ACR 



acquisitions. A mere temporary possession 

 is not an acquirement, but something 

 jained, obtained, or procured. 



ACUUIT'TAL, from Fr. acquitter (It. qu 

 tare, to remit, forgive, remove). A judi- 

 cial deliverance from the charge of offence, 

 as by verdict of a jury, or sentence of a 

 court. The acquittal of a principal ope- 

 rates as an acquittal of .accessories. 



ACQUITTANCE, from acquit. 1. A dis- 

 charge or release from a debt. 2. The 



"writing which is evidence of a discharge, 

 e. g. a receipt in full which bars a further 

 demand. 



ACR^EA, a genus of butterfly (lepidoptera) 

 of the diurnous family. Fabricius. 



ACRA'LEA, from U.XQOS, extreme. Any 

 extreme parts of the body, e. g. the legs, 

 arms, &c. 



ACRANY, Lat. acrania, from xgKviov, 

 defect of the cranium. 



ACRA'SY, Lat. acrasia, from u.x/>tri. 

 1. Predominancy of the quality above in 

 mixture or in the human constitution. 

 2. Intemperance of any kind. 



ACRE, pron. dker. (Sax. acer, acera, or 

 acer; Ger. acker; But. akker ; Sw. acker; 

 Dan. ager ; Ir. acra ; Gr. otyaos ; Lat. ager. 

 In these languages the word retains its 

 primitive meaning, an open, ploughed, or 

 sown field. In English it retained its 

 original signification, that of any open 

 field, until it was limited to a definite 

 quantity by statutes 31 Ed. III., 5 Ed. I., 

 24 H. VIII. Cou-el.) 1. A measure of land 

 containing four roods, each rood contain- 

 ing forty poles or perches, and each pole 

 272 sq. feet, and consequently each acre 

 contains 435GO sq. feet, or 4840 sq. yards. 

 The Scotch acre contains 6150 sq. yards, 

 and is therefore equal to T261 imperial 

 acres. The Irish acre contains lac. 2rd. 

 19 pol. ; 30 Irish acres are therefore equal 

 to 49 imperial acres. The French arpent 

 ia very nearly equal to the Scotch acre. 

 The Roman jugerum was 3200 sq. yards. 



2. In the Mogul's dominions acre is 



the same as lack = 100,000 rupees = 



12,500?. sterling. 3. Acre-fight,^ sort of 



duel in the open field. 4. Acre-tax or 



acre-shot, a tax levied upon lands at a 

 certain rate by the acre. 5. In physio- 

 logy, the extremity of any part. In this 

 sense the word is derived from etzfog. 

 the top, e. g. of the nose. 



ACRKA, the same with acralea, (q. v.) 



ACRIFO'LIUM, Lat., any prickly -leaved 

 plant. 



AcRiTA,that division of mollusca which 

 consists of polypes, corals, and other 

 plant-like animals. " Our impression is, 

 that the whole, or nearly so, of the true 

 ACRITA, are compound zoophytes, or, in 

 other vords, plant-like animals." Swain- 

 tan. 



ACHI'ST, Lat. acrisia, from , not, and 



20 



ACR 



xeivet, to j udge. A condition of which no 



correct judgment can be formed. 2. 



That of which no choice is made. 



AcROAMAT'ic.orAcROATic, from ctxeeot- 

 [JUX.TIXO;, abstruse, applied to the secret 

 doctrines of Aristotle. His lectures were 

 of two kinds ; acroamatic, acroalic, or 

 esoteric, delivered to a class of select dis- 

 ciples, who had been previously instructed 

 in the common branches of philosophy ; 

 and exoteric, delivered in public. The 

 former consisted of speculations regard- 

 ing being, God, and nature ; the principal 

 subjects of the latter were logic, rhetoric, 

 and policy. The abstruse lectures were 

 called acroatics, and those admitted to 

 hear them were called acroatici. 



ACROCERA, a genus of dipterous insects 

 of the family of inflate, of Latreille. Name 

 gs?, summit, and x^ot.; , a horn. 



ACROCERAD'NIAN, from ot,x^of, summit, 

 and xieoc.i>vcf, thunder. Mountains be- 

 tween Epirus and Illyricum, supposed to- 

 be especially subject to the effects of 

 lightning. 



ACROCHOR'DON , Lat. acrochordus, from 

 mgo%og$uv, a wart. The wart-snake ; a 

 genus of snake the body and tail of which 

 are completely covered with warts. The 

 snake which gave rise to the institution 

 of this genus is a native of Java. It i 

 said to measure eight feet. There are 

 three species. 



ACROCINUS, a genus of beetles (coleop- 

 tera) belonging to the tribe of lamiarite of 

 Latreille, and constituted of the rerambux 

 longimatius, of Linna?us. It is distin- 

 guished from all the longicornes by the 

 thorax being provided with a movcable 

 tubercle on each side, terminated by a 

 spine, whence the name. It is called by 

 the French colonists the harlequin of Ca- 

 yenne, from the mixture of its colours, 

 grey, red, and black. This genus includes 

 the priomis acccntifer, of Olivier. 



ACROCO'LIA (etxeozwhioe,'), the extremi- 

 ties of quadrupeds. 



ACROGEN, from atxats and yivy/x.u. 

 In botany, a cylindrical plant, growing at 

 its point only, and not augmenting ia 

 thickness. 



ACROMANIA (ot,xaou.atvice,). incurable in- 

 sanity. 



AcRo'.MiAt.,Lat. acromialis, appertaining 

 to the acromion. 



ACRO'MION, from <x.zeo; and MU.O; 

 shoulder. In anatomy, the humeral ex- 

 tremity of the spincus process of the sca- 

 pula or shoulder-blade. 



ACROMONOGRAMMATIC (otK%0/M>VO?gfe- 



atrixos'i, a term applied to a kind uf 

 pcem, in which every line or verse com- 

 mences with the letter with wnich th* 

 one preceding ended. 



