or BITT, an essential part of a bridle. Its kinds are various. 1. The mufrol, snaffle, or watering-bit. 2. The canon-mouth, jointed in the middle. 3. The canon with a fast mouth, all of a piece, only kned in the middle, to form a liberty or space for the tongue; fit for horses too sensible, or ticklish, and liable to be continually bearing on the hand. 4. The canon-mouth, with the liberty in form of a pigeon's neck; proper where a horse has too large a tongue. 5. The canon with a port mouth, and an upset or mounting liberty; where a horse has a good mouth, but large tongue. 6. The fetch-mouth, with an upset; ruder but more secure than a canon mouth. 7. The canon mouth with a liberty; proper for a horse with a large tongue, and round bars. 8. The maffi- masticadour, or slavering bit, &c. The several parts of a snaffle, or curb-bit, are the mouth piece, the cheeks and eyes, guard of the cheek, head of the cheeks, the port, the welts, the campanel or curb and hook, the boffes, the bolsters and rabbets, the water-chains, the side-bolts, and rings, kirbies of the bit or curb, trench, top-rol, flap and jieve. The importation of bits for bridles is now prohibited.

Bits, in ship-building, the name of two great timbers, usually placed abaft the manger, in the ship's loof, through which the cross-piece goes: The use of it is to belay the cable thereto, while the ship is at anchor.