MUS 4 



MC'S.E. A genus of plants. Polygamia 

 Montecia. Name from fj.6v<ra., " the 

 moss tree, whose leaves are so large that 

 a child may-be wrapped in them." The 

 Plantain tree and Banana tree are well 

 known tropical species. According to 

 some, the name musa is a corruption of 

 man:, the Egyptian name of the Plantain 

 tree; according to others, this plant was 

 named musa, in honour of Antonius Musa, 

 the physician of Augustus. Some again 

 consider the origin of the name to have 

 some connexion with mttsa, a song. 



MCS'CADINE VINE. Vitis apiana. A spe- 

 cies of vine, thus named from the liability 

 of its grapes to be attacked by bees and 

 flies (mitscte). It yields the rich muscadine 

 wine of Languedoc and Roussillon. 



Mus'cjE VOLITAN'TES. A disease or af- 

 fection of the eyes, in which dark spots 

 and small serpentine figures appear to 

 float before the person. The musca? voli- 

 tantes are commonly not observed when 

 the person is young and in good health, 

 but they exist in all eyes, however healthy, 

 and may be observed by looking at a clear 

 sky through a very small aperture, such 

 as a pin-hole made in a card. The musca? 

 always appear to rise, their real motion 

 of course being downwards. 



MUSCHEL K.ALK. (Ger.). A shell-lime- 

 stone formation. 



Mus'ci. Mosses. The 56th natural order 

 of plants in Linnreus' system, and the 

 2nd order of the class Cryptogamia. See 

 Muscrs. 



MUSCIC'APA. The fly-catcher. A genus 

 of passerine birds of passage. The species 

 are numerous, and form such subgenera 

 as Tyranmu, JHuscipeta, Muscicapa, Gym- 

 nocephalus, &c. The true muscicapa live 

 on flies, whence the name from musca, a 

 fly, and capio, to catch. 



MUSCLE, Lat. Miirt<2t, dim. of mtu. a 

 mouse (being supposed to resemble a 

 flayed mouse). 1. The muscles are the 

 organs of motion in animal bodies, consist- 

 ing of fibres susceptible of contraction 

 and relaxation ; one set according to the 

 will (when in a healthy state), and there- 

 fore called voluntary muscles ; another set 

 perform their functions independently of 

 the will, as the heart, stomach, intestines, 

 &c., these are termed involuntary muscles. 

 The muscles of respiration being in some 

 measure under the control of the will 

 are said to have a mixed motion. When 

 the fibres of a muscle are placed parallel 

 to each other, in a straight direction, it is 

 called a rectilinear muscle ; if the fibres 

 cross and intersect each other, they con- 

 stitute a compound muscle ; when the fibres 

 are disposed in the manner of rays, they 

 form a radiated muscle, when they are 

 placed obliquely, like the plume 'of a pen, 

 itisnj*j;i/orm muuile. When muscles 

 ctin op>osl:ion V evi. cthsr, *-ty we 



5 MUS 



termed antagonists, and every extensor hm 



6 flexor for its antagonist, and vice versa. 

 Almost every muscle is composed of flaky 

 and tendinoits fibres, occasionally inter- 

 mixed, but the fleshy fibres generally pre- 

 vailing in the belly or middle part of the 

 muscle, and the tendinous ones at the 



extremities. See MUSCULAR. 2. A bi- 



valvular shell. See MVTILUS. 



MUS'CLE BAND. A substratum of im- 

 perfect ironstone and indurated shells 

 (mostly resembling fresh- water muscles i, 

 found in the Derbyshire and Yorkshire 

 coal fields. 



MTSCOVA'DO. Unrefined sugar: the raw 

 material from which loaf sugar is pro- 

 cured by refining. See SUGAR. 



MUS'COVY DUCK. The AnasMoscata, Lin., 

 called also Sheldrake, and now placed in 

 a subgenus under the name Tadorna. It 

 is a native of South America, where it 

 perches on trees. 



MUS'CVLAR. Pertaining to a muscle. 

 Muscular fibre : the fibres which compose 

 the body of a muscle are disposed in bun- 

 dles, which are probably subdivisible ad 

 infinitum. These muscles are essentially 

 composed of fibrine and ozmazome. Mus- 

 cular motions: these .are of three kinds, 

 viz., voluntary, involuntary, and mixed. 

 See MUSCLE. 



M users. A moss: from fjuta-^t^, tender, 

 in allusion to its tender and delicate con- 

 sistence. Plural, musci (q. v ) 



MC'SES. Poetical deities which preside 

 over the various branches of polite learn- 

 ing: said to be the daughters of Jove anj 

 Mnemosyne 1 , and companions of Apollo 

 upon Parnassus. All the functions of the 

 Muses are sometimes united in Mnemf, 

 Aoede, and Melete; i.e. Memory, Song, 

 and Meditation; but it is more usual tc 

 reckon nine, viz., Clio, to whom is as- 

 cribed the invention of history, Melpo- 

 mene, of tragedy, Thalia, of comedy, 

 Euterpe, of the use of the flute, Terpsi- 

 chore, of the harp, Erato, of the lyre and 

 lute ; Calliope, of heroic verse, Urania, of 

 astronomy, and Polyhymnia, of rhetoric. 



MrsE'cx,yu0w<0y. Originally the name 

 of a palace in Alexandria, and now used 

 as a denomination for any apartment or 

 building set apart as a repository for such 

 thinss as have an immediate relation to 

 the arts and sciences: a cabinet of curi- 

 osities. 



MCSH'ROOM. The common name of nu- 

 merous species of cryptogamic plants of 

 the natural order Fungi, some of which 

 are edible, and others poisonous. Name 

 corrupted from French, mousseron, from 

 mousse, moss. See FUNGI, PHALECS, and 

 AGARICUS. 



Mu'sic. 1. The science which treats of 

 the prooerties, dependencies. an<J *e'-tion 

 of ii':)<rt!iaa* SOUL vis. 2. The art of pro- 





