housing (1)

[Fr. hou e = a horse-covering; Low Lat. hucia, housia, husia, from hulcitum = a covering.] 1. A cloth extending backward from the saddle and covering the loins of the horse; in the plural, trappings. "He clapped on his saddle and housing with great composure." Goldsmith: The Bee , No 2. IMG:content-1327.jpg:[blocks in formation] IMG:content-1328.png:[blocks in formation] 5. Nautical : 2220 (1) That portion of a mast which is included between the keelson and the surface of the upper deck. (2) A covering or protection, as of a ship's deck, when laid up in ordinary or under stre of weather. (3) [HOUSE-LINE.] 6. Rail .: One of the plates or guards on the railway carriage or truck, which form a lateral support for the axle-boxes, and in which they slip up and down as the springs alternately contract and expand. Also called pedestals, horn-plates, jaws, axle-guards. housing-bearers, s. pl. Metall.: The frame in which the rollers of an iron rolling mill are set.