DEFINITION OP TERMS, 



89 



as a lotion, the most effectual application I or existing; in contradistinction to de jure? 



for the removal of superficial acute local 

 inflammation, of any thing I have seen 

 tried. 



Veratria; for all external purposes, may 

 perhaps be advantageously substituted lor 

 the root. — MeJ. Exam. 



BURDOCK IN IMPETIGO. 



By Dr. Graves. 

 I had recently under my care a young 

 man who had suffered greatly from an 

 impetiginous affection, accompanied by 

 varicose veins of the legs; the tibial sur- 

 faces of both were covered with ulcers, 

 from which a considerable quantity of pu- 

 rulent and ichoroas fluid exuded, and as 

 his business obliged him to walk about 

 constantly, he suffered a great deal of dis- 

 tress and annoyance. I treated him at 

 first with leeches, and poultices, and after- 

 wards with various astringent applica- 

 tions, but with very little relief; the dis- 

 charge from the legs was profuse, and the 

 heat, itching, and soreness undiminished. 



While in this state he was advised by a 

 friend to take about four or five ounces of 

 burdock root; [Jlrctium Lappa) and hav- 

 ing boiled it in a (juart of water down to 

 a pint, to drink this quantity of decoction 

 every day in divided doses. He did so; 

 and in the space of three or four days a 

 most remarkable improvement took place. 

 Thinking that the benefit derived might 

 be the result of accident, I made him leave 

 off the burdock for a iew days, and fount! 

 the legs began to get bad again. He re- 

 sumed the use of it, and is now well. I 

 do not wish to attach more interest to this 

 case than it deserves; but certainly, the 

 decoction of the burdock root operated in 

 a very remarkable manner in improving 

 this gentleman's health, checking the ten- 

 dency to impetiginous inflammation, and 

 arresting the profuse discharge. 



Here is a specimen of the root itself; 

 although it is not mentioned in our phar- 

 macopoeia, it held a place at one time in 

 the materia medica, and enjoyed conside- 

 rable reputation as an alterative remedy. 

 — London Med. Gaz. 



DEFINITION OF TERMS. 



Beginnmg with the letter D. 

 Defacto — Something actually in fact, 



where a thing is only so in justice, but not 

 in fact; as a king de facto is a person that 

 is in actual j)ossession of a crown, but has 

 no legal right to the same; and a kingde 

 jure is the person who has a just right to 

 the crown, though he is out of possession 

 of it. 



Lelise, or Delian problem, a problem 

 much celebrated in the writings of the an- 

 cients, concerning the duplication of the 

 cube. 



Demi-culverin, a piece of ordnance 

 usually four and a half inches bore, 2700 

 pound weight, 10 feet long, and carrying 

 point-blank 175 paces. 



Deneb,, an Arabic term, signifying fail, 

 used by astronomers to denote several fix- 

 ed stars. Thus, dcneb elecet, signifies the 

 bright star in the lion's tail; deneb adige- 

 ge, that in the swan's tail, <^c. 

 " Density of bodies, is that property di- 

 rectly opposite to rarity, whereby they 

 contain such a quantity of matter under 

 such a bulk. Accordingly, a body is said 

 to have double or triple the density of an- 

 other body, when their bulk being equal, 

 the quantity of matter in one is double or 

 triple the quantity of the matter in the 

 other. 



Deodand, is where any movable thing 

 inanimate, or beast animate, moves or 

 causes the death of any reasonable crea- 

 ture, by mischance, without the will or 

 fault of himself, or any person. 



Desache, in heraldr}', is where a beast 

 has its limbs separated from its body; so 

 that they still remain on the escutcheon, 

 with only a small separation from their 

 natural places. 



Deson Tort Dem,esn, in law, a formu- 

 la, used in action of trespass, by way of 

 reply to the defendant's plea; signifying, 

 that the trespass was his own voluntary 

 and free act. 



Duple, among mathematicians, denotes 

 the ratio of 2 to 1. Thus, the ratio of S to 

 4 is duple, or as 2 to 1 . 



Sub duple ratio, is just the reverse of 

 the former; or as 1 to 2. Such is 4 to 8, or 

 6 to 12. 



Duramater, in anatomy, one of the 

 membranes, as they are called, which sur- 

 round the brain. 



Ectropium, in surgery, is when the 



