County of-
———-——— of foot, came this day before me, and made oath, that he is no otherwise provided for by any commission or employment, civil or military, in his majesty’s service, than by half pay on the establishment of Ireland, and is on no other establishment of half pay.
Officer’s-Sworn before me thisName.day of
N. B. To be sworn in January, April, July, and October, in every year.
PAY-MASTER, is he who is intrusted with the money, and has the charge of paying the regiment. He has no other commission in the line. His pay is 15s.per day.
DistrictPay-Master, an officer appointed for the better management of the interior concerns of the army, when the corps are detached in garrisons on duty, in several districts.
Pay-Bills. in the British army these bills are distinguished according to the nature of the service for which they are given. Every captain of a troop or companyreceives a regular weekly account from his Serjeant, of money to be advanced for the effectives of such troop or company; and on the 24th day in each month he makes out a monthly one for the paymaster, who makes out a general abstract for the agent. The paymaster-general’s estimate is likewise called the pay bill.
Pay-Lists. The monthly accounts, which are transmitted by the several regimental and district paymasters to their agents on the 25th of each month, are so termed.
Pay-Rolls, the same as pay-lists.
Pay-Serjeant. SeeSerjeant.
PAYE,Fr.the pay of the troops.
PAYEN-Ghaut,Ind.the lower mountain Ghaut is the general term for mountain.
PAYS,Fr.This word is variously applied by the French in a figurative sense:Parler, ou juger a vue de Pays.To speak or decide at random.
GagnerPays, (vuider le pays,Fr.) To leave a country. To go voluntarily into exile.Gagner payslikewise means to gain ground.Avancer paysmay be used in the same sense.
Battre-Pays,Fr.to speak wide of the subject.
Tirer-Pays,Fr.a familiar phrase among the French, signifying to escape.
Pays,Fr.country, locality, ground.
Pays-conquis,Fr.This term was applied by the French to those countries and tracts of territory which had been ceded to France by treaty; as Lorraine; or had been conquered by force of arms; as Ypres, Tournay, Ghent, Ostend, and several other towns, from the reign of Louis XIII.
Pays-coupés,Fr.Confined, inclosed, or intersected countries. Marshal Saxe has observed, that it is impossible to lay down any specific rule relative to the management of troops in countries of this description. An intelligent and able officer will be governed by the nature of the ground in which he is to act; and as under these circumstances, the contest will consist chiefly of a war of posts, and of desultory engagements, in which the most obstinate will be generally the most successful, it will be incumbent upon every military man to recollect, that he must never advance, without having previously secured means for a retreat, should that be judged expedient, and being constantly guarded on his flanks to prevent the fatal consequences of surprise and ambuscade. Although the latter precautions are principally attended to by the general of an army, every partisan or officer commanding a detachment, should be more or less alive to the many mischiefs which must ensue from carelessness and inattention. It would be superfluous to point out what troops are best calculated to act in a close or intersected country. Every military man must know, that mountainous and close countries, or intersected lands, are best adapted to light infantry manœuvres, and that cavalry can only act, with safety and effect, in an open country. The solidity of this observation has probably been the cause of so much improvement in light artillery, and in rifle corps. The latter, indeed, by the use which has been made of their particular weapon, and the desultory execution of it on service, have sufficiently shewn, that no army ought to move without them.
PAYSANS.Fr.Peasants.
PEACE, has been represented allegorically as a beautiful female, holding in her hand a wand or rod towards the earth, over a hideous serpent, and keeping her other hand over her face, as unwilling to behold strife or war. By some painters she has been represented holding in one hand an olive branch, and leading a lamb and a wolf yoked by their necks, in the other; others again have delineated her with an olive branch in her right hand, and a cornucopia, or horn of plenty, in her left.
A very celebrated temple was erected for the goddess of peace at Rome, which was furnished with most of the rich vases and curiosities taken out of the temple of the Jews at Jerusalem. In this temple she was represented as a fine lady, endowed with a great deal of sweetness and good-nature, crowned with laurel interwoven, holding a caduceus in one hand, and a nosegay of roses and ears of corn, in the other.
The temple of peace, built by Vespasian, was 300 feet long, and 200 broad. Josephus says, that all the rarities which men travel through the world to see, were deposited in this temple.
Peace, (Paix,Fr.) rest, silence, quietness; the direct opposite to war; and when the latter prevails, the ultimate object of every contest. This word is frequently prefixed to the term establishment, to signify the reduced number of effective men, in the British army, according to the various formations of corps. Thus one regiment may be 1200 strong in time of war, and only 600 in time of peace. A regiment may also consist of several battalions, the 60th regiment for example has six battalions each of the strength of a regiment; that is from 1000 to 1200 men each. Whence arises the distinction betweenwarandpeaceestablishments. The standing army of Great Britain, according to law, consists of that force only which is kept up in time of peace, and which is confined to a specific number of regiments. Every regiment, beyond the regulated number, during a war is liable to be reduced; and all within it are said to be out of the break.
PEADA,Ind.a footman who carries a staff.
PECHE,Fr.Fishery.
PECTORAL, (Pectoral,Fr.) a breast plate. This word is derived from the Latin,Pectorale. Among the Romans the poorer soldiers, who were rated under a thousand drachms, instead of the lorica or brigantine, (a leathern coat of mail) wore a pectorale, or breast-plate of thin brass, about 12 fingers square. Some modern troops, such as the cuirassiers, &c. wear pectorals for the direct purposes of defence and bodily protection; but in general small ornamental plates with clasps, have been substituted.
PECULAT,Fr.SeePeculation.
PECULATE,PECULATION, the crime of pilfering any thing, either sacred or public, particularly public money, by a person who has the management or custody thereof. This crime is punishable in the heirs of the original delinquent. Under peculation may be considered not only the monies which are embezzled or misapplied by commissioned, non-commissioned, and warrant officers, but the public stores, provisions, aims, and ammunition, &c. which may be sold for private emolument. Occasional examples have been made by government, of a crime that cannot be too scrupulously watched, or too heavily punished, ought to deter individuals from sacrificing public integrity to private views. They ought to remember, that like the sword of Damocles, public scorn hangs over the head of every man whose accounts have not been finally audited and passed.
PECUNIA. Money. A deity in the heathen mythology; (though not a goddess personified among them) the most powerful ascendant the moderns know. The Romans held that she presided over riches, and that she had a son namedArgentinus, whom they adored in the hopes of growing rich.
PECUNIUS, a deity of the ancient Prussians, in honor of whom they kept a fire of oak perpetually burning. A priest constantly attended, and if the fire happened to go out by his neglect, he was instantly put to death. When it thundered, they imagined that their grand priest conversed with their god, and for that reason they fell prostrate on the earth, praying for seasonable weather.
PEDERERO,PATTARERO, a Portuguese term, signifying a small sort of cannon, which is particularly used on the quarter deck of ships, to fire or throw forth stones, or broken iron, upon hoarding parties. This word has been adopted both by the French and English.
PEDOMETER, (Pedometre,Fr.) a mathematical instrument, composed of various wheels with teeth, which by means of a chain fastened to a man’s foot, or to the wheel of a chariot, advance a notch each step, or each revolution of the wheel, and the number being marked at the edge of each wheel, the paces may be numbered, or the distance from one place to another be exactly measured.
PEGS, pointed pieces of wood, used to fasten the cords of a tent.
PEIADAK,Ind.a guard to accompany a prisoner at large.
PEISA,Ind.Cash; or copper money.
PEER,Ind.Monday.
PELE-MELE,Fr.a French adverb, from which is derived the English term pellmell, signifying, confusedly, in disorder, in heaps, &c.
PELICAN,Fr.an ancient piece of artillery which carried a six pound weight of ball, and weighed two thousand four hundred pounds.
PELLEde bois simple,Fr.a wooden shovel.
PELOTEà feu,Fr.Pelote literally means the bottom of a pincushion, a ball, &c. It is here used to signify a species of combustible ball, which serves to throw light into a fosse or elsewhere. The composition is pitch one part, sulphur three parts, to one pound of saltpetre. The whole is well mixed together, and incorporated with tow, from which the pelotes are made.
PELOTON,Fr.Platoon.
Rompre lePeloton,Fr.A platoon being generally considered as a subdivision,rompre le pelotonsignifies to break into sections.
Former lePeloton,Fr.to double up or form subdivision.
Pelotonne,ée,Fr.formed into a platoon.
Pelotonner,Fr.to gather together, to get into groupes.
SePelotonner,Fr.to form into a platoon.
PELTA, in antiquity, a kind of buckler, small, light, and more manageable than the Parma which was used by the Amazons, according to Virgil, and resembled the moon in his first quarter, according to Servius.
PENAL, (Pénal,ale,Fr.) any decree or law which subjects individuals, &c. to penalties. Hencecode pénal.Les loix pénales.The penal code, the penal laws. Thus in England a person professing the Catholic religion is not permitted to exercise his religion if a soldier; and a catholic cannot be a commissioned officer.
PENALTY. In a military sense, signifies forfeiture for non-performance, likewise punishment for embezzlement, &c. An officer found guilty of embezzling stores is cashiered; any person who harbors, conceals, or assists any deserter from the United States’ service, is liable to a heavy penalty.
PENDULUM, inmechanics, any heavy body suspended in such a manner that it may vibrate backwards, and forwards, about some fixed point, by the force of gravity.
A pendulum is any body suspended upon, and moving about, a point as acentre. The nature of a pendulum consists in the following particulars. 1. The times of the vibrations of a pendulum, in very small arches, are all equal. 2. The velocity of the bob in the lowest point, will be nearly as the length of the cord of the arch which it describes in the descent. 3. The times of vibrations in different pendulums, are the square roots of the times of their vibrations. 4. The time of one vibration is to the time of descent, through half the length of the pendulum as the circumference of a circle is to its diameter. 5. Whence the length of a pendulum vibrating seconds in the latitude of London, is found to be 39 inches and ²⁄₁₀ths; and of one half-second pendulum 9.8 inches. 6. An uniform homogeneous body, as a rod, staff, &c. which is ¹⁄₃d part longer than a pendulum, will vibrate in the same time with it.
From these properties of the pendulum we may discern its use as an universal chronometer, or regulator of time. By this instrument, also, we can measure the distance of a ship, of a battery, &c. by measuring the interval of time between the fire and report of the gun; also the distance of a cloud, by counting the seconds or half-seconds, between the lightning and the thunder. Thus, suppose between the lightning and thunder we count ten seconds; then, because sound passes through 1142 feet in one second, we get the distance of the cloud = 11420 feet. Again, the height of any room, or other object, may be measured by a pendulum vibrating from the top thereof. Thus, suppose a pendulum from the height of a room, or other object, vibrates once in three seconds; then say, as 1 is to the square of 3, viz. 9, so is 39.2 to 352.8 feet, the height required. Lastly, by the pendulum we discover the different force of gravity on divers parts of the earth’s surface, and thence the true figure of the earth.
PENDULUMS. Pendulums for military purposes are best made with a musquet ball, and a piece of silk, or other small line. Their length must be measured from the centre of the ball to the end of the loop on which they are to swing. In a cylinder, or other uniform prism or rod, the centre of oscillation, from whence they must be measured, is at the distance of one-third from the bottom, or two-thirds below the centre of motion.
Pendulum’s length in latitude of London, to swing
Length of Pendulums to vibrate Seconds at every fifth degree of latitude.
Rule.—To find the length of a pendulum to make any number of vibrations, andvice versa.
Call the pendulum making 60 vibrations the standard length; then say, as the square of the given number of vibrations is to the square of 60; so is the length of the standard to the length sought. If the length of the pendulum be given and the number of vibrations it makes in a minute be required; say, as the given length, is to the standard length, so is the square of 60, its vibrations in a minute, to the square of the number required. The square root of which will be the number of vibrations made in a minute.
PENNANT,PENNON, a small flag or color.
GentlemenPENSIONERS, (Gentilshommes Pensionnaires,Fr.) a band of gentlemen, who guard the British king’s person in his own house, and for that end wait in the presence chamber. They were first instituted by Henry VII. They are usually forty in number. Their officers are, a captain, lieutenant, standard-bearer, and clerk of the cheque. Their ordinary arms are guilt pole-axes. Their pension is 100l.per annum; they are usually calledbeef-eaters, from their usually fat appearance and indolent habits.
PENTACAPSULAR, having five cavities.
PENTAEDROUS, having five sides.
PENTAGON, infortification, a figure bounded by five sides, or polygons, which form so many angles, capable of being fortified with an equal number of bastions. It also denotes a fort with five bastions.
PENTAGRAPH, (Pentagraphe,Fr.), An instrument whereby designs, &c. may be copied in any proportion, without the person, who uses it, being skilled in drawing.
PENTANGLE, A figure having five angles.
PENTANGULAR. SeePentagon.
PENTAPOLIS, in geography, a countryconsisting of five cities. This name was given, particularly, to the valley wherein stood the five infamous cities destroyed by fire and brimstone in Abraham’s time. The most celebrated Pentapolis was the Pentapolis Cyrenica in Egypt, whose cities were Berenice, Arsinoe, Ptolemais, Cyrene, and Apollonia
PENTASPAST, (Pentapaste,Fr.) An engine that has five pullies.
PENTATHLON. The five exercises performed in the Grecian games, viz.leaping,running,quoiting,darting, andwrestling.
PENTHOUSE, a shed hanging forward in a sloping direction from the main wall of a place.
PEONS,Ind.municipal foot soldiers. These men are chiefly employed to assist in collecting the revenues, and carry a pike or staff. Most persons in India keep servants, who wear a belt with the master’s name. These are likewise called Peadahs.
PEOPLE,of color. Blacks, Mulattoes, so called. They form part of the British territorial army, and are distributed, in corps, among the West India islands.
PERAMBULATOR. SeePedometer.
PERCH, in mensuration, is ten feet long. SeeMeasure.
PERCUSSION. The impression which a body makes in falling or striking upon another, or the shock of two moving bodies. It is either direct or oblique.
DirectPercussion, is where the impulse is given in the direction of a right line perpendicular to the point of contact.
ObliquePercussion. When it is given in the direction of a line oblique to the point of contact.
Centre ofPercussion. That point wherein the shock of the percutient bodies is the greatest.
PERCUTIENT, striking against or upon.
PERDU, a word adopted from the French, signifying to lie flat and closely in wait. It likewise means the forlorn hope.
A corpsPerdu,Fr.Desperately.
A coupPerdu,Fr.At random.
CoupPerdu,Fr.Random shot.
PEREMPTORY. Whatever is absolute and final, not to be altered, renewed, or restrained.Peremptory execution, what takes place immediately.
PERE,Ind.SeePeer.
PERFIDIOUS. Treacherous, false to trust, guilty of violated faith. Hencea perfidious foe. War, however melancholy in its effects, and frequently unjustifiable in its cause and progress, is nevertheless, among civilized nations, so far governed by certain principles of honor, as to render the observance of established laws and customs an object of general acquiescence. When two or more countries are engaged in a hostile contest, whatever belligerent party grossly deviates from those rules, is deservedly stamped with infamy, and justly called “a perfidious foe.”
Perfidiously, treacherously, falsely, without faith.
Perfidy, want of faith, treachery.
PERGUNNA,Ind.A district.
PERIMETER, in geometry, the extent that bounds any figure or body. The perimeters of figures or surfaces, are lines; those of bodies are surfaces. In circular figures, &c. we use circumference or periphery instead of perimeter.
PERIOD. This word is frequently used in military accounts to express the intermediate time for which money has been issued to officers and soldiers.
BrokenPeriod, a term used in the returns and financial statements of the British army, when the regular distribution of pay is interrupted, or the effective force is lessened by the absence of one or more individuals, or by any other cause. A correct and faithful statement of broken periods is essentially necessary in every well regulated regiment, as not only the service but the public purse may be materially injured by the neglect, or embezzlement of individuals. Adjutants and pay-masters cannot be too scrupulously minute on this important head.
PERIPHERY, the circumference—as of a circle.
PERISTYLE, a circular range of pillars for the support or ornament of any building, &c. used in the ancient amphitheatres.
PERKERNUCKA,Ind.Petty officers are so called in India.
PERMANENTFortification, is defined to be the art of fortifying towns, &c. so as to resist the attacks of an enemy, that makes regular approaches.
PERMANENTrank, a rank in the army, which does not cease with any particular service, or locality of circumstances; in opposition tolocalortemporary rank. SeeRank.
PERPENDICULAR, (Perpendiculaire,Fr.) According to Vauban’s system, it is a line raised in a perpendicular direction on the centre of the exterior side of any given polygon. In mean fortification, which prevails more than any other system, the perpendicular contains 30 toises in the exagon, and in polygons that have a greater number of sides; but it contains fewer when the polygons have a less number. The perpendicular is used by this engineer to determine the other lines and angles belonging to a fortification. In proportion as the perpendicular is increased, the extent of the flanks is augmented.
Perpendicularfortification, is that in which all the component parts flank each other at straight angles. Pagan, andother engineers, made the flanks perpendicular to the lines of defence. This is also the denomination of the improved system of Montalembert, which has superceded in a great measure all others; the distinction between this and the old, would require a treatise to exemplify it.
Perpendicular, (Perpendiculaire,Fr.) When any star is vertical, it is said, in astronomy, to be perpendicular, because its beams fall directly upon us.
Perpendicular, in geometry, when any right line is perpendicular to all the lines it meets with in a plane, it is said to be perpendicular to that plane.
Perpendiculardirection, in marching, is the regular and straight progress of one or more men over given points. Without the strictest attention is paid to this essential principal in all movements, the greatest irregularity, and, ultimately, the greatest confusion must ensue. Perpendicular and parallel movements, constitute, indeed, the whole system of good marching. When several columns, divisions, or companies, advance, the different pivots must be strictly perpendicular and parallel to each other, otherwise the distance will be lost, and the ultimate object of forming a correct line must be defeated.
PERPETUALscrew, a screw which is acted upon by the teeth of a wheel, and which continues its action for an indefinite length of time; or so long as the teeth of the wheel continue to act upon it.
PERQUISITES, all manner of profits arising from an office or place, independent of the actual salary or revenue. In a military sense no perquisites, advantages, or emoluments are allowed to persons in responsible situations.
PERSIANLanguage,Ind.There are two sorts; the ancient, called Zebane-Pehlavy; the modern, called Zebaunedery.
PERSPECTIVE, is the art of drawing the resemblances or pictures of objects on a plane surface, as the objects themselves appear to the eye, &c.
PERSPECTIVEElevation. SeeScenography.
PERUST,Ind.A small weight or measure, equal to four koodups or puls.
PERWANNA,Ind.An order, warrant, or letter, signed by a Nawaub or Nabob, a passport; a custom-house permit, as in the case of the Neyau and vizier.
PESHWA,orPAISHWA,Ind.Prime minister; the acting head of the Mahrattah states. Paishwa became the title of a sovereign, the head of the Mahrattahs.
PESTLE, an instrument used in the fabrication of gunpowder. SeeGunpowder Mill.
PETARDEAUX,Fr.Pieces of wood, covered with wool and pitch, which are used to stop the holes that are made in the sides of a ship by cannonball, during an engagement.
PETARD,orPETARDO, an engine to burst open the gates of small fortresses: it is made of gun-metal, fixed upon a board two inches thick, and about 2¹⁄₂ feet square, to which it is screwed, and holds from 9 to 20 pounds of powder, with a hole at the end opposite to the plank to fill it, into which the vent is screwed: the petard thus prepared is hung against the gate by means of a hook, or supported by three staves fastened to the plank: when fired it bursts open the gate. Its invention is ascribed to the French Huguenots in 1579, who, with them, took Cahors in the same year.
Petards are of four different sizes: the first contains 12lbs. 13oz. second 10lbs. 11oz. third 1lb. 10oz. fourth 1lb. The blind fuze composition for them is of mealed powder, 7lb. wood ashes 3oz.
Stores for one Petard.
PETARDER,Fr.. to fire petards.
PETARDIER. The man who loads, fixes, and fires the petard. It likewise signifies among the French, the man who makes or throws a petard.
PETEL,Ind.. The head of a village.
PETER,Fr.. in a military sense, to explode, to make a loud noise.
PETEROLLES,Fr.. Squibs, such as children make and use in the streets for their diversion.
PETITE-Guerre,Fr.SeeGuerre, for its definition.
Petite-Guerre, is carried on by a light party, commanded by an expert partisan, and which should be from 1000 to 2000 men, separated from the army, to secure the camp or cover a march; to reconnoitre the enemy or the country; to seize their posts, convoys, and escorts; to plant ambuscades, and to put in practice every stratagem for surprising or disturbing the enemy; which is called carrying on thePetite-guerre. The genius of these days, and the operations of the American war, have placed the service of such a corps in a most respectable light, as it is more fatiguing, more dangerous, and more desultory than any other.
To form a corps capable of carrying on thePetite-guerreto advantage, prudence requires that it should consist of 1000 men at least, without which a partisan cannot expect to support the fatigues of a campaign, and seize the most important occasions that every where offer, andwhich a too great inferiority must make him forego.
It is no less important that this corps should be composed of light infantry and cavalry; and as it is most incontestible that the cavalry should be the most active in carrying on thePetite-guerre, it were to be wished that they were likewise the strongest, so as to have 600 cavalry and 400 infantry in a corps of 1000 men, making four companies of light infantry, and twelve troops of cavalry. Each company of infantry to consist of 1 captain, 1 first and 2 second lieutenants, 6 serjeants, and 100 men, including 6 corporals, 4 lance-corporals, and 2 drummers. Each troop of cavalry to consist of 1 captain, 1 first and 1 second lieutenant, 1 ensign, a quarter-master, 6 serjeants, and 100 horsemen; including 6 corporals, a trumpeter and 2 farriers.
The commanding officer should have the naming of the officers of this corps, or at least the liberty to reject such as he is convinced are not qualified for such service. To support the honor of this corps upon a solid and respectable footing, the strictest subordination must extend from the chief to all the officers, and the most rigid discipline, vigilance, patience, bravery, and love of glory, ought to pervade the whole corps.
PETITION. SeeMemorial.
PETRE. SeeNitre,Saltpetre.
PETRINAL,or Poitrinal,Fr.a species of firearms between the arquebus and the pistol, which was used among the French, during the reign of Francis I. There is mention made of it in an account of the siege of Rouen, which was undertaken by Henry IV. in 1592. Being shorter than the musquet but of a heavier calibre, and not unlike our blunderbuss; it was slung in a cross belt, so as to rest upon the chest of the person who discharged it. From this circumstance it obtained the name ofPoitrinal.
PETRONEL. SeePistol.
PETTAH,Ind.the suburbs, or a town adjoining to a fort, which is in general surrounded by a stockade or fence of bamboos, a wall, and a ditch.
PEUPLER,Fr.literally means to people. This expression is used, in a military sense, by Belaire, author ofElémens de Fortification, in the following manner:—Il fautpeuplerla surface d’un glacisde Pierriers. The surface of a glacis ought to be well covered withpedereros. See page 388.
PHALANGE,Fr.SeePhalanx.
PHALANX, a word taken from the Greek, signifying the same as legion. In antiquity, a huge, square, compact battalion, formed of infantry, set close with their shields joined, and pikes turned across. It consisted of 8000 men, and Livy says, it was invented by the Macedonians; and hence called the Macedonian phalanx.
PHAROS, (Phare,Fr.) a light-house or pile raised near a port, where a fire is kept burning in the night to direct vessels near at hand. The Pharos of Alexandria, built at the mouth of the Nile, was anciently very famous; whence the name was derived to all the rest. Ozanam says, Pharos anciently denoted a streight, as the Pharos or Pharo of Messina.
PHARSALIA, so called from Pharsalus, anciently a town in Thessaly, now Turkey in Europe, which lies a little to the south of Larissa. This spot was rendered memorable in history by the battle that was fought between Pompey and Cæsar, when they contended for the empire of the world. Plutarch has given the following account of theengagement:—
“Both armies were now arrived at the fields of Pharsalia, conducted by the two greatest generals alive; Pompey at the head of all the Roman nobility, the flower of Italy and Asia, all armed in the cause of liberty. Cæsar at the head of a body of troops firmly attached to his interests, men who had faced every appearance of danger, were long inured to hardships, and had grown from youth to age in the practice of arms. Both camps lay in sight of each other. In this manner they spent the night; when next morning, Cæsar’s army was going to decamp, word was brought him, that a tumult and murmur were heard in Pompey’s camp, as of men preparing for battle. Another messenger came soon after with tidings that the first ranks were already drawn out. Cæsar now seemed to enjoy the object of his wishes.Now, cried he to his soldiers,the wished for day is come, when you shall fight with men, not with want and hunger. His soldiers, with joy in their looks went each to his rank, like dancers on a stage; while Cæsar himself at the head of his tenth legion, a body of men that had never yet been broken, with silence and intrepidity waited for the onset. While Cæsar was thus employed, Pompey on horseback viewed both armies; and seeing the steady order of the enemy, with the impatience of his own soldiers, he gave strict orders, that the vanguard should make a stand, and keeping close in their ranks receive the enemy. Pompey’s army consisted of 45,000 men, Cæsar’s not quite half that number. And now the trumpet sounded the signal for battle on both sides, and both armies approached each other.
“While but yet a little space remained between either army, Caius Crastinus, a devoted Roman, issued from Cæsar’s army at the head of 120 men, and began the engagement. They cut through the opposite ranks with their swords, and made a great slaughter; but Crastinus still pressing forward, a soldier run him through the mouth, and the weapon came out at the back of his neck. In the mean time Pompey, designed to surroundCæsar, and to force his horse, which amounted to only one thousand, to fall back upon his infantry, gave orders that his own cavalry, consisting of 7000 men, should extend itself, and then attack the enemy. Cæsar expecting this, had placed 3000 foot in reserve, who rushed out fiercely, and attacked Pompey’s horse, letting fly their javelins in the faces of the young delicate Romans, who, careful of their beauty, turned their backs and were shamefully put to flight. Cæsar’s men, without pursuing them flanked the enemy, now unprotected by their horse, and soon a total rout began to ensue. Pompey, by the dust he saw flying in the air, quickly conjectured that his cavalry was overthrown, and overpowered by the event retired to his camp in agony and silence. In this condition he sat pondering in his tent, till roused by the shouts of the enemy breaking into his camp, he cried out:What, into the very camp!and without uttering any thing more, but putting on a mean habit, to disguise his flight, he departed secretly.” During the seven years war Frederick the great, king of Prussia, was much in the same situation. He had retired to his tent, and had given up every thing for lost, when the daring enterprise of Ziethen, who commanded the Death Hussars, turned the fortune of the day; and though he lost an incalculable number of Prussians, he secured the victory, and thereby restored to his master both his kingdom and his crown.
PHATUK,Ind.a gaol or prison. It likewise means a gate.
PHAUGUN,Ind.a month, which in some degree agrees with February and March.
PHILEBEG,or Kilt, from the Gaelic,Filleadh beg, which signifies a little plaid. This part of the Highland dress corresponds with the lower part of a belted plaid, and is frequently worn as an undress by Highland officers and soldiers. The philebeg or kilt may be considered as a very good substitute for the belted plaid, as it is not, at present, thought necessary for the Highlander to carry his clothing for the night, as well as by day, about his person. This was the case in ancient times, when thebreachcananswered both purposes. The philebeg is a modern invention, and is the garment which some, who have endeavored to establish the antiquity ofTruis, confound with thebreachcan filleadh.
PHIRMAUND,Ind.This word is sometimes writtenFirmaun, and signifies a royal commission, mandate, charter, proclamation, or decree.
PHOUSDAR,Ind.The same asFousdar, the superintendant of a large district. It more immediately signifies the officer in charge of the revenue.
PHOUS-DAN,Ind.The commander of a large body of forces.
PIAN,Fr.a term used in the West Indies, to signify a venereal taint.
PIANISTE,Fr.a person infected with the venereal disorder.
APIC,Fr.perpendicularly.
PICE,Ind.a copper coin, used in most parts of India, the value of which four pices make an anna, sixteen anna, a rupee; and a rupee is half of our dollar; so that there are 64 pices to a rupee or half a dollar.
PICAROON, a pillager, one who plunders; a smuggler, one who violates the laws.
PICKETS, infortification, stakes sharp at one end, and sometimes shod with iron, used in laying out the ground, of about three feet long; but, when used for pinning the fascines of a battery, they are from 3 to 5 feet long.
Pickets, inartillery, are about 5 or 6 feet long, shod with iron, to pin the park lines, and to lay out the boundaries of the park.
Pickets, in thecamp, are also stakes of about 6 or 8 inches long, to fasten the tent cords, in pitching the tents; also, of about 4 or 5 feet long, driven into the ground near the tents of the horsemen, to tie their horses to.
Picket, an out-guard posted before an army, to give notice of an enemy approaching. SeeGuard.
Picket, a barbarian kind of punishment so called, where a soldier stood with one foot upon a sharp pointed stake: the time of his standing was limited according to the offence.