GILTHEAD, or GILTEYE, English names for a small and beautiful sea-bream (Chryso phrys aurata), with conspicuous gold-colored spots over the eyes. It abounds in the Mediter ranean, and ranges northward to England and southward to the Cape of Good Hope. This was one of the fishes kept and fattened by the Romans in their vivaria. Several other species are known in the Far East, one species (C. berda), being one of the favorite fishes of Madras under the name of black rock-cod.
GIN more properly GENEVA, from Fr. genievre, a compounded spirit, pre pared by redistilling plain spirit with juniper berries, coriander seeds, angelica root, etc., or by adding various essential oils to rectified spirit. The gin produced by distilling possesses a much more delicate flavor than that produced by mixing or compounding. The strength of gin varies from proof to 50 under proof. It was first made in Holland, notably at Schiedam.
GIN. As used in machinery, gin is an abbreviation of engine and is used of Whitney's device for separating cotton-seed from the fibre, and more generally of a portable hoisting ma chine whose frame is a tripod, one leg being movable so as to vary its angle of elevation, and thus determine the height of the apex. The. other two legs preserve their relative distance and form standards for the drum, round which the rope is wound by power applied to the hand spikes. For heavy weights a fall and tackle is used; and for hoisting a bucket from a well or mine, simply a couple of pulleys to change the direction of motion of the rope. One pulley is suspended from the apex, and the other attached between the two permanent legs, so as to change the rope to a horizontal position, for the attach ment of a draught horse.
GIN, Cotton. See COTTON ; CorroN MA CHINERY.