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uy dispatches. The word is also used for the packet or mail con-taining such letlers.

DISPENSARY, a kind of charitable institution, of late yearsvery prevalent in Britain ; particularly in London, Edinburgh ,Newcastle, Dundee, Kelso, &c. They are distinguished by dif-ferent titles, as the General Dispensary, the Royal Universal Dis-pensary, &c. They are supported by voluntary subscriptions,have each one or more physicians and surgeons, whose business isto attend at stated times, to prescribe for the poor ; and, if neces-sary, to visit them at their own habitations. It is in this latterrespect, that the patients of a dispensary differ from those calledout patients at an hospital. Tire poor are supplied gratis withmedicines, and many of these institutions also afford gratuitousassistance to lying-in women. Formerly there were three dispen-saries established in London , for selling medicines to the poor atprime cost, under the direction of the College of Physicians. InChina , the medicines are not dispensed gratis, but money is givento the poor to purchase them. The Chinese have a stone, tencubits nigh, erected in the public squares of their cities: on thisstone are engraved the names of all sorts of medicines with theprice of each; and when the poor stand in need of any relief fromphysic, they go to the treasury, where they receive the price eachmedicine is rated at.

Dispensary, or Dispensatory, denotes a book containingthe method of preparing the various kinds of medicines used inpharmacy. Such are those of Bauderon, Quercetan, Zwelfer.Chara,Bates, Mesne, Salmon, Leinery, Quincy, &c. but the latest andmost esteemed, besides the London and Edingburgh Pharmaco-poeias is the Edinburgh New Dispensatory, being an improvementupon that of Dr. Lewis.

DISPENSATION, in law, the granting of a licence of doingsome certain action that otherwise is not permitted. The greatestdealer in dispensations is the Pope,who claims the office jure divino,and extends it to every thing. The more moderate of the Ro-manists themselves deny that he can give a dispensation for anything contrary to the divine law ; or the law of nature ; and coniinehim to what is contrary to positive laws, or to things relating to fasts,marriages, holding several benefices, &c. and they limit him evenin these things. The archbishop of Canterbury has a power, bystatute, of dispensing in any cause wherein dispensations were for-merly granted by the see of Rome ; and as well to the king as hissubjects; and (luring the vacancy of the archbishop’s see, theguardian ot the spiritualities may grant dispensations.

DISPERSION, in optics, the same with the divergency of therays of light.

Dispersion of Inflammation, in medicine and surgery isthe removing of the inflammation, and restoring of the inflamedpart to its natural state.

Dispersion, Point of, in dioptrics, the point from which re-fracted rays begin to diverge, where their refraction renders themdivergent.

DISPLAYED, in heraldry is applied to the position of aneagle, or any other bird, when it is erect, with its wings expanded.

DISPONDEE, or DISPONDEUS, in the Creek and Latin poetry, a double spondeus or foot, consisting of four long syllables;

US lilt

DISPOSE! ION, in architecture, the just placing of the severalparts of an edifice according to their nature and office.

Disposition, in human nature. In every man there is some-thing original, that serves to distinguish him from others, that tendsto form a character, and to make him meek or fiery, candid ordeceitful, resolute or timorous, cheerful or morose. ’ This origi-nal bent, termed disposition, must be distinguished from a princi-ple: the titter signifying a law ot human nature, makes part of thecommon nature of man; the former makes part of the nature ofthis or that man. Propensity is a name common to botli; for itsignifies a principle as well as a disposition.

Disposition, in oratory. See Oratory.

Disposition, in painting. See Painting.

Disposition, in Scots law, a deed or writing w hirh containsthe grant of any subject: when "ed to heritable subjects, itin some cases gets the name of charter, which differs from a dispo-sition in noth'll# else than a lew immaterial forms.

DISPROPORTION, a general term for any kind of irregu-larity, or want of proportion in the parts of a thing. See Pro-portion.

DISPROVING, in rhetoric and logic, the same with refutation.See Refutation.

DISPUTATION , in the schools, a contest, either by wordor writing, 011 some point of learning for a degree, prize, or for anexercise. See Degree and Thesis.

DISQUISITION, a serious and exact examination into thecircumstances of any affair, in order to discourse clearly about it.See Reasoning, and Logic.

DISSECTION , in anatomy, the cutting up of a body, with aview of examining the structure and use of the parts. See Ana-tomy.

DISSEISIN, in law, an unlawful dispossessing of a person of hislands or tenements. It is of two sorts, either single disseisin, whichis committed without force of arms, or disseisin by force of arms,mure properly termed deforcement. The disturbing of a personfrom entering on his land, or hindering of him from tilling it, areboth disseisins of land; and denial of rent, when lawfully demanded,is a desseisin of the rent. If a disseisor, after he has expelled theright owner, gains peaceable possession of the lands five years,without claim, and continues in possession so as to die seised, andthe land descends to his heirs, they will have a right to the pos-session till the owner recovers at law ; and here the owner shalllose his estate for ever, if he do not persecute his suit within thetime limited by the statute of limitations.

DISSEISOR, a person who is guilty of disseisin.

DISSENTERS, separatists from the service and worship of thechurch of England . At the revolution a law was enacted, that thestatutes of queen Elizabeth and king James I. concerning the dis-cipline of the church, should not extend to the Protestant dissen-ters. Persons dissenting, however, are to subscribe the declara-tion of 30 Car. U. cap. I. and take the oath of fidelity, kc. Be-sides, they are not to hold their meetings till their place of wor-ship is certified to the bishop, or to the justices of the quarter-ses-sions, and registered. Also they are not to keep the doors of theirmeeting-houses locked during the time of divine service. Andto secure to them the free exercise of their religion, whoever dis-turbs or molests them in the performance of divine worship, onconviction of the sessions is to forfeit tw enty pounds by the statute1 William and Mary . Unless dissenters conform and receive thesacrament as administered by the church of England , they are ex-cluded from holding any public places under the government.Dissenters chosen to any parochial or ward offices, and scruplingto take the oaths, may execute the office by deputy, who shallcomply with the law in this behalf. But it seems they are notsubject to fine, or refusing to serve corporation offices ; for theymay object the validity of their election, on the ground of theirown non-conformity.

DISSi MILAR, in general, an appellation given to things whichare unlike: thus the seminal of first leaves of plants, are calleddissimilar, as being generally of a different figure from those of thegrown plants.

Dissimilar Parts, in anatomy, those compounded of parts ofvarious structure, such are all the limbs of the body.

DISSIM I LEI UDE, in general, denotes whatever constitutesthe difference between two dissimilar tilings.

Dissimilitude, in rhetoric, an argument wherein from dissimi-lar, or unlike things, other dissimilars are deduced, as in thefollowing argument from Catullus .

Soles orcidere k redire possunt.

Nobis cum semel orcidit brevis lux,

Nox est perpetua una dormienda.

Voss, de institut. orator.

DISSIPATION, in physics, an insensible loss or consumptionof the minute parts of the body ; or that ilux u hereby they liy otf,and are lo't. See Effluvia.

Dissipation, Circle of, in optics, is used for that circularspace upon the retina, which is taken by one of the extremepencils or ravs issuing from an object.

DISSOLVENT, in general, whatever dissolves or reduces asolid bmlv into such minute parts as to be sustained in a fluid.

DISSOI.UI ION, in ehemistrv, the same with solution.

Dissolution, in music, is when a sound in the enharmonicgenus is lowered three dieses; for thereby that genus is dissolved,and the music, or that interval at least is chromatic.

DISSONANCE, in music, the same with discord. See Dis-cord.

DISSYLLABLE,.