MIN'IM, from minimum, least. 1. A note in music equal to half a semibreve.-2. The one-sixtieth of a fluid drachm, answering to the old drop, taking water as the standard. MIN'IMA. In mathematics, see MAXIMA ET MINIMA. MIN'IMS. An order of Franciscans at Minimi, founded by St. Francis de Paula. MINIMUM. 1. The least, as distinguished from maximum, the greatest.2. In pharmacy, a minim. MIN'ION. A small description of printing type, a size larger than nonpareil. The term is from French menu, small, not mignon, a favourite. MIN'ISTER (Latin). Persons to whom the sovereign intrusts the administration of government are termed ministers of state, and the chief is the prime minister. MINIUM. Red oxide of lead, or redlead. MINK. An amphibious quadruped, the Mustelea luteola, Pall., much esteemed for its fur. It frequents the banks of rivers, &c. in the north and east of Europe, from the Arctic Ocean to the Black Sea, and lives on frogs and crabs. It is also found in America. MINNEHÖFE (Germ.). Courts of love; the German name of the cours d'amour, so famous in the history of chivalry. MINNESINGERS. The 'most ancient school of German poets, whose name is derived from the word minne, love. MINORITY. Used in opposition to majority. From minor, less, smaller. Used chiefly of persons of an assembly (as in parliament) voting upon some question. Also, the period during which the sovereign is incapable of exercising his authority, being under age. In law, it is simi larly the state of an individual of either sex, who is under the age at which civil rights can be exercised. MINOR TERM, OF A SYLLOGISM, is the subject of the conclusion; the minor premise contains the minor term. In hypothetical syllogisms, the categorical premise is called the minor. MIN'STRELS, Germ. minne, love. A class of men, in the middle ages, who subsisted by the arts of poetry and music. MINT, Sax. mynet, stamped coin. The place where money is coined by public authority. Formerly there were several mints in Great Britain; but coining being now regarded as a royal prerogative, the whole business has been transferred to an establishment on Tower Hill, where there are eight coining presses, capable of striking about 20,000 pieces an hour, almost constantly at work. See MILLING. MINUET', Fr. from menu, small. 1. A slow graceful dance, consisting of a coupee, a high step, and a balance.2. The tune or air played to regulate the movements in the minuet. MIN'UTE, Lat. minutum. A small portion (1.) of time, the sixtieth part of an hour, and comprehends sixty seconds. (2.) Of an arc, the sixtieth part of a degree, mark', and comprehending sixty seconds. 3. In architecture, the sixtieth part of the diameter of a column. MIN'UTE GUNS. At sea, guns fired every minute as a signal of distress from a vessel. Also, in mourning for great persons. MINX. A name of the Mustela leuteocephala, Harl. A North American animal, known to furriers by the name of white vision. MIOCENE, from pov, less, and xaivos, recent. The name given by Lyell to a subdivision of the tertiary. See EOCENE. MIQUELETS. A species of partisan troops raised in the north of Spain. MIRA. A singular star in the neck of Cetus: it appears and disappears periodiIcally seven times in six years, whence the name. At its greatest brilliancy it is a star of the third magnitude. MIRAGE. The name given by the French to an optical deception produced by refraction, and in which a distant ship appears as if transferred to the sky, and a village in the desert as if built in a lake. MIRROR. A looking-glass, from Lat. miror, to admire. Any polished body impervious to the rays of light, and which reflects them equally, is a mirror. Mirrors were anciently made of metal, but at present they are generally smooth plates of glass, tinned or silvered on the back; and are either plane, convex, or concave. The first sort reflect the rays in a direction similar to that by which they fall upon it, and therefore represent bodies of their natural size; but the convex ones make the rays diverge, and therefore diminish the images of those objects which they exhibit; while again the concave ones, by collecting the rays into a focus, not only magnify the objects which they show, but serve the same purposes as burning-glasses do when exposed to the rays of the sun, and the body to be ignited is placed in their foci; hence they are commonly known by the name of burning-mirrors. MIRZA. The common style of honour in Persia, when it precedes the surname of an individual; when appended it signifies a prince. MISCH'NA. A part of the Jewish TalMISH'NA. mud, being a digest of traditions and explanations of scripture. MISDEMEANOR. In law, an offence which does not amount to a crime. Crimes and misdemeanors are synonymous terms, though in common usage the word crime is made to denote such offences as are of a more atrocious kind, while smaller faults, and omissions of less consequence, are comprised under the gentler name of misdemeanors. than that required by Magna Charta. When a person is outrageously amerced in a court that is not of record, the writ called moderata misericordia lies for moderating the amercement, according to the nature of the fault. MISFEA'SANCE. In law, a trespass; from Fr. mes, wrong, and faisance, from faire, to do. MISTLETOE, Sax. mistlelta. A parasitical plant, the Viscum album, which always grows on trees, and was held sacred by the Druids, especially when found on the oak, their sacred tree. It is the of the Greeks, and was by them thought to possess many medicinal virSee VISCUM. tues. MISNO'MER. 1. In law, a misnaming or mistaking of a person's name.-2. An indictment or other act vacated by a wrong name. From old Fr. mes, wrong, and nommer, to name. MISPRIS'ION. In law, any high offence under the degree of capital, but approaching thereto; from Fr. mépris; from mes, wrong, and prendre, to take. Misprisions are negative and positive: they are negative when they consist in the concealment of something which ought to have been revealed, and positive when they consist in the commission of something which ought not to have been done. MIS'SAL. The mass-book of the Romish Church; from mass (q. v.) MIST, Sax. mist. Water in minute but solid drops, descending from the atmosphere. See FOG. MITCH'EL. Purbeck stones of 15 inches by two feet, when squared for building, are thus named by the workmen. MITE, Sax. mite. 1. In entomology. See ACARUS. 2. A small coin, formerly current, equal to about the third of a farthing. Also a small weight, used by moneyers, equal to about the twentieth part of a grain, and divided into 24 doits. MITH'RAS. The grand Deity of the Persians. MITH'RIDATE. A pharmaceutical preparation named after Mithridates, king of Pontus and Bithynia, who took a dose of it every morning to protect him against poison. In those days it consisted of rue, walnuts, figs, and salt; but its ingredients were afterwards increased in number to 61. At present it is simply an aromatic opiate, and is little used. MITRAL VALVE. The valve of the ori MISE. A Norman-French term, used in law books in various senses. (1.) An issue to be tried at the grand assize. (2.) Expense; in this sense commonly used in entering judgments in actions personal.fice of the left ventricle of the heart; so (3.) In Wales, an honorary gift by the people-to a new prince of Wales. (4.) A tribute paid in the county palatine of Chester, at the charge of the owner of the earldoms. MISERICOR'DIA. In law, an arbitrary fine imposed for an offence; so called because the amercement ought to be less named from its resemblance to a mitre. MITRE, Fr. from Lat. mitra, a cap worn by the Roman ladies. 1. A sacerdotal ornament worn on the head by bishops and some other ecclesiastics on solemn occasions; being a sort of cap pointed and cleft at the top.-2. A diagonal juncture of two pieces of wood, stone, &c., by the formation of an indenture in MOD'EL, from modulus, dim. of modus, each, corresponding to one another, so mode. I. A form in miniature of somethat the two surfaces coincide when thing to be made on a larger scale, as a brought together. This mode is some-model of a building.-2. An imitation times employed to hide a dovetail, and is in miniature of something already made called lap-and-mitre joint. on a large scale, as a model of a mounMITRE-BOX. A block or frame for cut-tain, showing its geological structure, &c. ting mitres. MITRE-DRAINS. Cross mitre drains. The drains laid within the metalling of roads, to convey the water to the side drains. MITTIMUS. In law, a precept or command in writing, under the name and seal of a justice of the peace, or other proper officer, directed to the gaoler or keeper of a prison for the safe keeping of an offender until he be delivered by due course of law. The term is Latin for we send. MOD'ELLING. In the fine arts, the art of making a mould, from which works in plaster are to be cast.-Also, forming in clay the design itself. MODERA'TO. An Italian word, meaning moderately, implying in music a time neither quick nor slow; rather quicker than andante. MODERATOR. A person who presides at a public assembly, to propose questions, preserve order, regulate the proceedings and declare votes. From modus, a limit. modiolus. 1. An ornament in the cornice MODIL'LION, Fr. modillon, from Lat. under the corona in the Ionic, Corinthian, and Composite orders of architecture, resembling a bracket, supporting the pro MIZZEN, from Ital. mezzo, half. The foremost of the fixed sails of a ship, extended sometimes by a gaff, and sometimes by a yard, which crosses the mast obliquely. The mizzen-mast supports the after sails, and stands nearest to the stern.jecture of the larmier or drip. Cantilever See MAST. MNEMON'ICS, from pevnovizos, from μνασμαι, to remember; the art of memory. Precepts and rules intended to teach the method of assisting the memory. MO'CHA STONE. Translucent calcedony, containing dark outlines of arborisation, like vegetable filaments, so named from Mocha in Arabia, where it is chiefly found. MOCK'ING-BIRD. The Turdus polyglottus, Lin., of North America, celebrated for the astonishing facility with which it imitates the notes of other birds, and even all kinds of sounds. is sometimes used synonymously with modillion. 2. The trochite or single joints of the rays of a fossil star-fish are sometimes termed modioli. MODI'OLUS, Lat. dim. of modius. A measure. In anatomy, the central pillar of the cochlea of the ear. MO'DIUS. An ancient Roman measure for dry grain, nearly equal to an imperial peck. MO'DO ET FOR'MA. In manner and form. A phrase frequently used in legal pleadings. MODULATION. In music, the manner of ascertaining and managing the modes, or generally the art of conducting harmony. MODE, Lat. modus. Manner of existing or being. In logic, a proper disposition of the several parts of a syllogism in respect to quantity and quality: called also syllogistic mood. In grammar, a particular manner of conjugating verbs, to express manner of action or being, as affirmation, command, condition, and the like: often written mood. In music, a regular disposition of the air and accompaniments, relative to certain principal sounds, on which the piece is formed, and which are called the essential sounds of the mode. In metaphysics, a mode is that which cannot subsist in and of itself, but is esteemed as belonging to and subsisting by the help of some substance, which, for that reason, is called its sub-modus alone is commonly used. ject. (Watts). Those modes are simple which are only combinations of the same idea, as a dozen, which consists of so many units added together; and those are mixed which are compounded of simple ideas of several kinds, as beauty, which is compounded of colour and form. MOD'ULE, Fr. from Lat. modulus. A term in architecture, for a certain measure taken at pleasure for regulating the proportion of columns, and the disposition and symmetry of the whole building. The module of a column is usually its semidiameter at the base, equal to 30 minutes. MOD'ULUS. In analysis, the constant multiplier in a function of a variable quantity, by means of which the function is accommodated to a particular system. Mo'DUS. A compensation for tithes: a moderate equivalent in money, given by the owner of land in lieu of tithes. The whole phrase is modus decimandi, but MO'DUS OPERAN'DI. Mode of operating. MOGRA'BIANS. Formerly a species of Turkish infantry, composed of the peasants of the north of Africa. MO'GUL, GREAT. The chief of the empire of Mogul. The empire is now extinct. MOHAIR', Ger. mohr. The hair of a variety of the common goat, peculiar to the vicinity of Angora, in Asia Minor. It is manufactured into camlets and other expensive stuffs. MOHAIR'-SHELL. A species of voluta, resembling stuff of mohair on the surface. MOHAMMEDANS. Followers of the religion of Mohammed, the founder of Mohammedanism, the doctrines and precepts of which are contained in the Koran. MOIDO'RE. A Portuguese coin worth twenty-seven shillings sterling. MOIN'EAU (Fr.). A small flat bastion, raised in front of an intended fortification, to defend it from the approaches by means of small arms. MOIRE'E METAL'LIQUE. Crystallised tinplate: a variegated appearance produced upon the surface of tin-plate, by wetting its surface, when in a heated state, with nitro-hydrochloric acid (aqua regia), washing it with water, and finally coating it with lacquer. The figures vary, according to the strength of the acid employed and the degree of heat to which the plate is raised. MO'LAR-TEETH. Molares Dentes. The grinding teeth. From molaris, a grind stone. MO'LAR-GLANDS. Molares Glandulæ. Two salivary glands situated on each side of the mouth, the excretory ducts of which open near the last dens molaris. MOLAS'SE, from mollis, soft. A soft sandstone of the tertiary strata, employed by the Swiss under this name, for building. MOLE. 1. Lat. moles, a mound. A massive work of large stones erected for the purposes of protecting the entrances to harbours. See BREAKWATER.-2. Sax. mæl, a mark. A small permanent protuberance on the human body, from which usually issue one or more hairs.-3. Lat. mola. A general name with some authors for all those fleshy substances otherwise called polypi, and with others for every coagulum of blood which continues so long in the uterus as to assume somewhat of an organised form.-4. Dut. mol. A well-known subterranean animal. See TALPA. resembling the sails of a windmill. Applied to seeds which have many wings. MOL'LAH. The title of the higher order of judges in Turkey. MOLLE (It.). In music, a sound that is flat as compared to another a semitone higher. MOLLITIES, Softness; Lat. from mollis, soft. Applied to bones, nails, &c., when preternaturally soft. MOLLUS'CA. Molluscs. A great division of invertebrated animals, comprehending, according to Cuvier, six classes, viz. :— Cephalopoda, Pteropoda, Gasteropoda, Acephala, Brachiopoda, and Cirrhopoda, in all of which, as the name imports (mollusca, a soft nut, or nut with a soft shell), the body is of a soft consistence, inclosed in a muscular envelope, called the mantle. The pulmonary circulation is double; the blood is white or rather bluish; the skin is very sensible, and as no particular organ of smell has been detected in them, although they enjoy that sense, it has been conjectured to reside in the whole skin. Those in which the mantle is simply membranous or fleshy, are termed naked mollusca, but most frequently the animal is provided with a calcareous covering called a shell, and the animal is then said to be testaceous. SHELL. See MO'LOCH. The chief God of the Phonicians. MOLYBDE'NA. The ore of molybdenum. It is a sulphuret of that metal, and is very similar in its properties to plumbago: whence the name μovedana, plumbago. MOLYBDENUM. The metal obtained from the substance called molybdena. It has not yet been reduced to masses of much size, but is readily obtained in small separate globules, by exposing its acid mixed with charcoal to an intense heat. MOLYB'DIC ACID. An acid obtained in fine white scales (which become yellow on melting and subliming them), by roasting molybdena, dissolving it in water of ammonia, and adding nitric acid to the solution. MOLYB'DOUS ACID. Deutoxide of molybdenum. It is of a blue colour, and possesses acid properties. finitesimal, increment, or decrement (q. v.). MOLECULE, Lat. molecula, dim. of moles, a mass, a particle. Molecules are the MO'MENT. 1. An indefinitely small porsmallest particles into which a mass can tion of time, having the same relation to be conceived to be divided. They are duration that a point has to a line.—2. distinguished into integrant and consti-In mathematical analysis, the same as intuent. Integrant molecules are the smallest particles into which a simple body can be conceived to be divided, or the smallest particles into which a compound body can be conceived to be divided, without being resolved into its elements. Constituent molecules are the molecules of each element which form an integrant molecule of a compound. MOLENDINA CEOUS, from mola, a mill; MOMENTUM. The quantity of motion in a moving body. The term is Latin, contracted from motamentum. The momentum of a body is the product of its mass into its velocity. MO'MIERS, Fr. momery, mummery. A name applied to certain religionists of the so-called Evangelical party MOMOR'DICA. A genus of herbaceous |