a word signifying any thing performed by the hand.
Manual (manualis), in law, signifies what is employed or used by the hand, and whereof a present profit may be made; as such a thing in the manual occupation of one is where it is actually used or employed by him.
Manual is the name of a service-book used in the church of Rome, containing the rites, directions to the priests, and prayers used in the administration of baptism and other sacraments; the form of blessing holy water, and the whole service used in processions.
Manual Exercise, in the army, consists in the observance of certain words of command appointed for this purpose. When a regiment is drawn up, or paraded for exercise, the men are placed three deep, either by companies, or divided into platoons, with the grenadiers on the right. When soldiers are drawn up for exercise, the ranks and files should be exactly even; and each soldier should be instructed to carry his arms well, to keep his firelock steady and even upon his shoulder, with the right hand hanging down, and the whole body without constraint. The distances between the files must be equal, and the ranks eight feet distant from each other. Every motion should be performed with life, and the greatest exactness observed in all firings, wheelings, and marching; and therefore a regiment should never be under arms longer than two hours.
The following is an abstract of the words of command at the manual exercise, with their explanations.
1. Poise your firelock: i.e. Seize the firelock with your right hand, and turn the lock outwards, keeping the firelock perpendicular; then bring up the firelock with a quick motion from the shoulder, and seize it with the left hand, just above the lock, so that the fingers may lie upon the stock, with the elbows down, and the thumb upon the stock; the firelock must not be held too far from the body, and the left-hand must be of an equal height with the eyes.
2. Cock your firelock: i.e. Turn the barrel opposite to your face, and place your thumb upon the cock, raising your elbow square at this motion; then cock your firelock, by drawing your elbow down, placing your right-thumb on the breech-pin, and the fingers under the guard.
3. Present: i.e. Step back about six inches to the rear with the right-foot, bringing the left-toe to the front; at the same time the butt-end of the firelock must be brought to an equal height with the shoulder, placing the left-hand on the swell, and the fore-finger of the right-hand before the trigger, sinking the muzzle a little.
4. Fire: i.e. Pull the trigger briskly, and immediately after, bringing up the right-foot to the inside of the left, come to the priming position, with the lock opposite to the right-breech, the muzzle to the height of the hat, keeping it firm and steady; and at the same time seize the cock with the fore-finger and thumb of the right hand, the back of the hand being turned up.
5. Half-cock your firelock: i.e. Half-bend the cock briskly with a draw-back of the right-elbow, bringing it close to the butt of the fire-lock.
6. Handle your cartridge: i.e. Bring your right-hand with a short round to your pouch, flapping it hard; seize the cartridge, and bring it with a quick motion to your mouth; bite the top well off, and bring the hand as low as the chin, with the elbow down.
7. Prime: i.e. Shake the powder into the pan, placing the three last fingers behind the rammer, with the elbow up.
8. Shut your pans: i.e. Shut your pans briskly, drawing your right-arm at this motion. motion towards your body, holding the cartridge fast in your hand, as before; then turn the piece nimbly round to the loading position, with the lock to the front, and the muzzle to the height of the chin, bringing the right hand behind the muzzle, with both feet kept fast in this motion.
9. Charge with cartridge: i.e. Turn up your hand, and put the cartridge into the muzzle, shaking the powder into the barrel; place your hand, closed, with a quick and strong motion, upon the rammer.
10. Draw your rammer: i.e. Draw the rammer with a quick motion half out, feizing it at the muzzle back-handed; draw it quite out, turn it, and enter it into the muzzle.
11. Ram down your charge: i.e. Ram the cartridge well down in the barrel, instantly recovering and feizing the rammer back-handed at the centre, turning it, and entering it as far as the lower pipe, placing at the same time the edge of the hand on the butt end of the rammer, with fingers extended.
12. Return your rammer: i.e. Return the rammer, bringing up the piece with the left-hand to the shoulder, feizing it with the right-hand under the cock, keeping the left-hand fast at the swell, turning the body square to the front.
13. Shoulder your firelock: i.e. Quit the left-hand, and place it strong upon the butt; quit the right hand, and throw it down the right-side.
14. Rest your firelock: i.e. Seize the firelock with the right-hand, turning the lock outwards; raise the firelock from the shoulder, and place your left-hand with a quick motion above the lock, holding the piece right up and down in both hands before you, and your left-hand even with your eyes; step briskly back with your right-foot, placing it a hand's-breadth distance from your left-heel, and at the same time bring down your firelock as quick as possible to the rest, sinking it as far down before your left-hand as your right-hand will permit without constraint; your left hand being at the feather-spring, and your right, with fingers extended, held under the guard, taking care to draw in the muzzle well towards your body, and to dress in a line with the butt-end.
15. Order your firelock: i.e. Place your firelock nimbly with your left-hand against your right-shoulder; quit the firelock with the right-hand, sinking it at the same time with your left; feize it at the muzzle, which must be of an equal height with your chin, and hold it close against your right-side; lift up your right-foot, and place it by your left; at the same time throw back your left-hand by your left-side, and with your right bring down the butt-end strong upon the ground, placing it even with the toe of your right-foot; the thumb of your right-hand lying along the barrel, and the muzzle kept at a little distance from your body.
16. Ground your firelock: i.e. Half-face to the right upon your heels, and at the same time turn the firelock, so that the lock may point to the rear, and the flat of the butt-end lie against the inside of your foot; at the same time flipping the right-foot behind the butt of the firelock, the right-toe pointing to the right, and the left to the front; step directly forward with your left-foot, about as far as the swell of the firelock, and lay it upon the ground, your left-hand hanging down by your left-leg, and your right kept fast, with the butt-end against it; raise yourself up again nimbly, bringing back your left-foot to its former position, keeping your body faced to the right; face again to the left upon your heels, and come to your proper front, letting your hands hang down without motion.
17. Take up your firelock: i.e. Face to the right upon both heels; sink your body down, and come to the position described in the second motion of grounding; raise yourself and firelock, bringing it close to your right-side; come to your proper front, feizing your firelock at the muzzle, as in explanation 15.
18. Rest your firelock: i.e. Bring your right-hand as far as the swell; raise the firelock high up in a perpendicular line from the ground with your right-hand, and feize it with your left above the spring, the cock being at the height of the waist-belt; step back with your right-foot, placing it behind your left-heel, and come to the rest.
19. Shoulder your firelock: i.e. Lift up your right-foot, and place it by your left; bring the firelock at the same time to your left-shoulder, and feize the butt-end with the left-hand, keeping it in the same position as above described; throw your right-hand briskly back.
20. Secure your firelock: i.e. Bring the right-hand briskly up, and place it under the cock, keeping the firelock steady in the same position; quit the butt with the left-hand, and feize the firelock with it at the swell, bringing the elbow close down upon the lock; the right-hand being kept fast in this motion, and the piece still upright; quit the right-hand, and bring it down your right-side, bringing the firelock nimbly down to the secure; the left-hand in a line with the waist-belt.
21. Shoulder your firelock: i.e. Bring the firelock up to a perpendicular line, feizing it with the right-hand under the cock; quit the left-hand, and place it strong upon the butt; quit the right-hand, and bring it smartly down the right-side.
22. Fix your bayonet: i.e. First and second motions, as in the two first of the secure; quit the right-hand, and bring the firelock smartly down to the left-side with the left-hand, as far as it will admit without constraint, feizing the bayonet at the same time with the right-hand, and fixing it, placing that hand just below the brass, with the piece kept close to the hollow of the shoulder.
23. Shoulder your firelock: i.e. Quit the right-hand, and bring up the firelock with the left; feize it again under the cock with your right, as in the second motion of the secure; quit the left-hand, and place it strong upon the butt; quit the right-hand, and bring it down the right-side.
24. Present your arms: i.e. As explained in three motions of the 14th word of command.
25. To the right face: i.e. Bring up the firelock with a quick motion high before you, till your left-hand comes even with your eyes, with the fingers of that hand extended along the stock, just above the feather-spring, the right-foot to be brought close up to the left-heel in this motion; face to the right, taking care in facing to hold the firelock right up and down, and steady in your hands; step back with your right-foot, and come down to your present, as in the foregoing explanation.
26. To the right face: i.e. As in the foregoing explanation, facing to the right.
27. To the right-about face: i.e. As in the 2nd explanation, only coming to the right-about instead of to the right.
28. To the left face: i.e. Bring the right-foot briskly to the hollow of your left, with the firelock in the same position as in the first motion of facing to the right; face to the left; come down to the present, as before.
29. To the left face: i.e. in the foregoing explanation.
30. To the left-about face; i.e., as before, coming to the left-about instead of to the left.
31. Shoulder your firelock; i.e., as in the two motions of the 19th explanation.
32. Charge your bayonet; i.e., as in the first explanation: bring the swell of the firelock down strong upon the palm of the hand, grasping the piece at the small, behind the lock, and as high as the waist-belt; the firelock upon a level with the barrel upwards.
33. Shoulder your firelock: i.e., Bring up the firelock to the shoulder, place the left-hand upon the butt, bringing the feet square to the front; quit the right-hand, and throw it down the right side.
34. Advance your arms; i.e., first and second motions, as in the first explanation: bring the firelock down the right-side, with the right-hand as low as it will admit without constraint, flipping up the left-hand at the same time to the swell, the guard between the thumb and fore-finger of the right-hand, the three last fingers under the cock, with the barrel to the rear; quit the left-hand.
35. Shoulder your firelock; i.e., bring up the left-hand, and seize it at the swell; come smartly up to the pike; shoulder.
36. Prime and load; i.e., Come smartly to the recover, by springing the firelock straight up with the left-hand, turning the barrel inwards to the proper height of the recover; at the same time that the left-hand springs the firelock, the right-hand is raised briskly from the right-side, and seizes the firelock across the breast; as it rises below the cock, the left-hand comes with a quick motion from the butt, and seizes the firelock strong above the lock, the little finger of the left-hand at the spring of the lock, the left-hand at an equal height with the face; the butt close to the body, but not pressed, the firelock perpendicular opposite the left-side of the face; bring the firelock down with a brisk motion to the priming position, the left-hand holding the firelock, as in priming; the thumb of the right-hand placed against the face of the steel, the fingers clinched, and the elbow a little turned out, that the wrist may be clear of the cock; open the pan, by throwing up the swell with a strong motion of the right arm, turning the elbow in, and keeping the firelock steady in the left-hand; handle your cartridge, prime, shut your pan, cast about, load, draw rammers, ram down the cartridge, return the rammers, shoulder.
N.B. The motion of recover, and coming down to the priming position and opening pans, are to be done in the usual time. The motions of handling cartridge to shutting the pans, are to be done as quick as possible; when the pans are shut, a small pause is to be made, and then cast about together; then the loading motions are to be done as quick as possible; but before the rammer is returned, another small pause is to be made, counting 1, 2, between each motion, till the firelock is shoultered.—Front rank, make ready: i.e., Spring the firelock briskly to the recover, keeping the left-foot fall in this motion; as soon as the firelock is at the recover, without any stoop, link the body briskly without stooping forward, with a quick motion down upon the right-knee; the butt-end of the firelock at the same time falls upon the ground, the front part of the butt being in a line with the heel of the left-foot. As soon as the butt comes to the ground, the firelock is to be cocked, immediately seizing the cock and steel in the right-hand; the firelock to be held firm in the left-hand, about the middle of that part of the firelock between the lock and the swell of the stock; the point of the left-thumb to be close to the swell, pointing upwards. As the body is sinking, the right-knee is to be thrown as far back as the left-leg may be right up and down; the right foot to be thrown a little to the right; the body to be kept straight; the head up, looking to the right along the rank, the same as if shoultered; the firelock to be upright, and the butt about four inches to the right of the inside of the left-foot.
Present: i.e., Bring the firelock briskly down to the present, by extending the left-arm to the full length with a strong motion; at the same time spring up the butt by the cock with the right-hand, and raise the butt so high upon the right-shoulder, that you may not be obliged to stoop too much with the head; the right-cheek to be close to the butt, and the left-eye shut, and look along the barrel with the right-eye from the breech-pin to the muzzle; keep the left-elbow down in an easy position, and stand as steady as possible; the thumb of the right-hand to remain in the position as described in the third explanation of the manual.
Fire: i.e., Pull the trigger as directed in the manual; and as soon as the piece is fired, give yourself a strong spring upon your left-leg, raising your body briskly, and straight up, keeping your left-foot fall, and bringing the right-heel to the inside of the left; at the same time the firelock is to be brought up to the priming-position, and half-cocked immediately: a short pause is to be made; then handle cartridge, and go on with the loading motions described in the explanation of prime and load.—Centre rank, make ready: i.e., Spring the firelock briskly to the recover; so soon as the left-hand seizes the firelock above the lock, the right-elbow is to be nimbly raised a little, placing the thumb of that hand upon the cock; the fingers open by the plate of the lock, and as quick as possible force the piece to the cock, by dropping the elbow, and forcing down the cock with the thumb, stepping at the same time a moderate pace to the right, keeping the left foot fall; as the firelock is cocked, the thumb is to fall below the cock, the right-hand seizing the firelock close under the cock firmly, the fore-finger not to be before the trigger; the piece to be held in this position perpendicular, opposite the left-side of the face, the butt close to the left-breast, but not pressed; the body to be straight, and as full to the front as possible; the head kept up, looking to the right of the rank, that the body and the firelock may not stoop forward, nor lean much out of the rank.
Present: i.e., Spring the firelock from the body to the arm’s length with a quick motion, pressing down the muzzle with the left-hand, and spring up the butt with the right-hand, as in the foregoing explanation of the front-rank.
Fire. As in explanation 4, in the manual, with this difference, that the left-foot is to be brought up to the right, at the same time that the firelock is brought down to the priming position. The loading motions as in the explanations of priming and loading; and at the last motion of shoultering, to spring to the left again, and cover the file-leaders.—Rear rank, make ready: i.e., Recover the firelock, and cock as before directed for the centre-rank; as the firelock is recovered and cocked, step briskly straight to the right, with the right-foot, Of manumission there have also been various forms in England. In the time of the Conqueror, villains were manumitted, by the master's delivering them by the right hand to the vicount, in full court, showing them the door, giving them a lance and a sword, and proclaiming them free. Others were manumitted by charter. There was also an implicit manumission; as when the lord made an obligation for payment of money to the bondman at a certain day, or fued him where he might enter without suit, and the like.