in a general sense, denotes a slender piece of wood or iron, for keeping things close together.

in courts of justice, an enclosure made with a strong partition of timber, where the counsel are placed to plead causes. It is also applied to the benches where the lawyers or advocates are seated, because anciently there was a bar to separate the pleaders from the attorneys and others. Hence our lawyers who are called to the bar, or licensed to plead, are termed barristers, an appellation equivalent to licentiate in other countries.

or Barr, (Latin barra, and in French barre), in a legal sense, is a plea or peremptory exception of a defendant, sufficient to destroy the plaintiff's action. And it is divided into bar to common intendment, and bar special; bar temporary, and perpetual. Bar to a common intendment is an ordinary or general bar, which usually disablith the declaration of the plaintiff; bar special is that which is more than ordinary, and falls out upon some special circumstance of the fact as to the case in hand. Bar temporary is such a bar as is good for the present, but may afterwards fail; and bar perpetual is that which overthrows the action of the plaintiff for ever.

in Heraldry, an ordinary in form of the fess, but much less. See HERALDRY.

in the manege, the highest part of that place of a horse's mouth situated between the grinders and tusks, so that the part of the mouth which lies under and at the side of the bars retains the name of the gum. A horse with sensible bars has a fine light mouth, with an even and firm appui. See APPUI.

To BAR a Vein, in Farriery, is an operation performed upon the veins of the legs of a horse and other parts, with intent to stop the malignant humours. It is done by opening the skin above it, disengaging it, and tying it both above and below, and striking between the two ligatures.

in Music, a stroke drawn perpendicularly across the lines of a piece of music, including between each two a certain quantity or measure of time, which is various as the time of the music is either triple or common. In common time, between each two bars is included the measure of four crotchets; in triple, three. The principal use of bars is to regulate the beating of time in a concert. The use of bars is not to be traced higher than the time when the English translation of Adrian le Roy's book on the Tablature was published, viz. the year 1574; and it was some time after that before the use of bars became general. To come nearer to the point, Barnard's cathedral music, printed in 1641, is without bars; but bars are to be found throughout in the Ayres and Dialogues of Henry Lawes published in 1653; from whence it may be conjectured that we owe to Lawes this improvement.

in Hydrography, denotes a bank of sand, or other matter, whereby the mouth of a river is in a manner choked up.

The term bar is also used for a strong beam where-with the entrance of a harbour is secured: this is more commonly called boom.

BAR of a tavern or coffeehouse, the place where the waiters attend to answer the calls of the customers.

among printers, denotes a piece of iron with a wooden handle, whereby the screw of the press is turned in printing. See PRINTING.

BARS of Iron, are made of the metal of the sows and pigs as they come from the furnace. These pass through two forges, called the finery and the chafery; where, undergoing five several heats, they are formed into bars.

a very strong city of Podolia in Poland, upon the river Kiow. E. Long. 28. 30. N. Lat. 50. 6.

formerly a duchy of France, now the department of Meuse, is bounded on the east by Lorraine, on the north by Luxembourg, on the west by Champagne, on the south by part of the same country, and by Franche Comte. It is crossed by the river Meuse from north to south, and watered by several other rivers, which render it very fertile. It was divided into four bailiages, viz. Bastillyni, Bar, St Michael, and and Clermont. The chief towns are Bar-le-duc, Clermont, St Michael, Longuey, Pont à Mousson, and Stenay. In 1736, it was given to Stanislaus then king of Poland.

BAR-le-duc, the capital of the late duchy of Bar, in the department of Meuse, is seated on the declivity of a hill. It is divided into the higher and lower town: the lower is watered by the rivulet Orney, which abounds with excellent trouts. The wines are excellent, and not inferior to those of Champagne. E. Long. 5.30. N. Lat. 48. 35.

BAR-le-Mont, a town of the French Netherlands, in Hainault, situated on the river Sombre. E. Long. 3. 40. N. Lat. 50. 10.

BAR sur Aube, an ancient town of France, in the department of Aube, seated at the foot of a mountain. It is much celebrated for excellent wines. E. Long. 4. 50. N. Lat. 48. 14.

BAR sur Seine, a town of France, in the duchy of Burgundy, now in the department of Aube, seated between a mountain which covers it on the west, and the river Seine which runs on the east. E. Long. 4. 30. N. Lat. 48. 5.

BAR-Maître, among miners, the person who keeps the gauge, or dish, for measuring the ore.