regarding him as an inspired messenger, and rejected much of the New Testament.

 E"bi*o*ni'tism (?), n. (Eccl. Hist.) The system or doctrine of the Ebionites.

 Eb"la*nin (?), n. (Chem.) See Pyroxanthin.

 Eb"lis (?), n. [Ar. iblis.] (Moham. Myth.) The prince of the evil spirits; Satan. [Written also Eblees.]

 Eb"on (?), a. 1. Consisting of ebony.

2. Like ebony, especially in color; black; dark.

 Night, sable goddess! from her ebon throne.

Young.
 Eb"on, n. Ebony. [Poetic] "Framed of ebon and ivory." Sir W. Scott.
 Eb"on*ist (?), n. One who works in ebony.

 Eb"on*ite (?), n. (Chem.) A hard, black variety of vulcanite. It may be cut and polished, and is used for many small articles, as combs and buttons, and for insulating material in electric apparatus.

 Eb"on*ize (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ebonized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Ebonizing.] To make black, or stain black, in imitation of ebony; as, to ebonize wood.

 Eb"on*y (?), n.; pl. Ebonies (#). [F. ébène, L. ebenus, fr. Gr. &?;; prob. of Semitic origin; cf. Heb. hobnm, pl. Cf. Ebon.] A hard, heavy, and durable wood, which admits of a fine polish or gloss. The usual color is black, but it also occurs red or green.

 The finest black ebony is the heartwood of Diospyros reticulata, of the Mauritius. Other species of the same genus (D. Ebenum, Melanoxylon, etc.), furnish the ebony of the East Indies and Ceylon. The West Indian green ebony is from a leguminous tree (Brya Ebenus), and from the Excæcaria glandulosa.

 Eb"on*y, a. Made of ebony, or resembling ebony; black; as, an ebony countenance.

 This ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling.

Poe.
 E*brac"te*ate (?), a. [Pref. e- + bracteate.] (Bot.)
 Without bracts.

 E*brac"te*o*late (?), a. [Pref. e- + bracteolate.]
 (Bot.) Without bracteoles, or little bracts; -- said of a pedicel or flower stalk.

 E*brau"ke (?), a. [L. Hebraicus: cf. F. Hébraïque.]
 Hebrew. [Obs.] Chaucer.
 E*bri"e*ty (?), n.; pl. Ebrieties (#). [L. ebrietas, from. ebrius intoxicated: cf. F. ébriéte. Cf.
 So&?;er.] Drunkenness; intoxication by spirituous liquors; inebriety.
 "Ruinous ebriety." Cowper.
 E*bril"lade (*brl"ld), n. [F.] (Man.) A bridle check; a jerk of one rein, given to a horse when he refuses to turn.

 E'bri*os"i*ty ('br*s"*t), n. [L. ebriositas, from ebriousus given to drinking, fr. ebrius. See Ebriety.] Addiction to drink; habitual drunkenness.

 E"bri*ous ('br*s), a. [L. ebrius.] Inclined to drink to excess; intoxicated; tipsy. [R.] M. Collins.
 E*bul"li*ate (?), v. i. To boil or bubble up. [Obs.] Prynne.
 { E*bul"lience (?; 106), E*bul"lien*cy (?), } n. A boiling up or over; effervescence. Cudworth.
 E*bul"lient (?), a. [L. ebulliens, -entis, p. pr. of ebullire to boil up, bubble up; e out, from + bullire to boil. See 1st Boil.] Boiling up or over; hence, manifesting exhilaration or excitement, as of feeling; effervescing. "Ebullient with subtlety." De Quincey.
 The ebullient enthusiasm of the French.

Carlyle.
 E*bul"li*o*scope (?), n. [L. ebullire to boil up + -scope.]
 (Phys. Chem.) An instrument for observing the boiling point of liquids, especially for determining the alcoholic strength of a mixture by the temperature at which it boils.

 Eb'ul*li"tion (?), n. [F. ébullition, L. ebullitio, fr. ebullire. See Ebullient.] 1. A boiling or bubbling up of a liquid; the motion produced in a liquid by its rapid conversion into vapor.

2. Effervescence occasioned by fermentation or by any other process which causes the liberation of a gas or an aëriform fluid, as in the mixture of an acid with a carbonated alkali. [Formerly written bullition.]

3. A sudden burst or violent display; an outburst; as, an ebullition of anger or ill temper.

 Eb"ur*in (?), n. A composition of dust of ivory or of bone with a cement; -- used for imitations of valuable stones and in making moldings, seals, etc. Knight.
 E'bur*na"tion (?), n. [L. eburnus of ivory, fr. ebur ivory: cf. F. éburnation. See Ivory.] (Med.) A condition of bone cartilage occurring in certain diseases of these tissues, in which they acquire an unnatural density, and come to resemble ivory.

 E*bur"ne*an (?), a. [L. eburneus, fr. ebur ivory. See Ivory.] Made of or relating to ivory.

 E*bur'ni*fi*ca"tion (?), n. [L. eburnus of ivory (fr. ebur ivory) + facere to make.] The conversion of certain substances into others which have the appearance or characteristics of ivory.

 Eb"ur*nine (?), a. Of or pertaining to ivory. "[She] read from tablet eburnine." Sir W. Scott.
 ||E*car"di*nes (?), n. pl. [NL., fr. L. e out, without + cardo a hinge.] (Zoöl.) An order of Brachiopoda; the Lyopomata. See Brachiopoda.

 ||É'car'té" (?), n. [F., prop. fr. écarter to reject, discard.] A game at cards, played usually by two persons, in which the players may discard any or all of the cards dealt and receive others from the pack.

 E*cau"date (?), a. [Pref. e- + caudate.] 1. (Bot.)
 Without a tail or spur.

2. (Zoöl.) Tailless.

 ||Ec*bal"li*um (?), n. [NL., fr. Gr. &?;. See Ecbole.] (Bot.)
 A genus of cucurbitaceous plants consisting of the single species Ecballium agreste (or Elaterium), the squirting cucumber. Its fruit, when ripe, bursts and violently ejects its seeds, together with a mucilaginous juice, from which elaterium, a powerful cathartic medicine, is prepared.

 ||Ec"ba*sis (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. &?; a going out, issue, or event


"gon (?), n. [NL.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of beautiful tropical birds belonging to the family Trogonidæ.
 They are noted for the brilliant colors and the resplendent luster of their plumage.

 Some of the species have a train of long brilliant feathers lying over the tail and consisting of the upper tail coverts. Unlike other birds having two toes directed forward and two backward, they have the inner toe turned backward. A few species are found in Africa and India, but the greater number, including the most brilliant species, are found in tropical America. See Illust. of Quesal.

 Tro"gon*oid (?), a. [Trogon + - oid.] (Zoöl.)
 Like or pertaining to the trogons.

 Trogue (?), n. [Cf. G. trog trough, E. trough.] (Mining) A wooden trough, forming a drain. Raymond.
 Tro"ic (?), a. [L. Troicus, Gr. &?;, fr. &?;. See Trojan.] Pertaining to Troy; Trojan. Gladstone.
 Tro"i*lite (?), n. [Named after Dominico Troili, an Italian of the 18th century.] (Min.) Native iron protosulphide, FeS. It is known only in meteoric irons, and is usually in imbedded nodular masses of a bronze color.

 Tro"i*lus (?), n.; pl. L. Troili (#), E. Troiluses (#). [NL., fr. L. Troilus, Gr. &?;, the son of Priam.] (Zoöl.)
 A large, handsome American butterfly (Euphœades, or Papilio, troilus). It is black, with yellow marginal spots on the front wings, and blue spots on the rear wings.

 Tro"jan (?), a. [L. Trojanus, fr. Troja, Troia, Troy, from Tros, Gr. Trw's, Trwo's, Tros, the mythical founder of Troy.] Of or pertaining to ancient Troy or its inhabitants. — n. A native or inhabitant of Troy.

 Troll (?), n. [Icel. troll. Cf. Droll, Trull.] (Scand.
 Myth.) A supernatural being, often represented as of diminutive size, but sometimes as a giant, and fabled to inhabit caves, hills, and like places; a witch.

Troll flower. (Bot.) Same as Globeflower (a).

 Troll (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Trolled (?); p. pr.
 & vb. n. Trolling.] [OE. trollen to roll, F. trôler, Of. troller to drag about, to ramble; probably of Teutonic origin; cf. G. trollen to roll, ramble, sich trollen to be gone; or perhaps for trotler, fr. F. trotter to trot (cf. Trot.). Cf.
 Trawl.] 1. To move circularly or volubly; to roll; to turn.

 To dress and troll the tongue, and roll the eye.

Milton.
2. To send about; to circulate, as a vessel in drinking.

 Then doth she troll to the bowl.

Gammer Gurton's Needle.
Troll the brown bowl.

Sir W. Scott.
3. To sing the parts of in succession, as of a round, a catch, and the like; also, to sing loudly or freely.

 Will you troll the catch?

Shak.
 His sonnets charmed the attentive crowd, By wide-mouthed mortaltrolled aloud.

Hudibras.
4. To angle for with a trolling line, or with a book drawn along the surface of the water; hence, to allure.

5. To fish in; to seek to catch fish from.

 With patient angle trolls the finny deep.

Goldsmith.
 Troll, v. i. 1. To roll; to run about; to move around; as, to troll in a coach and six.

2. To move rapidly; to wag. F. Beaumont.
3. To take part in trolling a song.

4. To fish with a rod whose line runs on a reel; also, to fish by drawing the hook through the water.

 Their young men... trolled along the brooks that abounded in fish.

Bancroft.
 Troll, n. 1. The act of moving round; routine; repetition.
 Burke.
2. A song the parts of which are sung in succession; a catch; a round.

 Thence the catch and troll, while "Laughter, holding both his sides," sheds tears to song and ballad pathetic on the woes of married life.

Prof. Wilson.
3. A trolley.

Troll plate (Mach.), a rotative disk with spiral ribs or grooves, by which several pieces, as the jaws of a chuck, can be brought together or spread radially.

 Troll"er (?), n. One who trolls.

 { Trol"ley, Trol"ly } (?), n. (a) A form of truck which can be tilted, for carrying railroad materials, or the like. [Eng.] (b) A narrow cart that is pushed by hand or drawn by an animal. [Eng.] (c) (Mach.) A truck from which the load is suspended in some kinds of cranes. (d) (Electric Railway) A truck which travels along the fixed conductors, and forms a means of connection between them and a railway car.

 Troll"my*dames' (?), n. [F. troumadame pigeon holes.] The game of nineholes. [Written also trolmydames.] [Obs.] Shak.
 Trol"lop (?), n. [From Troll to roll, to stroll; but cf. also Trull.]
 A stroller; a loiterer; esp., an idle, untidy woman; a slattern; a slut; a whore.

 Trol'lop*ee" (?), n. A kind of loose dress for women. [Obs.] Goldsmith.
 Trom"bone (?), n. [It., aug. of tromba a trumpet: cf. F. trombone.
 See Trump a trumpet.] 1. (Mus.) A powerful brass instrument of the trumpet kind, thought by some to be the ancient sackbut, consisting of a tube in three parts, bent twice upon itself and ending in a bell. The middle part, bent double, slips into the outer parts, as in a telescope, so that by change of the vibrating length any tone within the compass of the instrument (which may be bass or tenor or alto or even, in rare instances, soprano) is commanded. It is the only member of the family of wind instruments whose scale, both diatonic and chromatic, is complete without the aid of keys or pistons, and which can slide from note to note as smoothly as the human voice or a violin. Softly blown, it has a rich and mellow sound, which becomes harsh and blatant when the tones are forced; used with discretion, its effect is often solemn and majestic.

2. (Zoöl.) The common European bittern.

 Trom"mel (?), n. [Cf. G. trommel a drum.] (Mining) A revolving buddle or sieve for separating, or sizing, ores. Raymond.
 Tromp (?), n. [F. trombe, trompe, a waterspout, a water-blowing machine. Cf. Trump a trumpet.] A blowing apparatus, in which air, drawn into the upper part of a vertical tube through side holes by a stream of water within, is carried down with the water into a box or chamber below which it is led to a furnace. [Written also trompe, and trombe.]

 { Tromp, Trompe }, n. [See Trump a trumpet.] A trumpet; a trump.
 [Obs.] Chaucer.
 Tromp"il (?), n. [OF. trompille, equiv. to F. trompette a trumpet.] An aperture in a


composed of a central barrel into each end of which is screwed an eye-bolt. Wires are taken from the eyes of the eye-bolt, and so, by turning the barrel, they can be adjusted to their proper tension. Eye-bolts must be a good fit in the barrel; that is to say, not slack and not very tight. Theoretically it is not necessary to screw the eye-bolt into the barrel for a distance greater than the diameter of the bolt, but, in practice, it is better to screw it in for a considerably greater distance than that if a reasonable degree of safety is to be secured.

 Now about turning the barrel to secure the right adjustment. The barrel looks solid, but, as a matter of fact, it is hollow and much more frail than it appears. For that reason it should not be turned by seizing it with pliers, as that may distort it and spoil the bore within it. The best method is to pass a piece of wire through the hole in its centre, and to use that as a lever. When the correct adjustment has been secured, the turnbuckle must be locked to prevent it from unscrewing. It is quite possible to lock it in such a way as to allow it to unscrew a quarter or a half turn, and that would throw the wires out of the very fine adjustment necessary. The proper way is to use the locking wire so that its direction is such as to oppose the tendency of the barrel to unscrew, thus: WIRES.—The following points should be carefully observed where wire is concerned: 1. Quality.—It must not be too hard or too soft. An easy practical way of learning to know the approximate quality of wire is as follows: Take three pieces, all of the same gauge, and each about a foot in length.
 One piece should be too soft, another too hard, and the third piece of the right quality. Fix them in a vice, about an inch apart and in a vertical position, and with the light from a window shining upon them. Burnish them if necessary, and you will see a band of light reflected from each wire.

 Now bend the wires over as far as possible and away from the light. Where the soft wire is concerned, it will squash out at the bend, and this will be indicated by the band of light, which will broaden at that point. In the case of the wire which is too hard, the band of light will broaden very little at the turn, but, if you look carefully, you will see some little roughnesses of surface. In the case of the wire of the right quality, the band of light may broaden a very little at the turn, but there will be no roughnesses of surface.

 By making this experiment two or three times one can soon learn to know really bad wire from good, and also learn to know the strength of hand necessary to bend the right quality.

 2. It must not be damaged. That is to say, it must be unkinked, rustless, and unscored.

 3. Now as regards keeping wire in good condition. Where outside wires are concerned, they should be kept WELL GREASED OR OILED, especially where bent over at the ends. Internal bracing wires cannot be reached for the purpose of regreasing them, as they are inside fabric-covered surfaces.
 They should be prevented from rusting by being painted with an anti-rust mixture. Great care should be taken to see that the wire is perfectly clean and dry before being painted. A greasy finger-mark is sufficient to stop the paint from sticking to the wire. In such a case there will be a little space between the paint and the wire. Air may enter there and cause the wire to rust.

 4. Tension of Wires.—The tension to which the wires are adjusted is of the greatest importance. All the wires should be of the same tension when the aeroplane is supported in such a way as to throw no stress upon them. If some wires are in greater tension than others, the aeroplane will quickly become distorted and lose its efficiency.

 In order to secure the same tension of all wires, the aeroplane, when being rigged, should be supported by packing underneath the lower surfaces as well as by packing underneath the fuselage or nacelle. In this way the anti-lift wires are relieved of the weight, and there is no stress upon any of the wires.

 As a general rule the wires of an aeroplane are tensioned too much. The tension should be sufficient to keep the framework rigid. Anything more than that lowers the factor of safety, throws various parts of the framework into undue compression, pulls the fittings into the wood, and will, in the end, distort the whole framework of the aeroplane.

 Only experience will teach the rigger what tension to employ. Much may be done by learning the construction of the various types of aeroplanes, the work the various parts do, and in cultivating a touch for tensioning wires by constantly handling them.

 5. Wires with no Opposition Wires.—In some few cases wires will be found which have no opposition wires pulling in the opposite direction.
 For instance, an auxiliary lift wire may run from the bottom of a strut to a spar in the top plane at a point between struts. In such a case great care should be taken not to tighten the wire beyond barely taking up the slack.

 Such a wire must be a little slack, or, as illustrated above, it will distort the framework. That, in the example given, will spoil the camber (curvature) of the surface, and result in changing both the lift and the drift at that part of the surface. Such a condition will cause the aeroplane to lose its directional stability and also to fly one wing down.

 I cannot impress this matter of tension upon the reader too strongly. It is of the utmost importance. When this, and also accuracy in securing the various adjustments, has been learned, one is on the way to becoming a good rigger.

 6. Wire Loops.—Wire is often bent over at its end in the form of a loop, in order to connect with a turnbuckle or fitting. These loops, even when made as perfectly as possible, have a tendency to elongate, thus spoiling the adjustment of the wires Great care should be taken to minimize this as far as possible. The rules to be observed are as follows: (a) The size of the loop should be as small as possible within reason. By that I mean it should not be so small as to create the possibility of the wire breaking.

 (b) The shape of the loop should be symmetrical.

 (c) It should have well-defined shoulders in order to prevent the ferrule from slipping up. At the same time, a shoulder should not have an angular place.

 (d) When the loop is finished it should be undamaged, and it should not be, as is often the case, badly scored.

 7. Stranded Wire Cable.—No splice should be served with twine until it has been inspected by whoever is in charge of the workshop. The serving may cover bad work.

 Should a strand become broken, then the cable should be replaced at once by another one.

 Control cables have a way of wearing out and fraying wherever they pass round pulleys. Every time an aeroplane comes down from flight the rigger should carefully examine the cables, especially where they pass round pulleys. If he finds a strand broken, he should replace the cable.

 The ailerons' balance cable on the top of the top plane is often forgotten, since it is necessary to fetch a high pair of steps in order to examine it. Don't slack this, or some gusty day the pilot may unexpectedly find himself minus the aileron control.

 CONTROLLING SURFACES.—The greatest care should be exercised in rigging the aileron, rudder, and elevator properly, for the pilot entirely depends upon them in managing


Obs.] Peacham.
 Ser*moc"i*na'tor (?), n. [L.] One who makes sermons or speeches.
 [Obs.] Howell.
 Ser"mon (?), n. [OE. sermoun, sermun, F. sermon, fr. L. sermo, -onis, a speaking, discourse, probably fr. serer, sertum, to join, connect; hence, a connected speech. See Series.]
 1. A discourse or address; a talk; a writing; as, the sermons of Chaucer. [Obs.] Chaucer.
2. Specifically, a discourse delivered in public, usually by a clergyman, for the purpose of religious instruction and grounded on some text or passage of Scripture.

 This our life exempt from public haunts Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, Sermons in stones and good in everything.

Shak.
 His preaching much, but more his practice, wrought, A living sermon of the truths he taught.

Dryden.
3. Hence, a serious address; a lecture on one's conduct or duty; an exhortation or reproof; a homily; -- often in a depreciatory sense.

 Ser"mon, v. i. [Cf. OF. sermoner, F. sermonner to lecture one.] To speak; to discourse; to compose or deliver a sermon.
 [Obs.] Holinshed.
 What needeth it to sermon of it more?

Chaucer.
 Ser"mon, v. t. 1. To discourse to or of, as in a sermon.
 [Obs.] Spenser.
2. To tutor; to lecture. [Poetic] Shak.
 Ser'mon*eer" (?), n. A sermonizer. B. Jonson.
 Ser"mon*er (?), n. A preacher; a sermonizer. [Derogative or Jocose.] Thackeray.
 Ser'mon*et" (?), n. A short sermon. [Written also sermonette.]

 { Ser*mon"ic (?), Ser*mon"ic*al (?), } a. Like, or appropriate to, a sermon; grave and didactic. [R.] "Conversation... satirical or sermonic."
 Prof. Wilson. "Sermonical style." V. Knox.
 Ser"mon*ing (?), n. The act of discoursing; discourse; instruction; preaching. [Obs.] Chaucer.
 Ser"mon*ish, a. Resembling a sermon. [R.]

 Ser"mon*ist, n. See Sermonizer.

 Ser"mon*ize (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Sermonized (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Sermonizing (?).] 1. To compose or write a sermon or sermons; to preach.

2. To inculcate rigid rules. [R.] Chesterfield.
 Ser"mon*ize, v. t. To preach or discourse to; to affect or influence by means of a sermon or of sermons. [R.]

 Which of us shall sing or sermonize the other fast asleep?

Landor.
 Ser"mon*i'zer (?), n. One who sermonizes.

 Ser"o*lin (?), n. [Serum + L. oleum oil.] (Physiol.
 Chem.) (a) A peculiar fatty substance found in the blood, probably a mixture of fats, cholesterin, etc. (b) A body found in fecal matter and thought to be formed in the intestines from the cholesterin of the bile; -- called also stercorin, and stercolin.

 { Se*ron" (?), Se*roon" (?), } n. [Sp. seron a kind of hamper or pannier, aug. of sera a large pannier or basket.] Same as Ceroon.

 This word as expressing a quantity or weight has no definite signification. McElrath.
 Se"rose' (?), a. Serous. [Obs.] Dr. H. More.
 Se*ros"i*ty (?), n. [Cf. F. serosité. See Serous.] 1.
 The quality or state of being serous.

2. (Physiol.) A thin watery animal fluid, as synovial fluid and pericardial fluid.

 Ser"o*tine (?), n. [F. sérotine, fr. L. serotinus that comes or happens late.] (Zoöl.) The European long-eared bat (Vesperugo serotinus).

 Se*rot"i*nous (?), a. [L. serotinus, fr. serus late.]
 (Biol.) Appearing or blossoming later in the season than is customary with allied species.

 Se"rous (?), a. [Cf. F. séreux. See Serum.] (Physiol.)
(a) Thin; watery; like serum; as the serous fluids. (b) Of or pertaining to serum; as, the serous glands, membranes, layers. See Serum.

Serous membrane. (Anat.) See under Membrane.

 { Ser"ow (?), Sur"row (?), } n. (Zoöl.) The thar.

 ||Ser"pens (?), n. [L. See Serpent.] (Astron.) A constellation represented as a serpent held by Serpentarius.

 Ser"pent (?), n. [F., fr. L. serpens, -entis (sc. bestia), fr. serpens, p. pr. of serpere to creep; akin to Gr. &?;&?;&?;, Skr. sarp, and perhaps to L. repere, E. reptile. Cf.
 Herpes.] 1. (Zoöl.) Any reptile of the order Ophidia; a snake, especially a large snake. See Illust. under Ophidia.

 The serpents are mostly long and slender, and move partly by bending the body into undulations or folds and pressing them against objects, and partly by using the free edges of their ventral scales to cling to rough surfaces. Many species glide swiftly over the ground, some burrow in the earth, others live in trees. A few are entirely aquatic, and swim rapidly.
 See Ophidia, and Fang.

2. Fig.: A subtle, treacherous, malicious person.

3. A species of firework having a serpentine motion as it passess through the air or along the ground.

4. (Astron.) The constellation Serpens.

5. (Mus.) A bass wind instrument, of a loud and coarse tone, formerly much used in military bands, and sometimes introduced into the orchestra; -- so called from its form.

Pharaoh's serpent (Chem.), mercuric sulphocyanate, a combustible white substance which in burning gives off a poisonous vapor and leaves a peculiar brown voluminous residue which is expelled in a serpentine from. It is employed as a scientific toy. -- Serpent cucumber (Bot.), the long, slender, serpentine fruit of the cucurbitaceous plant Trichosanthes colubrina; also, the plant itself. -- Serpent eage (Zoöl.), any one of several species of raptorial birds of the genera Circaëtus and Spilornis, which prey on serpents. They inhabit Africa, Southern Europe, and India.
 The European serpent eagle is Circaëtus Gallicus. -- Serpent eater. (Zoöl.) (a) The secretary bird. (b) An Asiatic antelope; the markhoor. -- Serpent fish (Zoöl.), a fish (Cepola rubescens) with a long, thin, compressed body, and a band of red running lengthwise. -- Serpent star (Zoöl.), an ophiuran; a brittle star. -- Serpent's tongue (Paleon.), the fossil tooth of a shark; -- so called from its resemblance to a tongue with its root. -- Serpent withe (Bot.), a West Indian climbing plant (Aristolochia odoratissima). -- Tree serpent (Zoöl.), any species of African serpents belonging to the family Dendrophidæ.

 Ser"pent, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Serpented; p. pr. & vb.


MYTHS AND LEGENDS OF THE SIOUX By Mrs. Marie L. Mclaughlin In loving memory of my mother, MARY GRAHAM BUISSON, at whose knee most of the stories contained in this little volume were told to me, this book is affectionately dedicated CONTENTS FOREWORD THE FORGOTTEN EAR OF CORN THE LITTLE MICE THE PET RABBIT THE PET DONKEY THE RABBIT AND THE ELK THE RABBIT AND THE GROUSE GIRLS THE FAITHFUL LOVERS THE ARTICHOKE AND THE MUSKRAT THE RABBIT AND THE BEAR WITH THE FLINT BODY STORY OF THE LOST WIFE THE RACCOON AND THE CRAWFISH LEGEND OF STANDING ROCK STORY OF THE PEACE PIPE A BASHFUL COURTSHIP THE SIMPLETON'S WISDOM A LITTLE BRAVE AND THE MEDICINE WOMAN THE BOUND CHILDREN THE SIGNS OF CORN STORY OF THE RABBITS HOW THE RABBIT LOST HIS TAIL UNKTOMI AND THE ARROWHEADS THE BEAR AND THE RABBIT HUNT BUFFALO THE BRAVE WHO WENT ON THE WARPATH ALONE AND WON THE NAME OF THE LONE WARRIOR THE SIOUX WHO MARRIED THE CROW CHIEF'S DAUGHTER THE BOY AND THE TURTLES THE HERMIT, OR THE GIFT OF CORN THE MYSTERIOUS BUTTE THE WONDERFUL TURTLE THE MAN AND THE OAK STORY OF THE TWO YOUNG FRIENDS THE STORY OF THE PET CROW THE "WASNA" (PEMMICAN) MAN AND THE UNKTOMI (SPIDER) THE RESUSCITATION OF THE ONLY DAUGHTER THE STORY OF THE PET CRANE WHITE PLUME STORY OF PRETTY FEATHERED FOREHEAD THE FOUR BROTHERS OR INYANHOKSILA (STONE BOY) THE UNKTOMI (SPIDER), TWO WIDOWS, AND THE RED PLUMS FOREWORD In publishing these "Myths of the Sioux," I deem it proper to state that I am of one-fourth Sioux blood. My maternal grandfather, Captain Duncan Graham, a Scotchman by birth, who had seen service in the British Army, was one of a party of Scotch Highlanders who in 1811 arrived in the British Northwest by way of York Factory, Hudson Bay, to found what was known as the Selkirk Colony, near Lake Winnipeg, now within the province of Manitoba, Canada. Soon after his arrival at Lake Winnipeg he proceeded up the Red River of the North and the western fork thereof to its source, and thence down the Minnesota River to Mendota, the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers, where he located. My grandmother, Ha-za-ho-ta-win, was a full-blood of the Medawakanton Band of the Sioux Tribe of Indians. My father, Joseph Buisson, born near Montreal, Canada, was connected with the American Fur Company, with headquarters at Mendota, Minnesota, which point was for many years the chief distributing depot of the American Fur Company, from which the Indian trade conducted by that company on the upper Mississippi was directed.

 I was born December 8, 1842, at Wabasha, Minnesota, then Indian country, and resided thereat until fourteen years of age, when I was sent to school at Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin.

 I was married to Major James McLaughlin at Mendota, Minnesota, January 28, 1864, and resided in Minnesota until July 1, 1871, when I accompanied my husband to Devils Lake Agency, North Dakota, then Dakota Territory, where I remained ten years in most friendly relations with the Indians of that agency. My husband was Indian agent at Devils Lake Agency, and in 1881 was transferred to Standing Rock, on the Missouri River, then a very important agency, to take charge of the Sioux who had then but recently surrendered to the military authorities, and been brought by steamboat from various points on the upper Missouri, to be permanently located on the Standing Rock reservation.

 Having been born and reared in an Indian community, I at an early age acquired a thorough knowledge of the Sioux language, and having lived on Indian reservations for the past forty years in a position which brought me very near to the Indians, whose confidence I possessed, I have, therefore, had exceptional opportunities of learning the legends and folk-lore of the Sioux.

 The stories contained in this little volume were told me by the older men and women of the Sioux, of which I made careful notes as related, knowing that, if not recorded, these fairy tales would be lost to posterity by the passing of the primitive Indian.

 The notes of a song or a strain of music coming to us through the night not only give us pleasure by the melody they bring, but also give us knowledge of the character of the singer or of the instrument from which they proceed. There is something in the music which unerringly tells us of its source. I believe musicians call it the "timbre" of the sound. It is independent of, and different from, both pitch and rhythm; it is the texture of the music itself.

 The "timbre" of a people's stories tells of the qualities of that people's heart. It is the texture of the thought, independent of its form or fashioning, which tells the quality of the mind from which it springs.

 In the "timbre" of these stories of the Sioux, told in the lodges and at the camp fires of the past, and by the firesides of the Dakotas of today, we recognize the very texture of the thought of a simple, grave, and sincere people, living in intimate contact and friendship with the big out-of-doors that we call Nature; a race not yet understanding all things, not proud and boastful, but honest and childlike and fair; a simple, sincere, and gravely thoughtful people, willing to believe that there may be in even the everyday things of life something not yet fully understood; a race that can, without any loss of native dignity, gravely consider the simplest things, seeking to fathom their meaning and to learn their lesson—equally without vain-glorious boasting and trifling cynicism; an earnest, thoughtful, dignified, but simple and primitive people.

 To the children of any race these stories can not fail to give pleasure by their vivid imaging of the simple things and creatures of the great out-of-doors and the epics of their doings. They will also give an intimate insight into the mentality of an interesting race at a most interesting stage of development, which is now fast receding into the mists of the past.

 MARIE L. McLAUGHLIN (Mrs. James McLaughlin).

 McLaughlin, S. D., May 1, 1913.

 THE FORGOTTEN EAR OF CORN An Arikara woman was once gathering corn from the field to store away for winter use. She passed from stalk to stalk, tearing off the ears and dropping them into her folded robe. When all was gathered she started to go, when she heard a faint voice, like a child's, weeping and calling: "Oh, do not leave me! Do not go away without me." The woman was astonished. "


us by experience or observation, and not obtained as the result of inference or reasoning.

Sir. W. Hamiltion.
 -- Ex*pe'ri*en"tial*ly, adv. DR. H. More.
 Ex*pe'ri*en"tial*ism (?), n. (Philos.) The doctrine that experience, either that ourselves or of others, is the test or criterion of general knowledge; -- opposed to intuitionalism.

Experientialism is in short, a philosophical or logical theory, not a psychological one.

G. C. Robertson.
 Ex*pe'ri*en"tial*ist, n. One who accepts the doctrine of experientialism. Also used adjectively.

 Ex*per"i*ment (?), n. [L. experimentum, fr. experiri to try: cf. OF. esperiment, experiment. See Experience.] 1.
 A trial or special observation, made to confirm or disprove something doubtful; esp., one under conditions determined by the experimenter; an act or operation undertaken in order to discover some unknown principle or effect, or to test, establish, or illustrate some suggested or known truth; practical test; proof.

 A political experiment can not be made in a laboratory, nor determined in a few hours.

J. Adams.
2. Experience. [Obs.]

 Adam, by sad experiment I know How little weight my words with thee can find.

Milton.
 Ex*per"i*ment (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Experimented; p. pr. & vb. n. Experinenting.] To make experiment; to operate by test or trial; -- often with on, upon, or in, referring to the subject of an experiment; with, referring to the instrument; and by, referring to the means; as, to experiment upon electricity; he experimented in plowing with ponies, or by steam power.

 Ex*per"i*ment, v. t. To try; to know, perceive, or prove, by trial or experience. [Obs.] Sir T. Herbert.
 Ex*per'i*men"tal (?), a. [Cf.F. expérimental.] 1.
 Pertaining to experiment; founded on, or derived from, experiment or trial; as, experimental science; given to, or skilled in, experiment; as, an experimental philosopher.

2. Known by, or derived from, experience; as, experimental religion.

 Ex*per'i*men"tal*ist, n. One who makes experiments; an experimenter. Whaterly.
 Ex*per'i*men"tal*ize (?), v. i. To make experiments (upon); to experiment. J. S. Mill.
 Ex*per'i*men"tal*ly (?), adv. By experiment; by experience or trial. J. S. Mill.
 Ex*per'i*men*ta"ri*an (?), a. Relying on experiment or experience.
 "an experimentarian philosopher." Boyle. -- n. One who relies on experiment or experience. [Obs.]

 Ex*per'i*men*ta"tion (?), n. The act of experimenting; practice by experiment. J. S. Mill.
 Ex*per'i*men"ta*tive (?), a. Experimental; of the nature of experiment. [R.]

 Ex*per"i*men*ta'tor (?), n. [LL.] An experimenter. [R.]

 Ex*per"i*men'ter (?), n. One who makes experiments; one skilled in experiments. Faraday.
 Ex*per"i*men'tist (?), n. An experimenter.

 Ex'per*rec"tion (?), n. [L. expergisci, p. p. experrectus, to rouse up; ex out + pergere to wake up.] A waking up or arousing. [Obs.] Holland Ex*pert" (?), a. [F. expert, L. expertus, p. p. of experiri to try. See Experience.] Taught by use, practice, or experience, experienced; having facility of operation or performance from practice; knowing and ready from much practice; clever; skillful; as, an expert surgeon; expert in chess or archery.

 A valiant and most expert gentleman.

Shak.
 What practice, howsoe'er expert In fitting aptest words to things... Hath power to give thee as thou wert?

Tennyson.
Syn. -- Adroit; dexterous; clever; ready; prompt.

 Ex"pert (?), n. 1. An expert or experienced person; one instructed by experience; one who has skill, experience, or extensive knowledge in his calling or in any special branch of learning.

2. (Law) (a) A specialist in a particular profession or department of science requiring for its mastery peculiar culture and erudition.

 Such specialists may be witnesses in matters as to which ordinary observers could not without such aid form just conclusions, and are liable for negligence in case they injure another from want of proper qualifications or proper care in the exercise of their specialty.

(b) A sworn appraiser.

 Ex*pert" (?), v. t. To experience. [Obs.]

 Die would we daily, once it to expert.

Spencer.
 Ex*pert"ly, adv. In a skillful or dexterous manner; adroitly; with readiness and accuracy.

 Ex*pert"ness, n. Skill derived from practice; readiness; as, expertness in seamanship, or in reasoning.

Syn. -- Facility; readiness; dexterity; adroitness; skill. See Facility.

 Ex*pet"ible (?), a. [L., expetibilis, fr. expetere to wish for; ex out + petere to seek.] Worthy of being wished for; desirable. [Obs.] Puller.
 Ex"pi*a*ble (?), a. [See Expiate.] Capable of being expiated or atoned for; as, an expiable offense; expiable guilt. Bp.
 Hall.
 Ex"pi*ate (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Expiated(?); p. pr. & vb. n. Expiating(?).] [L. expiatus, p. p. of expiare to expiate; ex out + piare to seek to appease, to purify with sacred rites, fr. pius pious. See Pious.] 1. To extinguish the guilt of by sufferance of penalty or some equivalent; to make complete satisfaction for; to atone for; to make amends for; to make expiation for; as, to expiate a crime, a guilt, or sin.

 To expiate his treason, hath naught left.

Milton.
 The Treasurer obliged himself to expiate the injury.

Clarendon.
2. To purify with sacred rites. [Obs.]

 Neither let there be found among you any one that shall expiate his son or daughter, making them to pass through the fire.

Deut. xviii. 10 (Douay version) Ex"pi*ate (?), a. [L. expiatus,p. p] Terminated. [Obs.] Shak.
 Ex'pi*a"tion (?), n. [L. expiatio: cf.F. expiation] 1. The act of making satisfaction or atonement for any crime or fault; the extinguishing of guilt by suffering or penalty.

 His liberality seemed to have something in it of selfabasement and expiation.

W. Irving.
2. The means by which reparation or atonement for crimes or sins is made; an expiatory sacrifice or offering; an atonement.

 Those shadowy expiations weak, The blood of bulls and goats.

Milton.
3.


Enlightened all with stars, And richly ameled. Chapman.
 Am"el*corn' (&?;), n. [Ger. amelkorn: cf. MHG. amel, amer, spelt, and L. amylum starch, Gr. &?;.] A variety of wheat from which starch is produced; -- called also French rice.

 A*mel"io*ra*ble (&?;), a. Capable of being ameliorated.

 A*mel"io*rate (&?;), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ameliorated (&?;); p. pr. & vb. n. Ameliorating.] [L. ad + meliorare to make better: cf. F. améliorer. See Meliorate.] To make better; to improve; to meliorate.

 In every human being there is a wish to ameliorate his own condition. Macaulay.
 A*mel"io*rate, v. i. To grow better; to meliorate; as, wine ameliorates by age.

 A*mel'io*ra"tion (&?;), n. [Cf. F. amélioration.]
 The act of ameliorating, or the state of being ameliorated; making or becoming better; improvement; melioration. "Amelioration of human affairs." J. S. Mill.
 A*mel"io*ra*tive (&?;), a. Tending to ameliorate; producing amelioration or improvement; as, ameliorative remedies, efforts.

 A*mel"io*ra'tor (&?;), n. One who ameliorates.

 A'men" (?; 277), interj., adv., & n. [L. amen, Gr.
 'amh'n, Heb. mn certainly, truly.] An expression used at the end of prayers, and meaning, So be it. At the end of a creed, it is a solemn asseveration of belief. When it introduces a declaration, it is equivalent to truly, verily. It is used as a noun, to denote: (a) concurrence in belief, or in a statement; assent; (b) the final word or act; (c) Christ as being one who is true and faithful.

 And let all the people say, Amen. Ps. cvi. 48.
Amen, amen, I say to thee, except a man be born again, he can not see the kingdom of God. John ii. 3. Rhemish Trans.
To say amen to, to approve warmly; to concur in heartily or emphatically; to ratify; as, I say Amen to all.

 A'men", v. t. To say Amen to; to sanction fully.

 A*me'na*bil"i*ty (&?;), n. The quality of being amenable; amenableness. Coleridge.
 A*me"na*ble (&?;), a. [F. amener to lead; &?; (L. ad) = mener to lead, fr. L. minare to drive animals (properly by threatening cries), in LL. to lead; L. minari, to threaten, minae threats. See Menace.] 1. (Old Law) Easy to be led; governable, as a woman by her husband. [Obs.] Jacob.
2. Liable to be brought to account or punishment; answerable; responsible; accountable; as, amenable to law.

 Nor is man too diminutive... to be amenable to the divine government. I. Taylor.
3. Liable to punishment, a charge, a claim, etc.

4. Willing to yield or submit; responsive; tractable.

 Sterling... always was amenable enough to counsel. Carlyle.
 A*me"na*ble*ness, n. The quality or state of being amenable; liability to answer charges; answerableness.

 A*me"na*bly, adv. In an amenable manner.

 Am"e*nage (&?;), v. t. [OF. amesnagier. See Manage.] To manage. [Obs.] Spenser.
 Am"e*nance (&?;), n. [OF. See Amenable.] Behavior; bearing.
 [Obs.] Spenser.
 A*mend" (&?;), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Amended; p. pr. & vb. n. Amending.] [F. amender, L. emendare; e (ex) + mendum, menda, fault, akin to Skr. minda personal defect. Cf. Emend, Mend.] To change or modify in any way for the better; as, (a) by simply removing what is erroneous, corrupt, superfluous, faulty, and the like; (b) by supplying deficiencies; (c) by substituting something else in the place of what is removed; to rectify.

 Mar not the thing that can not be amended. Shak.
 An instant emergency, granting no possibility for revision, or opening for amended thought. De Quincey.
 We shall cheer her sorrows, and amend her blood, by wedding her to a Norman. Sir W. Scott.
To amend a bill, to make some change in the details or provisions of a bill or measure while on its passage, professedly for its improvement.

 Syn. -- To Amend, Emend, Correct, Reform, Rectify. These words agree in the idea of bringing things into a more perfect state. We correct (literally, make straight) when we conform things to some standard or rule; as, to correct proof sheets. We amend by removing blemishes, faults, or errors, and thus rendering a thing more a nearly perfect; as, to amend our ways, to amend a text, the draft of a bill, etc. Emend is only another form of amend, and is applied chiefly to editions of books, etc. To reform is literally to form over again, or put into a new and better form; as, to reform one's life. To rectify is to make right; as, to rectify a mistake, to rectify abuses, inadvertencies, etc.

 A*mend" (*mnd"), v. i. To grow better by rectifying something wrong in manners or morals; to improve. "My fortune... amends." Sir P. Sidney.
 A*mend"a*ble (&?;), a. Capable of being amended; as, an amendable writ or error. -- A*mend"a*ble*ness, n. A*mend"a*to*ry (&?;), a. Supplying amendment; corrective; emendatory. Bancroft.
 ||A'mende" (&?;), n. [F. See Amend.] A pecuniary punishment or fine; a reparation or recantation.

Amende honorable (&?;). (Old French Law) A species of infamous punishment in which the offender, being led into court with a rope about his neck, and a lighted torch in his hand, begged pardon of his God, the court, etc. In popular language, the phrase now denotes a public apology or recantation, and reparation to an injured party, for improper language or treatment.

 A*mend"er (&?;), n. One who amends.

 A*mend"ful (&?;), a. Much improving. [Obs.]

 A*mend"ment (&?;), n. [F. amendement, LL. amendamentum.]
 1. An alteration or change for the better; correction of a fault or of faults; reformation of life by quitting vices.

2. In public bodies; Any alternation made or proposed to be made in a bill or motion by adding, changing, substituting, or omitting.

3. (Law) Correction of an error in a writ or process.

Syn. -- Improvement; reformation; emendation.

 A*mends" (&?;), n. sing. & pl. [F. amend


legal rights. Wharton.
2. A formal writing which contains the agreement of parties, with the terms and conditions, and which serves as a proof of the obligation.

3. The act of formally betrothing a man and woman.

 This is the the night of the contract. Longwellow.
Syn. -- Covenant; agreement; compact; stipulation; bargain; arrangement; obligation. See Covenant.

 Con*tract"ed (kn*trkt"d), a. 1. Drawn together; shrunken; wrinkled; narrow; as, a contracted brow; a contracted noun.

2. Narrow; illiberal; selfish; as, a contracted mind; contracted views.

3. Bargained for; betrothed; as, a contracted peace.

 Inquire me out contracted bachelors. Shak.
 Con*tract"ed*ness, n. The state of being contracted; narrowness; meanness; selfishness.

 Con*tract'i*bil"i*ty (?), n. Capability of being contracted; quality of being contractible; as, the contractibility and dilatability of air. Arbuthnot.
 Con*tract"i*ble (?), a. Capable of contraction.

 Small air bladders distable and contractible. Arbuthnot.
 Con*tract"i*ble*ness, n. Contractibility.

 Con*tract"ile (?), a. [Cf. F. contractile.] tending to contract; having the power or property of contracting, or of shrinking into shorter or smaller dimensions; as, the contractile tissues.

 The heart's contractile force. H. Brooke.
 Each cilium seems to be composed of contractile substance.
Hixley.
Contractile vacuole (Zoöl.), a pulsating cavity in the interior of a protozoan, supposed to be excretory in function. There may be one, two, or more.

 Con'trac*til"i*ty (?), n. 1. The quality or property by which bodies shrink or contract.

2. (Physiol.) The power possessed by the fibers of living muscle of contracting or shortening.

 When subject to the will, as in the muscles of locomotion, such power is called voluntary contractility; when not controlled by the will, as in the muscles of the heart, it is involuntary contractility.

 Con*trac"tion (?), n. [L. contractio: cf. F. contraction.]
 1. The act or process of contracting, shortening, or shrinking; the state of being contracted; as, contraction of the heart, of the pupil of the eye, or of a tendon; the contraction produced by cold.

2. (Math.) The process of shortening an operation.

3. The act of incurring or becoming subject to, as liabilities, obligation, debts, etc.; the process of becoming subject to; as, the contraction of a disease.

4. Something contracted or abbreviated, as a word or phrase; -- as, plenipo for plenipotentiary; crim. con. for criminal conversation, etc.

5. (Gram.) The shortening of a word, or of two words, by the omission of a letter or letters, or by reducing two or more vowels or syllables to one; as, ne'er for never; can't for can not; don't for do not; it's for it is.

6. A marriage contract. [Obs.] Shak.
 Con*tract"ive (?), a. Tending to contract; having the property or power or power of contracting.

 Con*tract"or (?), n. [L.] One who contracts; one of the parties to a bargain; one who covenants to do anything for another; specifically, one who contracts to perform work on a rather large scale, at a certain price or rate, as in building houses or making a railroad.

 Con*trac"ture (?; 135), n. [L. contractura a drawing together.] (Med.) A state of permanent rigidity or contraction of the muscles, generally of the flexor muscles.

 Con"tra*dance' (?), n. [Pref. contra- + dance: cf. F. contrdance. Cf. Country-dance.] A dance in which the partners are arranged face to face, or in opposite lines.

 Con'tra*dict" (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Contradicted; p. pr. & vb. n. Contradicting.] [L. contradictus, p. p. of contradicere to speak against; contra + dicere to speak. See Diction.] 1.
 To assert the contrary of; to oppose in words; to take issue with; to gainsay; to deny the truth of, as of a statement or a speaker; to impugn.

 Dear Duff, I prithee, contradict thyself, And say it is not so. Shak.
 The future can not contradict the past. Wordsworth.
2. To be contrary to; to oppose; to resist. [Obs.]

 No truth can contradict another truth. Hooker.
 A greater power than we can contradict Hath thwarted our intents. Shak.
 Con'tra*dict, v. i. To oppose in words; to gainsay; to deny, or assert the contrary of, something.

 They... spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming. Acts xiii. 45.
 Con'tra*dict"a*ble (?), a. Capable of being contradicted.

 Con'tra*dict"er (?), n. one who contradicts. Swift.
 Con'tra*dic"tion (?), n. [L. contradictio answer, objection: cf. F. contradiction.] 1. An assertion of the contrary to what has been said or affirmed; denial of the truth of a statement or assertion; contrary declaration; gainsaying.

 His fair demands Shall be accomplished without contradiction.
Shak.
2. Direct opposition or repugnancy; inconsistency; incongruity or contrariety; one who, or that which, is inconsistent.

 can he make deathless death? That were to make Strange contradiction.
Milton.
 We state our experience and then we come to a manly resolution of acting in contradiction to it. Burke.
 Both parts of a contradiction can not possibly be true. Hobbes.
 Of contradictions infinite the slave. Wordsworth.
Principle of contradiction (Logic), the axiom or law of thought that a thing cannot be and not be at the same time, or a thing must either be or not be, or the same attribute can not at the same time be affirmed and and denied of the same subject. It develops itself in three specific forms which have been called the "Three Logical Axioms." First, "A is A." Second, "A is not Not-A" Third, "Everything is either A or Not-A."

 Con'tra*dic"tion*al (?), a. Contradictory; inconsistent; opposing.
 [R.] Milton.
 Con'tra*dic"tious (?), a. 1. Filled with contradictions; inconsistent. [Obs.]

2. Inclined to contradict or cavil [Obs.] Sharp.
 -- Con'tra*dic"tious*ness, n. Norris.
 Con'tra*dict"ive (?), a. Contradictory; inconsistent. -- Con'tra*dict"ive*ly, adv.
 Con'tra*dict"or (?), n. [L.] A contradicter.

 Con'tra*dict"o*ri*ly (?), adv. In a contradictory manner. Sharp.
 Con"tra*dict'o*ri*ness, n. The quality of being contradictory; opposition; inconsistency. J. Whitaker.
 Con'tra*dict"o*ry (?), a. [LL. contradictorius: cf. F. contradictoire.]
 1. Affirming the contrary; implying a denial of what has been asserted; also, mutually contradicting; inconsistent. "Contradictory assertions." South.
2. Opposing or opposed;


for railroad ties. -- Screw bolt, a bolt having a screw thread on its shank, in distinction from a key bolt. See 1st Bolt, 3. -- Screw box, a device, resembling a die, for cutting the thread on a wooden screw. -- Screw dock. See under Dock. -- Screw engine, a marine engine for driving a screw propeller. -- Screw gear. See Spiral gear, under Spiral. -- Screw jack. Same as Jackscrew. -- Screw key, a wrench for turning a screw or nut; a spanner wrench. -- Screw machine.
 (a) One of a series of machines employed in the manufacture of wood screws. (b) A machine tool resembling a lathe, having a number of cutting tools that can be caused to act on the work successively, for making screws and other turned pieces from metal rods. -- Screw pine (Bot.), any plant of the endogenous genus Pandanus, of which there are about fifty species, natives of tropical lands from Africa to Polynesia; -- named from the spiral arrangement of the pineapple-like leaves. -- Screw plate, a device for cutting threads on small screws, consisting of a thin steel plate having a series of perforations with internal screws forming dies. -- Screw press, a press in which pressure is exerted by means of a screw. -- Screw propeller, a screw or spiral bladed wheel, used in the propulsion of steam vessels; also, a steam vessel propelled by a screw. -- Screw shell (Zoöl.), a long, slender, spiral gastropod shell, especially of the genus Turritella and allied genera. See Turritella. -- Screw steamer, a steamship propelled by a screw. -- Screw thread, the spiral rib which forms a screw. -- Screw stone (Paleon.), the fossil stem of an encrinite. -- Screw tree (Bot.), any plant of the genus Helicteres, consisting of about thirty species of tropical shrubs, with simple leaves and spirally twisted, five-celled capsules; -- also called twisted-horn, and twisty. -- Screw valve, a stop valve which is opened or closed by a screw. -- Screw worm (Zoöl.), the larva of an American fly (Compsomyia macellaria), allied to the blowflies, which sometimes deposits its eggs in the nostrils, or about wounds, in man and other animals, with fatal results. -- Screw wrench.
 (a) A wrench for turning a screw. (b) A wrench with an adjustable jaw that is moved by a screw. -- To put the screw, or screws, on, to use pressure upon, as for the purpose of extortion; to coerce. -- To put under the screw or screws, to subject to pressure; to force. -- Wood screw, a metal screw with a sharp thread of coarse pitch, adapted to holding fast in wood. See Illust.
 of Wood screw, under Wood.

 Screw (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Screwed (?); p. pr.
 & vb. n. Screwing.] 1. To turn, as a screw; to apply a screw to; to press, fasten, or make firm, by means of a screw or screws; as, to screw a lock on a door; to screw a press.

2. To force; to squeeze; to press, as by screws.

 But screw your courage to the sticking place, And we'll not fail.

Shak.
3. Hence: To practice extortion upon; to oppress by unreasonable or extortionate exactions.

 Our country landlords, by unmeasurable screwing and racking their tenants, have already reduced the miserable people to a worse condition than the peasants in France.

swift.
4. To twist; to distort; as, to screw his visage.

 He screwed his face into a hardened smile.

Dryden.
5. To examine rigidly, as a student; to subject to a severe examination. [Cant, American Colleges] To screw out, to press out; to extort. - - To screw up, to force; to bring by violent pressure. Howell. -- To screw in, to force in by turning or twisting.

 Screw, v. i. 1. To use violent mans in making exactions; to be oppressive or exacting. Howitt.
2. To turn one's self uneasily with a twisting motion; as, he screws about in his chair.

 Screw"-cut'ting (?), a. Adapted for forming a screw by cutting; as, a screw-cutting lathe.

 Screw"-driv'er (?), n. A tool for turning screws so as to drive them into their place. It has a thin end which enters the nick in the head of the screw.

 Screw"er (?), n. One who, or that which, screws.

 Screw"ing, a. & n. from Screw, v. t. Screwing machine. See Screw machine, under Screw.

 Scrib"a*ble (?), a. [See Scribe.] Capable of being written, or of being written upon. [R.]

 Scri*ba"tious (?), a. [See Scribe.] Skillful in, or fond of, writing. [Obs.] Barrow.
 Scrib"bet (?), n. A painter's pencil.

 Scrib"ble (?), v. t. [Cf. Scrabble.] (Woolen Manuf.) To card coarsely; to run through the scribbling machine.

 Scrib"ble, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Scribbled (-b'ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Scribbling (-blng).] [From Scribe.] 1. To write hastily or carelessly, without regard to correctness or elegance; as, to scribble a letter.

2. To fill or cover with careless or worthless writing.

 Scrib"ble, v. i. To write without care, elegance, or value; to scrawl.

 If Mævius scribble in Apollo's spite.

Pope.
 Scrib"ble, n. Hasty or careless writing; a writing of little value; a scrawl; as, a hasty scribble. Boyle.
 Neither did I but vacant seasons spend In this my scribble.

Bunyan.
 Scrib"ble*ment (?), n. A scribble. [R.] Foster.
 Scrib"bler (?), n. One who scribbles; a petty author; a writer of no reputation; a literary hack.

 The scribbler, pinched with hunger, writes to dine.

Granville.
 Scrib"bler, n. A scribbling machine.

 Scrib"bling (?), n. [See 1st Scribble.] The act or process of carding coarsely.

Scribbling machine, the machine used for the first carding of wool or other fiber; -- called also scribbler.

 Scrib"bling, a. Writing hastily or poorly.

 Ye newspaper witlings! ye pert scribbling folks!

Goldsmith.
 Scrib"bling, n. The act of writing hastily or idly.

 Scrib"bling*ly, adv. In a scribbling manner.

 Scribe (skrb), n. [L. scriba, fr. scribere to write; cf. Gr. ska'rifos a splinter, pencil, style (for writing), E. scarify.
 Cf. Ascribe, Describe, Script, Scrivener, Scrutoire.] 1. One who writes; a draughtsman; a writer for another; especially, an offical or public writer; an amanuensis or secretary; a notary; a copyist.

2. (Jewish Hist.) A writer and doctor of the law; one skilled in the law and traditions; one who read and explained the law to the people.

 Scribe (skrb), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Scribed (skrbd); p. pr. & vb. n. Scribing.] 1. To write, engrave, or mark upon; to inscribe. Spenser.
2. (Carp.) To cut (anything) in such a way as to fit closely to a somewhat irregular surface, as a baseboard to a floor which is out of level, a board to the curves of a molding, or


An obsolete Latinism.]

Committing short and long [quantities]. Milton.
To commit a bill (Legislation), to refer or intrust it to a committee or others, to be considered and reported. -- To commit to memory, or To commit, to learn by heart; to memorize.

Syn. -- To Commit, Intrust, Consign. These words have in common the idea of transferring from one's self to the care and custody of another.
 Commit is the widest term, and may express only the general idea of delivering into the charge of another; as, to commit a lawsuit to the care of an attorney; or it may have the special sense of intrusting with or without limitations, as to a superior power, or to a careful servant, or of consigning, as to writing or paper, to the flames, or to prison. To intrust denotes the act of committing to the exercise of confidence or trust; as, to intrust a friend with the care of a child, or with a secret. To consign is a more formal act, and regards the thing transferred as placed chiefly or wholly out of one's immediate control; as, to consign a pupil to the charge of his instructor; to consign goods to an agent for sale; to consign a work to the press.

 Com"mit, v. i. To sin; esp., to be incontinent. [Obs.]

Commit not with man's sworn spouse. Shak.
 Com*mit"ment (?), n. 1. The act of committing, or putting in charge, keeping, or trust; consignment; esp., the act of committing to prison.

 They were glad to compound for his bare commitment to the Tower, whence he was within few days enlarged. Clarendon.
2. A warrant or order for the imprisonment of a person; -- more frequently termed a mittimus.

3. The act of referring or intrusting to a committee for consideration and report; as, the commitment of a petition or a bill.

4. A doing, or perpetration, in a bad sense, as of a crime or blunder; commission.

5. The act of pledging or engaging; the act of exposing, endangering, or compromising; also, the state of being pledged or engaged.
 Hamilton.
 Com*mit"ta*ble (?), a. Capable of being committed.

 Com*mit"tal (?), n. The act of committing, or the state of being committed; commitment.

 Com*mit"tee (?), n. [Cf. OF. comité company, and LL.
 comitatus jurisdiction or territory of a count, county, assize, army. The word was apparently influenced by the verb commit, but not directly formed from it. Cf. County.] One or more persons elected or appointed, to whom any matter or business is referred, either by a legislative body, or by a court, or by any collective body of men acting together.

Committee of the whole [house], a committee, embracing all the members present, into which a legislative or deliberative body sometimes resolves itself, for the purpose of considering a particular measure under the operation of different rules from those governing the general legislative proceedings. The committee of the whole has its own chairman, and reports its action in the form of recommendations. -- Standing committee. See under Standing.

 Com'mit*tee" (?), n. [From Commit, v. t.] (Law) One to whom the charge of the person or estate of another, as of a lunatic, is committed by suitable authority; a guardian.

 Com*mit"tee*man (?), n. A member of a committee.

 Com*mit"ter (?), n. 1. One who commits; one who does or perpetrates. South.
2. A fornicator. [Obs.] T. Decker.
 Com*mit"ti*ble (?), a. Capable of being committed; liable to be committed. [R.] Sir T. Browne.
 Com*mix" (?), v. t. & i. [imp. & p. p. Commixed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Commixing.] [Pref. com- + mix: cf. L. commixtus, p. p. of commiscere. See Mix.] To mix or mingle together; to blend.

 The commixed impressions of all the colors do stir up and beget a sensation of white. Sir I. Newton.
 To commix With winds that sailors rail at. Shak.
 Com*mix"ion (?), n. [See Commix.] Commixture. Shak.
 Com*mix"tion (?; 106), n. [L. commixtio.] Commixture; mingling. [R.]

 An exact commixtion of the ingredients. Boyle.
 Com*mix"ture (?; 135), n. [L. commixtura.] 1. The act or process of mixing; the state of being mingled; the blending of ingredients in one mass or compound.

 In the commixture of anything that is more oily or sweet, such bodies are least apt to putrefy. Bacon.
2. The mass formed by mingling different things; a compound; a mixture. Bacon.
 Com"mo*date (?), n. [L. commodatum thing lent, loan.] (Scots Law) A gratuitous loan.

 Com*mode" (?), n. [F. commode, fr. commode convenient, L. commodus; com- + modus measure, mode.
 See Mode.] 1. A kind of headdress formerly worn by ladies, raising the hair and fore part of the cap to a great height.

 Or under high commodes, with looks erect. Granville.
2. A piece of furniture, so named according to temporary fashion; as: (a) A chest of drawers or a bureau. (b) A night stand with a compartment for holding a chamber vessel. (c) A kind of close stool. (d) A movable sink or stand for a wash bowl, with closet.

 Com*mo"di*ous (?), a. [LL. commodiosus, fr. L. commodum convenience, fr. commodus. See Commode.] Adapted to its use or purpose, or to wants and necessities; serviceable; spacious and convenient; roomy and comfortable; as, a commodious house. "A commodious drab." Shak. "Commodious gold." Pope.
 The haven was not commodious to winter in. Acts xxvii.
 12.
Syn. -- Convenient; suitable; fit; proper; advantageous; serviceable; useful; spacious; comfortable.

 Com*mo"di*ous*ly, adv. In a commodious manner.

 To pass commodiously this life. Milton.
 Com*mo"di*ous*ness, n. State of being commodious; suitableness for its purpose; convenience; roominess.

 Of cities, the greatness and riches increase according to the commodiousness of their situation. Sir W. Temple.
 The commodiousness of the harbor. Johnson.
 Com*mod"i*ty (?), n.; pl. Commodities (#). [F. commodité, fr. L. commoditas. See Commode.] 1. Convenience; accommodation; profit; benefit; advantage; interest; commodiousness. [Obs.]

 Drawn by the commodity of a footpath. B. Jonson.
 Men may seek their own commodity, yet if this were done with injury to others, it was not to be suffered. Hooker.
2. That which affords convenience, advantage, or profit, especially in commerce, including everything movable that is bought and sold (except animals), -- goods, wares, merchandise, produce of land and manufactures, etc.

3. A parcel or quantity of goods. [Obs.]

 A commodity of brown paper and old ginger. Shak.
 Com"mo*dore' (?), n. [Prob. a corruption of commander, or Sp. comendador a knight of a military order who holds


A House-Boat on the Styx, by John Kendrick Bangs Transcribed from the 1902 Harper and Brothers edition by David Price, email _EMAIL_ A HOUSE-BOAT ON THE STYX by John Kendrick Bangs CHAPTER I: CHARON MAKES A DISCOVERY Charon, the Ferryman of renown, was cruising slowly along the Styx one pleasant Friday morning not long ago, and as he paddled idly on he chuckled mildly to himself as he thought of the monopoly in ferriage which in the course of years he had managed to build up.
"It's a great thing," he said, with a smirk of satisfaction—"it's a great thing to be the go-between between two states of being; to have the exclusive franchise to export and import shades from one state to the other, and withal to have had as clean a record as mine has been. Valuable as is my franchise, I never corrupted a public official in my life, and—" Here Charon stopped his soliloquy and his boat simultaneously.
As he rounded one of the many turns in the river a singular object met his gaze, and one, too, that filled him with misgiving. It was another craft, and that was a thing not to be tolerated. Had he, Charon, owned the exclusive right of way on the Styx all these years to have it disputed here in the closing decade of the Nineteenth Century?
Had not he dealt satisfactorily with all, whether it was in the line of ferriage or in the providing of boats for pleasure-trips up the river?
Had he not received expressions of satisfaction, indeed, from the most exclusive families of Hades with the very select series of picnics he had given at Charon's Glen Island? No wonder, then, that the queer-looking boat that met his gaze, moored in a shady nook on the dark side of the river, filled him with dismay.
"Blow me for a landlubber if I like that!" he said, in a hardly audible whisper. "And shiver my timbers if I don't find out what she's there for. If anybody thinks he can run an opposition line to mine on this river he's mightily mistaken.
If it comes to competition, I can carry shades for nothing and still quaff the B. & G. yellow-label benzine three times a day without experiencing a financial panic. I'll show 'em a thing or two if they attempt to rival me. And what a boat! It looks for all the world like a Florentine barn on a canal-boat." Charon paddled up to the side of the craft, and, standing up in the middle of his boat, cried out, "Ship ahoy!" There was no answer, and the Ferryman hailed her again. Receiving no response to his second call, he resolved to investigate for himself; so, fastening his own boat to the stern-post of the stranger, he clambered on board. If he was astonished as he sat in his ferry-boat, he was paralyzed when he cast his eye over the unwelcome vessel he had boarded. He stood for at least two minutes rooted to the spot.
His eye swept over a long, broad deck, the polish of which resembled that of a ball-room floor. Amidships, running from three-quarters aft to three-quarters forward, stood a structure that in its lines resembled, as Charon had intimated, a barn, designed by an architect enamoured of Florentine simplicity; but in its construction the richest of woods had been used, and in its interior arrangement and adornment nothing more palatial could be conceived.
"What's the blooming thing for?" said Charon, more dismayed than ever. "If they start another line with a craft like this, I'm very much afraid I'm done for after all.
I wouldn't take a boat like mine myself if there was a floating palace like this going the same way. I'll have to see the Commissioners about this, and find out what it all means. I suppose it'll cost me a pretty penny, too, confound them!" A prey to these unhappy reflections, Charon investigated further, and the more he saw the less he liked it. He was about to encounter opposition, and an opposition which was apparently backed by persons of great wealth—perhaps the Commissioners themselves. It was a consoling thought that he had saved enough money in the course of his career to enable him to live in comfort all his days, but this was not really what Charon was after. He wished to acquire enough to retire and become one of the smart set. It had been done in that section of the universe which lay on the bright side of the Styx, why not, therefore, on the other, he asked.
"I'm pretty well connected even if I am a boatman," he had been known to say. "With Chaos for a grandfather, and Erebus and Nox for parents, I've just as good blood in my veins as anybody in Hades. The Noxes are a mighty fine family, not as bright as the Days, but older; and we're poor—that's it, poor—and it's money makes caste these days. If I had millions, and owned a railroad, they'd call me a yacht-owner.
As I haven't, I'm only a boatman. Bah! Wait and see! I'll be giving swell functions myself some day, and these upstarts will be on their knees before me begging to be asked.
Then I'll get up a little aristocracy of my own, and I won't let a soul into it whose name isn't mentioned in the Grecian mythologies.
Mention in Burke's peerage and the Élite directories of America won't admit anybody to Commodore Charon's house unless there's some other mighty good reason for it." Foreseeing an unhappy ending to all his hopes, the old man clambered sadly back into his ancient vessel and paddled off into the darkness.
Some hours later, returning with a large company of new arrivals, while counting up the profits of the day Charon again caught sight of the new craft, and saw that it was brilliantly lighted and thronged with the most famous citizens of the Erebean country. Up in the bow was a spirit band discoursing music of the sweetest sort. Merry peals of laughter rang out over the dark waters of the Styx. The clink of glasses and the popping of corks punctuated the music with a frequency which would have delighted the soul of the most ardent lover of commas, all of which so overpowered the grand master boatman of the Stygian Ferry Company that he dropped three oboli and an American dime, which he carried as a pocket-piece, overboard. This, of course, added to his woe; but it was forgotten in an instant, for some one on the new boat had turned a search-light directly upon Charon himself, and simultaneously hailed the master of the ferry-boat.
"Charon!" cried the shade in charge of the light.
"Charon, ahoy!" "Ahoy yourself!" returned the old man, paddling his craft close up to the stranger. "What do you want?" "You," said the shade. "The house committee want to see you right away." "What for?" asked Charon, cautiously.
"I'm sure I don't know. I'm only a member of the club, and house committees never let mere members know anything about their plans. All I know is that you are wanted," said the other.
"Who are the house committee?" queried the Ferryman.
"Sir Walter Raleigh, Cassius, Demosthenes, Blackstone, Doctor Johnson, and Confucius," replied the shade.
"Tell 'em I'll be back in an hour," said Charon, pushing off. "I've got a cargo of shades on board consigned to various places up the river. I've promised to get 'em all through to-night, but I'll put on a couple of extra paddles—two of the new arrivals are working their passage this trip—and it won't take as long as usual. What boat is this, anyhow?" "The Nancy Nox, of Erebus." "Thunder!" cried Charon, as he pushed off and proceeded on his way up the river. "Named after my mother! Perhaps it'll come out all right yet." More hopeful of mood, Charon, aided by the two dead-head passengers, soon got through with his evening's work, and in less than an hour was back seeking admittance, as requested, to the company of Sir Walter Raleigh and his fellow-members on the house committee.
He was received by these worthies with considerable effusiveness, considering his position in society,


and hairy and from two to ten inches long. Hubsch of Constantinople remarks that both men and women of this tribe have tails. Carpus, or Berengarius Carpensis, as he is called, in one of his Commentaries said that there were some people in Hibernia with long tails, but whether they were fleshy or cartilaginous could not be known, as the people could not be approached. Certain supposed tailed races which have been described by sea-captains and voyagers are really only examples of people who wear artificial appendages about the waists, such as palm-leaves and hair. A certain Wesleyan missionary, George Brown, in 1876 spoke of a formal breeding of a tailed race in Kali, off the coast of New Britain. Tailless children were slain at once, as they would be exposed to public ridicule. The tailed men of Borneo are people afflicted with hereditary malformation analogous to sexdigitism. A tailed race of princes have ruled Rajoopootana, and are fond of their ancestral mark. There are fabulous stories told of canoes in the East Indies which have holes in their benches made for the tails of the rowers. At one time in the East the presence of tails was taken as a sign of brute force.
There was reported from Caracas the discovery of a tribe of Indians in Paraguay who were provided with tails. The narrative reads somewhat after this manner: One day a number of workmen belonging to Tacura Tuyn while engaged in cutting grass had their mules attacked by some Guayacuyan Indians. The workmen pursued the Indians but only succeeded in capturing a boy of eight. He was taken to the house of Senor Francisco Galeochoa at Posedas, and was there discovered to have a tail ten inches long. On interrogation the boy stated that he had a brother who had a tail as long as his own, and that all the tribe had tails.
Aetius, Bartholinus, Falk, Harvey, Kolping, Hesse, Paulinus, Strauss, and Wolff give descriptions of tails. Blanchard says he saw a tail fully a span in length: and there is a description in 1690 of a man by the name of Emanuel Konig, a son of a doctor of laws who had a tail half a span long, which grew directly downward from the coccyx and was coiled on the perineum, causing much discomfort. Jacob describes a pouch of skin resembling a tail which hung from the tip of the coccyx to the length of six inches. It was removed and was found to be thicker than the thumb, consisted of distinctly jointed portions with synovial capsules. Gosselin saw at his clinic a caudal appendix in an infant which measured about ten cm. Lissner says that in 1872 he assisted in the delivery of a young girl who had a tail consisting of a coccyx prolonged and covered with skin, and in 1884 he saw the same girl, at this time the tail measuring nearly 13 cm.
Virchow received for examination a tail three inches long amputated from a boy of eight weeks. Ornstein, chief physician of the Greek army, describes a Greek of twenty-six who had a hairless, conical tail, free only at the tip, two inches long and containing three vertebrae. He also remarks that other instances have been observed in recruits. Thirk of Broussa in 1820 described the tail of a Kurd of twenty-two which contained four vertebrae. Belinovski gives an account of a hip-joint amputation and extirpation of a fatty caudal extremity, the only one he had ever observed.
Before the Berlin Anthropological Society there were presented two adult male Papuans, in good health and spirits, who had been brought from New Guinea; their coccygeal bones projected 1 1/2 inches. Oliver Wendell Holmes in the Atlantic Monthly, June, 1890, says that he saw in London a photograph of a boy with a considerable tail. The "Moi Boy" was a lad of twelve, who was found in Cochin China, with a tail a foot long which was simply a mass of flesh. Miller tells of a West Point student who had an elongation of the coccyx, forming a protuberance which bulged very visibly under the skin. Exercise at the riding school always gave him great distress, and the protuberance would often chafe until the skin was broken, the blood trickling into his boots.
Bartels presents a very complete article in which he describes 21 persons born with tails, most of the tails being merely fleshy protuberances. Darwin speaks of a person with a fleshy tail and refers to a French article on human tails.
Science contains a description of a negro child born near Louisville, eight weeks old, with a pedunculated tail 2 1/2 inches long, with a base 1 1/4 inches in circumference. The tail resembled in shape a pig's tail and had grown 1/4 inch since birth. It showed no signs of cartilage or bone, and had its origin from a point slightly to the left of the median line and about an inch above the end of the spinal column.
Dickinson recently reported the birth of a child with a tail. It was a well-developed female between 5 1/2 and six pounds in weight. The coccyx was covered with the skin on both the anterior and posterior surfaces. It thus formed a tail of the size of the nail of the little finger, with a length of nearly 3/16 inch on the inner surface and 3/8 inch on the rear surface. This little tip could be raised from the body and it slowly sank back.
In addition to the familiar caudal projection of the human fetus, Dickinson mentions a group of other vestigial remains of a former state of things. Briefly these are:— (1) The plica semilunaris as a vestige of the nictitating membrane of certain birds.
(2) The pointed ear, or the turned-down tip of the ears of many men.
(3) The atrophied muscles, such as those that move the ear, that are well developed in certain people, or that shift the scalp, resembling the action of a horse in ridding itself of flies.
(4) The supracondyloid foremen of the humerus.
(5) The vermiform appendix.
(6) The location and direction of the hair on the trunk and limbs.
(7) The dwindling wisdom-teeth.
(8) The feet of the fetus strongly deflected inward, as in the apes, and persisting in the early months of life, together with great mobility and a distinct projection of the great toe at an angle from the side of the foot.
(9) The remarkable grasping power of the hand at birth and for a few weeks thereafter, that permits young babies to suspend their whole weight on a cane for a period varying from half a minute to two minutes.
Horrocks ascribes to these anal tags a pathologic importance. He claims that they may be productive of fistula in ano, superficial ulcerations, fecal concretions, fissure in ano, and that they may hypertrophy and set up tenesmus and other troubles. The presence of human tails has given rise to discussion between friends and opponents of the Darwinian theory. By some it is considered a reversion to the lower species, while others deny this and claim it to be simply a pathologic appendix.
Anomalies of the Spinal Canal and Contents.—When there is a default in the spinal column, the vice of conformation is called spina bifida.
This is of two classes: first, a simple opening in the vertebral canal, and, second, a large cleft sufficient to allow the egress of spinal membranes and substance. Figure 130 represents a large congenital sacral tumor.
Achard speaks of partial duplication of the central canal of the spinal cord. De Cecco reports a singular case of duplication of the lumbar segment of the spinal cord. Wagner speaks of duplication of a portion of the spinal cord.
Foot records a case of amyelia, or absence of the spinal cord, in a fetus with hernia cerebri and complete fissure of the spinal column.
Nicoll and Arnold describe an anencephalous fetus with absence of spinal marrow; and Smith also records the birth of an amyelitic fetus.
In some persons there are exaggerated cur


flowers, or with hangings. Ornament is used in a wider sense than decorate. To embellish is to beautify or ornament richly, not so much by mere additions or details as by modifying the thing itself as a whole. It sometimes means gaudy and artificial decoration. We embellish a book with rich engravings; a style is embellished with rich and beautiful imagery; a shopkeeper embellishes his front window to attract attention. Adorn is sometimes identical with decorate, as when we say, a lady was adorned with jewels. In other cases, it seems to imply something more. Thus, we speak of a gallery of paintings as adorned with the works of some of the great masters, or adorned with noble statuary and columns.
 Here decorated and ornamented would hardly be appropriate.
 There is a value in these works of genius beyond mere show and ornament.
 Adorn may be used of what is purely moral; as, a character adorned with every Christian grace. Here neither decorate, nor ornament, nor embellish is proper.

 A*dorn", n. Adornment. [Obs.] Spenser.
 A*dorn", a. Adorned; decorated. [Obs.] Milton.
 Ad'or*na"tion (&?;), n. Adornment. [Obs.]

 A*dorn"er (&?;), n. He who, or that which, adorns; a beautifier.

 A*dorn"ing*ly, adv. By adorning; decoratively.

 A*dorn"ment (-ment), n. [Cf. OF. adornement. See Adorn.] An adorning; an ornament; a decoration.

 Ad*os"cu*la"tion (&?;), n. [L. adosculari, adosculatum, to kiss. See Osculate.] (Biol.) Impregnation by external contact, without intromission.

 A*down" (&?;), adv. [OE. adun, adoun, adune.
 AS. of dne off the hill. See Down.] From a higher to a lower situation; downward; down, to or on the ground. [Archaic] "Thrice did she sink adown." Spenser.
 A*down", prep. Down. [Archaic & Poetic] Her hair adown her shoulders loosely lay displayed. Prior.
 Ad*press" (&?;), v. t. [L. adpressus, p. p. of adprimere.]
 See Appressed. -- Ad*pressed", (&?;), a. A*drad" (&?;), p. a. [P. p. of adread.] Put in dread; afraid. [Obs.] Chaucer.
 Ad"ra*gant (&?;), n. [F., a corruption of tragacanth.]
 Gum tragacanth. Brande & C. A*dread" (&?;), v. t. & i. [AS. andrædan, ondræ; pref. a- (for and against) + dræden to dread.
 See Dread.] To dread. [Obs.] Sir P. Sidney.
 A*dreamed" (&?;), p. p. Visited by a dream; -- used in the phrase, To be adreamed, to dream. [Obs.]

 Ad*re"nal (&?;), a. [Pref. ad- + renal.] (Anat.)
 Suprarenal.

 A"dri*an (&?;), a. [L. Hadrianus.] Pertaining to the Adriatic Sea; as, Adrian billows.

 A'dri*at"ic (&?;), a. [L. Adriaticus, Hadriaticus, fr. Adria or Hadria, a town of the Veneti.] Of or pertaining to a sea so named, the northwestern part of which is known as the Gulf of Venice.

 A*drift" (&?;), adv. & a. [Pref. a- (for on) + drift.] Floating at random; in a drifting condition; at the mercy of wind and waves. Also fig.

 So on the sea shall be set adrift. Dryden.
 Were from their daily labor turned adrift. Wordsworth.
 A*drip" (&?;), adv. & a. [Pref. a- in + drip.]
 In a dripping state; as, leaves all adrip. D. G. Mitchell.
 Ad"ro*gate (&?;), v. t. [See Arrogate.] (Rom. Law) To adopt (a person who is his own master).

 Ad'ro*ga"tion (&?;), n. [L. adrogatio, arrogatio, fr. adrogare. See Arrogate.] (Rom. Law) A kind of adoption in ancient Rome. See Arrogation.

 A*droit" (&?;), a. [F. adroit; à (L. ad) = droit straight, right, fr. L. directus, p. p. of dirigere.
 See Direct.] Dexterous in the use of the hands or in the exercise of the mental faculties; exhibiting skill and readiness in avoiding danger or escaping difficulty; ready in invention or execution; -- applied to persons and to acts; as, an adroit mechanic, an adroit reply. "Adroit in the application of the telescope and quadrant."
 Horsley. "He was adroit in intrigue." Macaulay.
Syn. -- Dexterous; skillful; expert; ready; clever; deft; ingenious; cunning; ready-witted.

 A*droit"ly, adv. In an adroit manner.

 A*droit"ness, n. The quality of being adroit; skill and readiness; dexterity.

Adroitness was as requisite as courage. Motley.
Syn. -- See Skill.

 A*dry" (&?;), a. [Pref. a- (for on) + dry.]
 In a dry or thirsty condition. "A man that is adry." Burton.
 Ad'sci*ti"tious (&?;), a. [L. adscitus, p. p. of adsciscere, asciscere, to take knowingly; ad + sciscere to seek to know, approve, scire to know.] Supplemental; additional; adventitious; ascititious. "Adscititious evidence." Bowring.
 -- Ad'sci*ti"tious*ly, adv.
 Ad"script (&?;), a. [L. adscriptus, p. p. of adscribere to enroll. See Ascribe.] Held to service as attached to the soil; -- said of feudal serfs.

 Ad"script (&?;), n. One held to service as attached to the glebe or estate; a feudal serf. Bancroft.
 Ad*scrip"tive (&?;), a. [L. adscriptivus. See Adscript.]
 Attached or annexed to the glebe or estate and transferable with it. Brougham.
 Ad*sig'ni*fi*ca"tion (&?;), n. Additional signification. [R.]
 Tooke.
 Ad*sig"ni*fy (&?;), v. t. [L. adsignificare to show.] To denote additionally. [R.] Tooke.
 Ad*strict" (&?;), v. t. -- Ad*stric"tion, (&?;) n. See Astrict, and Astriction.

 Ad*stric"to*ry (&?;), a. See Astrictory.

 Ad*strin"gent (&?;), a. See Astringent.

 ||Ad'u*la"ri*a (&?;), n. [From Adula, a mountain peak in Switzerland, where fine specimens are found.] (Min.) A transparent or translucent variety of common feldspar, or orthoclase, which often shows pearly opalescent reflections; -- called by lapidaries moonstone.

 Ad"u*late (&?;), v. t. [L. adulatus, p. p. of adulari.]
 To flatter in a servile way. Byron.
 Ad


) was one of our most enterprising, generous and far-seeing citizens. His first venture was in the banking business. It was while engaged in this pursuit that he gained the name "Honest Harry Meiggs." His banking business was good for a year or so and then he conceived the idea of building a wharf at North Beach. It commenced at Francisco street between Powell and Mason streets. It extended north several hundred feet and was used for a landing place for lumber in the rough, to be conveyed to his mill on the South side of Francisco street near Powell. In order to accommodate the demands of trade an "L" was extended eastward from the end of his wharf. About this time he got into financial troubles. In October, 1854, he departed with his family for Chili between two days and passed out through the Golden Gate, and no more was heard of him for a long time. It finally became known that he was in Peru, engaged in building bridges for that government. He took contracts and was very successful and became well off in a few years. He sent an agent to San Francisco to hunt up all his creditors and pay them, dollar for dollar with interest. I knew a widow in San Francisco in the late '60s by the name of Rogers who was a creditor, who married a man by the name of Allen; I think that was in 1867. They went to Peru and saw Mr. Meiggs.
He paid all she demanded, about $300. Allen returned and reported to the children that their mother died while in Peru of fever, but they never got a cent of the money.
Mr. Meiggs was born in New York in 1811 and died in Peru in 1877.
San Francisco's First Town Clock.
The first public clock ever erected in San Francisco was placed on the frontage of the upper story of a four-story building at Nos. 425-427 Montgomery street, that was being built by Alexander Austin. This was in 1852. The clock was ordered by him and brought via the "Panama Route" from New York, arriving in San Francisco on the steamer Panama.
Mr. Austin occupied the ground floor as a retail dry goods establishment and it was one of the first, if not the first, of any prominence in the city. He afterwards moved to the southeast corner of Sutter and Montgomery streets and continued there until 1869 when he was elected city and county tax collector.
The clock remained on the building until January 20th, 1886, when the then owner of the building, Mr. D. F. Walker, had it removed so as to arrange for the remodeling of the interior.
Mr. W. H. Wharff, the architect in charge of the remodeling, purchased the clock and retained it in his possession until November 24, 1911, when he presented it to the Memorial Museum of the Golden Gate Park, where the curator, Mr. G. H. Barron, placed it in the "Pioneer Room." It is to be seen there now.
Admission Day Flag.
Here is an interesting fact that has never been given publicity before, and I simply relate it as told me by Sarah Connell, the daughter of the man that carried it.
"Mr. D. S. Haskell, manager of the express and banking business of Adams & Co., conceiving the patriotic idea of having an American flag carried in the division of which his firm was to be a part, endeavored to procure an American flag, but found that nothing but flags of the size for ships or poles were to be had. He then started to find material from which to have one made, but in this he was unsuccessful also. So, undaunted, he at last found a dressmaker who lived somewhere in the neighborhood of Washington and Dupont streets, who found in her 'piece-bag' that she had brought from New York, enough pieces of silk and satin (they were not all alike) to make a flag three feet by two feet. He was so delighted with her handiwork that he gave her a $50 slug for her work[6].
"Thus it was that Adams & Co. were able to parade under the stars and stripes in that memorable parade of October 28, 1850, in celebration of the admission of California as a state into the union. After the parade Mr. Haskell presented the flag to their chief messenger, my father, Mr.
Thomas Connell, and it has been in our possession since."
Mr. Thomas Connell.
Mr. Connell was one of the few of the early comers who never went to the mines, though of course, that was his intention. He started, but somewhere on the Contra Costa side—it was all Contra Costa then—he fell ill of malaria fever. There was no one with time to bother with a sick man and he was unable to proceed or return so he expected to end his life there. When the disease abated he concluded that he had no desire to penetrate further into the wilderness, so he turned his face towards San Francisco again. He was a shipwright by trade and though there was nothing doing in his line, he saw the possibilities of a boating business when there were no wharves, piers or other accommodations for freight or passengers. One of the curious uses to which his boats were put was the carrying of a water supply. They were chartered by a company and fitted with copper tanks which were filled from springs near Sausalito. On this side of the bay the water was transferred to wagons like those now used for street sprinkling and the precious fluid was supplied to householders at a remunerative rate of twenty-five cents a pail, every family having one or two hogsheads fitted with a spigot to hold the supply.
Mr. Connell also carried the first presidential message received in the State, rowing up the Sacramento River day and night in his own boat to deliver the document at the capitol, and for sake of the sentiment he also carried the last one received by steamer as far as Oakland, whence the delivery was completed by train.
Uncle Phil Roach, Happy Valley.
Uncle Phil Roach, editor and founder of the "San Francisco Examiner," lived on Clementina street near First. He was one of those good natured, genial old men that everybody liked, was at one time president of the Society of California Pioneers (1860-1), and later elected to the State Legislature. He afterwards acted as administrator of the Blythe estate, but died before its final settlement.
The place where he lived was called Happy Valley and the only entrance to it was at the intersection of Market, Bush and First streets, this crossing being at the east end of a sand dune about 30 feet high, extending westerly about half a mile. At this time the waters of the bay came up to the corner of Market and First streets, but it was not long before this, and many other sand dunes, disappeared, being scraped and carted off to fill the nearby mud flats.
There was at this time a little wharf 50 feet wide extending out into the cove from the foot of Clay street at Davis 1550 feet to a depth of 35 feet. It was called "Long Wharf." To the north of this wharf the water lapped what is now Sansome street for a block (to Washington street) and followed the shore line to the corner of Jackson and Montgomery streets.
Early Water Supply.
My mind drifts back to the days when our water system was dependent in part upon a well near the corner of Market and First streets. This was in 1855 when the population of San Francisco was between 40,000 and 50,000. I was then living on Third street near Mission and got my supply of water from a man named Somers who conveyed water about the city to his various customers in a cart. I took water from him for about three years at the rate of $1.50 per week.
Many's the time I have gone out to the Mission hunting rabbits. All that part of the city was as wild as it ever was, sand dunes and low grounds.
About three years later a company built a plank toll road on Mission street from some point near the water front to the Mission, a distance of about three miles. This made an opening through the sand dunes and that section filled up rapidly.
Postoffice.
The postoffice was situated on the lot at the northwest corner of Washington and Battery streets. It was built in 1855. Previous to the erection of this building the pioneers obtained


Gr. ky'anos a dark blue substance: cf. F. cyanique. Cf. Kyanite.] 1. Pertaining to, or containing, cyanogen.

2. Of or pertaining to a blue color.

Cyanic acid (Chem.), an acid, HOCN, derived from cyanogen, well known in its salts, but never isolated in the free state. -- Cyanic colors (Bot.), those colors (of flowers) having some tinge of blue; -- opposed to xanthic colors. A color of either series may pass into red or white, but not into the opposing color. Red and pure white are more common among flowers of cyanic tendency than in those of the other class.

 Cy"a*nide (s?"?-n?d or -n?d; 104), n. [Cf. F. cyanide. See Cyanic.] (Chem.) A compound formed by the union of cyanogen with an element or radical.

 Cy"a*nin (s?"?-n?n), n. [See Cyanic.] (Chem.) The blue coloring matter of flowers; -- called also anthokyan and anthocyanin.

 Cy"a*nine (s?"?-n?n or -n?n; 104), n. (Chem.) One of a series of artificial blue or red dyes obtained from quinoline and lepidine and used in calico printing.

 Cy"a*nite (-n?t), n. [See Cyanic.] (Min.) A mineral occuring in thinbladed crystals and crystalline aggregates, of a sky-blue color.
 It is a silicate of aluminium. [Written also kyanite.]

 Cy*an"o*gen (s?-?n"?-j?n), n. [Gr. ky'anos a dark blue substance + -gen: cf. F. cyanogène. So called because it produced blue dyes.] (Chem.) A colorless, inflammable, poisonous gas, C2N2, with a peach-blossom odor, so called from its tendency to form blue compounds; obtained by heating ammonium oxalate, mercuric cyanide, etc. It is obtained in combination, forming an alkaline cyanide when nitrogen or a nitrogenous compound is strongly ignited with carbon and soda or potash.
 It conducts itself like a member of the halogen group of elements, and shows a tendency to form complex compounds. The name is also applied to the univalent radical, CN (the half molecule of cyanogen proper), which was one of the first compound radicals recognized.

Cyanogen is found in the commercial substances, potassium cyanide, or prussiate of potash, yellow prussiate of potash, Prussian blue, Turnbull's blue, prussic acid, etc.

 Cy'a*nom"e*ter (s?'?-n?m"?-t?r), n. [Gr. ky'anos a dark blue substance + -meter: cf. F. cyanomètre.] An instrument for measuring degress of blueness.

 Cy'a*nop"a*thy (-n?p"?-th?), n. [Gr. ky'anos a dark blue substance + pa'qos affection.] (Med.) A disease in which the body is colored blue in its surface, arising usually from a malformation of the heart, which causes an imperfect arterialization of the blood; blue jaundice.

 Cy*an"o*phyll (s?-?n"?-f?l), n. [Gr. ky'anos a dark blue substance + fy'llon leaf.] (Bot.) A blue coloring matter supposed by some to be one of the component parts of chlorophyll.

 Cy"a*nosed (s?"?-n?st), a. [See Cyanic.] Rendered blue, as the surface of the body, from cyanosis or deficient aëration of the blood.

 ||Cy'a*no"sis (s?'?-n?"s?s), n. [NL. See Cyanic.] (Med.) A condition in which, from insufficient aëration of the blood, the surface of the body becomes blue. See Cyanopathy.

 Cy*an"o*site (s?-?n"?-s?t), n. [See Cyanic.] (Min.) Native sulphate of copper. Cf. Blue vitriol, under Blue.

 Cy'a*not"ic (s?'?-n?t"?k), a. (Med.) Relating to cyanosis; affected with cyanosis; as, a cyanotic patient; having the hue caused by cyanosis; as, a cyanotic skin.

 Cy*an"o*type (s?-?n"?-t?p), n. [Cyanide + -type.] A photographic picture obtained by the use of a cyanide.

 Cy"an"u*rate (s?-?n"?-r?t), n. (Chem.) A salt of cyanuric acid.

 Cy*an"u*ret (-r?t), n. (Chem.) A cyanide. [Obs.]

 Cy'a*nu"ric (s?'?-n?"r?k), a. [Cyanic + uric: Cf. F.
 cyanurique.] (Chem.) Pertaining to, or derived from, cyanic and uric acids.

 Cyanuric acid (Chem.), an organic acid, C3O3N3H3, first obtained by heating uric acid or urea, and called pyrouric acid; afterwards obtained from isocyanic acid. It is a white crystalline substance, odorless and almost tasteless; -- called also tricarbimide.

 Cy*ath"i*form (s?-?th"?-f?rm), a. [L. cyathus a cup (Gr, ky'aqos) - form:cf. F. cyathiforme.] In the form of a cup, a little widened at the top.

 Cy*ath"olith (s?-?th"?-l?th), n. [Gr. ky'aqos a cup + -lith.]
 (Biol.) A kind of coccolith, which in shape resembles a minute cup widened at the top, and varies in size from to of an inch.

 Cy'a*tho*phyl"loid (s?'?-th?-f?l"loid), a. [NL. cyathophyllum, fr. Gr. ky'aqos a cup + fy'llon a leaf.] (Paleon.) Like, or pertaining to, the family Cyathophyllidæ.

 Cy'a*tho*phyl"loid, n. (Paleon.) A fossil coral of the family Cyathophyllidæ; sometimes extended to fossil corals of other related families belonging to the group Rugosa; -- also called cup corals. Thay are found in paleozoic rocks.

 Cy"cad (s"kd), n. (Bot.) Any plant of the natural order Cycadaceæ, as the sago palm, etc.

 Cyc'a*da"ceous (s?k'?-d?"sh?s or s?'k?-), a. (Bot.)
 Pertaining to, or resembling, an order of plants like the palms, but having exogenous wood. The sago palm is an example.

 Cy"cas (s?"k?s), n. [Of uncertain origin. Linnæus derives it from one of the "obscure Greek words."] (Bot.) A genus of trees, intermediate in character between the palms and the pines. The pith of the trunk of some species furnishes a valuable kind of sago.

 Cyc"la*men (s?k"l?-m?n), n. [NL., fr. Gr. kykla'minos, kyklami's.]
 (Bot.) A genus of plants of the Primrose family, having depressed rounded corms, and pretty nodding flowers with the petals so reflexed as to point upwards, whence it is called rabbits' ears. It is also called sow bread, because hogs are said to eat the corms.

 Cyc"la*min (-m?n), n. A white amorphous


be a sculptor, executed it, as well as many other statues of the great sovereign of Egypt.

 A year after the burning of the pavilion at Pelusium Rameri sailed to the land of the Danaids, was married to Uarda, and then remained in his wife's native country, where, after the death of her grandfather, he ruled over many islands of the Mediterranean and became the founder of a great and famous race. Uarda's name was long held in tender remembrance by their subjects, for having grown up in misery she understood the secret of alleviating sorrow and relieving want, and of doing good and giving happiness without humiliating those she benefitted. THE END.