Encyclopaedia Britannica, or, a Dictionary of arts, sciences, and miscellaneous literature : enlarged and improved. Illustrated with nearly six hundred engravings > Volume 9, FOR-GOT

FOR [5
Forcft, may fine and Imprifon for offences within the foreft, it
Fore-ftaff. being a court of record : and therefore a writ of error
* v ' lies from hence to the court of king’s bencn, to rectify
and redrefs any mal-adminittrations of juitice } or the
chief juttice in eyre may adjourn any matter of law into
the court of king’s bench.
FOR EST-Laws, are peculiar laws, different from the
common law of England. Before the making of C/iarta
de Forejla, in the time of King John and his ton Henry
III. confirmed in parliament by 9 Henry III.-offences
committed therein were punished at the plealure of the
king in the fevereft manner. By this charter, many
forelts were difafforefted and ft ripped of their oppretlive
privileges, and regulations were made for the govern¬
ment of thofe that remained •, particularly, killing the
king’s deer was made no longer a capital offence, but
only punished by fine, impriibnment, or abjuration of
the realm: yet even in the charter there were feme
grievous articles, which the clemency of later princes
has fince by ftatute thought fit to alter per a/Jifas
for eft a;. And to this day, in trefpaffes relating to the
foreft:, voluntas veputabitur pro jaclo ; fo that it a man
be taken hunting a deer, he may be arretted as if he
had taken a deer.
FOREST-Towns, in Geography, certain towns of
Suabia in Germany, lying along the Rhine, and the
confines of Switzerland, and fubjeeff to the houfe of
Auftria. Their names are Rhinefeld, Sechngen, Luu-
fenburg, and Waldjhut.
FORE STAFF, an inftrument ufed at fea for taking
the altitudes of heavenly bodies. The fore-ftaff, called
alfo crofs-fajft, takes its denomination hence, that the
obferver, in ufing it, turns his face towards the object: $
in oppofition to the back-ftaff, where he turns his back
to the object.
The fore or crofs-ftaff, confifts of a ftraight fquare
fluff, graduated like a line of tangents, and four croffes
or vanes, which Hide on it. The firft: and (horteft of
thefe vanes, is called the ten crofs, or vane, and belongs
to that fide of the inflrument on which the divifions
begin at three degrees and end at ten. The next
longer vane, is called the thirty crofs, belonging to that
fide of the itaff in which the divifions begin at ten de¬
grees and end at thirty, called the thirty feale. The
next vane is called the Jixty crofs, and belongs to the
fide where the divifions begin at twenty degrees and
end at fixty. The laft and longeft, called the ninety
crofs, belongs to the fide where the divilions begin at
thirty degrees and end at ninety.
The ufe of this inftrument is to take the height of
the fun and ftars, or the diftanee of two liars : and
the ten, thirty, fixty, or ninety croffes, are to be ufed
according as the altitude is greater or lefs that is, if
the altitude be lefs than ten degrees, the ten 6rofs is to
be ufed 5 if above ten, but lefs than thirty, the thirty
crofs is to be ufed, &c. Note, For altitudes greater
than thirty degrees, this inftrument is not fo convenient
as a quadrant or femicircle.
To obferve an Altitude by this injlrument.—Apply
the flat end of the fluff to your eye, and look at the
upper end of the crofs for the centre of the fun or liar,
and at tire lower end for the horizon. If you fee the Iky
inftead of the horizon, Aide the crofs a little nearer the
eye 5 and if you fee the fea inftead of the horizon, Aide
the crofs farther from the eye j and thus continue moving
] FOR
till you fee exa&ly the fun or ftar’s centre by the top of Fore-ftaff
the crofs, and the horizon by the bottom thereof. Then yj' ,..
the degrees and minutes, cut by the inner edge of the ,
crofs upon the lide of the fluff peculiar to the crofs you
ufe, give the altitude of the fun or liar.
If it be the meridian altitude you want, continue
your obfervation as long as you find the altitude in-
creafe, Hill moving the erofs nearer to the eye. By
fubftrafting the meridian altitude thus found from 90
degrees, you will have the zenith diftance. To work
accurately, an allowance mult be made for the height
of the eye above the furface of the fea, viz. for one
Engliih foot, 1 minute; for 5 feet, ; for ten feet, 3-'-;
for 20 feet, 5 ; for 40 feet, 7, Sec. Thefe minutes
fubtrafted from the altitude obferved, and added to the
zenith diftance obferved, give the true altitude and
zenith diltanee.
To obferve the difiance of two furs, or the moon's
dijlance from a flat', by the fore-fluff.— Apply the in-
ftrument to the eye, and looking to both ends of the
crofs, move it nearer or farther from the eye till you fee
tire two liars, the one on the one end, and the other on
the other end of the crofs; then the degrees and minutes
cut by tire crofs on the fide proper to the vane in ufe
give the liars diftance.
FORESTALLER, a perfon who is guilty of fore-
llalling. See the next article.
FORESTALLING, in Law, buying or bargaining
for any corn, cattle, victuals, or merchandife, in the
way as they come to fairs or markets to be fold, before
they get thither, with an intent to fell the fame again
at a higher price.
The punifhment for this offence, upon convi£Hon at
the quarter feiliorrs by two or more witneffes, is, for
t’ne Aril time, two months imprifonment and the lofs
of the goods, or the value ; for the fecond offence the
offender llxall be imprifoned fix months, and lore double
the value of the goods ; for the the third offence helhall
fuffer imprifonment during the king’s pleafure, forfeit
all his goods and chattels, and ftand on the pillory : but
the ftatute does not extend to malt iters buying barley,
or to badgers licenfed.
FORESTER, a fworn officer of the foreft, ap¬
pointed by the king’s letters patent, to walk the foreft:
at all hours, and watch over tlie vert and venifon ; alfo
to make attachments and true prefentments of all tref¬
paffes committed within the fbreit.
If a man comes into a foreft in tlie night, a forefter
cannot lawfully beat him before he makes force refin¬
ance but in cafe fuch a perfon refills the forefter, he
may juftify a battery. And a forefter ihall not be
queftioned for killing a trefpaffer that, after the peace
cried to him, will not furrender himfelf, if it be not
done on any former malice; though, Avhcre trefpaflers
in a foreft, &c. do kill a perfon that oppofes them, it
is murder in all, beeaufe they were engaged in an un¬
lawful aft, and therefore maliee is implied to the perfon
killed.
FORETHOUGHT FELONY, in Scots Law, figni-
fies premeditated murder. See Murder.
FORFAR, a town of Scotland, and capital of the
county of that name, fituated in N. Eat. 56. 37.
W. Long. 2. 55. This town, with Dundee, Cupar,
Perth, and St Andrew’s, jointly fend one member
to the Britilh parliament. It Hands in the great