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engaged in this trade, he ought to pay a premium equal to the onefortieth part of the sum he insures, exclusive of such an additional sum as may be required to indemnify the insurer for his trouble, and to leave him a fair profit. If the premium exceed this sum, the insurer is overpaid; and if it fall below it he is underpaid.

Insurance companies formed for carrying on this business have generally a large subscribed capital, or such a number of proprietors as enables them to raise, without difficulty, whatever sums may at any time be required to make good losses. Societies of this sort do not limit their risks to small sums; that is, they do not often refuse to insure a large sum upon a ship, a house, a life, &c. The magnitude of their capitals affords them the means of easily defraying a heavy loss; and their premiums being proportioned to their risks, their profit is, at an average, independent of such contingencies.

An immense advantage results to navigation and commerce from the practice of marine insurance. Without the aid that it affords, comparatively few individuals would be found disposed to expose their

property to the risk of long and hazardous voyages; but by its means, insecurity is changed for security, and the capital of the merchant, whose ships are dispersed over every sea, and exposed to all the perils of the ocean, is as secure as that of the agriculturist.

INTEREST is the sum paid by the borrower of a sum of money, or of any sort of valuable produce, to the lender, for its use. The distinction between simple and compound interest is this: When a loan is made, it is usual to stipulate that the interest upon it should be regularly paid at the end of every year or half year, as the case may be. A loan of this sort is said to be at simple interest. Sometimes, however, money or capital is invested so that the interest is not paid at the period when it becomes due, but is progressively added to the principal; so that at every term a new principal is formed, consisting of the original principal and the successive accumulations of interest upon interest. Money invested in this way is said to be placed at compound interest.

INVOICE: an account of goods or merchandise shipped by merchants for their correspondents

abroad, in which the peculiar marks of each package, with other particulars, are set forth.

IPECACUANHA: the root of a perennial plant growing in Brazil and other parts of South America. It is a mild and safe emetic.

IRON the most abundant and most useful of all the metals. It is found in abundance in this country, but still we import great quantities. Cast or pig iron is the name given to this metal when first extracted from its ores.

IRON-WOOD : a species of wood, of a reddish cast, so called on account of its corroding as that metal does, and its being remarka

bly hard and ponderous, even more so than ebony. It comes from South America and parts of Asia. ISINGLASS: one of the purest and finest of the animal glues. It is a product the preparation of which is almost peculiar to Russia. It is made of the air-bladders and sounds of different kinds of fish, which are found in the large rivers that fall into the North Sea and the Caspian. It dissolves readily in boiling water, and is much used in cookery.

IVORY: the name given to the teeth or tusks of the elephant, and

of the walrus or sea-horse. The western and eastern coasts of Africa, the Cape of Good Hope, Ceylon, India, and the countries to the eastward of the straits of Malacca, are the great marts whence supplies of ivory are derived. The number of elephants that are annually slaughtered for their tusks must be immense, as the demand for ivory is very great.

J.

JALAP: a root, named from Xalapa in Mexico, whence we chiefly import it. It is a strong purgative in medicine.

JAPANNING: the art of varnishing and painting ornaments on wood, in the same manner as is done by the natives of Japan.

JASPER: a stone found in the East Indies and China, and an ingredient in the composition of many mountains. It is used in the formation of seals, and when polished is very beautiful.

JET: a black, inflammable, bituminous substance, susceptible of a good polish.

JUJUBES: the fruit of a tree, which grows in France, Italy, and likewise in India and Persia. The

fruit is of the size of an olive, and contains a little nut also like that of the olive. Jujube-paste is said to be of efficacy in pulmonary complaints.

JUNIPER-BERRIES: the fruit of a tree, of which there are several species. The berries are chiefly used to give a flavor to gin and other spirits.

JUNK, among shipwrights, is made from old cables and ropes, cut, untwisted, and pulled out into loose hemp. It is used for caulk ing ships. A junk is also a name given to a vessel used in the China Seas.

JURY-MAST, among mariners, is what is set up instead of a mast carried away in a storm, or lost through some other casualty. The derivation of the term has puzzled all the antiquaries.

K.

KELP: a substance formed of marine plants, which, being cut from the rocks with a hook, are collected and dried on the beach to a certain extent; they are afterwards put into kilns prepared for the purpose, the heat of which is

sufficient to bring the plants into a state of semi-fusion. They are then strongly stirred with iron rakes, and when cool condense into a dark blue or whitish mass, very hard and solid. Kelp is used in the composition of soap, the manufacture of alum, and the formation of crown and bottle glass.

KERMES: an insect of the same species as the true Mexican cochineal, found upon a species of oak growing in Spain, France, the Levant, &c. Cloths dyed with kermes are of a deep red color; and though much inferior in brilliancy to the scarlet cloths dyed with cochineal, they retain the color better, and are less liable to stain.

KERSEY: a species of coarse woollen stuff, usually woven in ribs.

KERSEYMERE: a plain woollen stuff, made from the finest wools.

KETCH: a small vessel, constructed for carrying bombs.

KID-SKINS: the skins of young goats, chiefly used in the manufacture of ladies' gloves.

KINO: a gum, the produce of trees that grow in the Indies.

L.

LAC, or GUM-LAC: a substance which has been improperly called a gum, produced in Bengal, Assam, &c., on the leaves and branches of certain trees, by an insect. Lac yields a fine red dye, and the resinous part is extensively used in the manufacture of sealing-wax and hats, and as a varnish. Lac dye or lake consists of the coloring matter extracted from the stick lac. When stick lac has been separated from the twigs to which it naturally adheres, and coarsely pounded, the native silk and cotton dyers extract the color as far as it conveniently can be done by water. The yellowish, hard, resinous powder which remains is called seed lac. Shellac is produced from seed lac, by putting the latter into bags of cotton cloth, and holding it over a charcoal fire, when the lac melts, and being strained through the bag, the resinous part, which is the most liquifiable, is obtained in a considerable degree of purity; it is formed into thin sheets or plates. Thin, transparent or amber-colored shellac is the best. It is used principally in the manufacture of sealing-wax.

LACE: a plain or ornamented net-work, tastefully composed of many fine threads of gold, silver, silk, flax or cotton, interwoven. Thread lace is of various kinds, denominated either from the place where it is manufactured, or from the particular method of working. That which is woven with bobbins, made of bone or ivory, is called bone-lace: The manufacture of lace was formerly very elaborate, but of late it has been much cheapened by the superior neatness and cheapness of bobbinet, a sort of lace formed by the loom.

LACK: a word used in the East Indies to denote the sum of 100,000 rupees, which amounts to about 12,5007. sterling.

LAMP-BLACK. The finest lamp-black is produced by collecting the smoke from a lamp with a long wick, which supplies more oil than can be perfectly consumed, or by suffering the flame to play against a metalline cover, which impedes the combustion, not only by conducting off part of the heat, but by obstructing the current of air.

LAND-WAITER: an officer of the custom-house, whose duty it is, upon landing of any merchan

or

dise, to taste, weigh, measure otherwise examine the various articles, &c., and to take an account of the same.

LAPIDARY : a person who deals in precious stones, gems, &c. LAPIS LAZULI: a sort of stone, from which that celebrated color ultramarine is made. It is found in many parts of the world, but that of Asia and Africa is the best. In a strong fire it melts without any addition into a fine white glass. LARBOARD: among seamen, the left-hand side of the ship, when you stand with your face towards

the head.

LATH: in building, a long, thin and narrow slip of wood, nailed to the rafters of a roof or the joists of a wall.

LATITUDE: the distance of any place from the equator, measured upon the meridian, in degrees, minutes and seconds. All places lying under the equator are said to have no latitude; and all others to have north or south latitude, according to their situation with respect to the equator.

LATTIMO: a name for a fine, milk-white sort of glass, made of crystal frit, calcined tin, and prepared manganese.

LAVA: the fused stony substance which issues from volca noes. Cannon-balls are not unfrequently made of it, and of some small beautiful pieces snuff-boxes and other toys are manufactured.

LAUDANUM: in pharmacy, a name given to divers preparations of opium, chiefly in a liquid form. LAVENDER: a perfume, consisting of the water drawn from the flowers of lavender by distillation. It is a native of the south of Europe, but may be cultivated in our gardens.

LAWN: a sort of clear or open worked cambric, manufactured in France and Holland, also in Great Britain.

LAZARETTO: a public building, hospital or pesthouse, for the reception of those afflicted with contagious disorders. The lazaretto of Marseilles is the finest in the world.

LEAD: one of the most useful metals. It is found abundantly in different parts of Europe, and in North and South America." The lead mines of Missouri and Illinois are very productive.

LEAKAGE: in commerce, an allowance in the customs granted to importers of wine for the waste

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