guished for his taste and knowledge in KEEN. The use of this word as a verb (as The Abuse of Genius, by, 147. LABAUME (pronounced La-bom, the first a LA BRUYERE, JOHN DE, an eminent French LAMARTINE, ALPHONSE DE, distinguished as The Poor Exile, 82. LARBOARD, the left side of a vessel, looking LARDNER, DR. D., 138. LARK, a name given to a genus of birds, of the eye, it still continues to charm the ear LATIN, the language spoken by the ancient LAUNCH OF THE SHIP, 143. LAUREL. The ancient laurel was a species An LEAD. "The plunging lead," 191. ; LE-AN'DER, a famous youth of Aby'dos, who LEIPSIC (Lip'sic), the largest commercial LE SAGE, Alain René, a celebrated French Gil Blas and the Archbishop, 340. LEVER (Lat. le-val-re, to raise or lift up), a LEYDEN, JOHN, a Scotch poet and scholar, LIEUTENANT. This word is composed of LIFE-BOAT, THE, a poem, 89. LILY. "The lilies of France," 259. The lily, LILLIPUTIAN, diminutive; from Swift's satir- LINGARD, DR. JOHN, an English priest, au- LINGUIST (Lat. lingua, the tongue), a per LINNE'US, or Linne, Charles von, the most LION AND SPANIEL, The, 139. work), anciently a public work, or office; On Expression in Reading, 155. the science, and also the art, of reasoning. Launch of the Ship, 143. LOUIS XIV. (pronounced Loo-ee), King of LOWERTZ. Pronounced Lo-vairtz'. LUNGS, Complaint of a pair, 360. Henry King, drowned in sailing from LYING. The proverb, p. 65, condenses into The Treasures by the Way, 423. M'CARTHY, D. F., a young Irish poet, 179. Death of Addison, 245. MACEDON (pronounced Mass'e-don), the MACKAY, CHARLES, 156, 336. MANITOU (pronounced Ma-nee'too), an In- MANOEUVRE. Pronounced ma-nü'-vür. MAR'ATHON, a plain in Greece where a cele- MARCH, the first month of the Roman year, MARITAL (măr'ital), pertaining to a hus band. MARS, the god of war among the ancient Romans. MARTYRDOM (Gr. martur, a witness), literally, the suffering of death on account of one's adherence to the truth. MARY STUART. See pp. 244, 247. MASSANIEL LO, a poor fisherman of Naples, who, in 1647, headed a rebellion against the Spanish viceroy, became governor of Naples, and caused sixty of the principal palaces to be reduced to ashes. He was treacherously induced to lay down his arms, and was finally shot dead by four conspirators, formerly his friends. MATERIALIST, one who believes that all existence may be resolved into modifications of matter, independent of spirit. MATHEMATICS (Gr. mathesis, learning), the science which treats of whatever can be numbered or measured. MAUDLIN, stupid, fuddled. The derivation of this word is singular; it being a corruption of Magdalen, the penitent, who is generally drawn by painters with eyes red and swelled with weeping. MAUGRE (maw ger), in spite of. MAY, the fifth month of our year, but the third of the Roman. The derivation of the name is uncertain. MAYER, BRANTZ, an American writer, formerly secretary of legation in Mexico, and author of an excellent work on that country, 205. MEDICINE (med-de-sin). The Latin root is medeor, I heal. MEDITERRANEAN (Lat. medius, middle, and terra, land), enclosed or nearly enclosed with land; as the Mediterranean Sea, between Europe and Africa. The English translation may be Midland. MELODY (Gr. meli, honey, and ōdē, song or tune), sweet song or sound. In music, it differs from harmony in being au arrangement of sounds for a single voice or instrument. MEMBER. The Latin root of this word is membrum, a limb of the animal body. MEMENTO MORI. Two Latin words, signifying be mindful of death. MENTOR, a wise friend and counsellor, so called from Mentor, the faithful adviser of Ulysses, who, during his absence at the siege of Troy, intrusted to him the care of his domestic affairs, and the education of his son Telemachus. MENTZ, a city of Germany, at the conflux of the Rhine and Maine. John Faust and John Guttenberg are believed to have invented printing here, about the year 1442. MERCURY, & Roman divinity of commerce and gain. His mercantile character is clear from his name, said to be formed from mercor, I traffic. In the Solar System, Mercury is the name of the planet nearest the sun. MERRICK, JAMES, an English divine and poet, b. 1720, d. 1766. His capital fable of the Chameleon (p. 413) has been superseded by nothing better of its kind. METAPHYSICS (Gr. meta, after, and phusis, nature), the science of mind or intelli gence. MEXICO, VALLEY of, 205. MICROSCOPE (Gr. mikros, little, and skopeo, I view), an optical instrument which enables us to see objects too minute to be seen by the naked eye, 406. MIDLAND SEA. See Mediterranean. MILKY WAY. See Galaxy. MILMAN, REV. HENRY HART, an English poet and historian, b. 1791. See p. 385. MILTON, JOHN, ranked with Shakspeare as the foremost of English poets, author of that immortal poem, Paradise Lost, was born in London in 1608, died 1674. An affection of the eyes, brought on by intense study, terminated in blindness, to which he makes touching allusions in his poems. Eulogy on, 146. Extracts from, 348, 410. MINISTER. In politics, a servant of the sovereign executive power in a state; generally speaking, the head of a department or branch of government. In G. Britain, the responsible head is called prime minister. MIRABEAU (pronounced meer-ah-bo), the most eloquent of the political orators of France; b. 1749, d. 1791. His contemporaries speak of the effects of his eloquence as surprising and irresistible. Extracts from, 270. MISOCAP'NOS. From two Greek words, sig- First Predictor of an Eclipse, 174. MITHRIDATES (Mithri-da'tēs), a King of Pontus, who, to evade designs against his life, accustomed himself to poisons, by the aid of antidotes. He was conquered by Pompey, 66 B. C. Seeing that death or captivity was inevitable, he took poison; but his constitution had been so inured to it, that it failed of effect, and he called in one of his men to despatch him by the sword. MOD'ICUM (Lat.), a pittance, a small quantity. MOIETY, the half of a thing. MON'AD (Gr. monas, uuity, from monos, alone), an indivisible particle; atom. MONDAY, the second day of the week, means literally moon-day, or the day of the moon. MONOPOLY (Gr. monos, alone, and poleo, I sell), the exclusive right of selling or possessing a thing. MONTGOMERY, JAMES, an English devotional poet, b. 1771. He is the author of "Leotures on Poetry." See p. 160. MONUMENT (Lat. moneo, I admonish), a memorial for perpetuating the remembrance of an event; a tomb or pillar. MOORE, THOMAS, an Irish poet and songwriter, b. 1780, d. 1852. He was a great master of elegant diction, and elaborated his productions highly. Adoration, 76. The Carrier-Pigeon, 137. The Banyan-Tree, 311. MOORS; a class of the inhabitants of Western Africa, particularly of the States of Fez and Morocco. They are of Arabian origin, and strict Mahometans. Moor. The root of this word is the same as that of to meet. Moot-points are points to be mooted or debated; dis'putable points. MORE RICHER (p. 372). The double comparison, often used in Shakspeare's time, is now regarded as ungrammatical. MORE, SIR THOMAS, a celebrated chancellor of England, who succeeded Cardinal Wolsey as lord high chancellor in 1530, and filled the office three years with scrupulous integrity. For his conscientious refusal to take the oath of supremacy in favor of that brutal and bloody-minded king, Henry VIII., he was beheaded, July 6, 1535, at the age of fifty-five. He was the author of the celebrated political romance of "Utopia." MOSES, the great legislator of the Hebrews, was born in Egypt about 1600 B. C. The moral law, embraced in the ten commandments, as given to him from Mount Sinai, continues to find its response in the inmost conscience and highest convictions of the pure in heart. MOULT, to shed the feathers. MOUNTFORD, WM., Extract from, 367. MULTIFORM, having various forms. Multi, in Lat., is the plural of multus, many. MULTIFA'RIOUS, having great diversity. MUN'DANE (Lat. mundus, the world), belonging to this world; earthly. MUNICIPAL, pertaining to a town, city or district; to a state or kingdom; municipality, the government of a city, or it may mean a district corresponding to a ward. MURAT (Murah'), Joachim, one of the bravest of Napoleon's generals; b. in France in 1771. Raised to the throne of Naples in 1808, subsequent reverses placed him in the power of a court-martial, by whose order he was shot, Oct. 13, 1815. MUSES. In the Greek and Roman mythology, nymphs or inferior divinities, supposed to preside over literature, science and the liberal arts. Originally these were supposed to be only three: Memory, Meditation and Song. Their number was ultimately extended to nine. Amuse. See MYSORE', a principality of South India, the Bajah of which is tributary to the British. MYTHOLOGY (Gr. muthos, fable, and logos, discourse). By the mythology of a people, we understand the collective body of its traditions respecting its gods and other fabulous preternatural beings. NAPO'LEON. See Bonaparte. NATURALIST, one versed in the science of nature, or of the laws impressed on bodies or beings by divine power. NEEDLE. The small pointed piece of steel, touched with a loadstone, used in the mariner's compass, is thus called. Modern science has explained the variation which surprised Columbus and his men. Neighbor. The Saxon original simply means a boor, or countryman, living nigh; a nigh-boor. NEPTUNE, in Roman mythology, the deity who presided over the sea. NEWTON, SIR ISAAC, the greatest of English philosophers, was born in Lincolnshire, Dec. 25th, 1642; died 1727. His three great discoveries, of fluxions, the nature of light and colors, and the laws of gravitation, were conceived before the com pletion of his twenty-fourth year. By witnessing the fall of an apple in his garden, he was led into a train of reflection, which resulted in his theory of gravitation. He was a sincere Christian, as well as a profound mathematician. tain passages in the prophecies of the Bible led him to infer that men would one day be able to travel at the rate of fifty miles an hour. Voltaire, the French scoffer, who did not believe in the inspiration of the Scriptures, sneered at Newton for this, as a credulous "old dōtard." But who is the dōtard now, when to travel fifty miles an hour on our railroads is a common achievement ! Cer NICHT GUT. As nearly as the pronunciation of these words can be expressed in English, it is, neekht goot. See p. 181. NIEBUHR, BARTHOLD GEORGE, the historian of Rome, was born in Denmark, 1776; died 1830. Perseverance under Failure, 369. NIEMEN (Nemen), a river of Russian Poland. NIEPCI, a French artist, who preceded Da guerre in certain experiments, which were preliminary to the invention of the Da guerreotype. See p. 379. NILE, a large river of Africa, which flows through Nubia and Egypt; supposed to rise in the Mountains of the Moon; but its source has not yet been fixed with certainty. The proverb, p. 65, Fling him into the Nile, &c., is meant to characterize those brave spirits who even from adversity extract something good; who are never so baffled by misfortune as not to make it surrender something for their benefit, if not to the body, to the soul. NODE (Lat. nodus, a knot), in Astronomy, the point where the orbit of a planet in tersects the ecliptic. NOR DID NOT. In English this use of a double negative is ungrammatical, except when an affirmative meaning is intended. In Shakspeare's time the rule was often unheeded. NOT TO MYSELF AI ON 118. NOVEMBER (from najem, aine), the eleventh month of the Julian year (so called from Julius Caesar, who reformed the Calendar); but the ninth month in the old Roman year, which began with March. OBLA'TION (Lat. oblatio, an offering) means, properly, an offering presented to the church. OB'SOLETE, gone into misuse; neglected. OCTOBER (Lat. Octo, eight), the eighth month of the old Roman year; the tenth of ours. ODD. According to Trench, odd is properly owed; an "odd" glove, or an "odd" shoe, is one that is "owed" to another, or to which another is "owed" for the making of a pair —just as we speak of a man being "singular," wanting, that is, his match. The plural form, odds, is often used to signify the excess of a thing, inequality, &c. ODE. The Greeks called every lyrical poem adapted to singing an ode. In the modern sense of the word, the ode is distinguished from the song by greater length and variety, and by not being necessarily adapted to music; and it is distinguished from the ballad by its admitting narrative, if at all, only as subsidiary to the expres sion of sentiment, or of imaginary thought. See Lyric. Ode to Peace, 137. Ode to the Passions, 402. Ode on Cecilia's Day, 416. OMNIFA'RIOUS, of all varieties, forms, or kinds; omni being Latin for all. ONE-PENNIED, having only a penny. Words are often compounded, by poetical license, which it would not be proper to use in prose. OPAQUE (o-pak'), dark; not transparent. OPIE, AMELIA, On False Pride, 57. OPTICAL (Gr. op'tomai, I see), belonging to optics, which is that branch of physical science which treats of light and vision. ORATORIO, an Italian word, from the Lat. oratorium, a small chapel, which again is derived from ordre, to pray. A sacred musical composition, the subject of which is generally taken from Scripture. ORATOR. The Latin word os, the mouth (genitive, oris), whence orare, to speak, is the root of this word, so that the literal meaning is, one who makes or utters a speech, 383. OR'BIT (Lat. orbis, a circle) is the path which any celestial body describes by its proper motion. ORDER OF THE DAY (p. 136), in deliberative assemblies, the particular business previously assigned for the day. ORGANIC, pertaining to an organ or organs. In organic disease, the structure of an organ is morbidly altered; in functional disease, the secretions or functions only are altered. ORION, one of the forty-eight ancient constellations mapped out by Ptolemy, the astronomer. It is situated in the southern hemisphere with respect to the ecliptic, and contains seven stars, three of which form what is called the belt of Orion. OR PHEUS, one of the old bards of the Greeks, who is fabled to have tamed the wildest animals by his lyre. There is a legend that his wife, Euryd'ice, having died, he followed her to the infernal abode of Pluto. and, by the charms of his music, won her back from the inexorable deity. An Orphean song is one that pleases like the strains of Orpheus. OSCILLATION, a motion backward and forward, like that of a pendulum. Os'SIAN, the name of a supposed Scottish bard, who lived in the third century. His productions were first given to the world in an English version by James M'Pherson, in 1760, with the assurance that these were translations made by himself from ancient Erse manuscripts. There was a long controversy as to the genuineness of these poems, which was finally settled by the decision of the Highland Society, in 1805, that they had not been able to obtain any one poem the same in title and tenor with the poems of Ossian. It is believed, however, that there was much traditional foundation for the poems as they now exist. For extracts, see pp 47, 48. OVIEDO (8-ve-à'do), a city in the north-west of Spain, having a fine cathedral. OWL. The name of this dissonant nightbird, according to Trench, has the same origin with "howl," differing from it only in the omission of the aspirate letter. OX'FORD, a city of England, having a university founded or revived by King Alfred; which university consists of twenty colleges, each with separate students and teachers, but all united under one government. An Oxonian is one who studies at Oxford. OXYDA'TION, the act of combining with oxygen. OXYGEN (Gr. oxys, acid, gennaein, to generate). This important element was discovered by Dr. Priestley, in 1774. It was called vital air, &c., from its property of supporting combustion and animal life a term changed to oxygen from its property of giving acidity to compounds in which it predominates. See pp. 361, |