R A B 



610 



R AC 



QUOD PEUMIT'TAT. In laui, a writ for 

 the heir of him that is disseised of com- 

 mon of pasture, against the heirs of the 

 disseisor. 



QUOIN, Fr. coin, a corner. 1. Quoins are 

 stones, or other materials, put into the 

 corners of brick buildings, to strengthen 

 them. If the stones project before the 

 face of the wall, and have chamfered 



edges, they are termed rustic quoins. 



2. In artillery, a loose wedge of wood put 

 below the breech of a cannon to adjust 

 its elevation. 



QUOIT, But. coite. A sort of annular 

 disc of metal, to be pitched at a fixed 

 object, in the game called quoits. A flat 

 Stone is used in common practice. 



Quo JURE (Lat.). By what law, right, 

 or title. 



Quo MI'NUS. In law, a writ which 

 issues from the Exchequer, to take the 

 body of the defendant, in the same man- 

 ner as the Capias in the Common Pleas, 

 and the Latitat in the Queen's Bench. 



QCO'RCM, Lat. gen. pi. of qui, who. 

 Such a number of persons as is competent, 

 by the law in the case, to transact busi- 

 ness. The term originates from the words 

 of a justice-of-peace commission," quorum 

 aliquem vestrum unum esse volumus." 



QUO'TIEXT, from quoties, how often. 

 The name, in arithmetic, for the number 

 which results from the division of one 

 number by another. See DIVISION. 



Quo WAURAN'TO. In law, a writ which 

 lies against a person, or corporation, that 

 usurps any franchise or liberty against 

 the Crown. 



Q.V. 1. An abbreviation of quantum 

 vis, as much as you will. 2. An abbre- 

 viation of quod vide, which see : frequently 

 used in this dictionary. 



R 



R is the eighteenth letter of the Eng- 

 lish alphabet, and an articulation sui 

 generis, having no resemblance in pronun- 

 ciation to any other letter. As a Roman 

 numeral it stands for 80, and with a dash 

 over it for 80,000. R, or R, placed at 

 the beginning of medical prescriptions, is 

 a contraction of Recipe, take. In ancient 

 times (says Dr. Paris), such was the sup- 

 posed importance of planetary influence, 

 that it was usual to prefix a symbol of 

 the planet under whose reign the ingre- 

 dients were to be collected, and it is not, 

 perhaps, generally known, that the cha- 

 racter which we at this day place at the 

 head of our prescriptions, and which is 

 understood and supposed to mean recipe, 

 is a relic of the astrological symbol of Ja- 

 piter, as may be seen in many of the older 

 works on pharmacy. 



Fr. raboter, to plane A deep 



groove or channel, cut longitudinally 

 in a plank or piece of timber, to receive 

 the edge of another plank, which is to be 

 let into it. This is termed a rabbet-joint ; 

 and the plane with which the rabbet is 

 made, is denominated a rabbet-plane. 



RAB'BI, I A title assumed by the Jew- 



RAB'BIN. ) ish doctors, signifying lord, 

 or master. 



RAB'BINISTS. Those among the Jews 

 who adhered to the Talmud and the tra- 

 ditions of the rabbins, in opposition to the 

 Caraites, who reject all traditions. 



RA'BIES. A Latin term for madness. 

 Generally applied to the disease in dogs, 

 otherwise called hydrophobia (rabies ca- 

 nina). 



RA'CA (Syriac). Vanity or folly. Pro- 

 nounced by the Jews with gestures of in- 

 dignation. 



RACE, 1 In engineering, the canal 



RACE-COURSE. ) along which the water 

 is conveyed to and from a water-wheel. 



RACE'ME, Lat. racemus, a cluster or 

 bunch. In botany, a species of inflores- 

 cence, consisting of a cluster of flowers, 

 rather distant from each other, each on 

 its own proper stalk, and all connected 

 together by one common peduncle. 



RACEM'IC ACID. The name given by 

 M. Gay-Lussac to an acid isomeric with 

 tartaric acid, and obtained along with it 

 in decomposing tartrate of lime by 

 means of sulphuric acid. It has been 

 called vinicacid, which, on the Continent, 

 is also a name of tartaric acid (German, 

 weinsaure). 



RACEMOVIN'IC ACID. An acid formed by 

 the action of alcohol on racemic acid. It 

 crystallises, and differs from tartrovinic 

 acid in containing an atom more water. 



RA'CHIS, |<K%<S. The vertebral column 

 of mammals in birds. 



RACK, Sax. racan, -to stretch. 1. An 

 engine of torture, composed of pulley- 

 tackle, formerly too much used for extort- 

 ing confessions from suspected persons. 



2. In mechanics, a straight machine 



which has teeth or cogs similar to those of 



a toothed wheel. 3. In ships, a frame of 



timber containing several sheaves, and 

 usually fixed to the opposite sides of the 

 bowsprit, to direct the sailors to the re- 

 spective ropes passing through it. 



4. In stables, a railed convenience above 

 the manger for the reception of hay. 



RACK/ET, Fr. raquette. The instrument 

 with which players at tennis strike the ball. 



RACK'ING-PACE (of a horse). An amble, 

 but with a shorter and quicker tread. 



RACK'-REXT. In law, the full yearly 

 value of the land. 



R.VC'OVJANS. In ecclesiastical history, tha 

 Unitarians of Poland are so called, from 

 Racow, a city of that country, where the 

 Socinian Catechism was published. 



