A AN 



119 



BAN 



water. The liquid balsams are copaiva, 

 opobalsam, balsam of Peru, stornx and 

 tolu; the concrete are benzoin, dragon's 

 blood, and red storax (which free). The 

 balsam of Peru is viscid, of a deep reddish 

 brown colour, and of the consistency of 

 honey : it is the produce of the myroxglan 

 pomiiferum, a tree which grows in the 

 warmest parts of South America. Bal- 

 sam is also the popular name of the im- 

 patient (q. v.),of which the noli me tangere 

 or touch-me-not is a species. The name 

 of balsam-tree is common to three genera, 

 the amyrit, the clusia, and the copetifera. 

 The balsam-apple is an East India an- 

 nual (momordica balsamina). The pre- 

 paration sold under the name of balsam of 

 >u>ney, is a tincture either of benzoin or of 

 tolu. Balsam of sulphur, solution of sul- 

 phur in olive oil ; a brown fetid liquor. 



BALSAM IS'E.E, a natural order of herba- 

 ceous and succulent plants. Type Im- 

 patient. 



BALTE'CS, Lat., a girdle. In architec- 

 ture, the wide step in theatres and am- 

 phitheatres which afforded a passage 

 round, without disturbing the sitters. In 

 the Greek and Roman theatres every 

 eighth step was a balteus. Nobody sat 

 on these ; but they served as a landing or 

 resting-place. 



BAL'TIMORE-BIRD, a beautiful American 

 bird (Oriolus Baltimore, AVilson) called 

 also, hanging-nest, fire-bird, golden robin. 

 It is distinguished by its black and orange 

 plumage, which being the colours of Cal- 

 vert, Lord Baltimore, proprietary of the 

 province of Maryland, gave it the name 

 of the Baltimore bird. 



BAL'CBTER. 1. A small column or pil- 

 lar belonging to a balustrade. 2. The 



lateral part of the volute of the Ionic ca- 

 pital, called by Vitruvius, pulvinata. 



BALCSTRA'DE, from Lat. balustrum, a 

 space in the ancient baths which was 

 railed in with pali or poles. The term is 

 now used to denote a row of pilasters or 

 balusters, which are generally for real use 

 in buildings, but sometimes for ornament 

 merely. The balusters of the balustrade 

 are usually joined by a rail as in balconies. 



BAMBOO', j a species of cane, the 6am- 



BAMBU', I busm arundinaceee of bota- 

 nists. It grows everywhere within the 

 tropics, and is of the utmost utility to the 

 inhabitant* of those climates. It serves 

 all the purposes of wood, is manufactured 

 into cordage, cloth, and paper, and the 

 grain makes tolerable bread. It is pro- 

 perly a gigantic grass. 



BiMBr'sA.the generic name of the bam- 

 boo-cane, of which there are two species. 

 Alexandria Digynia. Name latinized 

 from bambv, the Indian name. 



BAN. 1. A proclamation, hence bans, 



a notification of marriage proposed. 2. 



A declaration of outlawry, equivalent in 



political matters to excommunication 



amongr ecclesiastics. 3. In military af- 



/uiri, n order given by beat of drum or 

 sounding the trumpet, requiring the strict 

 observance of discipline, announcing the 



appointment of an officer, &c. 4. A 



mulct paid to a bishop by one guilty of sa- 

 crilege. 5. The name of a smooth fine 



rauslin imported from the East Indies. 



6. A title of the governor of Croatia, who 

 has the third place among the secular 

 nobles of Hungary. Ban is the Sclavonic 

 word for master, hence provinces over 

 which a ban was placed were called 

 bannats. 



BANA'NA, an Indian name of the musa 

 sapientium, which grows in the West 

 Indies anc* other tropical countries. The 

 leaves are six feet long by one foot 

 broad; the fruit, which grows in bunches, 

 is about live inches, and yields a soft and 

 luscious pulp frequently used in desserts, 

 and made into a sort of bread, 



BAN'co.Ital. 1. In commerce, a word sig- 

 nifying a bank, and commonly applied 



to the bank of Venice. 2. In law, 



superior courts are said to sit in banco 

 during term, the judges occupying the 

 benches of their respective courts. 



BAND. In architecture, the word band 

 is applied to narrow members, somewhat 

 wider than fillets and smaller than the 

 facia. The cincture round the shaft of a 

 rusticated column is called a band. 

 Banded column, a column encircled with 

 band*. The word band is frequently used 

 to denote a narrow belt , e. g. the narrow 

 belts or rather bands which give motion 

 to the wheelwork, &c. The bands of & 

 saddle arc two pieces of iron nailed upon 

 the bows to hold them in their proper 

 places. The band of pensioners is a com 

 pany of 120 gentlemen, who receive a 

 yearly allowance of 1002. for attendra-j 

 the sovereign on solemn occasions. 



BANDALEER, \ a large leather belt 



BANDOLEER, | (thrown over the right 

 shoulder, and hanging under the left arp) 

 worn by the old mnsqueteers for sustain- 

 ing their fire-arms and musket-charges. 

 From band and D. leer, leather. 



BAN DA'S A, ) a style of calico print- 



BAUDA'.NXAJ ing in which white or 

 brightly-coloured spots are produced upon 

 a red or dark ground. The term is the 

 name of those silk handkerchiefs, gene- 

 rally red spotted with white, formerly 

 manufactured only in India, where the 

 art appears to have been practised from 

 time immemorial. 



BANDED, when a body is striated with 

 coloured bands. 



BANDELET', BANBLET. In architecture, 

 dim. of band (q. v.), used to designate any 

 small rtat moulding greater than a litl, 

 and leu than a plat-t>and ; e. g. that whici 

 ciywna the Doric architrave 



