when the voice proceeds from the firft to the twelfth Diapafon found. DIAPASON Diate aron, in mufic, a compound con- Diarbeck. cord founded on the proportion of 8 to 3. To this interval Martianus Capella allows 8 tones and a femitone; 17 femitones, and 34 diefes. This is when the voice proceeds from its firft to its eleventh found. The moderns would rather call it the eleventh.

DIAPASON Ditone, in mufic, a compound concord, whofe terms are as 10-4, or as 5-2.

DIAPASON Semiditone, in mufic, a compound concord, whofe terms are in the proportion of 12-5.

DIAPEDESIS, in medicine, a tranfudation of the fluids through the fides of the veffels that contain them, occafioned by the blood's becoming too much attenuated, or the pores becoming too patent.

DIAPENTE, in the ancient mufic, an interval marking the fecond of the concords, and with the diateffaron an octave. This is what in the modern mufic is called a fifth.

. DIAPHANOUS, an appellation given to all transparent bodies, or fuch as tranfmit the rays of light.

Dianthus, tire as poffible; and when thus taken up, cut off the Diapafon naked fticky part at bottom close to the root, and trim the tops of the leaves a little. They are then ready for planting either into beds or pots. In November the fine varieties in pots fhould be moved to a funny fheltered fituation for the winter; and if placed in a frame, to have occafional protection from hard froft, it will be of much advantage. In the latter end of February, or fome time in March, the layers in the fmall pots, or fuch as are in beds, fhould be tranfplanted with balls into the large pots, where they are to remain for flower. To have as large flowers as poffible, curious florifts clear off all fide-fhoots from the flowerftem, fuffering only the main or top buds to remain for flowering. When the flowers begin to open, attendance should be given to aflift the fine varieties, to promote their regular expanfion, particularly the largest kinds called burfers, whofe flowers are fometimes three or four inches diameter. Unless these are affifted by art, they are apt to burst open on one fide, in which cafe the flower will become very irregular: therefore, attending every day at that period, obferve, as foon as the calyx begins to break, to cut it a little open at two other places in the indenting at top with narrow-pointed fciffars, and hereby the more regular expanfion of the petals will be promoted: obferving, if one fide of any flower comes out fafter than another, to turn the pot about, that the other fide of the flower may be next the fun, which will alfo greatly promote its regular expanfion. When any fine flower is to be blown as large and fpreading as poffible, florists place fpreading paper collars round the bottom of the flowers, on which they may fpread their petals to the utmost expanfion. Thefe collars are made of ftiff white paper, cut circular about three or four inches over, having a hole in the middle to receive the bottom of the flower, and one fide cut open to admit it. This is to be placed round the bottom of the petals in the infide of the calyx, the leaves of which are made to fpread flat for its fupport. The petals must then be drawn out and fpread upon the collar to their full width and extent; the longest ones undermoft, and the next longeft upon thefe; and fo on; obferving that the collar muft no where appear wider than the flower; and thus a carnation may be rendered very large and handfome.

Thefe directions will anfwer equally well for the propagation of the pinks and fweet-williams, though neither of these require fuch nicety in their culture as the carnations.

DIAPASON, in mufic, a mufical interval, by which moft authors who have wrote on the theory of mufic ufe to exprefs the OCTAVE of the Greeks.

DIAPASON, among the mufical intrument-makers, a kind of rule or scale whereby they adjust the pipes of their organs, and cut the holes of their hautboys, flutes, &c. in due proportion for performing the tones, femitones, and concords, juft.

DIAPASON-Diaex, in mufic, a kind of compound concord, whereof there are two forts; the greater, which is in the proportion of 10-3; and the leffer, in that of 16-5.

DIAPASON Diapente, in mufic, a compound confonance in a triple ratio, as 3-9. This interval, fays Martianus Capella, confits of 9 tones and a femitone; 19 femitones, and 38 diefes. It is a fymphony made

N° 101.

DIAPHORESIS, in medicine, an elimination of the humours in any part of the body through the pores of the skin. See PERSPIRATION.

DIAPHORETICS, among phyficians, all medicines which promote perfpiration.

DIAPHRAGM, DIAPHRAGMA, in anatomy, a part popularly called the midriff, and by anatomifts feptum tranfverfum. It is a nervous mufcle, feparating the breaft or thorax from the abdomen or lower venter, and ferving as a partition between the natural and the vital parts, as they are called. See ANATOMY, n° 115.

It was Plato, as Galen informs us, that firft called it diaphragm, from the verb diapparluv, to feparate or be between two. Till his time it had been called pives, from a notion that an inflammation of this part produced phrenfy; which is not at all warranted by experience, any more than that other tradition, that a tranfverfe fection of the diaphragm with a sword causes the patient to die laughing.

DIAPORESIS, Aaronis, in rhetoric, is used to exprefs the hesitation or uncertainty of the speaker. We have an example in Homer, where Ulyffes, going to relate his fufferings to Alcinous, begins thus: Τι πρώτον, τι δ' επειτα, τι δ' υσάτιον καταλέξω? Quid primum, quid dein'e, quid poftremo alloquar? This figure is moft naturally placed in the exordium or introduction to a difcourfe. See DOUBTING.

DIARBECK, or DIARBEKR, an extenfive province of Eastern Afiatic Turky; comprehending, in its lateft extent, Diarbekr, properly fo called, Terack or Chaldea, and Curdistan, which were the ancient countries of Mefopotamia, Chaldea, and Affyria, with Bybylon. It is called Diarbeck, Diarbeker, or Diarbekr, as fignifying the "duke's country," from the word dhyar "a duke, and bekr "country." It extends along the banks of the Tigris and Euphrates from north-northweft to fouth-ealt, that is, from Mount Taurus, which divides it from Turcomania on the north, to the inmoft recefs of the Perfian gulph on the fouth, about 600 miles; and from eaft to welt, that is, from Perfia on the east to Syria and Arabia Deferta on the weft, in fome places 200, and in others about 300, miles,

but

72 difciples. It has feveral stately piazzas or market- Diarbekir. places, well ftored with all kinds of rich merchandize, and 12 magnificient mofques, faid to have been formerly Chriftian churches. Its chief manufacture is the dref fing, tanning, and dying of goat-fkins, commonly called Turkey leather, of which the vent is almoft incredible in many parts of Europe and Afia: befides this, there is another of dyed fine linen and cotton cloths, which are nearly in the fame request. The waters of the Tigris are reckoned extraordinary for those two branches of trade, and give red leather a finer grain and colour than any other. There is a good number of large and convenient inns on both fides of the river, for the caravans that go to and from Perfia; and on the road near the town is a chapel with a cupola, where Job is faid to lie buried. This place is much frequented by pilgrims of all nations and religions, and a Turkish hermit has a cell clofe to it. The fair fex, who, in most other parts of the Turkish empire, are kept quite immured, and confidered as mere flaves, enjoy here an extraordinary liberty, and are commonly feen on the public walks of the city in company with the Chriftian women, and live in great friendship and familiarity with them. The fame is faid of the men, who are polite, affable, and courteous, and very different from what they affect to be, especially the Turks, in other cities of this empire. The city is under the government of a bafha, who has great power and very large dominions. He has commonly a body of 20,000 horfe under him, for repelling the frequent incurfions of the Curdes and Tartars, who always go on horseback to rob the caravans. jacent territory is very rich and beautiful; the bread, wine, and fleth excellent; the fruits exquifite, and the pigeons better and larger than any in Europe.

Diarbekir. but in the fouthern or lower parts not above 150. As extending alfo from the 30th to the 38th degree of latitude, it lies under part of the fifth and fixth climates whofe longeft day is about 14 hours and a half, and fo in proportion, and confequently enjoys a good temperature of air, as well as, in the greater part of it, a rich and fertile foil. There are indeed, as in all hot countries, fome large deferts in it, which produce no fuftenance for men or cattle, nor have any inhabitants. Being a confiderable frontier towards the kingdom of Perfia, it is very well guarded and fortified; but as for thofe many cities once fo renowned for their greatnefs and opulence, they are at prefent almost dwindled into heaps of ruins. Bagdad, Mofful, Carahmed, and a few more, indeed continue to be populous and wealthy; but the reft can fearce be called by any other name than that of forry places. The rivers Euphrates and Tigris have almost their whole courfe through this country. Diarbeck Proper is bounded on the north by Turcomania, on the weft by Syria, on the fouth by part of Arabia Deferta and Yrack Proper, and on the east by Curdistan. It was named by Mofes Padan Aram; the latter being the general name of Syria; and the former fignifying fruitful, a proper epithet for this country, which is really fo to a very high degree, efpecially on the northern fide, where it yields corn, wine, oil, fruits, and all neceffaries of life in great abundance. Formerly it was the refidence of many famed patriarchs, yet was over-run with the grofleft idolatry, not only in the time of Abraham's coming out of it, and Jacob's fojourning in it, but likewife during the time it continued under the dominion of the Affyrians, Babylonians, Medes, Perfians, and Romans. It received indeed the light of the gospel foon after our Saviour's afcenfion, from St Thaddeus, who is faid to have been fent thither by St Thomas, at the request of Agbarus king of Edeffa. This account, together with that monarch's letter to Jefus Chrift, we have from Eufebius, who took it from the archives of that city; and the whole had paffed current and uncontradicted for many ages, till our more enlightened moderns found reafons to condemn it; but whether right or wrong, it plainly appears that Chriftianity flou rifhed here in a moft eminent manner, till its purity was fullied about the beginning of the fixth century by the herefy of the Jacobites, whofe patriarch ftill refides here, with a jurisdiction over all that fect in the Turkish dominions.

Diarbeck Proper, is a beglerbegate, under which are reckoned twelve fangiacs; and the principal towns in it are, Diarbekir or Caramed, Rika, Moufful, Orfa or Edeffa, Elbir, Nifibis, Gezir Merdin, Zibin, Ur of the Chaldees, Amad, and Carafara; but all now of little note excepting Diarbekir and Moufful.

DIARBEKIR, the capital of the above district, is fituated in a delightful plain, on the banks and near the head of the Tigris, about 155 miles or 15 caravan days journey, north-eaft from Aleppo, in latitude 37° 35', eaft longitude 40° 50'. The bridge of 10 arches over the faid river is faid to have been built by the order of Alexander the Great. It is one of the richest and most mercantile cities in all Afiatic Turkey; and is well fortified, being encompaffed with a double wall, the outermost of which is flanked, with 72 towers, faid to have been raised in memory of our Saviour's VOL. VI. Part I.

The ad

Mr Ives, who paffed through this city in 1758, informs us, that "about two years ago it was very populous, its inhabitants amounting to 400,000 fouls; but in the last year 300,000 died either by cold or famine. The Chriftians refiding in the city before this calamity were reckoned to amount to 26,000, of whom 20,000 died. This account we had from one of the French miffionaries, a capuchin, who alfo faid, that before the famine the city contained 60,000 fighting men, but that now they are not able to muster 10,000. He affures us, that the houses and streets, nay the very mofques, were filled with dead; that every part of the city exhibited a dreadful image of death; and that the furviving inhabitants not only greedily devoured all kinds of beafts, brutes, and reptiles, but alfo were obliged to feed on human bodies. Yet, in the midft of this fcene of horror, the grandees of the city had every thing in plenty; for they had taken care to monopolize vait quantities of corn, which they fold out to the other inhabitants at most extravagant prices, and thereby acquired for themselves immenfe fortunes. Corn rofe from two piastres a meafure to 50, 60, and even 70, in the space of fix months. The father added, that the very fevere winter of 1756, and the locufts in 1757, were the caufes of this dreadful vifitation: for by reason of the former, there were but few acres of land fown with corn; and by the latter, the fmall crop they had was in a great measure deftroyed. He spoke of the feverity of that winter in terms almoft incredible: that it was common to fee the B

people

Diatonick.

nick fcale forms the fyftem of diatonick mufic, and Diatraga. confifts of diatonick intervals, it will be neceffary, for Canth understanding the former, that we fhould explain the latter. See INTERVAL.

DIATRAGACANTH, in pharmacy, a name applied to certain powders, of which gum tragacanth is the chief ingredient.

Diarrhoea people fall down dead in the streets; that he himself once on quitting a warm room, and going into the open air, fell down motionlefs; and that his brother, in attempting to affist him, met with the fame fate." This account of the effects of cold in the city of Diarbekir, which lies only in about 38° north, feems at first very furprising; but confidering that the place ftands on a rifing ground in the midst of an extensive plain, and that the high Courdiftan mountains lie to the fouth and east of it, and the Armenian or Turcomanian to the north, whofe heads are always covered with fnow, and even now in July fupply the city with ice; it will not appear at all improbable, that in a very severe winter, fuch as was that in 1756, the inhabitants of this city fhould fo feverely feel the effects of it. Befides, fuel must have been extremely scarce, efpecially among the poorer fort, as nothing of this kind is produced but upon the mountains, and these lie at fuch a distance that the price of it must thereby be greatly enhanced.

ĎIARRHEA, or LOOSENESS, in medicine, is a frequent and copious evacuation of liquid excrement by ftool. See (the Index fubjoined to) MEDICINE.

DIARTHROSIS, in anatomy, a kind of articulation or juncture of the bones; which being pretty lax, affords room for a manifest motion. The word comes from dia, and apgov, juncture, assemblage. It is oppofed to fynarthrofis, wherein the articulation is fo clofe that there is no fenfible motion at all. See ANATOMY,

n° 2.

DIARY, a term fometimes used for a journal or day-book, containing an account of every day's proceedings. Thus we fay, diaries of the weather, &c. DIARY Fever, is a fever of one day. See EPHE

MERA.

DIASCHISM, among muficians, denotes the difference between the comma and enharmonic diefis, commonly called the leffer comma.

DÍASCORDIUM, in pharmacy, a celebrated compofition, so called from fcordium, one of its ingredients. See PHARMACY,

DIASTOLE, among phyficians, fignifies the dilatation of the heart, auricles, and arteries; and ftands oppofed to the sYSTOLE, or contraction of the fame parts. See ANATOMY, no 124.

DIASTOLE, in grammar, a figure in profody where by a fyllable naturally fhort is made long. Such is the first fyllable of Priamides in the following verfe of Virgil:

Atque hic Priamides! nihil o tibi, amice, reli&tum. DIASYRMUS, in rhetoric, a kind of hyperbole, being an exaggeration of fome low, ridiculous thing. DIATESSARON, among ancient musicians, a concord or harmonical interval, compofed of a greater tone, a less tone, and one greater femitone: its proportion in numbers is as 4:3.

DIATONICK, in mufic, (compounded of two Greek words, viz. the prepofition Jia, fignifying a tranfition from one thing to another, and the fubftantive Toves, importing a given degree of tenfion or mufical note), is indifferently applied to a scale or gammut, to intervals of a certain kind, or to a fpecies of mufic, whether in melody or harmony, composed of these in tervals. Thus we fay the diatonick series, a diatonick interval, diatonick melody or harmony. As the diato

DIAUGOPHRAGMIA, in natural hiftory, a ge nus of foffils of the order of feptariæ, whofe partitions or fepta, confift of fpar with an admixture of cryftal. Of this genus there are three species. 1. A red kind, with brownish yellow partitions. 2. A brownish yellow kind, with whitish partitions. 3. A bluish-white kind, with straw-coloured partitions.

DIBBLE, or DIBBER, a fimple but ufeful imple ment in gardening, ufed for planting out all forts of young plants, &c. DIBBLING WHEAT. See AGRICULTURE, no 126.

-129.

DIBIO, or Divio (ane. geog.), the Divionenfe Ca frum, and the Divionum of the lower age; a town of the Lingones, in Gallia Belgica: Dibionenfes, the peo ple. Now Dijon, the capital of Burgundy. E. Long. 5.5. N. Lat. 47. 15.

DICE, among gamefters, certain cubical pieces of bone or ivory, marked with dots on each of their faces, from one to fix, according to the number of faces.

Sharpers have feveral ways of falfifying dice. 1. By fticking a hog's bristle in them, fo as to make them run high or low as they please. 2. By drilling and loading them with quicksilver : which cheat is found out by holding them gently by two diagonal corners : for if falfe, the heavy fides will turn always down. 3. By filing and rounding them. But all these ways. fall far fhort of the art of the dice-makers; fome of whom are 10 dexterous this way, that your sharping gamefters will give any money for them.

45

Dice formerly paid 5s. every pair imported, with an. additional duty of 4s. 9 d. for every 20 s. value upon. oath; but are now prohibited to be imported.

DICEARCHUS, a fcholar of Ariftotle, compofed a great number of books which were much esteemed. Cicero and his friend Pomponius Atticus valued. him highly. He wrote a book to prove, that men fuffer more mifchief from one another than from all evils befide. And the work he compofed concerning the republic of Lacedemon was extremely honoured, and read every year before the youth in the affembly of the ephori. Geography was one of his principal ftudies, on which fcience there is a fragment of a trea tife of his ftill extant, and preferved among the Veteris geographia fcriptores minores.

DICHOTOMOUS, in botany. See BOTANY, p. 442, n° 41.

DICHOTOMY, a term used by aftronomers for that phafis or appearance of the moon, wherein the is bifected, or fhows juft half her difk. In this fituation the moon is faid to be in a quadrate afpect, or to be in her quadrature.

DICKER, in old writers, denotes the quantity of ten hides of skins, whereof 20 made a laft: alfo 10 pair of gloves, ten bars of iron, and the like, are fometimes. expreffed by the term dicker.

DICKINSON (Edmund), a celebrated English phyfician and chemift, born in 1624. He ftudied and

took

Dickinson,

Dictamnus, took his degrees at Merton-college, Oxford; and in Dictator. 1655 published there his Delphi Phænicizantes, &c. a moft learned piece, in which he attempted to prove, that the Greeks borrowed the ftory of the Pythian Apollo, and all that rendered the oracle at Delphos famous, from the Holy Scriptures, and the book of Joshua in particular: a work that procured him great reputation both at home and abroad. He practifed phyfic first at Oxford; but removing to London in 1684, his good fortune in recovering the earl of Arlington from a dangerous ficknefs, procured his promotion to be physician in ordinary to Charles II. and to his household. As that prince understood and loved chemistry, Dr Dickinson grew into great favour at court; and was continued in his appointments under James. II. After the abdication of his unfortunate mafter, being then in years, and afflicted with the flone, he retired from practice, and died in 1707. He published many other things, particularly Phyfica vetus & vera, &c. containing a fyftem of philofophy chiefly framed on principles collected from the Mofaic history.

DICTAMNUS, WHITE DITTANY, or Fraxinella: A genus of the monogynia order, belonging to the decandria class of plants; and in the natural method ranking under the 26th order, Multifilique. The calyx is pentaphyllous; the petals are five, and patulous; the filaments fprinkled with glandulous points; the capfules five, coalited. There is only one fpecies. It hath thick, penetrating, perennial roots, collected into a head at top, fending up erect ftalks annually, two or three feet high, garnished with pinnated alternate leaves, of three or four pair of oblong ftiff lobes, terminated by an odd one; and the ftalks crowned by long, pyramidal, loofe fpikes of flowers, of white, red, and purple colours. They are very ornamental plants, and fucceed in any of the common borders. The dittany which grows in Crete, Dalmatia, and the Morea, forms an article in the materia medica. The leaves, which are the only parts ufed, are imported from Italy. The best fort are well covered over with a thick white down, and now and then intermixed with purplish flowers. In fmell and tafte they fomewhat refemble lemon-thyme, but have more of an aromatic flavour, as well as a greater degree of pungency; when fresh, they yield a confiderable quantity of an excellent effential oil.

DICTATOR, a magiftrate at Rome invefted with regal authority. This officer was firft chofen during the Roman wars against the Latins. The confuls being unable to raise forces for the defence of the ftate, because the plebeians refused to inlift if they were not difcharged of all the debts they had contracted with the patricians, the fenate found it neceffary to elect a new magiftrate with abfolute and uncontroulable power to take care of the ftate. The dictator remained in office for fix months, after which he was again elected if the affairs of the ftate feemed to be desperate; but if tranquillity was re-established, he generally laid down his power before the time was expired. He knew no fuperior in the republic, and even the laws were fubjected to him. He was called dictator, because dictus, named by the conful, or quoniam dictis ejus parebat populus, because the people implicitly obeyed his command. He was named by the conful in the night

Dictionary.

viva voce, and his election was confirmed by the auguries. As his power was abfolute, he could proclaim war, levy forces, conduct them against an enemy, and difband them at his pleasure. He punished as he pleased, and from his decifion there lay no appeal, at least till later times. He was preceded by 24 lictors with the fafces; during his administration, all other officers, except the tribunes of the people, were fufpended, and he was the mafter of the republic. But amidst all this independence, he was not permitted to go beyond the borders of Italy, and he was always obliged to march on foot in his expeditions, and he never could ride in difficult and laborious marches without previously obtaining a formal leave from the people. He was chofen only when the ftate was in imminent dangers from foreign enemies or inward feditions. In the time of a peftilence a dictator was fometimes elected, as also to hold the comitia, or to celebrate the public festivals, or drive a nail in the capitol, by which fuperftitious ceremony the Romans believed that a plague could be averted, or the progress of an enemy ftopped. This office, fo refpectable and illuftrious in the firft ages of the republic, became odious by the perpetual ufurpations of Sylla and J. Cæfar; and after the death of the latter, the Roman fenate paffed a decree which for ever after forbad a dictator to exist in Rome. The dictator, as foon as elected, chofe a fubordinate officer called his master of horse, magifier equitum. This officer was refpectable; but he was totally fubfervient to the will of the dictator, and could do nothing with. out his exprefs order. This fubordination, however, was fome time after removed; and during the second Punic war the mafter of the horse was invefted with a power equal to that of the dictator. A fecond dictator was alfo chofen for the election of magiftrates at Rome after the battle of Cannæ. The dictatorship was originally confined to the patricians; but the plebeians were afterwards admitted to fhare it. Titus Largius Flavus was the first dictator, in the year of Rome 253.

DICTION, the phrase, elocution, or ftyle, of a writer or fpeaker. See ORATORY, n° 99-121.

DICTIONARY, in its original acceptation, is the arranging all the words of a language according to the order of the alphabet, and annexing a definition or explanation to each word. When arts and sciences began to be improved and extended, the multiplicity of technical terms rendered it necessary to compile dictionaries, either of fcience in general, or of particular fciences, according to the views of the compiler.

DICTIONARY of the English Language. The defign of every dictionary of language is to explain, in the moft accurate manner, the meaning of every word; and to show the various ways in which it can be combined with others, in as far as this tends to alter its meaning. The dictionary which does this in the most accurate manner, is the most complete. Therefore the principal ftudy of a lexicographer ought to be, to difcover cover a method which will be beit adapted for that purpose. Dr Johnson, with great labour, has collected the various meanings of every word, and quoted the authorities: but, would it not have been an improvement if he had given an accurate definition of the precife meaning of every word; pointed out the way in which it ought to be employed with the

B 2

greatest