Part 16

Safety arch (Arch.), a discharging arch. See under Discharge, v. t. -- Safety belt, a belt made of some buoyant material, or which is capable of being inflated, so as to enable a person to float in water; a life preserver. -- Safety buoy, a buoy to enable a person to float in water; a safety belt. -- Safety cage (Mach.), a cage for an elevator or mine lift, having appliances to prevent it from dropping if the lifting rope should break. -- Safety lamp. (Mining) See under Lamp. -- Safety match, a match which can be ignited only on a surface specially prepared for the purpose. -- Safety pin, a pin made in the form of a clasp, with a guard covering its point so that it will not prick the wearer. -- Safety plug. See Fusible plug, under Fusible. -- Safety switch. See Switch. -- Safety touchdown (Football), the act or result of a player's touching to the ground behind his own goal line a ball which received its last impulse from a man on his own side; -- distinguished from touchback. See Touchdown. -- Safety tube (Chem.), a tube to prevent explosion, or to control delivery of gases by an automatic valvular connection with the outer air; especially, a bent funnel tube with bulbs for adding those reagents which produce unpleasant fumes or violent effervescence. -- Safety valve, a valve which is held shut by a spring or weight and opens automatically to permit the escape of steam, or confined gas, water, etc., from a boiler, or other vessel, when the pressure becomes too great for safety; also, sometimes, a similar valve opening inward to admit air to a vessel in which the pressure is less than that of the atmosphere, to prevent collapse.

Saf"flow (?), n. (Bot.) The safflower. [Obs.]

Saf"flow`er (?), n. [F. safleur, saflor, for safran, influenced by fleur flower. See Saffron, and Flower.] 1. (Bot.) An annual composite plant (Carthamus tinctorius), the flowers of which are used as a dyestuff and in making rouge; bastard, or false, saffron.

2. The dried flowers of the Carthamus tinctorius.

3. A dyestuff from these flowers. See Safranin (b).

Oil of safflower, a purgative oil expressed from the seeds of the safflower.

Saf"fron (?; 277), n. [OE. saffran, F. safran; cf. It. zafferano, Sp. azafran, Pg. açafrão; all fr. Ar. & Per. za' farn.] 1. (Bot.) A bulbous iridaceous plant (Crocus sativus) having blue flowers with large yellow stigmas. See Crocus.

2. The aromatic, pungent, dried stigmas, usually with part of the stile, of the Crocus sativus. Saffron is used in cookery, and in coloring confectionery, liquors, varnishes, etc., and was formerly much used in medicine.

3. An orange or deep yellow color, like that of the stigmas of the Crocus sativus.

Bastard saffron, Dyer's saffron. (Bot.) See Safflower. -- Meadow saffron (Bot.), a bulbous plant (Colchichum autumnale) of Europe, resembling saffron. -- Saffron wood (Bot.), the yellowish wood of a South African tree (Elæodendron croceum); also, the tree itself. -- Saffron yellow, a shade of yellow like that obtained from the stigmas of the true saffron (Crocus sativus).

Saf"fron (?; 277), a. Having the color of the stigmas of saffron flowers; deep orange-yellow; as, a saffron face; a saffron streamer.

Saf"fron, v. t. To give color and flavor to, as by means of saffron; to spice. [Obs.]

And in Latyn I speak a wordes few, To saffron with my predication.

Chaucer.

Saf"fron*y (?), a. Having a color somewhat like saffron; yellowish. Lord (1630).

Saf"ra*nin (?), n. (Chem.) (a) An orange-red dyestuff extracted from the saffron. [R.] (b) A red dyestuff extracted from the safflower, and formerly used in dyeing wool, silk, and cotton pink and scarlet; -- called also Spanish red, China lake, and carthamin. (c) An orange-red dyestuff prepared from certain nitro compounds of creosol, and used as a substitute for the safflower dye.

Saf"ra*nine (? or ?), n. [So called because used as a substitute for safranin.] (Chem.) An orange-red nitrogenous dyestuff produced artificially by oxidizing certain aniline derivatives, and used in dyeing silk and wool; also, any one of the series of which safranine proper is the type.

Sag (sg), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Sagged (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Sagging (?).] [Akin to Sw. sacka to settle, sink down, LG. sacken, D. zakken. Cf. Sink, v. i.] 1. To sink, in the middle, by its weight or under applied pressure, below a horizontal line or plane; as, a line or cable supported by its ends sags, though tightly drawn; the floor of a room sags; hence, to lean, give way, or settle from a vertical position; as, a building may sag one way or another; a door sags on its hinges.

2. Fig.: To lose firmness or elasticity; to sink; to droop; to flag; to bend; to yield, as the mind or spirits, under the pressure of care, trouble, doubt, or the like; to be unsettled or unbalanced. [R.]

The mind I sway by, and the heart I bear, Shall never sag with doubt nor shake with fear.

Shak.

3. To loiter in walking; to idle along; to drag or droop heavily.

To sag to leeward (Naut.), to make much leeway by reason of the wind, sea, or current; to drift to leeward; -- said of a vessel. Totten.

Sag, v. t. To cause to bend or give way; to load.

Sag, n. State of sinking or bending; sagging.

Sa"ga (s"g), n.; pl. Sagas (-gz). [Icel., akin to E. saw a saying. See Say, and cf. Saw.] A Scandinavian legend, or heroic or mythic tradition, among the Norsemen and kindred people; a northern European popular historical or religious tale of olden time.

And then the blue-eyed Norseman told A saga of the days of old.

Longfellow.