voc 



743 



VOL 



VITILI'GO. Veal skin: from ritttlns, a 

 calf. In nosology, leprosy : a cutaneous 

 disease in which the skin has a white and 

 glistening appearance, like the flesh of a 

 calf. 



VI'TIS. The vine : a ffenus of hedera- 

 ceous plants. Pentandria Honogynia. 

 The species cultivated for the sake of its 

 fruit (grapes) is the V. vinifera, which 

 appears to have a very wide geographical 

 distribution. 



VIT'REO-ELEC'TRIC. Exhibiting positive 

 electricity, such as is exhibited by rub- 

 bing glass. 



VIT'REOUS ELECTIU'CITI'. See ELECTRI- 

 CITY, POSITIVE, and NEGATIVE. 



VITRIFAC'TIOX, ) from ritrwn, glass, 



VITRIFICA'TION, j and facio, to make. 

 Conversion of a substance into glass by 

 the aid of heat. 



VIT'RIOL. Oil of vitriol. Sulphuric acid. 

 Slue vitriol or Roman vitriol is sulphate of 

 copper ; green vitriol is sulphate of iron ; 

 red vitriol sulphate of cobalt ; white vitriol 

 is sulphate of zinc ; sweet spirit of vitriol is 

 sulphuric ether. 



VIT'RIOLATED AL'KALI. Sulphate of pot- 

 ash.. 



VITRIOL'IC ACIP. Sulphuric acid. 



YIT'TA. In numismatics, the diadem on 

 a medal. 



VIVA'CE, Ital. lively. In music, denotes 

 a lively manner of performing. 



VI'VA YO'CE. By word of mouth. 



YIVER'RA. The Civet : a genus of digi- 

 tigrade and carnivorous mammalia. The 

 genus was established by Linne", but is 

 now subdivided: Viverra, Cuv., compre- 

 hending the true civets, the civet of Africa 

 and the zibet of India; Genetta, Cuv., 

 comprising the genets ; Paradoxurus, Fr. 

 Cuv., formed on the pougoun6 of India; 

 Mangusta , Cuv. , or Herpestes, 111. , to which 

 belongs the ichneumon c r the ancients ; 

 Ryzeena, 111., comprising the surikates, 

 and Crossarchus, Fr. Cuv., allied to the 

 surikates. 



VIVES. A disease of horses and some 

 other animals, seated in the glands under 

 the ear, where a tumour is formed, which 

 sometimes suppurates. 



YIVIP'AROCS, 1 1. In zoology, an animal 



YIVIP'ARCS. J which brings forth its 

 young alive and perfect, is termed vivi- 

 parous, in distinction to one which isovi- 

 jjnrous or lays eggs. 2. In botany, vivi- 

 parous is applied to stems or stalks which 

 produce bulbs that are capable of vegeta- 

 tion. 



VIX'EJJ. Fixen. The cub of a fox. 



Yiz. A contraction of videlicet (q. v.). 



YIZ'IEK. Ar. u-azhdra, to support. The 

 chief minister of the Turkish empire. 



VOCA'TION, Lat. voco, I call. Jn theology, 

 the call of the Holy Spirit, by which 

 persons are believed to be initiated into 

 the clerical order. 



VOC'ATIVE CASE. In grammar, the case 

 used in calling, relating, e. 



YOIRE DIRE, Fr., corrupted from trai 

 dire, to speak truth. In law, an objection 

 to the competency of a witness, in a trial 

 at common law, could only be taken ac- 

 cording to the ancient practice, on a pre- 

 liminary examination, in which the wit- 

 ness was sworn to speak the truth, and 

 then examined respecting his interest in 

 the cause at issue. 



VO'LANT. Flying. Applied in heraldry 

 to a bird drawn with the wines spread. 



YOL'ATILE, Lat. rolatilii, flying; volo, to 

 fly. In chemistry, substances, the parti- 

 cles of which have a tendency to evapor- 

 ate, or diffuse themselves through the air, 

 at ordinary temperatures, are called vola- 

 tile substances, as ammonia, ether, and 

 essential oils. 



VOLGA'* o, Ital. from Vulcan. An open- 

 ing in the earth's surface, whence issue 

 vapour, smoke, flame, stones, lava, and 

 other products, ejected by internal fire. 

 Such are Etna and Vesuvius in Sicily and 

 Italy, and Hecla in Iceland. Volcanoes 

 are perhaps to be regarded in the light of 

 safety-valves. 



YO ; LE.NS XO'LENS. Willing or not will- 

 ing. 



VOL'TA. In Italian music, denotes that 

 the part is to be repeated. 



YOL'TA-ELEC'TRIC INDUCTION. The elec- 

 tricity induced by a proximate electric 

 current. 



VOLTA'IC. Galvanic (q. v.). The voltaic 

 pile, a column formed by successive pairs 

 of metallic discs, as copper and zinc, or 

 silver and zinc, with moistened cloth be- 

 tween each contiguous pair. Voltaic bat- 

 tery, see GALVANIC BATTERY. 



VOL'TAISM. Galvanism is sometimes so 

 called, from Volta, whose experiments so 

 successfully conduced to establish this de- 

 partment of science. 



measure. An instrument contrived by 

 Mr. Faraday, for measuring the amount 

 of electricity passing in a current through 

 it. It consists of two platinum plates, 

 immersed in water acidulated with sul- 

 phuric acid, and the quantity of the mixed 

 gases (oxygen and hydrogen) evolved, 

 that is the quantity of water decomposed, 

 is a measure of the current. In the 

 smaller forms of the instrument the gases 

 are received in a graduated glass tube; if 

 the instrument be of a larger form, they 

 are conveyed to a separate vessel, gradu- 

 ated , as in the case of the tube, to indi cate 

 the quantity. 



VOL'TATVPE. See ELECTROTYPE. 



VOL'TI SC'BITO, in Italian music, is a di- 

 rection to turn over the leaf quickly. 



YOL'CBLE, Lat. volubilis. Easy to b 

 rolled, twining. Applied to stems oi 

 plants which twine round other plant*. 



