but in the war with Hannibal, it rose to 5000; and after that, it is probable that it sunk again to 4200, which was the number in the time of Polybius.
In the age of Julius Cæsar, we do not find any legions exceeding the Polybian number of men; and he himself expressly speaks of two legions, that did not make above 7000 between them. (Commentar. lib. 5.)
The number of legions kept in pay together was different, according to the various times and occasions. During the free state, four legions were commonly fitted up every year, and divided between the consuls: yet in cases of necessity, we sometimes meet with no less than 16 or 18 in Livy.
Augustus maintained a standing army of 23 (or as some will have it) of 25 legions; but in aftertimes we seldom find so many.
They borrowed their names from the order in which they were raised, asprima,secunda,tertia, &c. but because it usually happened, that there were severalprimæ,secundæ, &c. in several places, upon that account they took a sort of surname besides, either from the emperors who first constituted them, as Augusta, Claudiana, Galbiana, Flavia, Ulpia, Trajana, Antoniana, or from the provinces which had been conquered chiefly by their valor, as Parthica, Scythica, Gallica, Arabica, &c. or from the names of the particular deities for whom their commanders had an especial honor, as Minervia and Appollinaris; or from the region where they had their quarters, as Cretensis, Cyrenaica, Britannica, &c. or sometimes upon account of the lesser accidents, as Adjutrix, Martia, Fulminatrix, Rapax, &c.
The whole Roman infantry, which was divided into four sorts, Velites, Hastati, Principes, and Triarii, consisted of Manipuli, Cohorts, and Legions. So that legion was considered as the largest establishment for foot soldiers. See Kennett’s Ant. of Rome, pages 190, 191.
Marshal Saxe has written at some length, respecting legion.
Legion, in a general acceptation of the term, signifies any large body of men. In a more confined one among the moderns, it applies to a specific number of horse and foot, who are distinguished by that name, and do duty with the rest of the army. Such for instance was the British legion which served in America; and of this description were the Polish and Belgic legions, that formed part of the French army in the early part of the revolution. The French armies now formcorps d’armie, which are in fact legions; and of 20 to 30,000 men each.
LEGIONARY, any thing appertainingto a legion, or containing an indefinite number.
LEGUMES,Fr.vegetables, roots, grain, &c. Every species of subsistence, which under the old government of France, was not provided for the troops by direct instructions from the war office, and at the expence of the public, was calledlegumes. Subsistence of this sort, however, may more properly be called that diet which soldiers got for themselves in foreign countries during actual hostilities.
Legumes, or vegetable food, &c. was classed under two specific heads. That which grew in consequence of the ground having been tilled and sowed, and that which rose spontaneously from the earth. Beans, peas, carrots, &c. may be considered as belonging to the first class, and those herbs or wild roots which have been cultivated in gardens, or are to be found in woods, &c. may come under the second. The latter sort, indeed, was frequently resorted to by the soldier in order to give a seasoning to his mess. Parties under the command of subaltern officers were permitted to accompany the foragers for the purpose of procuring this wholesome and pleasant addition to the regulated subsistence; and when there were not any foraging days, soldiers were permitted to gather roots and vegetables within the limits of the outermost house or vedette quarters, or of the regular outposts of the infantry.
ToLENGTHENout, in a military sense, means to stride out.
ToLengthenthe step, to take more than the prescribed pace.
LESKAR, the camp of the great Mogul.
ToLETin, to admit; as he let some of the enemy’s advanced parties in, or into the camp, &c.
ToLetoff, to discharge.
ToLetoff a pistol or musquet, to fire either of those fire arms.
LETTERofmark,-LETTERofmarque,
a letter granted to a ship captain impowering him to make reprisals for what was formerly taken from him, by ships of another state, contrary to the law of mart. SeeMarque.
Letterof mark, a commission granted the commander of a merchant ship or privateer, to cruise against, and make prizes of the enemy’s ships and vessels, either at sea, or in their harbors.
Letterof service, a written order or authority issued by the secretary at war, empowering any officer or individual to raise a given body of men to serve as soldiers, within a certain time, and on special conditions.
Letter, in its general acceptation, a character such as forms the alphabet, or any thing written, such as an epistle, &c.
Letterof attorney, an instrument in writing, authorizing an attorney, or any confidential person, to take the affairs of another in trust. A letter or power of attorney is necessary to empower a person to receive the half-pay of an officer. This should be accompanied by a certificate sworn to by the officer before some magistrate or justice of the peace.
Letterof credit, a letter which is given from one merchant or banker to another, in favor of a third person, enabling the latter to take up money to a certain amount. Sometimes a letter of credit is given without any specific limitation.
Letterof licence, a deed signed and sealed by the creditors of a man, by which he is allowed a given period to enable him to discharge his debts by instalments, or by a certain proportion in the pound.
Letter-men, certain pensioners belonging to Chelsea hospital, are so called.
LETTON,Fr.a metal composed of molten copper, called rosette, and oflapis calaminaris, or zinc. This is brass.
Lettonis used in cannon-foundries. The best practical mode of digesting and mixing the materials, is to put 11 or 12,000 weight of metal, 10,000 weight of rosette, or molten copper, 900 pounds of tin, and 600 pounds of letton. There are various opinions respecting the mixture of these several ingredients.
LETTREcirculaire,Fr.a circular letter.
Lettrede cachet,Fr.an infamous state paper, which existed before the French revolution, differing in this essential point from an order of the British privy council, that the former was sealed, and the person upon whom it was served, carried into confinement without even seeing the authority by which he was hurried off in so peremptory a manner, or being tried afterwards for any specific offence; whereas the latter is an open warrant, which, (except when peculiar circumstances occasions a suspension of the habeas corpus act,) has its object closely investigated before a jury. The Frenchlettre de cachetwas written by the king, countersigned by one of his principal secretaries of state, and sealed with the royal signet.
Lettresde service,Fr.SeeLettersof service.
Lettresde passe,Fr.a paper signed by the kings of France, authorizing an officer to exchange from one regiment into another.
Lettrede créance, ou qui porte crêance,Fr.A letter of credit. It likewise signifies the credentials which an ambassador presents from his government to a foreign court.
Lettrede récréance,Fr.a letter which an ambassador receives from his government, by which he is recalled from a foreign court.
Lettresen chiffre,Fr.Cyphers. Baron Espagnac in the continuation of hisEssai sur l’operation de la guerre, tom. 1, page 269, gives the following instructionsrelative to this acquirement. He observes that writing in cypher may be practised in two different ways. First by means of distilled vinegar, which is boiled with silver litharge, one ounce of the latter to a pint of the former. When this mixture has stood some time, it must be carefully poured off from the sediment, and it will appear as clear as rock water. Intelligence or information may be conveyed by writing with this water in the blank spaces of an ordinary letter, on wrapping paper, or on the blank leaves of a book. The instant the writing dries, not the least trace appears of what has been marked. To render the writing legible, you must make use of a water in which quick lime has been dissolved with a mixture of orpiment. This water is as clear as rock water; and if you steep a sheet of paper in it, and lay it upon the letter, book, &c. on which any thing has been written, the different characters will instantly appear.
The first of these distilled liquids is so powerful and searching, that by putting the written letter upon several other sheets of paper, after having rubbed the top sheet with the second water, the writing will be clearly seen in almost all of them. The same circumstance will occur, if you rub the leaf of a book or any piece of paper which you may spread upon it. These waters, especially the last, should be kept in bottles that are well corked up, to prevent the spirituous particles from evaporating. A fresh composition must, indeed, be made, if the old one should seem weakened. The letters that are written must likewise be carefully penned, and kept free from blots, &c. The paper must not be turned, nor rubbed with the hand until the writing be thoroughly dry. This is the author’s first proposed mode of writing in cyphers, the second may be seen in page 270 of the work already quoted.
Lettresde représailles,Fr.Reprisals. SeeLettersof marque.
Lettresde santé, patentes de santé,Fr.letters of health.
LEVANT, the countries bordering upon the Mediterranean are so called. It appears to be derived fromle vent, the wind, or country to windward, in relation to Italy.
LEVANTIN,Fr.A word generally used among the French to distinguish any person from the Levant.
LEVANTINEnations, (Nations Levantines,Fr.) Nations belonging to the East, or to those countries which border on the Mediterranean. The French likewise say,Peuples Levantines.
LEVANTIS,Fr.The soldiers belonging to the Turkish gallies are so called.
LEVEEde troupes,Fr.SeeLevy.
Leveeen Masse,Fr.a general rising of the people of any country, either for the purposes of self defence, or to answer the intentions of its governing powers.
Leveed’une siege,Fr.The raising of a siege. SeeSiege.
LEVEL, an instrument to draw a line parallel to the horizon, whereby the difference of ascent or descent between several places may be found, for conveying water, draining fens, &c.
Air-Level, that which shews the line of level by means of a bubble of air, inclosed with some liquor in a glass tube of an indeterminate length and thickness, whose two ends are hermetically sealed. When the bubble fixes itself at a certain mark, made exactly in the centre of the tube, the plane or ruler wherein it is fixed is level; when it is not level, the bubble will rise to one end. This glass tube may be set in another of brass, having an aperture in the middle, whence the bubble of air may be observed. There is one of these instruments with sights, being an improvement upon the last described, which by the addition of more apparatus, becomes more commodious and exact: it consists of an air-level about eight inches long, and 7 or 8 lines in diameter, set in a brass tube, with an aperture in the middle: the tubes are carried in a strong straight ruler, a foot long, at whose ends are fixed two sights, exactly perpendicular to the tubes, and of an equal height, having a square hole, formed by two fillets of brass crossing each other at right angles, in the middle whereof is drilled a very little hole, through which a point on a level with the instrument is described: the brass tube is fastened on the ruler by means of two screws, one whereof serves to raise or depress the tube at pleasure, for bringing it towards a level. The top of the ball and socket is riveted to a little ruler that springs, one end whereof is fastened with screws to the great ruler, and at the other end is a screw serving to raise and depress the instrument when nearly level.
Artillery foot-Level, is in form of a square, having its two branches or legs of an equal length, at the angle of which is a small hole, whence hang a line and plummet, playing on a perpendicular line in the middle of a quadrant: it is divided into twice 45 degrees from the middle.
Gunner’s-Level, for levelling pieces of artillery, consists of a triangular brass plate, about 4 inches, at the bottom of which is a portion of a circle divided into 45 degrees; which angle is sufficient for the highest elevation of cannons, mortars, and howitzers, and for giving shot and shells the greatest range: on the centre of this segment of a circle is screwed a piece of brass, by means of which it may be fixed or screwed at pleasure; the end of this piece of brass is made so as to serve for a plummet and index, in order to shew the different degrees of elevation of pieces of artillery. This instrument has also a brass foot, to act upon cannon or mortars,so that when these pieces are horizontal, the instrument will be perpendicular. The foot of this instrument is to be placed on the piece to be elevated, in such a manner, as that the point of the plummet may fall on the proper degree, &c.
The most curious instrument for the use of the artillerist, was lately invented by the very ingenious colonel Congreve, of the British artillery; having the following qualifications, viz. 1. It will find the inclination of any plane, whether above or below the horizon. 2. By applying it either to the cylinder, or outside of any piece of ordnance, angles of elevation or depression may be given to the 60th part of a degree, with less trouble than the common gunner’s quadrant, which only gives to the 4th part of a degree. 3. It will give the line of direction for laying either guns or mortars to an object above or below the horizon. 4. It will find the centre of metals of any piece of ordnance. 5. With it, a point may be found in the rear of a mortar-bed, in the vertical plane of the mortar’s axis; consequently a longer line of sight is given for directing them to the object than the usual way. 6. It answers all the purposes of a pair of callipers, with the advantage of knowing (to the 100th part of an inch) diameters, whether concave or convex, without the trouble of laying the claws upon a diagonal scale. 7. On the sides of the instrument are the following lines, viz. equal parts, solids, plains, and polygons, logarithms, tangents, versed sines, and numbers, plotting scales, and diagonal scale of inches for cutting fuzes by. 8. In the lid of the instrument-case is a pendulum to vibrate half seconds. It is likewise of singular use in surveying; as, 1. It takes horizontal angles to the 60th part of a degree. 2. Vertical angles. 3. Levels. 4. Solves right angled plane triangles. 5. Oblique-angled plane triangles. 6. Answers all the purposes of a protractor, with the advantage of laying down angles exactly as taken in the field. N. B. captain Jordane’s ingenious instrument answers nearly the same purposes.
Spirit-Level. SeeAir Level.
By the termlevelis also to be understood the line of direction in which any missive weapon is aimed.
LEVELLING, the finding a line parallel to the horizon at one or more stations, and so to determine the height of one place in regard to another.
A truly level surface is a segment of any spherical substance, which is concentric to the globe of the earth. A true line of level is an arch of a great circle which is imagined to be described upon a true level surface.
The apparent level is a straight line drawn tangent to an arch or line of true level. Every point of the apparent level except the point of contact, is higher than the true level.
The common methods of levelling are sufficient for laying pavements of walks, for conveying water to small distances, for placing horizontal dials, or astronomical instruments; but in levelling the bottoms of canals or ditches in a fortification, which are to convey water to the distance of many miles, the difference between the apparent and true level must be taken into the account.
Dr. Halley suggests a method of levelling, which is performed wholly by the barometer, in which the mercury is found to be suspended to so much the less height, as the place is more remote from the centre of the earth. Hence it follows, that the different height of the mercury in two places gives the difference of level.
Mr. Derham, from some observations at the top and bottom of the monument in London, found that the mercury fell ¹⁄₁₀th of an inch at every 82 feet of perpendicular ascent, when the mercury was at 30 inches. Dr. Halley allows of ¹⁄₁₀th of an inch for every 30 yards; and considering how accurately barometers are now made, we think this method sufficiently exact to take levels for the conveyance of water, or any other military purposes, and indeed less liable to errors than the common levels. Mr. Derham also found a difference of 3 inches ⁸⁄₁₀ths between the height of the mercury at the top and bottom of Snowdonhill in Wales.
For the common occasions of levelling, set a pole upright in a spring, pond, &c. and mark how many feet and inches are above water; then set up another pole of equal length with the other, in the place to which the water is to come. Place the centre of a quadrant on the top of this last pole, the plummet hanging free; spy through the sights at the top of the pole in the water, and if the thread cuts any degree of the quadrant, the water may be conveyed by a pipe laid in the earth. If you cannot see from one extreme to the other, the operation may be repeated.
Levelling.—Table shewing the difference between the true and apparent level.
This table will answer several useful purposes.
First.—To find the height of the apparent level above the true, at any distance.—If the given distance be contained in the table, the correction of level is found in the same line with it; but if the exact distance be not found in the table, then multiply the square of the distance in yards, by 2.57, and divide by 1,000,000, or cut off 6 places on the right for decimals; the rest are inches: or multiply the square of the distance in miles, by 66 feet 4 inches, and divide by 100.
Second.—To find the extent of the visible horizon, or how far can be seen from any given height, on a horizontal plane, at sea, &c.—The height of the observer’s eye above the horizon being known, the extent of his visible horizon is found in the column opposite, under the wordDistances.
Third.—To find the distance of any object when it first comes in sight, its height being known.—For the distance of any object will be the extent of the visible horizon of the observer, added to the visible horizon of the point he observes. It is necessary in this case for the observer to know only the height of that part of the object which is kept from his view, by the curvilinear figure of the globe.—Knowing the distance of an object, its height may be found in the same manner.
If the height or distance exceed the limits in the table; then, first, if the distance be given, divide it by 2, 3, or 4, till the quotient comes within the distances in the table; then take out the height answering to the quotient, and multiply it by the square of the divisor for the height required. But when the height is given, divide it by one of these square numbers, 4, 9, 16, 25, &c. till the quotient come within the limits of the table, and multiply the quotient by the square root of the divisor.
Levellingstaves, instruments used in levelling, that carry the marks to be observed, and at the same time measure the heights of those marks from the ground. These usually consist of two wooden square rulers, that slide over one another, and are divided into feet, inches, &c.
Levellinghas two distinct applications in the art of war, in the one case it implies the reduction of an uneven surface to that of a plane, so that the works of a fortification may be of a correspondent height or figure throughout. The other is the art of conveying water from one place to another; in this process, it is found necessary to make an allowance between the true and apparent level, or in other words, for the figure of the earth, for the true level is not a straight line, but a curve which falls below the straight line about 8 inches in a mile, 4 times 8 in 2 miles, 9 times 8 in 3 miles, 16 times 8 in 4 miles, always increasing with the square of the distance.
LevellingSystem, a term which since the commencement of the French revolution has been grossly misinterpreted, and cannot be found in any civilized country to answer any other purpose than that of delusion; such was the calumny raised by the patricians of Rome, when they having plundered the soldiers of their lands and appropriated to themselves; when the people complained they were thus reproached; theagrarian lawwhich proposed only to restore the lands to the owners, was called a levelling system; but the people were robbed and the consequence was the ultimate ruin of Roman liberty, and Rome itself; the word Jacobin in modern times has superseded leveller.
LEVER, a balance which rests upon a certain determinate point called a fulcrum.
Leverinmechanics, an inflective line, rod, or beam, moveable about, or upon a fixed point, called the prop or fulcrum, upon one end of which is the weight to be raised, at the other end is the power applied to raise it; as the hand, &c.
Since the momentum of the weight and power are as the quantities of matter in each, multiplied by their respective celerities; and the celerities are as the distances from the centre of motion, and also as the spaces passed through in a perpendicular direction in the same time, it must follow, that there will be an equilibrium between the weight and power, when they are to each other reciprocally as the distances from the centre, or as the celerities of the motions, or as the perpendicular ascent or descent in the same time; and this universally in all mechanical powers whatsoever, and which is therefore the fundamental principle of all mechanics. SeeMechanical Powers.
LEVET, the blast of a trumpet.
LEVIER,Fr.Lever. The French writers having been more explicit on this head than any of our lexicographers, we shall extract the following passages as conducive to general information. The levier or lever is an instrument made of wood or iron, by whose means the heaviest weights may be raised with few hands. When the lever is made of iron, it is called pince or crow. The lever may be considered as the first of all machines. Wheels, pullies, capstans, &c. act only by the power it possesses. The lever must be looked upon as a straight line, which has three principal points, namely, the one on which the load is placed, and which is to be raised, the appui or rest which is the centre round which it turns, and which the French mechanics callorgueil, and lastly the human arm, which is the power that puts the lever into motion. The different arrangements or disposition which is given to these three points, or rather the unequal distances at which they are placed, occasion the force that is collectively displayed.
Belidor makes the following remarks onthis useful machine. It is an inflexible bar which must be considered as having no weight in itself, upon which three powers are made to act in three different points in such a manner, that the action of two powers must be directly opposed to the one that resists them. The point where the opposing power acts is called thepoint d’appui.
Levier, in artillery, a wedge.
Levierde pointage,Fr.a wedge to assist in pointing pieces of ordnance.
LEVIERSde support,Fr.a wedge by which cannon is raised to a certain line of direction.
ToLEVY, has three distinct military acceptations, as tolevyorraisean army, tolevyor make war; and, tolevycontributions.
LEVY, the levying, or raising troops, by enregistering the names of men capable of bearing arms, for the common defence and safety of a country, has from time immemorial been a leading principle among men.
There are indeed some people still existing, who indiscriminately go to war, leaving, for the immediate security of their huts or habitations, only their old men, their wives and children.
Among the Romans, however, and in some other civilized countries, it was a prevailing maxim never to employ above a certain proportion of matured population, and that proportion consisted uniformly of men who were expert at arms.
National assemblies were called together whenever the situation of the country required, that the senate’s decree should be published and put into effect.
The levying or raising of troops for service was regulated in the following manner under two specific heads, called ordinary and extraordinary levy. The ordinary levy took place in consequence of a decree from the senate by which all males of a certain age were called out to do military service: the extraordinary levy was enforced when a deficiency was found in the ordinary levy to answer the immediate exigencies of the state.
The extraordinary levy, which was further distinguished by the word evocation, (SeeEvocati) was performed as follows. A public orator mounted the rostrum, and after having expatiated upon the urgency of the case, and paid a handsome tribute of commendation to all who should voluntarily step forward to defend their country, he entrusted the conclusion of the business to two superior officers who were to command the new levies.
These officers instantly unfurled two flags, and emphatically exclaimed,let all those brave men who have the safety of the Republic at heart flock to our standards!A red flag was the rallying mark for all who were to serve on foot, and a blue flag pointed out the rendezvous for cavalry. Every one was at liberty to chuse the service he liked best.
With respect to the ordinary levy by which every citizen was liable to be called upon for personal service, it was conducted in the following manner.
All the different tribes into which the inhabitants of the country were divided, assembled in places marked out for that purpose, and as soon as a whole tribe, consisting of males only, had entered, the public crier called over, in a distinct and audible manner, the names of four persons, after which the first military tribune, from among those of that rank who were to command the intended legion, selected one out of the four, and had him enrolled.
The crier then called over the names of four others belonging to the same class, and the second tribune selected one from the four in the same manner as the first had done. This selection went on through the different classes, until the whole tribe was drafted, and another tribe was then subjected to the same rotation. Legions were formed out of these levies, and completed to so effective a strength, that three of them generally composed a Roman army. The Romans readily submitted to these calls of the state; and they did so the more cheerfully, because it was a fundamental rule amongst them, that no man could be provided for in a military or civil way, unless he had served a prescribed number of years.
Kennett, in his antiquities of Rome, gives the following account, which the reader will perceive differs in some particulars from the former.
“At the same time of the year as the consuls were declaredelectordesigned, they chose the military tribunes; fourteen out of the body of the Equites who had served in the army five years, and ten out of the commonalty, such as had made ten campaigns. The former they calledtribuni juniores, and the latterseniores.
The consuls having agreed on a levy (as, in the time of the commonwealth they usually did every year,) they issued out an edict, commanding all persons who had reached the military age (about seventeen years) to appear (commonly) in the capitol, or in the area before the capitol, as the most sacred and august place, on such a day. The people being come together, and the consuls who presided in the assembly having taken their seat, in the first place, the four and twenty tribunes were disposed of according to the number of legions they designed to make up, which was generally four. Thejuniortribunes were assigned, four to the first legion, three to the second and last. After this, every tribe, being called out by lot, was ordered to divide into their proper centuries; out of each century were soldiers cited by name, with respect had to their estate and class; for which purpose, there were tables ready at hand, in which the name, age, and wealth of every person were exactly described. Fourmen, as much alike in all circumstances, as could be pitched upon, being presented out of the century, first the tribunes of the first legion chose one, then the tribunes of the second another, the tribunes of the third legion a third man, and the remaining person fell to the tribunes of the fourth. Then four more were drawn out; and now the right of chusing first belonged to the tribunes of the second legion; in the next four to the tribunes of the third legion, then to the tribunes of the fourth legion, and so round; those tribunes chusing last the next time, who chose first the time before; the most equal and regular method imaginable.