  We present deep optical long-slit spectra of 17 edge-on spiral galaxies of
intermediate to late morphological type, mostly parallel to their major axes
and in a few cases parallel to the minor axes.The line-of-sight stellar
kinematics are obtained from the stellar absorption lines using the improvedc
ross-correlation technique. In general, the stellar kinematics are regular and
can be traced well into the disc-dominated region. The mean stellar velocity
curves are far from solid-body, indicating that the effect of dust extinction
is not large. The line-of-sight stellar disc velocity dispersion correlates
with the galaxy maximum rotational velocity, but detailed modeling is necessary
to establish whether this represents a physical relation. In four spirals with
a boxy- or peanut-shaped bulge we are able to detect asymmetric velocity
distributions, having a common signature with projected radius in the mean
line-of-sight velocity and the $h_{3}$ and $h_{4}$ curves. In two cases this
kinematic asymmetry probably represents the `figure-of-eight' pattern
synonymous of a barred potential. We emphasize, however, that the signatures
seen in the $h_{3}$ and $h_{4}$ curves may also be due to the disc seen in
projection.
