LAC 



415 



LAC 



which have labit.e corollae, as mint, 

 thyme, rosemary, Ac. 



LA'BIATE, Lat. labtatits, lipped. Applied 

 to the corols of plants, as those of mint, 

 sage, &c., which resemble the lips of an 

 animal. 



LA'BIUM (Lat.), a lip (See Labia}. l.In 

 entomology, the lower lip of insects, the 



upper being the labrum. 2. In concho- 



logy, the inner lip of the shell, the outer 

 lip being the labrum. 



LA'BOUR. At sea, when the action of a 

 ship in a heavy sea is uneasy, or jerks. 



LABOURED. In the fine arts, the ap- 

 pearance of constraint in execution, op- 

 posed to easy or free. 

 LAB'RADOR FBI/SPAR,) A mineral, form- 

 LAB'RADOR STONE, > erly called La- 

 LAB'RADORITE. j brador Horn- 



blende. It is found on the coast of Labra- 

 dor, particularly on the island of St. 

 Paul ; also in some parts of Europe. It 

 is a Variety of opaline felspar, distin- 

 guished by its reflecting very beautiful 

 colours when the light falls upon it in 

 certain directions. 



LAB'TRINTH, Lat. labyrinthus, from 

 A.awf/(?j. 1- Among the ancients, an 

 edifice or place formed with winding 

 passages which rendered it difficult to 

 2nd the way from the interior to the en- 

 trance. The most remarkable of these 

 were the Egyptian and Cretan labyrinths. 

 2. In anatomy, that part of the exter- 

 nal ear which is behind the cavity of the 

 tympanum, consisting of the cochlea ves- 



tibulum and semicircular canal. 3. In 



metallurgy, a series of canals distributed in 

 a stamping-mill, through which water is 

 transmitted for suspending, carrying off, 

 and depositing, at different distances, the 

 ground ores. 



LAC (Latin). 1. Milk. 2. Apeculiar 



substance produced by the puncture of an 

 insect (the female of the Coccus lacca or 

 ficus,) upon the branches of several trees, 

 s the bihar-tree (Croton lacciferum], the 

 pepel (Butea frondosa], sacred fig (Ficus 

 religiosa), jujube (Rhamnus jujuba), bott- 

 tree, coosim-tree, &c. It yields a fine red 

 dye, which is said to be more permanent, 

 though not so bright, as the Mexican co- 

 chineal, and a resinous part, used in the 

 manufacture of sealing- wax and hats, and 

 as a varnish. The twigs encrusted with 

 the lac constitute the tick-lac of com- 

 merce : and the lac-dye, lac-lake, or rake- 

 lac consists of the colouring matter ex- 

 tracted from the stick-lac. AVhen the 

 colouring matter is extracted by the dyer 

 from the stick-lac, as far as can be conve- 

 niently done by water, there remains a 

 resinous yellow powder, which is seed-lac 

 This liquefied by heat forms lump-lac 

 when the whole mass is allowed to cool 

 but tiie part which passes through a cotton 

 bag and is allowed to cool in thin sheets 



or plates of an amber colour, is knowi by 

 the name of shellac or shell -lac. 



LAC'CIC ACID, a peculiar acid of a w Tie- 

 yellow colour, obtained from stick-lac. 

 See LAC. 



LAC'CINB, that portion of shell-lac 

 which is insoluble in boiling alcohol. 



LACE, a delicate and beautiful net- Work , 

 tastefully composed of many threads of 

 gold, silver, silk, flax, or cotton. The 

 name is said to be a contraction of Lat. 

 'acinia, the fringe of a garment. There 

 are many varieties of this beautiful fabric. 



LACER'NA (Lat.), an ancient Roman 

 military cloak, so made that either side 

 might be worn out. 



L.VCERTIN'IDA, lacertians. A family of 

 reptiles, distinguished by the tongue, 

 hich is thin, extensible, and terminates 

 in two threads, like that of the coluber 

 and viper. Cuvier divides them into two 

 great genera, Monitor and Lacerta. They 

 ,re oviparous, and provided with feet. 



LA'CHES. In law, slackness or negli 

 gence. The term is Norm, lachesse, from 

 lache , from Lat. larus, lax. 



LACH'RYMA, A^ft, a tear. The 

 lachrymal apparatus are those parts which 

 secrete and conduct the tears. The la- 

 chrymal gland is a glomerate gland, situ- 

 ated above the external angle of the orbit, 

 in a depression of the frontal bone. Its 

 use is to secrete the tears. The lachryma 

 duct is the excretory duct of the lachryma.' 

 gland. A branch of the ophthalmic nerve 

 is also sometimes called the lachrymal 

 nerve. 



LACH'RTMATORY, a vessel found in an- 

 cient sepulchres, in which it has been 

 supposed that the tears (lachrymal] of a de- 

 ceased person's friends were collected and 

 preserved with the ashes and urn. It was 

 a small glass vessel or phial, with a very 

 long neck. 



LACI'NIA, a fringe; laciniate, fringe- 

 like. Applied to leaves, petals, &c., when 

 jagged or torn, as it were, on the edges. 



LACK, Sanscrit lacslia. An East Indian 

 word signifying 100,000; as a lack oj 

 rupees. 



LACK'ER, } A solution of lac in alcohol, 



LAc'acER. } used as a varnish for tin, 

 brass, &c. It is commonly tinged with 

 saffron, anotto, or some other colouring 



matter. 2. Among potters, a mixture of 



soft soap and tallow, made by boiling in 

 water over a clear fire, and used for coat- 

 ing the surface of moulds to prevent ad- 

 hesion. 



LACRIMO'SO. In music, an Italian term, 

 implying a plaintive movement, as if 

 weeping. 



LAC'TATES, salts formed by the combi- 

 nation of the lactic acid with bases. 



LAC'TEALS, from lac, milk. Numerous 

 minute tubes, commencing by open and 

 very minute orifices from the inner wir- 



