PEP 



f , a column. A building having five 

 columns in front. 



PEN'TATEUCH, from triwi, five, and 

 fi'JXflt* a boo^- A name for the five books 

 of Moses. 



PTN'TATHLON, from Teyre, five, and 

 .$\o( , exercise. The five exercises per- 

 formed at the Grecian games ; wrestling, 

 boxing, leaping, running, and playing at 

 discus. 



PEN'TECOST. Hivrtxoirrri, from Tfxrf- 

 vo<rrt>f, fiftieth. 1. A solemn festival 

 among the Jews, so called because cele- 

 brated on the fiftieth day after the six- 

 teenth of Nisan, which was the second 

 day of the passover. It was also called 

 the feast of weeks, because it was cele- 

 brated seven weeks after the passorer. 

 --- 2. Whitsuntide. 



PEN'TELIC MARBLE. A beautiful variety 

 if Parian and Carrara marble, named 

 irom Mount Pentelicus, near Athens, 

 where it was quarried. 



PENT'-ROOF, Fr. petite, a slope. A roof 

 formed like an inclined plane, the slope 

 being all on one side, called also a shed- 

 roof. 



PENULT', ] Lat. pent ultima, almost 



PENUL'TIMA. ) last. In grammar and 

 prosody, the last syllable but one. 



PENOM'BRA, pene umbra, almost a 

 shadow. A partial shade observed on the 

 margin of the perfect shadow in an 

 eclipse. It arises from the great rotative 

 magnitude of the sun. 



PEON. In the East Indies, a footman or 

 foot-soldier ; hence pawns at chess. 



PEPERI'NO MARBLE. A calcareous stone 

 found in the environs of Rome, something i 

 of the nature of Travertine. It is sup- 

 posed to be the ancient Saxwn Albanum. 



PEP'LCM. An upper garment worn by 

 the females of Ancient Greece. 



PE'PO, from tritrret, to ripen. In botany 

 '!.) the Gourd (Cucurbita pepo) ; (2.) a 

 *Jeshy succulent seed-vessel, the seeds of 

 which are inserted into the sides of the 

 fruit. 



PEP'PER, Sax. peppor, Lat. piper. 1. In 

 botany, see PIPER and POLYGON UM. - 2. 

 The berry or fruit of different plants, es- 

 pecially of the genera Piper and Capsicum, 

 having an aromatic, hot, pungent taste. 

 Used for seasoning, &c. The common 

 sorts are (1.) blackpepper, the fruit of the 

 Piper nigrum, a creeping plant, cultivated 

 in India, Siam, and the Eastern Islands. 

 (2.) White pepper, made by blanching the 

 finest grains of the black pepper. (3.) 

 Cayenne pepper is produced by several spe- 

 cies of Capsicum, common to both Indies : 

 the best i the bird pepper, imported from 

 the Weft Indies. It is the produce of the 

 C. baccalum, an annual plant. The Guinea 

 pepfer, the produce of the Capsicum an- 



4 i'ER 



nuiim, is also highly valued. "What is 

 called Cayenne prpprr, ia commeri-.e, is, 

 however, an indiscriminate mixture of 

 the powder of the dried pods of seven or 

 eight species of capsicum, (i.) Long pepper 

 is the produce of the Piper longum, a per- 

 ennial of Malabar and Bengal. (5.) Ja- 

 maica pepper is the produce of -the Myrtut 

 pimenta. See PIMENTO. 



PEP'PER DULCE. The Fucus pinnatifidus, 

 often eaten as a salad. It tastes like 

 cresses. 



P; P'PERMINT. The JHentha piperita, an 

 indigenous plant. It has a more pene- 

 trating smell than the other mints, and a 

 strong pungent taste, glowing like pepper ; 

 hence its name. 



PEP'PERWATER. A liquor prepared from 

 powdered black pepper. 



PER. A Latin preposition, signifying 

 by. 1. Used in many phrases, as per 



annum, per cent., &c. 2. In chemistry, 



it is used as a prefix to oride, to denote the 

 furthest degree of oxidation which does 

 not confer the property of acidity, as per- 

 oxide of mercury ; and to the names of 

 acids, where acids have been discovered 

 containing still more oxygen than those 

 whose names end in ic, perchloric acid. A 

 salt formed by the union of an acid with a 

 peroxide, is termed a.per salt, as the per- 

 nitrate of mercury. We have also per- 

 iodides, pr-chlorides, &c., on the same 

 principle. 



PERACU'TE, Lat. peracutus. Very acute. 

 Applied to diseases when very severe. 



PERAMBULA'TOR. Surveying wheel. 

 An instrument for measuring roads, &c., 

 where only moderate accuracy is required. 

 As the great wheel turns round it com- 

 municates motion to a set of toothed 

 wheels, which again move indexes or 

 hands upon a dial-plate, and thus register 

 the number of revolutions made by the 

 wheel of the instrument ; and knowing 

 the circumference of this, the distance 

 passed over is consequently known. The 

 registering part of the machinery is 

 sometimes attached to the wheels of car- 

 riages let on hire, to show the distance 

 driven. 



PER'BEND, or THOROUGH. The term 

 applied to the heading-stones of a wall 

 when they are carried through the whole 

 thickness : if the stones only reach a part 

 of the way through, they are termed 

 binders. 



PER'CA. The Perch. A genus of acan- 

 thopterygious fishes, and the type of the 

 family Percoides, Cuv. The species are 

 numerous. Name, */*,, % jr ? */ s * 

 xigxvo;, black ; quia niyris maculis est 

 varius. 



PERCEPTION. In logic, the first act of 

 the mind, which consists in the receptiom 

 of ideas through the medium or instru- 

 mentality of the senses. 





