BEARER, strictly "one who carries," a term used in India for a palanquin-bearer, and now especially for a body-servant. The term is also used in connection with military ambulances, and "bearer" companies formed part of the Royal Army Medical Corps until amalgamated with the field hospitals to form field ambulances (see MEDICAL SERVICE) . In banking and commerce the word is applied to the holder or presenter of a cheque, draft or other negotiable instrument not made payable to a specific person; it has also a technical use, as in printing, of anything that supports pressure in machinery, etc.