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DiPUS tlie Jerboa, a genus ot the class mammalia, orderglues. Two front teeth in the upper, and in the under jaw; torelegs very short, hind legs very long; clavicles in the skeleton;tail long, and tulted at the tip. There are six species.
D. Sagitta, or the Egyptian jerboa of Pennant, is about thesize of a rat, and was know n to the ancients by the name of thetwo-tooted mouse. It is to be met with in various parts of Africa,and in the eastern provinces of Siberia . In its posture and move-ment it greatly resembles a bird.' It stands on its hind teet, andrarely places its fore feet to the ground, employ ing them almostexclusively in applying food to its mouth, in the same manner asthe kauguroo. See Plate LXVI.
D. Tamaricinus, the Marsh Jerboa, or TamariskMouse, of Dr. Pallas, has live toes behind, and three before, withthe rudiments of a fourth ; the tail is obscurely annulated. Thebody and head measure about 5| inches in length; the tail is aboutthe same length. This species inhabits live salt marshes near theCaspian sea; and is supposed to feed on the fruit of the tamarixand nitrarium, which grow in these marshes. Under the roots ofthese trees it forms very deep burrows, which have two entrances.It is a very elegant little animal. See Plate LX /I.
D11CE, the general name of the three Furies in the Pagan my-thology. They were so called, as being quasi Deorum trie, theministers of divine vengeance in punishing guilty souls after death.They were the daughters of Acheron and Night. See Furies.
DIRCA, a genus of the monogynia order, and octandria classof plants; natural ortler, Vepreculai. No calyx ; corolla tubular,with the limb indistinct; stamina longer than the tube; berrymonospermous. There is one species, a small shrub of North.America.
DIRECT, in astronomy'. A planet is said to be direct when itappears to an observer on the earth to go forward in the zodiac,or according to the succession of the signs. See Astronomy.
Direct, in matters of genealogy, is understood of the principalline, or the line of ascendants and descendants, in contradistinc-tion to the collateral line. The heirs in the direct lines alwaysprecede those in the collateral lines.
Direct Ray, in optics, is a ray flowing from a point of a visi-ble object directly to the eye, through one and the same medium.
Direct East and West Dials, dials drawn upon planes thatdirectly face the east and west points of the horizon, or are parallel tothe meridian. See Dialing.
Direct South and North Dials, are those which face di-rectly the north and south points of the horizon, or parallel to theprime vertical circle. See Dialing.
DIRECTION, in mechanics, signifies the line or path of a bo-dy’s motion, along which it endeavours to proceed according tothe force impressed upon it. See Mechanics.
Direction, Islands of, four small islands at the W. entranceof the straits of Magellan.
DIRECTOR, in commercial polity, a person who has the ma-nagement of the affairs of a trading company: thus we say the di-rectors of the India company, South-sea company, ic c. SeeCompany.
Director, in surgery, a grooved probe, to direct the edge ofthe knife or scissars in opening sinuses or fistula-, that the adjacentvessel, nerves, and tendons, may not be hurt. See Surgery.
DIRGE, in music, a solemn and mournful composition, per-formed at funeral processions. The dirge was in very general usewith the ancients, and was numerously filled both by voices.andinstruments.
DIRGIIAW, or DIRCIIAU, a fortified town'of WesternPrussia , in the province of Pomorellis.
DIRIBITORES, among the Romans, officers appointed todistribute tablets to the people at the.comitia.
DIRIGEN'T, or DIRECTRIX, a term in geometry, signify-ing the line of motion along which the describent line, or surface,is carried in the genesis of any plane, or solid figure: thus, if theline AI3, Plate LIV. fig. 10, move along the line AC , so that thepomt A always keeps in the line AC , a parallelogram, as ABC D,will be formed, of which the side A Bis the describent, and theline AC the dirigent; so also, if the surface ABCD be supposedto be carried along C E, in a position always parallel to itself in itsfirst situation, the solid AI) FI I will be formed, where the surfaceAD is tiie describent, and the line CE the dirigent. *
■DIS, an inseparable particle used in composition, implying4
commonly a privative or negative signification of the word towhich it is joined; as to arm, to disarm; to join, to disjoin. Itis borrowed from ties, used by the Fiench and Spaniards m thatsense; as desnour to untie; desterar, to banish; from the Eatindc ; as struo, to build ; destruo, to destroy.
Dis signifies alsoa separation, detachment, &c. as disposing,distributing.
Dis, in geography, a town of Norfolk, 19 miles S. of Norwich.Dis, m mythology, a god of the Gauls , the same as Pluto, thegod ot hell. The ancient inhabitants ot Gaul supposed themselvesdescended from that deity.
D1SA, a genus of the gynandria diandria class and order.Spalhe one-valved; petals three, the third less, two-parted, gib-bous at the base. There are four species, herbaceous plants ofthe Cape, with beautiful blue (lowers.
DISABILITY, in law, is when a man is disabled, or made in-capable to inherit any lands, or take that benefit which otherwisehe might have done. This may happen four ways; 1st, by theact of an ancestor; ad, of the party ; 3d, by tiie act of God ; or,4th, of the law. 1. Disability by the act of the ancestor, is wherethe ancestor is attainted of high treason, ike. which corrupts tiieblood of his children, so that they may not inherit his estate. 2.Disability bv the act of the party, is where a man binds himself byobligation, that, upon surrender of a lease, he will grant a newestate to a lessee; and afterwards he grants over the reversion toanother, which puts it out of his power to perform it. 3. Disabi-lity bv the act of God , is where a man is non same memoriae,whereby lie is incapable to make any grant, 3;c. So that, if hepasses an estate out of him, it may alter his death be made void;but it is a maxim in law, “ 'I hat a man of lull age shall never bereceived to disable his own person.” 4. Disability by the act ofthe law, without any thing by him done, is rendered incapable ofthe benefit of the law; as an alien horn, &c.
DISANDRA, a genus of the digynia order, and heptandriaclass of plants. Calyx seven-leaved ; corolla seven-parted, flat;capsule two-celled. It has two species, natives ol Africa andMadeira.
DISAPPOINTMENT Baa', a bay on the N.W. coast ofNorth America . Lon. 129. 0. VV. Lat. 52. 15. N.
Disappointment, Island or-, a cluster of small islands, inthe South Pacific Ocean . They were discovered by CoinniqdoreByron in 17&5. These islands abound with cocoa trees, and tur-tles are plentiful on the coasts. Lon. from 141.5. to 141. 10. E.Lat. from 14. 5. to 14. 10. S.
DISARMING, in law, the prohibiting of people to wear arms.It is an offence by the common law of England for persons to goor ride armed with dangerous and uncommon weapons: thoughentlemen may wear common armour, according to their quality,t is also ordained by statute, that no persons shall come heiorcthe king’s justices with force of arms, on pain of imprisonment,Sic.
DISC, [discus,] in antiquity, a quoit made of stone, iron, orcopper, live, or six lingers broad, and more than a foot long, in-clining to an oval figure, which was hurled in the manner of abowl, to a va-d distance, by the help of a leathern thong tied roundthe person’s hand who threw it, and put through a liole in themiddle.
Disc, in astronomy, the face of the Sun or Moon , such as itappears to us on the earth ; or the face of the earth, such as it ap-pears lo a spectator in the Moon . The disc in eclipses is suppos-ed to he divided into twelve equal parts, called digits ; in a totaleclipse of the luminaries, the whole disc is obscured ; in a partialeclipse, only a part of it. See Astronomy.
Disc, in botany, is an aggregate of lloietsiorming, as it were,a plane surface.
Disc, in optics, is the width of the aperture of telescopicglasses, whatever their form be, whether plane, convex, con-cave, See.
DISCHARGE, is where a man confined by some legal pro-cess, performs that which the law requires, and is released iromthe matter for which he is confined. 11 an obligee discharge oneobligor where several are jointly bound, it discharges the others.See 'Arrest , Bond, Payment.
DISCIPLE, [diseijiulus, Latin, ] a scholar ; one that professesto receive instructions from another.
Discii-les, in the Christian sense, were the followers of Jesus