A Dictionary of Cont..

munity could be the aged, those who live to
the north or to the south, and so on. But a
cross-section of a town made up of five percent
industrial managers, five percent professional
men, fifteen percent merchants, fifteen percent
clerks, and sixty percent manual workers would
have to include, as a minimum, one manager,
one professional man, three merchants, three
clerks, and twenty workers. A sample is simply
a small part of something intended to represent
the whole (. . . like the foolish man in the
Greek story who, wanting to sell his house,
carried about with him a brick as a sample).
A sample may be a cross-section if it is accurately
representative. Yet it will still be a sample
even if it is not, for there are many things of
which a cross-section may not be made.
sector; section. Of these two nouns referring to
cutting, sector has largely technical uses, while
section has both general and technical uses.
In geometry, sector describes a plane figure
bounded by two radii and the included arc of
a circle, ellipse, or the like. A sector is also a
mathematical instrument consisting of two flat
rulers hinged together at one end and bearing
various scales. In military phraseology, a sector
is one of the sections of a forward combat area
as divided for military operations (Many of
the American soldiers who were in the Anzio
sector of the Italian Front still feel resentful).
Sect&, in general, describes.a part cut off
or separated from a whole. More specifically,
it may describe a distinct portion of a book,
writing, or the like, or a subdivision, as of a
chapter (I didn’t like those sections devoted to
his philosophy of life). It may also mean one
of a number of parts that can be fitted together
to make a whole (Sections of the vacuum
cleaner lay scattered over the rug), or a distinct
part of a country, community, or class (The
well-to-do live in the northwest section of the
town. One section of the community was implacably
opposed to admitting all children to
the public schools). In most of the United States
west of Ohio, each township is divided into
sections, tracts of land each one mile square.
Section can also mean the act of cutting, separation
by cutting (The baby was delivered by
Caesurenn section). In military phraseology a
section is a small unit which may consist of two
or more squads. In railroad terminology a
section may be a division of a division (a
section hand), or it may be a division of a
sleeping car containing both an upper and a
lower berth (You can reserve the whole section
for little more than the cost of the lower) or
a train scheduled jointly with another or others
(The second section was due in ten minutes and
the brakeman knew that he must flag it down).
secundus; second. Secundus is a term used in
England to describe the second male bearing
the same name in a family (Cohn Monroe,
secundus, is the nephew of John Monroe). In
America, second is used instead, though in
recent years there has been a tendency to write
it in roman numerals (Henry Mosby Cabot II).
See also junior.
secure. This verb may be used to mean procure
or obtain and has been so used for more than
two hundred years, as in we took care to secure
some powder, ball, and a little bread. In most
cases get would be better than secure, procure,
or obtain.
sedan. In England sedan describes the now obsolete
sedan chair, a closed vehicle to seat one
person, borne on poles by bearers. In America
sedan describes a closed automobile body seating
four or more persons (including the driver)
on two full-width seats, both in one compartment.
The English equivalent of sedan in this
sense is saloon or saloon-car.
sedulous ape. It was Robert Louis Stevenson (in
the fourth chapter of his Memories and Portraits,
1887) who first used the phrase to play
the sedulous ape. He said that he had played
the sedulous ape to Hazlitt, to Lamb, to
Wordsworth, to Sir Thomas Browne, to Defoe,
to Hawthorne, to Montaigne, to Baudelaire and
to Obermann. The wry charm of the phrase,
its attractive paradox, and affectionate selfdepreciation
made it immediately popular. It
was “taken up,” overworked, and is already
worn out.
Sedulous means diligent in application, persistently
and carefully maintained, persevering
in effort.
see. The past tense is saw. The participle is seen.
When used in an active form, see may be
followed by an object and the simple form of
a verb, as in Z saw him leave, or by an object
and the -ing form of a verb, as in Z suw him
leaving. When followed by an object and a toinfinitive,
the word means “infer” and not
“perceive with the eyes,” as in Z saw it to be
impossible. In either sense, it may be followed
by a clause, as in Z saw he wus leaving and Z
saw it was impossible. See may also be followed
by an object and a past participle with passive
meaning (that is, the be of a passive intinitive
is usually suppressed), as in Z saw him stopped.
When see itself is used in a passive form it may
be followed by a to-infinitive, as in he was seen
to leave, or by the -ing form of a verb, as in
he was seen leaving. See also look.
see; bishopric; diocese. Of these terms, bishopric
is the broadest, being defined as the see, diocese,
or office of a bishop. Perhaps it should be used
mainly to describe the office or rank belonging
to a bishop, for fee is the more specific ecclesiastical
term to describe the seat, center of
authority, or the chair that symbolizes a
bishop’s authority over a particular diocese.
Diocese is to be preferred to bishopric as the
word to describe the district, with its population,
falling under the pastoral care of a bishop
(Since Bishop Proudie came to this diocese Z
have exerted myself here a good deal).
see eye to eye. As a term for harmony, agreement,
unanimity or, in the negative, the lack
of such harmony, especially in regard to a