A R A 



which connect the monopetalous and poly- 

 petaJous subclasses. Ilex. Prinos, and 

 Cassia arr the most common genera. 



A'ann. the eagle. The name of a tribe 

 of diurnal birds, of the order accipitres, 

 embracing the most powerful of all the 

 birds of prey. 



The eagles are now divided into the 

 Aquila proper (to which belongs the 

 Ring-tailed Eagle}, the Haliteetus of 

 Savismy, or Fisher Eagles of Cuvier (the 

 Pygargus and Bald Eagle; , Pandion 

 (the Osprey), Circaetus, Harpyia (where 

 we find the " Great Harpy of America," 

 that possesses such strength of beak as 

 to be able to cleave a man's skull), and 

 Morphnus, differing in certain peculiar- 

 ities of the tarsi, claws, and wings. 



2. In astronomy, a constellation of the 



northern hemisphere, usually joined with 

 Antindus, or of which the asterism Anti- 

 ndus is an integral part. 



AauiLARiA'cE^E, from aquilaria, eagle- 

 wood, one of the genera. A very small 

 order of Indian plants, whose species is 

 but little known. The aquilaria agallo- 

 chum produces the eagle or aggul wood, 

 which, in all probability, was the aloes 

 wood of scripture. 



AQCILE'GIA, the herb Columbine. A 

 genus. Polyandria Pentagynia. Named 

 from aquila, an eagle, whose claws the 

 nectaries resemble. About 12 species, of 

 which one is indigenous. Perennial. 



A.R. stand for anno reani, the year of 

 the reign ; e. g. A.R. V. R. 4, in the fourth 

 year of the reign of Queen Victoria. 



AR\, an altar. The name given to an 

 asterism south of the Scorpion's Tail. It 

 is also called Ara Thuribuli, the Altar of 

 Incense. 



AR'AEESQUZ (Fr.), ) Something done af- 

 AR'ABESK (Eng.). ) ter the manner of 

 the Arabs: applied to sculptural and 

 painted ornaments consisting of imaginary 

 foliage, plants, stalks, &c., but in which 

 no h.uman or animal figures appear, re- 

 presentations of these being forbidden by 

 the Koran. The term is synonymous with 

 moresqite (,q. v.), but not necessarily with, 

 grotesque (q. v.). 



AK'ABIS, the herb vail or rock cress. A 

 genus. Tetradynamia SiUquosa. Named 

 so " because originally an Arabian genus," 

 or more probably from the Greek Aga.Sij, 

 a species of nasturtium used in pickles. 

 Walls and rocks throughout Europe. 



AK'ABO-TEDES'CO, Ital. arabo, and tedes- 

 cho, German. In painting and sculpture, 

 a style of art composed of Moorish, Roman, 

 and German-Gothic. 



ARACATS'CHA, a South -American plant, 

 said to be more nourishing and prolific 

 than the potato (solamtm tuberosunt), and 

 R-hich may be cultivated with advantage 

 a most parts of Europe. Scientific name, 

 Eerad&im tuberosum Molina. 



92 A R JE 



"What is most peculiar regarding this 

 plant is, that it is also found growing in 

 the country of Sus on the south side of 

 the Atlas, and is called by the Arabians 

 aracatscha, which means the dry root. 

 Now the question is, how does the plant 

 come to bear among the natives of Santa 

 Fe de Bogota an Arabian name ? Did 

 the Arabs, in old antiquity, trade with 

 South America ? Or, shall we believe 

 that a continent a real Atlantis form- 

 ed a connection between Africa and 

 South America ? 



ARA'CE.X, or AROIDE.E, arum, one of the 

 genera . Acrid endogens, with the flowers 

 arranged upon a spadix, inclosed in a 

 spathe. 



ARACH'SIDA, the name given by Lin- 

 naeus to the spider-tribe of articulated 

 animals, from a.^ai^vr,, a spider, and s/J, 

 likeness. They compose the two fami- 

 lies of spiders and scorpions. 



ARACH'NIDES, the spiders composing the 

 second class of articulated animals in the 

 system of Cuvier. They are provided 

 with moveable feet, are destitute of 

 wings, do not experience any metamor 

 phosis, and generally feed on insects, 

 though many are parasitical, and some 

 are only found among flour, on cheese, 

 and various plants. They are divided into 

 two orders, pulmonarite and trachearits. 



ARACH'NOID, cobweb-like, from a.e.y*r,, 

 a spider, or spider's web, and tiro's, like- 

 ness. In anatomy, (1). A cobweb-like 

 membrane forming one of the tunics or 

 coats of the brain. (2). One of the tunics 



or coats of the eye. In natural history, 



a species of fossil madrepore. 



ARA'cK,the native name of a spirituous 

 liquor prepared in India from rice, the 

 juice of the sugar-cane and of the cocoa- 

 nut, by distillation. It is the aqua tita 

 of India. 



AR^OM'ETER, from aeetto;, rare, thin, 

 and tUTfov, measure. An instrument to 

 measure the density or gravity of fluids. 

 See HYDROMETER. 



AR^'OSTYLE, from ctextos, rare (thin 

 set), and trniHof, a column. In architec- 

 ture, one of the five proportions by which 

 the ancients regulated the intervals called 

 intercolumniations, between the column* 

 of porticoes and colonnades. In modern 

 practice the word denotes the interco- 

 luninar space of 4 diameters, and is re- 

 stricted to apertures decorated with the 

 Tuscan order. 



AJLJ:OSYS'TTI.E, from azotic; and systyle 

 (qv.) In architecture, a method of pro- 

 portioning the intervals between columns 

 ranged in pairs. The disposition is com- 

 posed of two systyle intercolumniationa, 

 as exemplified in the west front of St. 

 Paul's. 



