It was considered dÃ©classÃ© to refer to one's own townhouses, estates or villas (or those of friends) as mansions and modern etiquette books still advise that the terms house, big house or great house be used instead.
Waste weir. A waste weir on a navigable canal is a slatted gate on each canal level or pound, to remove excess water and to drain the canal for repairs or for the winter shutdown.
A waste weir provides a means of removing excess water from the canal, and provides a means of draining a section of the canal for repairs, for winter, or in anticipation of flooding. Because rising canal waters could overflow the banks, eroding them and causing a break in the canal, waste weirs were an important safety feature of early canals.