or STANCHIONS, a sort of small pillars of wood or iron used for various purposes in a ship; as to support the decks, the quarter-rails, the nettings, the awnings, &c. The first of these are two ranges of small columns fixed under the beams, throughout the ship's length between decks; one range being on the starboard and the other on the larboard side of the hatchways. They are chiefly intended to support the weight of the artillery.