ANT 



ANT 



and two of white. The nilgau is a native 

 of the interior parts of India. According' 

 to Mr. Pennant, it abounded in the days 

 of Aurengzebe between Belli and Lahor, 

 on the way to Cashmire, and was called 

 nylgau, or the blue or grey bull. It was 

 one of the objects of the chace with that 

 mighty monarch during his journey: they 

 were inclosed by his army of hunters with- 

 in nets, which, being drawn closer and 

 closer, at length formed a small precinct, 

 into which the king and his omrahs and 

 hunters entered, and killed the nilgaus 

 with arrows, spears, and muskets ; and 

 that sometimes in such numbers, that Au- 

 rengzebe used to send quarters as pre- 

 sents to all his great people. The nylgau 

 has of late years been often imported into 

 Europe, and has bred in England. In 

 confinement it is generally pretty gentle, 

 but is sometimes seized with fits of sudden 

 caprice, when it will attack with great 

 violence the objects of its displeasure. 

 When the males fight, they drop on their 

 knees at some distance from each other, 

 and gradually advance in that attitude, 

 and at length make a spring at each other 

 with their heads bent low. This action, 

 however, is not peculiar to the nilgau, but 

 is observed in many other of the antelope 

 tribe. The nilgau is said to go with 

 young about nine months, and to produce 

 sometimes two at a birth : the young is of 

 the colour of a fawn. 



Antelope Leucoryx, or White Antelope, 

 is entirely milk-white, except the mark- 

 ings on the face and limbs. It is an inha- 

 bitant of an island in the Gulf of Bassora. 

 See Plate Mammalia, fig. 1 6. 



ANTHEM, a church song performed in 

 cathedral service by choristers, who sing 

 alternately. It was formerly used to de- 

 note both psalms and hymns, when sung 

 in this manner. But at present, anthem is 

 used in a more confined sense, being ap- 

 plied to certain passages taken out of the 

 scriptures, and adapted to a particular so- 

 lemnity. 



ANTHEMIS, in botany, chamomile, a 

 genus of the Syngenesia Superflua class 

 and order. Receptacle chaffy ; seeds 

 generally crowned with a slight border ; 

 calyx hemispherical, nearly equal; florets 

 of the ray more than five, oblong. There 

 are two divisions of this genus, namely, A. 

 with a differently colon red or white ray ; 

 and B. ray the colour of the disk, or yel- 

 low : there are about forty species. 



ANTHERS, among botanists, denote 

 the little roundish or oblong bodies, on 

 the tops of the stamina of plants. 



The anthers is the principal part of the 

 male organ of generation in plants, an- 



swering the glans penis in animals. It is 

 tumid and hollow, containing a fine pow- 

 der, called farina foecundans. 



ANTHER1CUM, in botany, a genus of 

 plants of the Hexandria Monogynia class 

 and order. Cor. six-petalled, spreading, 

 permanent ; filaments uniform ; capsule 

 superior, seeds angular. There are three 

 divisions. A. leaves channelled; filaments 

 mostly beardless : B. leaves fleshy ; fila- 

 ments bearded : C. stamina dilated in the 

 middle ; root bulbous. There are be- 

 tween 50 and 60 species. 



ANTHERYLIUM, a genus of the Ico- 

 sandria Monogynia class and order. Ca- 

 lyx inferior, four-parted; petals four; 

 capsule one-celled, three-valved, many- 

 seeded. There is but a single species, a 

 tree. found at St. Thomas's Island. 



ANTHISTERIA, in botany, a genus of 

 the Polygamia Monoecia class and order. 

 Hermaphrodite ; florets sessile, male flo- 

 rets pedicelled ; calyx four-valved, three 

 or four flowered, coriaceous; corol. glume 

 two-valved, awnless ; filaments three ; 

 styles two; stigmata clavate ; seed one. 

 There is but a single species. 



ANTHOCEROS, a genus of the Cryp- 

 togamia Hepaticae. Male ; six parted or 

 entire ; antherae three to eight, obovate, 

 in the bottom of the calyx. Female ; ca- 

 lyx sessile, cylindrical and entire. There 

 are four species. 



ANTHOLOMA, in botany, a genus of 

 the Polyandria Monogynia class and or- 

 der. Calyx two to four-leaved ; cor. cup- 

 shaped; many seeded. There is but a sin- 

 gle species, a shrub found in Caledonia. 



ANTHOLYZA, in botany, a genus of 

 the Triandria Monogynia class and order. 

 Corol. tubular, six-cleft, unequal, recurv- 

 ed ; capsule inferior. There are six spe- 

 cies, all found at the Cape. 



ANTHOSPERMUM, in botany, the 

 amber-tree, a genus of plants belonging to 

 the Tetrandnaclass and order. It is male 

 and female, in different plants, and some 

 are hermaphrodites. The androgynous 

 flower is of one leaf, with two pistils and 

 four stamina, with the germen below the 

 flower. The male flowers are the same 

 with these, wanting only the pistils and 

 germen. The female flowers have the 

 pistils and germen, but want the stamina. 

 There are three species. 



ANTHOXANTHUM, in botany, a ge- 

 nus of the Dyandria Digynia class and or- 

 der. Gen. char, calyx, glume two-valved, 

 one flowered ; corol. glume two-valved, 

 pointed, awned; seed one. There are 

 four species. 



ANTHRfiNUS, in natural history, a 



