PAL 



PAL'LAS. 1. In mythology, another 



name for Minena. 2. One of the four 



small planets, situated between the or- 

 bits of Mars and Jupiter, discovered by 

 Dr. Olbers of Bremen, in 1802. It appears 

 like a star of the eighth magnitude ; its 

 mean distance from the sun is 266,000,000 

 miles, diameter uncertain, and its period 

 of revolution 4 years, 7 months, and 11 

 days. 



PAL'LET, Fr. palette, from Lat. pala, a 

 shovel. 1. A painter's colour-board, i.e. 

 the little board on which the colours for 

 immediate use are placed and mixed in 



working. 2. In gilding, an instrument 



made of a squirrel's tail, &c., to take up 

 the gold-leaf from the pillow, and to ap- 

 ply and extend the same. 3. In pot- 

 tery, &c., a small instrument, usually 

 wood, for forming the articles from the 



plastic clay. 1. A partition in the hold 



of a ship. 5. In heraldry, a small pale, 



being one-half the breadth of that ordi- 

 nary. 6. In a icatch and clock, the pal- 

 lets are those parts, two small levers, 

 which give the beats, sometimes written 

 palettes and pallats. 



PAL'LICM. The cloak worn by the 

 Greeks as the toga was by the Romans. 



2. A pontifical ornament worn by 



popes, patriarchs, primates, and metro- 

 politans of the Romish church. 



PALL'-MALL', palle-maiUe. An old game, 

 in which a ball was driven through an 

 iron ring or arch. It was formerly prac- 

 tised in St. James's Park, London, und 

 Kave its name to the street called Pali- 

 Mall (pron. pell-mell). 



PALLS'. In ships, strong short pieces of 

 Iron or wood, placed near the capstan or 

 windlass, so as to prevent its recoiling. 



PALM'. I. In botany (see PALMA.) 2. 



The palms of an anchor are the broad parts 



at the ends of the arms or flukes. 3. A 



hand-breadth ; a linear measure equal to 

 3 inches, considered as the average 

 breadth of the palm or broad part of the 

 hand. This, when distinguished, is 

 termed the little palm ; the great palm is 

 equal to 8i inches. 4. A little flat in- 

 strument, used instead of a thimble in 

 sewing canvas. 



I'AL'MA CHHIS'TI. Christ's palm. The 

 castor-oil plant. Ririnus coinimmis. 



PAL'M.E. The palm tribe of trees. A 

 most important and natural family of 

 plants. They have trunks similar to trees, 

 but come under the name of stipes, the 

 tops being frondescent, that is, sending 

 off leaves instead of branches. They are, 

 though commonly called trees, really per- 

 ennial herbaceous plants, having nothing 

 in common with the growth of trees in 

 general. They take their name from 

 palma, the hand, because the leaves are 

 extt-nded from the top like the fingers 

 upon the hand vhcn spread. Tbe palm 



3 PAL 



is characteristic of tropical scenery. It 

 was adopted as an emblem of victory *>? 

 the ancients, it is said, because tiie iterc 



is so highly elastic as when pressed down, 

 to rise and recover its erect position. The 

 figure represents the date-tree, a species 

 of the palm. 



PALM'EK. A begging pilgrim returned 

 from the Holy Land, bearing a branch ol 

 palm. 



PAL'METTO. The dwarf palm. A species 

 of Chamaerops or Fan-palm of America. 



PALM', FRUITFUL. An order formed in 

 1617 in Germany, for the preservation 

 and culture of the language. 



PAL'MIC ACID. An acid substance, ob- 

 tained in silky acicular crystals, by sa- 

 ponifying palmine, and treating ar 

 aqueous solution of the soap with hydro- 

 chloric acid. It fuses at 122 Fah., and is 

 soluble in all proportions in alcohol and 

 ether. 



PAL'MINE. A white substance, about 

 the consistence of wax when first obtained , 

 but hardens with keeping, and assumes a 

 resinous appearance. It dissolves in al- 

 cohol and ether, and saponifies with pot- 

 ash ley. It is readily obtained by treating 

 castor oil (oleum ricini), with about one- 

 twentieth of its weight of hyponitrous 

 acid, diluted with thrice its weight of 

 nitric acid. 



PALMIP'EDES, plur. of palmipes, a web- 

 footed animal. An order of birds having 

 the toes connected by a web or membrane, 

 and thus the feet fitted for swimming. 

 Cuvier divides them into four families. 

 Brachypterce , Longipennes, Totipuimattt, 

 and Lamellirostres. 



PALM'-OIL. An unctuous substance, 

 about the consistence of butter, of a yel- 

 lowish colour, and no particular taste, 

 obtained from the fruit of several species 

 of palms, especially from that of the Emit 

 guincensis, which grows abundantly on 



