24 



A GLOSSARY OF TERMS 



The bark consists of as many 

 layers as the tree upon which it 

 grows has years ; every year a 

 new layer is formed from the 

 cambium ; the newest layer is 

 termed liber. 



BARRA'NCO Sp. A ravine. 



BARRED. Crossed by a paler colour, 

 in spaces resembling bars. 



BARREN. Producing no fruit. Con- 

 taining stamens only. 



BARRIER REEF. A coral production 

 similar to the Atoll. It runs pa- 

 rallel with the shore, separated 

 however from the land, by a broad 

 and deep lagoon channel, and 

 having the outer side, as steep as 

 in the lagoon islands. 



BART'TA. ") fr. gr. barus, heavy. An 



BARY'TES. j alkaline earth, the 

 heaviest of all the earths. 



BASA'LT. A rock essentially com- 

 posed of feldspar, and augite of a 

 compact texture, and dark green, 

 grey or black colour. It occurs in 

 columnar masses. When light- 

 coloured, with the feldspar pre- 

 dominating, it is sometimes called 

 greystone. Basalt closely resem- 

 bles greenstone. 



BASA'LTIC. Of the nature of ba- 

 salt. 



BASE OF SUPPORT. The space com- 

 prised between the points by 

 which an object supports itself 

 upon a resistant body. In conch- 

 ology, the base is that part of a 

 univalve shell by which it is fixed 

 to rocks, &c. : the end opposite to 

 the apex. 



BASILIS'CUS. Lat. A basilisk ; a 

 kind of saurian 



BASIX. In geology, a formation or 

 deposit lying in a certain cavity 

 or depression in older rocks. The 

 " Paris basin" and " London ba- 

 gin" are deposits of this kind. 



BASQ.UES. The inhabitants of Bis- 

 cay, a province of Spain, are so 

 called. 



BASSET. Outcrop, or emergence of 

 strata at the surface. 



BASTERO'TI. Specific name of a fos- 



sil Astarte. (p. 90, Book viii). 

 BATA'TAS. Sweet potatoes. 



. Batrachi- 



BATRACH'IAN (Ba-trak'-e-an). fr. gr. 

 batrachos, frog. A name given to 

 those reptiles which resemble 

 frogs in their mode of organiza- 

 tion. 



BEAK. The bill or horny mouth of 

 a bird. The continuation of the 

 body of univalves in which the 

 canal is situate. 



BEAKED. Terminating in a process, 

 shaped like the beak of a bird. 



BEARD. The process by which 

 some bivalve shells adhere to 

 rocks, &c. 



BEC-FIGUE. Fr. Name of the Titlark. 



BECCAFICA. It. Name of the Titlark. 



BELE'MNITES. fr. gr. belemnon, a 

 dart. A genus of fossil dibran- 

 chiate cephalopods, tl^e shells of 

 which are chambered and perfo- 

 rated by a siphon, but internal. 

 They are long, straight, and coni- 

 cal ; and commonly called " thun- 

 der stones." (p. 55 and 74, figt. 

 76-138, Book riii). 



BELLE'ROPHON . - A mythological 

 name. A genus of fossil mol- 

 lusks found in transition rocks, (p. 

 38,yig. 33, Book viii). 



BEI/LYING. Distended in the mid- 

 dle. 



BELO'XE. fr. gr. 6e/one, point of an 

 arrow ; a kind of fish. Specific 

 name of the Sea-pike. 



BERG, or ICE-BERG. Swedish, berg, 

 a mountain. A mountain of ice 

 met with in the polar seas. Flat 

 sheets of wide-spread ice are 

 called fields; and small portions 

 floes, because they are found float- 

 ing. 



BERG'MEHL. Ger. Mountain-meal. 

 An earth, resembling fine flour, 

 celebrated for its nutritious quali- 

 ties. It is composed entirely of 

 the shells of loricated animal- 

 cules. 



