VEN 



VER 



arise out of any peculiarity in the vena- 

 tion, but from the particular form of the 

 leaves themselves. 



9. Feather-veined, in which the pri- 

 mary veins of a netted leaf pass in a 

 right line from the midrib to the margin, 

 as in castanea. This has the same rela- 

 tion to the radiating leaf as the curve- 

 veined bears to the straight-veined. It 

 is the folium penninervium of De Can- 

 doUe. 



10. Hidden-veined, when the veins are 

 hidden from view by the parenchyma 

 being in excess, as in hoya. Such a leaf 

 is often inaccurately called veinless. De 

 Candolle calls a leaf of this nature, in 

 which the veins are dispersed through a 

 large mass of parenchyma, as in mesem- 

 bryanthemum, folium vaginervium. 



11. The direction which the primary 

 veins take when they diverge from the 

 midrib, can be denoted by measuring the 

 angle formed by the midrib and the di- 

 verging vein, and can be stated either 

 in distinct words or by applying the 

 following terms : — thus, if the angle 

 formed by the divergence is between 10° 

 and 20°, the vein may be said to be nearly 

 parallel (subparallela) ; if between 20° 

 and 40°, diverging ; between 40° and 60°, 

 spreading; between 60° and 80°, divari- 

 cating ; between 80° and 90° right-angled ; 

 between 90° and 120°, oblique; beyond 

 120°, rejlexed (retroflexa). 



VENE'RIDiE. A family of macro- 

 trachian bivalves, named from the genus 

 Venus, and characterized by the mode- 

 rate length of the two siphons, which are 

 sometimes united. 



VENT-PEG. The pressure of the 

 atmosphere, transmitted as it is in all 

 directions with a weight of about fifteen 

 pounds on the square inch, prevents the 

 flow of liquids from a small aperture of 

 a vessel, unless the pressure be admitted 

 to the surface of the liquid. The vent- 

 peg is, therefore, raised in order to ad- 

 mit the air to the surface of a liquid 

 which is to be drawn off from a closed 

 vessel. 



VENTRAL {ventrr, the belly). A 

 term applied, in Botany, to that suture of 

 the legume to which the seeds are at- 

 tached, the opposite being called the dor- 

 sal suture. 



VENTRICOSE {venter, the belly). 

 Bellying ; swelling unequally on one 

 side ; as the corolla of many labiate and 

 personate plants. 



VENTRI'CULITES. A genus of 

 spongoid zoophytes found in the ere 

 363 



taceous system, having their porous 

 tissue penetrated by distinct ventricles 

 or foramina, sometimes of large dimen- 

 sions, and with a certain degree of regU' 

 larity. 



VENUS. The most beautiful of all 

 the stars. Her mean distance from the 

 sun is seventy millions of miles ; her 

 apparent diameter varies from 30" to 

 184". Her rotation on her axis takes 

 place in 23d. 21' 19", and the period of her 

 revolution round the sun is 224d. 16h 49'. 

 When Venus is in that part of her orbit 

 which gives her the appearance of being 

 west of the sun, she rises before him, 

 and is then called the morning star ; and 

 when she appears east of the sun, she is 

 behind him in her course, and is then 

 called the evening star. 



VERA'S CORD-PUMP. An endless 

 cord, running round two wheels, descends 

 below the surface of the water, which it 

 raises by means of the adhesion subsist- 

 ing between the liquid and the cord, to 

 which a rapid motion is imparted by the 

 upper wheel. On this effect of adhesion 

 depend writing with ink, colour drawing, 

 the smearing of metals, especially iron, 

 with oil or grease, to protect them from 

 rust. 



VERA'TRIC ACID. An acid with 

 which the alkali veratria is combined in 

 cebadilla, the seed of the helonias offi- 

 cinalis. 



VERB {verbum, a word). That part of 

 speech which expresses the action or 

 being of a thing, and which is usually 

 the principal word of a sentence. A verb 

 is called active-transitive, when it ex- 

 presses an action exerted upon some ob- 

 ject; active-intransitive, when its action is 

 not communicated to any object ; passive, 

 when it represents its subject or nomina- 

 tive as being acted upon ; neuter, when it 

 expresses a state of existence without 

 action or passion. 



Verbs, auxiliary. Verbs which, though 

 they originally expressed motions of 

 action, only express relations of action 

 when considered as auxiliary verbs, and 

 are accordingly employed, in connexion 

 with other verbs, to give them certain 

 relations called by grammarians tense, 

 mood, and voice. 



VERBAL and REAL QUESTIONS. 

 *' Sometimes the Question turns on the 

 meaning and extent of the terms em- 

 ployed ; sometimes, on the things signi- 

 fied by them. If it be made to appear, 

 therefore, that the opposite sides of a 

 certain Question may be held by persons 

 R2 



