TAP

696

TAR

but Tantalus was thrown into Tartarus, where he was punished■with perpetual hunger and thiist. He was chained in a lake ;the water of which reached up to his chin, but retired whenhe attempted to drink. The branch of a tree loaded with fruithung down even to his lips, but on his attempting to pluck thefruit the branch sprung upwards.

Tantalus, the Ibis, in ornithology, a genu3 of birds belongingto the order grallx-. Hill long, subulated, somewhat crooked; facenaked ; tongue short; feet with four toes palmated on the under-part. There are, according to Dr. Latham, twenty-three species,of which the most remarkable is the

T. Ibis, the Egyptian Ibis, the bird so much valued by theancient Egyptians for its utility in freeing the country from ser-pents. Mr. Bruce found a bird in Abyssinia, which, after com-paring it with the description of the ancient writers, and the em-balmed ibis of Egypt , he concludes is the same with the Egyptian' ibis. It is minutely described by Mr. Bruce. It has a beak

shaped like that of a curlew, two-thirds straight, and the remain-ing third crooked ; the upper part of a green horny substance, andthe lower part black. It measures four inches and a half from theocciput to the place where it joins the beak. The leg, from thelower joint of the thigh to the foot, is six inches ; the hone roundand very strong; and from the lower joint of the thigh to whereit joins the body, is five inches and a half. The height of thebody from the sole to the middle of the back is 19 inches; theaperture of the eye one inch; the feet and legs black ; three toesbefore armed with sharp and straight claws; and a toe behind.T. he head is brown, and the plumage of the same colour down tothe back, or the place where the back and neck are joined. Thethroat is white, as well as the back, breast, and thighs ; the largestfeathers of the wing are deep black for 13 inches from the tail;and six inches up the back from the extremity of the tail is blacklikewise.

Tantalus ’s Cup. See Hydrostatics.

TAOO, the most southern of the Friendly Islands, in the SouthPacific Ocean .

TAORMINA, a town of Sicily , in the valley of Demona.

TAOUKA, one of the Society Islands, in the South PacificOcean . Lon. 145. 9. W. Lat. 14. 30. S.

TAPER, or TAPERING, is understood of a piece of limber,or the like, when thick at one end, and gradually diminishing tothe other; as is the,case in pyramids, cones, &c.

Taper also denotes a kind of tall wax-candie, placed in a can-dlestick, and burnt at funeral processions, and other churchy so-lemnities.

Taper, Paschal, among the Romanists, is a large taper,whereon the deacon applies live bits of frankincense in holes madefor the purpose, in form of a cross; and which he lights with newfire in the ceremony of Euster-Salurday. The pontifical makesPope Zosimus the author of this usage ; but Baronius will have itmore ancient, and quotes a hymn ot Prudentius to prove it. F.Papebroch gives the original of the paschal-taper, in his CollatesChronico-II istoi icus, &c. Though the council of Nice regu-lated the day whereon Easter was to be celebrated, it enjoined thepatriarch of Alexandria to make a yearly canon thereof, and tosend it to the pope. As ail the other moveable feasts were regu-lated by that ot Easter , a catalogue of them was made every vear;and this was wiitten on a consecrated, taper, circus. This taper,according to the abbot Chastelain, was not made to be burnt; ithad no wick, and was only a column of wax, made to write thelist of moveable leasts on for the year. For the ancients, whenany tiling was to be written to last for ever, engraved it on mar-ble or sttel ; when it was to last a long while, they wrote it onEgyptian paper; and when it was only to last a short time, theywrote it on wax. They came at last to write the moveable feastson paper, but thev still fastened it to the paschal paper.

TAPESTRY is a kind of cloth made of wool and silk, adornedwith figures of diflerent animals, &c. and formeily used for liningthe walls of rooms, churches, &c. The art or weaving tapestry isborrow c- ! from t In-Saracens; accordingly the workmen employed inthis manufacture in France were formeily called Sarazlns, or Sara-zinois. Guicciardini ascribes the invention of tapestry-hangingsto the inhabitants of tiie Nelherland ; but he has not mentionedat what ume tin- discovery was made. This art was brought intoEngland by William Sheldon, near the end of Henry VIIPs

reign. In 1019 a manufacture was established at Mortlake, it*Surry, by Sir Francis Crane, who received 20001 . from kingJames to encourage it. The first manufacture of tapestry at Paris was set up by Henry IV. in 1006 or 1607, by several artists whomthat monarch invited from Flanders. Under Lewis XIV. themanufacture of the Gobelins was instituted, which introduced verybeautiful cloths, remarkable for strength, for elegance of design.,and a happy choice of colours. The finest paintings are copied,and eminent painters have been employed in making designs forthe work.

TAPIOCA, a species of starch which the Brazilians make fromthe roots of the cassad a plant.

TAPIR, tiie Elephant-Hog; in zoology, a genus of quadru-peds of tiie order beliux, resembling the Hippopotamus. Fore-feet witli four hoofs each; hind-feet three. There is only onespecies, viz.

T. Amkricanus, tiie American Tapir. The nose of themale extends far beyond the lower jaw, is slender, and forms asort of proboscis ; it is capable of being contracted or extended atpleasure, and its sides are sulcated. The extremities of botli jawsend in a point, and there are ten cutting teeth in each. Betweenthem aiui the grinders llu-re is a vacant space ; and there are tengrinders in eacli jaw. Tiie ears are erect, the eyes small, and thebody is shaped like that of a hog. Tiie back is arched ; tiie legsare short; and the hoofs small, black, and hollow. The tail isvery small. The animal grows 19 the size of a heifer half a yearold. Tiie hair is short: when young, it is spotted with white ;when old, of a dusky colour. Tliey inhabit the woods and riversof the east side oi South America, from the Isthmus of Darien totiie Amazon.

'FAR, a thick, black, unctuous substance obtained chiefly fromold pines and fir-trees, by burning them with a close smotheringheat. It is prepared in great quantities in Norway, Sweden, Ger-many-, Russia, and North America , and in other countries wherethe pine and fir abound.

'I'ar-Water, or water impregnated with the soluble parts oftar, was about a century ago a very popular remedy ; but is nowalmost entirely out of use.

TART, a town of Russia, inTobolskoi, on the Irtish ; 220 milesE. of Doholsk, and 264 W. N. W. of Kolivan.

TARANSA, or TARANSAY, one of the W’estern Islands ofScotland , 5 miles N. E. or Toe Head. Lon. 9. 0. W. Lat.58. 2. N.

TARANTO, the ancient Tarenlum, a sea-port-town of Naples,in Otranto , 50 miles S. E. ol Bari, and 14 E. by S. of Naples.

TARANTULA, a species of aranea, so called from Taranto ,where tliey abound. See Aranea.

TARARE, a town of France, in tiie department of the Rhone and Loire , and province of Lyonnois. Lon. 4. 34. E. Lat. 45.32. N.

TARr\SCON, a city of France, in the department of Arriege ,and province of Foix, 7 miles S. E. of Foix .

Tarascon, a town of France , in tiie department of the Mouthsof the Rhone, and province of Provence , 10 miles N. ofArles, and 375 S. bv E. oi Paris . Lon. 4. 45. W. Lat. 43.46. N.

TARAXIPPUS, a deity worshipped in Elis, whosuperintendedthe races and other games.

TARAZONA, a strong town of Spain , in Arrngon. near OldCastile, 127 miles N. E. of Madrid . L011. 1. 26. W. Lon. 42.10 . N.

TARBAT NESS, a cape of Scotland , outlie east coast of Ross-sliire, between the Friths of Dornoch, Cromarty, and Murray.

TAUBES, a populous city of France , capital of the departmentof the Upper Pyrenees, 42 miles S. W. of Auch, and 112 S. by E.of liourdeaux. Lon. 0. 9. E. Lat 43. 14. N.

TARBOROUGI1, or TARBURGIl, a town of North Caro-lina , capital of Edgecombe county, 40 miles N. W. of Washington,and 419 S. W. of Philadelphia .

TARCHONANTUUS, Flea-bane; in botany, a genus ofplants belonging to tiie class syngenesia, and order poiygamiaagpialis ; na iiral order Composita:. Receptacle villous ; pappusplumy: calyx one-leafed, turbinate, half-divided into seven » e g"incuts. There are three species.

'PARE, or VETCH, in botany. See Vicia.

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