ZEP 



753 



ZIR 



ZE'BKA. In zoology, the quus Zebra, 

 Lin., an animal nearly allied to the Ass, 

 but marked regularly with black and 

 white transverse stripes. South of Africa. 



ZE'BC. In zoology, the Bos Indicus, 

 Lin or Indian ox. This species of the 

 ox is very small, something not larger 

 than a mastiff. 



ZECH'-STEIN, j In geology, the second 



ZETCH'STEIN. ) member of the red sand- 

 stone series, in the ascending order. It 

 is a magnesian limestone. 



ZED'OARV. The root of the Ktempfera 

 rotunda, which grows in Malabar, Ceylon, 

 &c. The root is brought here in small 

 oblong pieces, but rough and angular ; 

 and also in roundish pieces about an inch 

 in diameter. It is used in medicine. 



ZEINE. A yellow substance, like wax, 

 obtained from maize, or seeds of the Zea 

 mays. 



ZEMINDAR'. In India, a feudatory, or 

 landholder, who governs a district of 

 country. 



ZEND. The language of the magi and 

 ancient fire-worshippers of Persia. 



ZENDAVES'TA. The sacred book of the 

 guebres, or modern fire- worshippers. 



ZEN'ITH. In astronomy, that point in 

 the celestial hemisphere which is vertical 

 to the spectator; and from which a right 

 line, passing through the spectator, 

 would proceed to the centre of the earth : 

 opposed to nadir. The term is Arabic. 



ZEN'ITH DISTANCE. The distance of 

 any celestial object from the zenith. 



ZEN'ITH SECTOR. An astronomical in- 

 strument for measuring accurately the 

 zenith distances of the stars passing 

 near the zenith. 



ZE'OLITE, from T^tiu, to foam, and X;0s, 

 a stone. A family of minerals, all charac- 

 terised by the property of fusing before 

 the blow-pipe, with much ebullition, 

 into a whitish spongy enamel. The sub- 

 genera are (1.) Trapezoidal zeolite, or 

 leucite ; (2.) Dodecahedral zeolite, or 

 lapis lazuli ; (3.) Hexahedral zeolite, or 

 anaclime; (4.) Paratomous zeolite, or 

 cross-stone; (5.) Rhombohedral zeolite, 

 or chabasite ; (6.) Diatomous zeolite, or 

 iaumonite ; (7.) Prismatic zeolite, or 

 mesotype; (8.) Prismatoidal zeolite, or 

 stilbite; (9.) Hemiprismatic zeolite, or 

 heulandite; (10.) Pyramidal zeolite, or 

 apophyllite ; (11.) Macrytopous zeolite, or 

 brewsterite. There is also a species of 

 zeolite .containing soda, termed natrolite, 

 from natron, or soda. Zeolite is found 

 in granite and gneiss, and also in cellular 

 basalt and primitive greenstone, in 

 Scotland, Iceland, the Feroe Islands,Swe- 

 den, and various parts of Germany, and 

 is particularly abundant in some of the 

 South Sea Islands. 



ZB'FHYR, Lat. zephynu ; Or. ZiQvfot. 

 The west wind ; and poetically a soft wind. 



ZER'DA. An animal of the canine geuus, 

 found in the desert of Sahara, beyond 

 Mount Atlas. 



ZE'RO. 1. The commencement of a 

 scale'marked with a cipher 0, for nothing. 

 2. A cipher. 



ZEST, from Arab., listen, to peel. l.A 

 piece of peel of orange or lemon , used to 



give flavour to liquor. 2. The woody 



skin quartering the kernel of a walnut. 



ZETA. I. The Greek letter . 2. A 



little closet, or withdrawing-room. 



ZETET'IC METHOD. In mathematics, in 

 that used in investigation, or the solu- 

 tion of problems. Zetetic is from ^rt, 

 to seek : that proceeds by inquiry. 



ZELG'MA, Gr. ^uiyfjui, a yoke, from 

 &vyvvu, to join. A figure in grammar, 

 by which an adjective or verb which 

 agrees with a ne'arer word is by way of 

 supplement referred to another more re- 

 mote, as Hie illius arma, hie currus fuit. 



ZEUS. The dory: a genus of acantho- 

 pterygious fishes, belonging to the family 

 Scomberidee. The John Dory, (Z. faber, 

 Cuv., Yarr.), which grows to about a foot 

 in length, is well known on our coasts. 



ZEY'LANITE. In mineralogy, another 

 orthography of Ceylanite. 



ZIB'ET. In zoology, the Indian civet, 

 of an ash colour, spotted with black. See 



VlVEHRA. 



ZI'MOME, from v[t-/i, ferment. A prin- 

 ciple supposed by Taddie, an Italian 

 physician, to exist in the gluten of wheat 

 flour. Later chemists have not recog- 

 nised it. 



ZINC, Germ. zink. A metal of a bluish 

 white colour, with a fine granular frac- 

 ture. It does not occur native, and was 

 not reduced from its ores till the six- 

 teenth century, though these had been 

 long previously used in the formation of 

 brass, of which it is an ingredient. Its 

 principal ores are (1.) Calamine, a car- 

 bonate of zinc, of which there are some 

 varieties ; (2.) Blende, which is a sulphu 

 ret of zinc, and the most abundant ore ; 

 (3.) Zinc-ore is a mineral consisting of 

 oxide of zinc combined with oxide of iroli 

 and manganese ; (4.) Sulphate of zinc i 

 found efflorescent in the form of stalac- 

 tites. Zinc is known in commerce under 

 the name of spelter. 



ZIN'GIBER. Ginger. A genus of per- 

 ennial plants. MonandriaMonogynia. 

 Name from Z,i-yyi t*i;, borrowed by the 

 Greeks from the Arabians, when they got 

 the plant. There are 12 species, all natives 

 of hot climates ; but the root of the 

 Z. qfficinale of India only is known in our 

 shops under the name of ginger. 



ZIR'CON. A rare mineral or gem. first 

 brought from the island of Ceylon, but 

 has since been found in various parts at 

 Europe. There are two sitdes, Z.jargo* 



3 c 



