a machine for stretching and composing the body on, for ease, or sleep, consisting generally of feathers inclosed in a ticken case. There are varieties of beds, as a standing-bed, a settee-bed, a tent-bed, a trundle-bed, &c.

Bed of justice, in the French customs, a throne upon which the king is seated when he goes to the parliament. The king never holds a bed of justice unless for affairs that concern the state, and then all the officers of parliament are clothed in scarlet robes.

Bed of the carriage of a great gun, a thick plank, that lies under the piece; being, as it were, the body of the carriage.

in masonry, a course, or range of stones; and the joint of the bed is the mortar between two stones, placed over each other.

in gardening, square or oblong pieces of ground, in a garden, raised a little above the level of the adjoining ground, and wherein they sow seeds, or plant roots.

Hot-Bed. See Hot-Bed.

Lords of the Bed-chamber, in the British customs, ten lords who attend in their turns, each a week; during which time they lie in the king's bed-chamber, and wait on him when he dines in private.