neither read, count, or mark the succession of time, nor distinguish colors, and never laugh. They speak an Aryan language and are fast disappearing.

Vedder, ELIHU, b. 1836. Most imaginative and intellectual of American painters; active at Rome; draughtsman of great power; illustrator of Fitzgerald's Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam 1883-84. His Lair of the Sea Serpent is in the Boston Museum. N.A. 1863.

Vedel, ANDERS SÖRENSEN, 1542-1616. Danish preacher, tr. Saxo Grammaticus' history.

Vedette. Sentinel, usually mounted, in advance of troops. Vedism. Primitive religion of the Aryans, named from its sacred books, believed to be inspired by Brahma; viz., Rig-Veda, the most ancient, comprising a collection of hymns, Yajur-Veda, Sama-Veda, and Atharva-Veda. There are three great gods in Vedism, Agni, India, and Soma. The generally accepted date of its origin is 1200 B.C. The Vedic Aryans built no temples, nor are idols or divine images of their epoch known.

Veer. Changes of the wind when in the order e., s., w., n., or in the same direction as the apparent diurnal course of the sun to an observer in high n. latitudes, or with the motion of the hands of a watch when held face upward. See HAUL.

Veering, or WEARING. Changing a ship's course from one tack to the other by turning the stern to windward. There

Fig. 1.

are two periods when veering is a perilous operation, when a heavy sea is running; namely, soon after a ship's head has payed broad off, when she is liable to be caught in the trough

Fig. 2.

of the sea as in fig. 1; and when she has come with her head right off the wind, and is scudding, as in fig. 2.

Vega. a-Lyræ; brightest star of the n. heavens, right ascension 18h. 33m., declination 38° 40', parallax 0".161.

Vega, GARCILASO (INCA) DE LA, 1539-ab.1620. Son of a Spanish officer and a Peruvian princess; in Europe from 1560. His Commentarios reales de los Incas, 1605, and Hist. Peru, 1617, are important sources. Florida del Inca, 1605, deals with De Soto.

Vega, GEORG, FREIHERR VON, 1756-1802. Austrian officer, writer on mathematics. Logarithmentafeln, 1783.

Vega, VENTURA DE LA, 1807-1865. Spanish poet and dramatist, b. in Argentina.

Vega Carpio, FELIX LOPE DE, 1562-1635. Chief founder of Spanish drama, and its most prolific and popular representative; author of some 600 known plays, and, it is supposed, twice as many lost, besides 21 vols. of poems and romances; unsurpassed in fluency and invention. In later life he was a priest. The Spanish Academy is reprinting his plays.

Vegetable. Any plant, especially those of which parts, other than the fruit and seed, are used for food.

Vegetable Alkali. Name given to POTASSIUM CARBONATE (q.v.).

Vegetable Anatomy. Structure of plants. Vegetable Butter. Name given to vegetable fats, such as cacao, cocoanut, nutmeg, palm and shea. The latter is used as a substitute for butter in Africa.

Vegetable Flannel. Material woven from pine leaves, and supposed to have medicinal properties. It is worn by persons afflicted with rheumatism and pulmonary complaints.

Vegetable Ivory. See IVORY, VEGETABLE.

Vegetable Marrow. Cucurbita ovifera. Trailing vine of the Gourd family. Its large fruit is extensively used for food.

Vegetable Pathology. That part of Botany which deals with the diseases of plants and their treatment. Vegetable Physiology. See PHYSIOLOGY, VEGETABLE. Vegetable Silk. See PULU.

Vegetable Wax. Protective secretion of the surfaces of many leaves and fruits; on the latter it constitutes the bloom.

Vegetarianism. Practice of abstaining from animal food, and subsisting wholly upon vegetables and cereals; advocated by an English Society, founded 1847.

Vegetation. Plants in general, especially in relation to

scenery.

Vegetative Cell. Active somatic cell, as distinguished from a reproductive one.

Vegetative Nucleus. That of a vegetative cell, especially in pollen-tubes.

Vegetative Stage. Period during which bacteria are actively growing and multiplying. It precedes the zooglœa stage. The corresponding stage for disease germs lasts from the time of infection to the crisis of the disease. Bacteria in the vegetative condition are easily stained. See SPORES OF BACTERIA.

Vegetius, FLAVIUS RENATUS, ab.400. Writer or compiler of a work on military science, long highly valued.

Vehmgerichte. Tribunals of the Middle Ages, especially in the 14th and 15th centuries in Westphalia, with sittings usually secret. Accused persons, unable to prove their innocence before the open court, were brought before a secret tribunal, as also those guilty of sorcery, rape, theft, robbery, or murder. The Freischöffen executed sentence by putting the condemned person to death wherever met, leaving a knife near the corpse as a sign of the Vehmgerichte.

Vehse, KARL EDUARD, 1802-1870. German historian. Shakespeare, 1851; Der Deutschen Höfe, 1851-58.

Veigl, FRANZ XAVIER, 1723-1798. Austrian Jesuit, in S. America 1753-77; writer on the missions there.

Veii. Etrurian city, long at war with Rome, till subdued by Camillus 396 B.C.

Veil. Membrane which in early stages of growth protects the spore-bearing surfaces in mushrooms. It extends from the stem to the margin of the pileus.

Veiled Prophet. See MOKANNA.

Veil of the Temple. Embroidered curtain which separated the Most Holy Place from the Holy Place. Luke xxiii. 45 describes it as rent at the Crucifixion, as indicating that the way into the Divine Presence was then laid open.

Vein. In Geology, plate or sheet of rock, relatively thin, but of great extent in length and depth, that intersects other rocks and differs from them in time of formation. in character, structure, or other important respects. Frequently, though not always, they are repositories of metalliferous ores;

channel for passage of mineralizing solutions than the inclosing walls, and thus given rise to vein phenomena. No simple classification of veins yet proposed has met universal adoption. Veinlets. Minute subdivisions of the veins of a leaf. Veins. Circulatory apparatus which receives the blood from the capillaries and returns it to the heart. Hæmorrhage from a vein is constant, not in jets, and of dark blood. Should the cut be a large one and an effort be made to stop its flow by pressure, the cut should be between the bandage and the heart.

Veins. In Botany, bundles of woody tissue which traverse leaves in various ways, serving as conducting channels for the distribution of sap; also known as Ribs and Nerves.

Veintemilla, IGNACIO, b. 1830. Ecuadorian general, leader of a revolution 1876; pres. or dictator 1878-83; since in exile. Veit, PHILIPP, 1793-1877. Prussian painter, chiefly of allegorical and religious subjects; stepson of F. Schlegel; director Art Institute at Frankfort 1830-43.

Veitch, JOHN, 1829-1894. Prof. St. Andrews 1860, Glasgow 1864; editor and biographer of Sir W. Hamilton. History and Poetry of the Scottish Border, 1877.

Veitch, WILLIAM, LL.D., 1794-1885. Scottish scholar and critic; contributor to Liddell and Scott's Lexicon and many other works.

Vela, VINCENZO, 1822-1891. Swiss-Italian sculptor. Velamen. Layers of cells, filled with air, which invest the tips of ærial roots of orchids, etc.

Velarium. Velum-like fringe on the edge of the umbrella of the Charybdeida (Jelly-fish); differing from a true velum in containing prolongations of the gastro-vascular spaces.

Velasco, JOSÉ MIGUEL DE, 1790-1859. Acting Pres. of Bolivia 1829-30; Pres. 1839-41 and 1847-48.

Velasco, JUAN DE, 1727-1819. Prof. Lima, expelled with the Jesuits, and resident in Italy. Hist. Quito, 1841-44.

Velasco, LUIS DE, COUNT OF SANTIAGO, ab.1500-1564. Viceroy of Mexico from 1550.-His son, LUIS, MARQUIS OF SALINAS, 1535-1614, was Viceroy of Mexico 1590-95 and 160711, and of Peru 1596-1604.

1597

Veliger. Larvæ of Mollusks; generally provided with a velum.

Velius Longus, ab.110. Commentator on the Æneid. His De Orthographia is extant.

Velleius Paterculus. See PATERCULUS.

Velletri. Ancient Volscian town, 25 m. s.e. of Rome. Pop. ab. 14,000.

Vellore. Town of s. India, 80 m. w. of Madras. Its fort was held against Hyder Ali 1780-82. Pop., 1891, 44,925.

Velloso, JOSÉ MARIANNO DA CONCEICAO, 1743-1812. Brazilian botanist. Alographia dos alkalis fixos vegetal on potassa, 1798; Quinografia Portugueza, 1799; Florae fluminensis, 11 vols., 1790-1825.

Vellum. See PARCHMENT.

Velo. Unit of velocity; equal to the velocity of a point which, moving uniformly, passes over one foot in one second; name proposed by Lock.

Velasquez, DIEGO DE, ab.1460-ab.1532. Spanish adventurer, in Hispaniola 1493; conqueror and Gov. of Cuba 1511. He promoted or ordered the expeditions of Cordova, Grijalva, and Cortes, 1517-18, and sent Narvaez against Cortes 1520.

Velasquez, DIEGO RODRIGUEZ DE SILVA Y, 1599-1660. Greatest Spanish painter, having no superior in his age;

only Rembrandt may be considered his equal. His Æsop, Menippus, Surrender of Breda, and many other works, are in

Velocimeter. Any apparatus for determining the velocmeasure the total movement in a given time, but the velocimeter proper shows the velocity at any moment.

Velocimeter. Apparatus designed to measure the average velocity of projectiles between any two points; especially used to test gunpowders, and ascertain the pressures in the bore of a gun due to the explosion of the charge. The most recent and by far the most accurate is the new polarizing photo-chronograph, designed by Prof. Crehore of Dartmouth Coll. and Lieut. Squier, U.S.A., which has been tested recently at Fort Monroe with most satisfactory results.

Velocipede. Originally a BICYCLE (q.v.), which the rider propelled by striking the ground with his feet; now called unicycle, bicycle or tricycle, according to the number of wheels.

Velocity. Space passed over in a unit of time (see ANGULAR VELOCITY). In English and French writings it is denoted by v. The scientific time unit is the second. It is always found by dividing the space passed over by the time

consumed in such passage ().

Velocity, COEFFICIENT OF. Ratio of the actual to the theoretic velocity in flow of water. For an orifice in a thin plate its value is 0.98, for a short tube 0.82. The square of the coefficient of velocity gives the ratio of the effective head to the theoretic head.

Velocity Head. Height through which a body must fall to acquire a given velocity. If h be the velocity head in ft. and v the velocity in ft. per sec., then h=0.0155v2. Thus, a velocity of 10 ft. per sec. will be produced by a fall through about 1 ft.

Velocity of Approach. Mean velocity of a stream above a weir or dam. The head due to this is added to the head on the crest as the total effective head causing the flow.

Velocity of the Wind. Speed of horizontal motion of the air, measured in miles per hour in the English system, but in meters per second in the Metric system. I mile per hourmeter per second.

Veloudakes, COSTA, b. 1802. Cretan patriot, commanderin-chief of revolutionary forces in 1878.

Velum. 1. Ciliated lobes borne by larval Gastropods and

other mollusks, which become the buccal lobes of the adult. 2. Diaphragm-like membrane attached to the edge of the umbrella in jelly-fish and closing in the subumbrellar cavity; perforated in the center by the codonostome. 3. Indusiuni in Isoetes or the veil of mushrooms.

Velvet. Silk fabric having the ordinary warp and weft as in plain weaving, or as in twills, and also additional warp threads which are woven into the ground of the cloth and passed over wires on the surface. These threads are cut by a knife before removing the wire, producing a cut pile; this is then singed or sheared, producing a surface like fur. When the looped threads are not cut, it is called uncut velvet. Velveteen is a mixture of silk and cotton. Fustian is all cotton. Figured velvets are also made. It is considered to have originated in Italy or Sicily ab.1150. They are largely made in Crefeld, Prussia, and Lyons.

Velvet-Leaf. Abutilon abutilon. Coarse, densely tomentose herb of the Mallow family, native of India, introduced into N. America; known as Indian Mallow and American Jute.

Venable, CHARLES SCOTT, LL.D., b.1827. Prof. Univ. Va. since 1865; writer on mathematics.-His uncle, ABRAHAM, 1760-1811, was M.C. from Va. 1791-99 and U. S. Senator 1803-4.

Venables, EDMUND, 1819-1895. Canon of Lincoln, Eng., 1867; archæologist; contributor to religious cyclopedias. Vena Contracta. See CONTRACTED VEIN.

Venæ Advehentes. 1. Veins that leave the ductus venosus where it enters the liver to ramify the tissues of this organ. 2. Posterior cardinals in reptiles when they pass to the kidneys, and there break up into capillaries, forming a renal-portal system.

Venæ Revehentes.

Veins that collect the blood from

the liver into the ductus venosus. Venant, JEAN BARRÉ DE, 1737-1810. French writer on agriculture, long in San Domingo.

Venantius. See FORTUNATUS.

Venation. Arrangement of fibrovascular bundles in a leaf or other organ.

Vendee, LA, WAR OF. Royalists of w. France rose against the Republicans Aug. 1792, and defeated them at Saumur June 10. 1793, but were worsted at Le Mans Dec. 12, 1793. Brittany also was involved in the struggle, which lasted till 1796.

Vendemiaire. First month of the French revolutionary calendar, beginning (in 1793) Sept. 22 and ending Oct. 21.

Vender's Lien. That of the unpaid seller of land or chattels. In case of land it is avoidable against any one but a purchaser for value without notice: in case of chattels it entitles the vender to retain the goods until payment, where the sale is for cash, or the term of credit has expired, or the buyer is insolvent.

Vendetta. Form of blood-feud, by which the next of kin, and in a less degree all relatives of a murdered man, are bound to take vengeance on the murderer. If he escape, some bloodrelation of his may pay the penalty. In Corsica 7,000 murders are said to have occurred 1770-1800 owing to this custom, which prevails also, though to less extent, in Sicily, Sardinia, and Calabria.

Vendôme, LOUIS JOSEPH. DUC DE, 1654-1712. French general, commanding in Spain 1695, and in Italy 1702; defeated by Marlborough at Oudenarde 1708, and retired; recalled to Spain 1710, where he defeated English and Austrian armies, and restored the king, ending the war.

Venedey, JACOB, 1805-1871. German liberal, in France 1832-48. Römerthum, 1840; Irland, 1844; England, 1845; Des Deutschen Volks, 4 vols., 1854-62.

Veneer. Thin layer of ornamental wood glued upon some common variety.

Venegas, FRANCISCO JAVIER DE, ab. 1760-ab.1820. Viceroy of Mexico 1810-13.

Venegas, MIGUEL, 1680-1764. Mexican Jesuit. Hist. California, 1757, tr. 1759.

Venema, HERMANN, 1697-1787. Prof. Francker (Frisia). Institutes of Theology, tr. 1850.

Venerable. Title of an Anglican Archdeacon; in R. C. Ch., sometimes given to a departed saint as preliminary to beatification.

Venereal Ulcer. See CHANCROID.

Veneridæ (ROUND CLAMS). Family of Lamellibranchs, including forms having the shell round or oblong, with three cardinal hinge-teeth on each valve. There is a pallial sinus; the siphons are of unequal size and are fused at their base. leaving a long ventral slit for the foot to pass through. Venus mercenaria, the quahaug, is abundant all along the N. J. coast. The principal fishing grounds are at Keyport and Tuckerton; the latter exports ab. $100,000 worth annually, over 20,000,000 clams.

Venesection. See PHLEBOTOMY and BLOOD-LETTING.

Veneti. People living near the mouths of the Po, many of whom in the 5th century took refuge from the Huns in the islands where now is Venice.

Venetian Carpet. One of the poorest grades of carpet made. It is composed of woolen warp and coarse hemp filling, and is mostly used as a stair-covering.

Venetian Chalk. FRENCH CHALK (q.v.) used in cosmetics and in making pastels.

Venetian Style. That style of modern ITALIAN ARCHITECTURE (q.v.) formed by architects of the Venetian states from the 15th to the early part of the 17th centuries. Veneziano. Venetian for PIOMBO (q.v.).

Venezuela. Republic of n. S. America. Its area is 439,120 sq. m. The w. part is crossed by a spur from the Andes. which rises to a great elevation. Most of the remaining part consists of vast treeless plains, known as llanos, a desert in the dry season, but covered with verdure after the annual rains. Cattle-raising, cultivation of cotton, coffee, and sugarcane are the principal industries. The capital is Caracas. The coast was visited by Columbus 1498, and V. became the seat of some of the oldest settlements in the New World: the chief were made under the auspices of a Spanish company formed for the cultivation of indigo and cacao. A revolu

tion occurred 1810. A republican union was first formed with Ecuador and Colombia, which was dissolved 1830. The republic was engaged in a series of civil wars 1846-70, between the Unionists, who favored a strong central government, and the Federalists, who aimed at the independence of the several States. Quiet was at last restored under Blanco, who was practically dictator until in 1873 he was elected constitutional president. The emancipation of slaves took place 1854. Pop.. 1891, 2,323,520.

Venezuela, or Maracaibo, GULF OF. Caribbean Sea, in n.w. Venezuela.

Inlet from

Venezuelan Boundary. The long dispute over the boundary line between V. and British Guiana was raised to a serious international question by Pres. Cleveland's message to Congress Dec. 17, 1895, in which he gave what was regarded by some as a novel interpretation of the Monroe Doctrine. A commission, of which Justice Brewer of the Supreme Court was chairman, was appointed to investigate the subject, and $100,000 appropriated. Lord Salisbury announced Nov. 9, 1896, that England had agreed to submit the matter to arbitration.

The arbiters appointed on the part of the U. S. were Chiefjustice Fuller and Justice Brewer of the U. S. Supreme Court; Baron Herschell (ex-Lord Chancellor) and Justice Collins of the Privy Council, on the part of Great Britain; and a fifth to be named by these four, or, in case of failure to agree, by the King of Sweden. V. claimed territory e. of long. 60° W., from the Orinoko River to the Cuyani-Essequibo.

Venial Sin. In R. C. Theology, one which impairs but does not extinguish baptismal grace, and may therefore render the transgressor liable to purgatory, but not to hell.

Venice. City of n. Italy, at the head of the Adriatic Sea, on a salt lagoon. It is built mainly on piles, on a group of small islands, where canals take the place of streets and gondolas that of wheeled vehicles. The region was settled 452 by refugees fleeing before Attila: they lived by fishing and saltmaking. The first form of government was republican. As the city grew, factions increased. To remedy this, a Doge was elected 697. V. was nominally subject to the Greek empire.

Bird's-eye View of Venice.

It joined the emperor against the Franks 808, and was invaded 809 by Pepin, whose ships were stranded and taken. In 829 the body of St. Mark is said to have been brought to V.; crowds of pilgrims were thus attracted, and, St. Mark was adopted as patron saint. Commercial relations were enlarged through the crusades. A great fire, 1106, led to the use of stone or marble in building. Johannes Comnenus having expelled the Venetians from his territories, they launched a fleet 1123, captured Rhodes, and sacked the Greek islands. In 1177, they defeated the Ghibellines, in defense of Pope Alexander III., who gave the Doge Ziani a ring, with which he bade him wed the Adriatic. The 4th crusade, which set out from V. 1202, having overthrown the Byzantine empire, the best of the territory acquired fell to V.; a fourth part of Constantinople was assigned as the Venetian quarter. Wealth and magnificence increased; art was cultivated; Venetian noblemen were the most polished in Europe. War with Genoa lasted 1256-80. The Council of 10 was formed 1310. A pestilence, 1348, reduced the population. The conspiracy of the Doge Marino Faliero led to his execution 1355. V. lost the carrying trade of the world after the discovery of Cape of Good Hope. The government became a reign of terror; the high character of her citizens departed. In 1797 Napoleon ceded the province to Austria by the treaty of Campo Formio. It was annexed to Italy 1806 by the treaty of Presburg; transferred to Austria 1814, and incorporated with kingdom of Italy 1866. V. has considerable commerce in hemp, cotton, silk, grain, oil, wine and petroleum. In the 15th century the trade was large. The manufactures are lace, silk, velvet, glass, mosaics, artificial pearls and flowers, jewelry and furniture, and shipbuilding. Pop., 1893, ab.151,000.

Venice, PEACE OF. 1177; between Frederick I. and Pope Alexander III.

Veni Creator Spiritus. One of the greatest of Latin hymns; variously ascribed, on inadequate evidence, to St. Ambrose, Gregory I., Charlemagne, Rabanus and Maurus; used in the Breviary for ordinations, and in English or other versions since ab.1520 by all Protestants.

Venire. Common law writ by which the sheriff was authorized to enforce the attendance of jurors upon a session of court.

Veni Sancte Spiritus. One of the sweetest of Latin hymns; usually ascribed, without reason, to Robert II. of France, and by S. W. Duffield to Herrmannus Contractus. It dates from ab.1200, and is in general use through English versions.

Venius, OTHO. See VAN VEEN.

Venn, HENRY, 1724-1797. Anglican Evangelical leader. His Complete Duty of Man, 1763, was long popular.

1599

Venn, JOHN, F.R.S., b.1834. English writer on logic. Vennor, HENRY GEORGE, 1840-1884. Canadian scientist, engaged on surveys 1865-81. Our Birds of Prey, 1875; Almanac, 1876-84; Weather Bulletin, 1882-83.

Venom. Secretion of certain reptiles and insects which proves poisonous when injected into the system by their bite or sting. See BITES and SOLENOGLYPHA.

Venomous Bites. See BITES and SOLENOGLYPHA.

Venous Blood. One of the uses of the blood is to convey oxygen from the air to the various tissues, where it assists in the performance of the vital activities, forming carbonic acid as one of the products. The conveying of the oxygen from the lungs to the part and of carbonic acid back to the lungs is performed by a substance of definite chemical composition, hemaglobin, found in the red corpuscles of the blood. When charged with oxygen it is known as oxyhemaglobin, is of a bright red color, and is carried by the arteries. The blood is distributed to the various parts of the body, the oxygen is given up and the carbonic acid is absorbed; the hemaglobin is then known as reduced hemaglobin, giving a darker red color to the blood, which is taken up by the veins to be conveyed to the heart, constituting venous blood.

Ventadour, HENRI DE LEVIS LA VOUTÉ, DUC DE, 1595-1651. Third Viceroy of Canada, 1625-27, which he administered from France, and endeavored to colonize with Jesuits, neglecting material interests.

Ventenat, ETIENNE PIERRE, 1757-1808. Librarian of the Pantheon in Paris. Tableau du règne végétal, 1794; Principes de botanique, 1795.

Ventilation. Combined operations of removing foul or vitiated air, and replacing it by fresh pure air. In buildings it is usually combined with heating. It may be natural, depending on differences of weight of two columns of equal height, one of impure and the other of pure air, which are of different temperatures; or it may be mechanical, using machines to displace the air. Mechanical ventilation may be by two systems, one exhausting foul air, depending on atmospheric pressure to supply the pure, the other, forcing in fresh air, which is expected to drive out the foul. These are known as the vacuum and plenum systems: both combined give the best results. Fan blowers are the most usual machines for this purpose (see BLOWER and FAN). Coils of steam pipes can be used to heat outlet flues and stimulate outflow. Each person requires 1,000 cubic ft. of air per hour, and should be furnished with from 3,000 to 3,600.

Ventimiglia. Fortified town of the Italian Riviera, near the French frontier, 3 m. from San Remo. Its cathedral, in

the Gothic style, stands on the site of a temple of Juno. By the sea are nine grottoes, with prehistoric human remains. Pop. 5,000.

Ventral. Relating to the belly or lower surface of an animal.

Ventral Plate. Thickened portion of the blastoderm of insects, destined to form the belly part of the larva. Ventral Segment. See LOOP.

Ventral Suture. Line of union of the margins of a carpellary leaf.

Ventricles. In Anatomy, the word is applied to certain cavities to be found in various organs, the most prominent being the ventricles of the heart and of the brain. The mammalian heart has four cavities: two auricles, receiving the blood from the veins, from which it flows into the other cavities, the ventricles, whence it is forced by the right ventricle through the pulmonary artery to the lungs, by the left through the general arterial system of the body.

Venturi Water Meter and Recording Gauge and Connections. measuring the pressures at the normal and at the contracted part, the quantity of water passing through can be determined, as in the venturi meter.

Venue. County in which a legal proceeding is to be conducted.

Venus. Roman goddess of spring, and from ab. 217 B.C. of love, being identified with APHRODITE (q.v.).

Venus. Second planet in order of distance from the sun, 67,200,000 m.; diameter, 7,700 m.; density, 4.85 that of water; mass, 0.78 that of the earth; period of revolution about the sun, 224.7 days; time of axial rotation, 23h. 21m. 23s. perhaps. Schiaparrelli concludes from recent observations that the time of axial rotation is the same as the period about the sun, 224.7 days. At greatest elongation its angular distance from the sun may be as great as 47° 45'. Next to the sun and moon, it is the most brilliant object in the heavens, and may frequently be seen in full daylight. Viewed through a telescope it presents phases like the moon and Mercury: there is an extensive atmosphere, but the markings seen on the surface are the faintest and vaguest possible; probably they are only clouds in the planet's atmosphere. Observers have at different times believed that they saw a satellite, but it is certain that none, corresponding to any of the descriptions, exists.

Venusberg. See TANNHAUSER.

Venus' Flower-basket. See HYALOSPONGIA.

Venus' Fly-trap. Dionaea muscipula. Insectivorous herb of the natural family Droseraceae, native of e. N. Carolina. Its leaves are irritable, closing quickly and firmly when an insect or other object alights on them. See INSECTIVOROUS PLANTS. Venus' Girdle. See CESTIDE.

Venus' Hair Stone. Dark quartz containing fine acicular or capillary crystals of rutile.

Venus' Looking-glass. Blue-flowered herbs of the genus Legonzia, natural family Campanulaceae, natives of N. America.

Vera, AUGUSTO, 1813-1885. Teacher of philosophy in France 1838-51: in England 1851-60; prof. Naples from 1862; tr. Hegel; prolific writer. Experimental Science, 1856; Speculative Logic, 1875.

Veracity. Disposition and habit of telling the truth under all circumstances.

Vera Cruz. Chief seaport of Mexico on the Gulf of Mexico; founded 1580, in place of one built by Cortes 1520; opposite the fortified islet of San Juan d'Ulloa; taken by the French 1838, and by Gen. Scott 1847. It is extremely unhealthy, and

Vera Cruz and Fort of St. John d'Ulloa.

of 27,454 sq. m., and is agricultural, raising tobacco, coffee, vanilla, cotton and hard woods. It has manufactures of cotton and cigars. Pop., 1893, ab. 642,000.

Augustinian pro

Vera Cruz, ALONSO DE LA, 1504-1584. vincial 1550; founder Univ. Mexico 1551; founder of Tarascan missions 1573.

Veragua. Province of n. w. Colombia, discovered by Columbus 1503, and granted him with the title of duke. He named the river which he ascended Verdes-Aguas, which was shortened to Veragua.

Verandrye, PIERRE GAUTIER DE VARENNES DE LA, 16851749. Canadian explorer, discoverer of the Rocky Mountains ab.1735.

Veratria. See VERATRINE.

Veratrine. Cз,H,,NO,. Alkaloid obtained from the white hellebore, and other species of Veratrum; greenish-white crystalline powder, inodorous, acrid and poisonous, and irritating to the tongue and nostrils. It is used externally in neuralgia.

Verazzano, or Verrazano, GIOVANNI DA, ab.1480-ab. 1527. Italian seaman and French privateer, who took a treasure-ship of Cortes 1523; sailed from Madeira Jan. 1524. explored the coast of N. America from Cape Fear to Nova Scotia, and returned to Dieppe in July, claiming to have discovered 700 leagues of coast; executed as a pirate in Spain. Verb. See PARTS OF SPEECH.

Verbal Orders. Orders given by word of mouth in times of emergency by an officer and transmitted through the recognized military channels have the authority of written orders. It is, however, fully recognized that orders are to be communicated in writing should they be asked for and time permit.

Verbeck, GUIDO FRIDOLIN, D.D., b. 1830. Dutch-American missionary and teacher in Japan since 1859; long in government employ; N. T. reviser. He tr. the Code Napoleon and other works into Japanese.

Verbeck, REINIER DIRK, b. 1841. Dutch engineer, long in E. Indies.

Verbena, or VERVAIN. Genus of herbs of the natural family Verbenacece, of wide geographical distribution. Many of the species bear showy flowers, and are cultivated for ornament.

Verbenaceae. Natural family of flowering plants, of the class Angiosperma, subclass Dicotyledons, and series Gamopetala, comprising ab.65 genera and 740 species, widely distributed throughout the warm regions of both hemispheres; called the Vervain family.

Verboeckhoven, EUGENE JOSEPH, 1799-1881. Flemish painter, especially of sheep.

Verbena (Verbena officinalis). Vercelli (anc. VERCELLE). Town of n. Italy, 40 m. s.w. of Milan; Piedmont: scene of a Roman defeat by Hannibal 218 B.C., and of Marius' victory over the Cimbri 101 B.C.; taken by Spaniards 1630, by French 1704, and by French and Allies 1706. Its cathedral library includes an early Latin MS. of the Gospels, and one of Anglo-Saxon homilies and poems, discov