108 



WORKINGTON-WORMS. 



WORKINGTON ; a seaport town in the county 

 of Cumberland, situated on the south bank of the 

 river Derwent, near the sea. The town contains a 

 small theatre, and assembly and news rooms ; the 

 streets are mostly narrow and inconveniently ar- 

 ranged, but there are like wise many handsome 

 houses of modern erection. A stone bridge of three 

 arches, built at the expense of the county in 1763, 

 crosses the river at the entrance to the town from 

 Maryport. The harbour here is the safest on the 

 coast, being secured by a breakwater, and lighted 

 with gas. The quays, on which is a custom-house, 

 subordinate to that at Whitehaven, are very com- 

 modious, and vessels are hence cleared out. Ex- 

 tensive collieries are worked here, and the trade 

 consists chiefly in the export of their produce to 

 Ireland and other parts of the kingdom. About 

 100 vessels are continually sailing backwards and 

 forwards ; a large number of people are also em- 

 ployed in ship-building, and the manufacture of 

 articles in connexion with the same ; besides about 

 400 in a straw-hat manufactory, for making imita- 

 tion Leghorns. Salmon is taken along the coast. 

 Population of town in 1841, 6045; of town and 

 parish, 6994. 



WORKSOP ; a market-town and parish in the 

 county of Nottingham, 146 miles north-north-west 

 from London. It is situated in a valley, near the 

 source of the river Ryton, towards the northern 

 extremity of Sherwood Forest. It consists of two 

 well-built streets, which are paved and lighted. 

 The Chesterfield Canal passes the north side of the 

 town ; and at a short distance hence crosses the 

 river by an aqueduct. The trade of the place 

 consists chiefly in malt, which is sent in considerable 

 quantities to Manchester and several other large 

 towns. Population in 1841, 6197. 



WORLD. See Universe, and Earth also Com- 

 merce of the World. 



WORLITZ ; a town in the duchy ot Anhalt- 

 Dessau, three leagues from the city of Dessau, with 

 1800 inhabitants, and beautiful gardens in the Eng- 

 lish style, laid out by the late duke. Several de- 

 scriptions have been given of it. There is a collec- 

 tion of ancient works of art, especially paintings, in 

 the (so called) Gothic house, in this garden. See 

 Dessau. 



WORM. In the common acceptation of the 

 word, this term is applied to caterpillars and other 

 larvae of insects ; to those beings which dwell in 

 the interior of living bodies ; in short, to all small, 

 soft, cylindrical animals, however various their con- 

 formation and modes of life. Even Linnaeus in- 

 cluded in his class vermes, the oyster, and the other 

 molluscs, as well as the echini, polypi and medusae, 

 or sea-blubbers, animals which have since been very 

 pioperly separated. 



WORM, in gunnery ; a screw of iron, to be fixed 

 on the end of a rammer, to pull out the wad of a 

 firelock, carbine or pistol, being the same with the 

 wad-hook, only the one is more proper for small 

 arms, and the other for cannon. 



Worm, in chemistry, is a long, winding, pewter 

 pipe, placed in a tub of water, to cool and condense 

 the vapours in the distillation of spirits. 



Worm a cable or hawser, in sea language, is to 

 strengthen it by winding a small line, or rope, all 

 along between the strands. 



WORMIUS, OLACS; a learned Danish physician, 

 born in 1588, at Aarhuus, in Jutland, where his 

 father was a burgomaster. After some previous 

 education, he went, in 1605, to the university oi 



Marpurg, and then to Strasburg, where he studied 

 nedicine. He subsequently removed to Basle, and 

 iook the degree of M.D., having previously travel- 

 led in France, Italy, Holland and England. In 

 1613, he returned to his native country, and wag 

 made professor of the belles-lettres in the university 

 of Copenhagen. In 1615, he was transferred to 

 the chair of Greek literature, and, in 1624, to that 

 of physic, which he held till his death. His acade- 

 mical engagements did not prevent him from prac- 

 tising as a physician ; and the reputation of his skill 

 occasioned his being employed by his sovereign, 

 Christiern IV., who, in recompense of his services, 

 made him a canon of the cathedral of Lund. His 

 death took place in 1654. He was the author of 

 several works relative to his profession, and also 

 wrote in defence of the Aristotelian philosophy ; 

 but his most, important productions are those con- 

 cerning the antiquities of Denmark and Norway, 

 among which may be mentioned Fasti Danici ; Lit- 

 teratura Danica Antiquissima ; Monumentorum Dani- 

 orum Libri sex ; Lexicon Runicum ; and Series Re- 

 gum Daniee. 



WORMS ; an old German city on the left baiik 

 of the Rhine, formerly one of the free imperial 

 cities. By the peace of Luneville, in 1801, it was 

 ceded, with the whole left bank of the Rhine, to 

 France ; and since the peace of Paris, it has be- 

 longed to the province of Rhenish Hessia in 

 Hesse-Darmstadt. It lies in an agreeable and 

 fertile country, the Wonnegau (land of joy*), so 

 much praised by the Minnesingers (q. v.), and con- 

 tains a population of 8000 inhabitants, who are 

 supported chiefly by the cultivation of the vine, 

 and the navigation of the Rhine. There are 

 also some manufactures. The Protestant religion 

 is the prevailing one. The Catholics have two 

 churches, one of which is the cathedral, of which 

 the foundation was laid in the eighth century, 

 but which was not finished until the twelfth 

 century. It is about 740 feet long, and 220 

 feet wide. The Lutherans have two churches, 

 and the Reformed or Calvinists one. Among 

 several excellent sorts of wine made here, the 

 Liebfrauenmilch (milk of our dear lady) is distin- 

 guished. The grapes grow around the church of 

 Our Lady, from which it has its name. Worms 

 is one of the most ancient cities of Germany, and 

 one of the most distinguished in the early history 

 of the country. The Romans had a colony here : 

 and the early Prankish kings, and even Charle- 

 magne and the later Carlovingians, spent much time 

 here. At a later period, it was the seat of the 

 Rheno-Frankish dukes. In the history of the mid- 

 dle ages and that of modern times, Worms is also 

 conspicuous. Many diets have been held here, of 

 which those of 1495 and 1521 are the principal. 

 The two held in the former year did much to esta- 

 blish order in Germany. At the latter, Luther de- 

 fended his faith boldly before the emperor and the 

 assembled members of the empire, concluding his 

 address with the words, " Here I stand ; I cannot 

 do otherwise: so help me God! amen." Worms 

 derived importance also from its manufactures, com- 

 merce, and population, which, even towards the 

 end of the thirty years' war, amounted to 30,000 

 souls, and, as a member of the confederation of the 

 Rhenish cities, was engaged in the principal quarrels 

 with the neighbouring princes. It has declined dur- 

 ing the two last centuries, particularly on account 

 of the endless wars between Germany and France. 

 In 1689, this city, as well as Spires, was almost 



