A-Z glossary

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Eaves Girt
A horizontal timber in the side wall of a post mill from which the roof ribs rise. Same as UPPER SIDE GIRT (Suffolk).

Ebony Staff
A staff, made of ebony, for checking the face of a millstone. See also PAINT STAFF.

Eccentric Drive
A cam with an off-centre axle, sometimes not circular in shape, which drives machinery such as a bran shaker.

Eccentrics
A pair of small cast-iron chain pulleys set side-by-side, on a common spindle, to which both are evenly eccentric. Part of spring sail linkage to increase, progressively, the purchase of the shutters as they open against the spring (Kent & Sussex).

Economiser
Feed-Water Heater

Edge Mill
A mill in which the stones run on their edges.

Edge Runner
General term for type of mill used to incorporate black powder.

Edge Runner Stone
Stones designed to run on their edges, the edge forming the crushing surface; employed in various industrial processes.

Edge Tool Mill
Powered GRINDSTONE to finish (sharp) EDGE TOOLS.

Edge Tool Works
Forges specialising in the production of cutting implements, such as scythes; often water powered.

Edge Tools
Tools having sharp cutting edges such as knives, axes and scythes etc.

Edge-Runner Mill
A mill using EDGE-RUNNER STONES to grind, crush or INCORPORATE.

Eel Shear
A `spear' for catching eel (old Sussex).

Eel Trap
A cage of iron bars in which eels are caught. Often set in a BYPASS channel at a watermill. Good traps keep the eels alive until needed. Wood or wicker baskets have also been used for this purpose.

Effective Purifier
A machine for separating particles, where the products drop through horizontal airstream and are graded by their densities.

Elbows
Cast-iron BELLCRANKS on a common spindle, set at right-angles to each other, part of patent sail front striking gear. Serve the same purpose as TRIANGLES.

Elevator
A device for raising grain or meal by means of an endless belt with buckets or cups on it, introduced by Oliver Evans(1755/1819).

Elliptic Spring
See Springs.

Embossed Watermarks
See Three-Dimensional Watermarks.

Emery
A coarse corundum - a naturally-occurring crystalised oxide of aluminium.

Emery Stone
A stone whose face is coated with a surface of EMERY and cement (often used for shelling oats).

Ending Stones
A pair of stones set well apart, employed in American mills to crack the bran as a preliminary to "low" grinding.

Endosperm
The white starchy substance forming the main body of a wheat grain, which yields FLOUR when broken.

Ends
The method used in Holland to record the speed of a windmill by counting the sails (the ends); thus one revolution of the sail assembly equals four ends.

Engine
Originally a term applied to any machine but in a paper mill particularly to the HOLLANDER BEATER. Hence `Engine-sized' refers to the addition of the SIZING materials during the beating stage.

Ergot
A fungal growth, Claviceps Purpurea, which can develop in the Rye grain, but may also be found in wheat and other Gramineae grain. Can be used in medicine. See ERGOTISM. see SMUT.

Ergot Of Rye
See Ergot.

Ergotism
A disease caused by eating bread made from flour which is contaminated with ergot.

Escape Gate
See Flood Hatch.

Escape Hatch
See Flood Hatch.

Esopus Stones
See Millstones.

Exeltrie (Axletree)
Wooden axle connecting a pair of wheels. (Scot.).

Exhausting Of Millstones
Drawing of air through the stones, thus reducing the temperature of the stones and the meal produced. Dust is drawn away from the working millstones at the same time thus preventing a build-up of combustible material.

Expense Magazine
A magazine used to store powder temporarily between the various manufacturing processes.

Extraction
Percentage of product obtained, as measured against the gross weight of the raw material. Extraction of 80% means that for every 100Kg/lbs of wheat 80Kg/lbs of flour is obtained.

Eye Bolt
A bolt having a ring-shaped head, commonly set into heavy timbers above the stones, for use in raising the stones, or other purposes, such as BRAKE ANCHORAGES.

Eye Of A Stone
(1) The hole in the centre of the runner millstone through which the grain passes to be ground. See SWALLOW. Can also be applied to the hole in the centre of the bedstone. (2) The inner third of the grinding surface of a MILLSTONE.

Eye Of The Wind
A term relating to windmill sails, in which, when the sails are directly facing the direction from which the wind is blowing, they are said to be facing the Eye of the Wind. This is a condition for obtaining maximum power.

Eye Staff
Short type of PAINT STAFF, (usually about two feet in length), used to test the surface of the millstone around the EYE.

Eye Tin
A tin or light metal casing used to line the EYE of a RUNNER STONE. Prevents HOARDING and the escape of unground grains over the top of the runner stone.