T E R 



231 



T E R 



called the terminal expression. Thus in TAYLOR'S THEO- 

 REM we have one terminal expression in D'Alembert's 

 form, another in that of Lagrange. 



There is also another use of the word, which would con- 

 vey a distinction much wanting words to express it : we 

 allude to what might be called terminal language. All 

 the use of the words infinitely small and infinitely great 

 [INFINITE : LIMIT] is entitled to this name ; as follows : 

 When we say, for example, that a circle is a regular 

 polygon with an infinitely great number of infinitely small 

 sides, the language used is that of an end arrived at, a 

 transformation actually made : the circle is described as 

 actually consisting of straight lines ; and the language is 

 terminal (expressive of a boundary actually attained). 

 But the meaning of this language is, or is generally held 

 to be, false : no polygon is a circle, how great soever the 

 number, or how small soever the magnitude, of the sides. 

 The proposition which is really true, that is, over which 

 all shake hands, whatever their notion of infinity may be, 

 is that the terminal proposition, true or false, is one to 

 which an interminable and unlimited degree of approxi- 

 mation may be made. An inscribed regular polygon may, 

 with sides enough, be made to coincide with the circle 

 within any degree of nearness we please to assign : or the 

 following proposition 'the area of the inscribed polygon 

 may be made to differ from that of the circle by less than 

 the nth part of the latter' may be made true for every 

 value of n that can be named, however great. Terminal 

 language, properly employed, may be made the means of 

 abbreviation of all those truths whose announcement con- 

 tains interminable approximation : the development of 

 this sentence is the object of the article INFINITE. 



TERMINA'LIA, the festival of Terminus [TERMINUS], 

 celebrated at Rome every year on the 23rd of February. 

 It was said to have been instituted by Numa with the 

 worship of the god himself. The festival was of a twofold 

 character, either public or private, according as it was held 

 at the boundaries between the fields of private persons, or 

 at the boundary of the Ager Romanus. In the former 

 case persons possessing adjoining lands met with their 

 families and servants at the stone which divided the pro- 

 perties, adorned it with garlands and offered sacrifices, and 

 a feast in which the neighbours partook was intended to 

 rtinewthe friendly relations existing between them. (Ovid., 

 Fast., ii. 643, &c.) Dionysius states that down to his time ! 

 the Romans did not offer any bloody sacrifices on this j 

 occasion, but only cakes and fruit. But we have the most 

 authentic statements which show that the assertion of 

 Dionysius can only apply to the early period of the 

 republic, and that subsequently a lamb or a sucking pig 

 was sacrificed. (Dionvsius. ii. 74 ; Plutarch, Numa, 10 : 

 Quaett. Rom., 15 ; Horatius, Epod., ii. 59.) The public 

 Terminalia were solemnised in a similar manner by the 

 whole people on the boundary of the Ager Romanus. 

 (Ovid., Fast., ii. 679, &c.) 



Hartung, Die Religion der Romer, ii., p. 52; Diction- 

 ary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, v. ' Terminalia.') 



TKRMIN A'LIA (from terminus) is the name of a genus 

 of plants belonsnng to the natural order Combretacese. 

 The species of this genus consist of trees and shrubs, with 

 alternate leaves, which are usually crowded together at 

 the ends of the branches. The flowers are destitute of 

 petals, and are disposed in spikes, which are racemose and 

 panicled : in the lower part of the spikes they contain 

 both stamens and pistils, but in the upper part they con- 

 tain only stamens. The limb of the calyx is campanulate, 

 5-cleft, with acute lobes. The stamens "are ten in number, 

 arranged in two series, and are longer than the calyx. 

 The ovary contains two ovules, the style is acute, and the 

 fruit is drupaceous, containing only one seed. All the 

 species are inhabitants of the tropical parts of Asia and 

 America : they are numerous, and many of them are used 

 in medicine and tht arts. 



T. angustifolia, Narrow-leaved Terminalia : the leaves 

 are linear-lanceolate, very thin at both ends, pubescent 

 beneath ; the petioles are also pubescent, and have two 

 glands at their apex. This tree is a native of the East 

 Indies, and was formerly called Terminalia Benzoin, as it 

 yields on tapping a gum-resin very similar to benzoin, and 

 possessing the same properties. This gum exudes from 

 the tree in the form of a milky juice, which, on being dried, 

 forms a light whitish substance, exceedingly friable. 

 When gently dried it assumes the form of a white powder, 



which was in great repute as a cosmetic. It has an agreea- 

 ble fragrance, resembling gum-benjamin, which in a great 

 measure depends on the benzoic acid it contains. 



T. vernix. Varnish Terminalia, has linear-lanceolate 

 leaves, narrowed at each end, and glabrous beneath ; the 

 petioles are also glabrous. This plant is a native of the 

 Moluccas, and abounds in a resinous juice, which is col- 

 lected by the inhabitants, and used in the natural state as 

 a varnish. It is also used for the same purpose in China. 

 T. Catappa has obovate leaves, tapering to the base, 

 pubescent beneath, and glands on the under sides of the 

 midrib. It is originally a native of the East Indies, but 

 has now become naturalised in the West India Islands. 

 Some botanists have described the West India species as 

 distinct from the Asiatic, but there is no good distinctive 

 character. The drupaceous fruit of this tree is about 

 three inches long, and contains a large seed, which is 

 used for eating and obtaining an oil, in the same man- 

 ner as the almond. This tree, on account of its thick 

 foliaare, is much planted in the tropics for the purpose of 

 forming avenues near houses. The bark and leaves yield 

 a black pigment. Indian ink is manufactured from the 

 juice of this tree. It yields a light durable timber, which 

 is much used. 



T. glabrata, smooth Terminalia, very much resembles 

 the last, but the leaves are glabrous beneath and small. 

 The fruit is also of a much less size, oval, and less fur- 

 rowed. It is a native of the Society and Friendly Islands, 

 and is cultivated by the inhabitants near their huts and in 

 their burial-places. The wood is used in these islands for 

 building boats, making benches, &c., and the seeds are 

 eaten. 



T. Bellerica, Belleric Terminalia, has glabrous, elliptic, 

 entire, acute, alternate leaves, and bi-glandular petioles. 

 It is a native of mountainous districts of the East Indies. 

 Its flowers are very fetid. The fruit is reputed to possess 

 tonic, astringent, and attenuant properties. When the 

 bark is wounded a gum flows out, which is insipid, resem- 

 bling gum-arabic. 



T. Chebula is also an East Indian species, it is distin- 

 guished from the last by possessing opposite leaves which 

 are pubescent beneath. The fruit of this species is more 

 astringent than the last and is used for the purposes of 

 dyeing. A durable ink is made by mixing the salts of 

 iron with an infusion of the outer rind of the fruit. Both 

 this species and the last are subject to the attacks of 

 insects producing gall-nuts. These galls possess the as- 

 tringent principle in abundance, and are also used for 

 dyeing. They are called Cadacay by the Tamuls. 



The genus Bucida is very nearly allied to Terminalia, 

 and belongs to the same natural order. It is distinguished 

 from the latter genus by its urceolately-campanulate calyx, 

 its didymous anthers, baccate fruit, and angulated puta- 

 men. The most remarkable species is the Bucida bucerat, 

 the ox-horn olive-tree, known in Jamaica as the black 

 olive, in Antigua as the French oak, and in the French 

 Islands as Grignon. It has obtuse glabrous ovato-cunei- 

 form leaves, and small yellowish flowers disposed in cylin- 

 drical spikes covered with a silky pubescence. It is a 

 native of the West India Islands on clayey soils near the 

 coast. It has obtained its name from the tendency of its 

 branches to shoot out into monstrous spongy excrescences 

 resembling in form the horns of an ox. These excrescences 

 resemble galls in their nature, and are probably produced 

 by insects puncturing the terminal bud of the branch. 

 This tree is remarkable in appearance for its slender 

 crooked branches and tufted leaves, but it attains a con- 

 siderable size, and its timber is valuable. The bark of this 

 tree contains an astringent principle which is extensively 

 used rn tanning. 



In the cultivation of species of Terminalia and Bucida 

 a soil composed of loam and peat should be preferred. 

 Cuttings strike freely when placed in a pot of sand and 

 covered with a hand-glass. 



(Dons Miller's Dictionary; Burnett's Outlines of Bo- 

 tany ; Bischoff, Lehrbuch der Botanik; Lindley, Natural 

 System.) 



TE'RMINUS, a Roman deity whose worship was said 

 to have been introduced by king Numa Pompilius, when 

 he ordered the fields of the citizens to be separated from 

 one another, and the boundaries to be marked by stones 

 which were to be considered as sacred to Terminus, or as 

 Dionysius calls him, Ztc opiof. (Festus, s.\. Terminus. 



