INF 



II L is a negative quantity, because while 

 the ordinate C M increases, their differ- 

 ence r H decreases; whence x x-\- y y 

 y y = 0, which is a general equation 

 for finding the point of inflection, or re- 

 trogradation. 



INFLECTION, in grammar, the variation 

 of nouns and verbs, by declension and 

 conjugation. See GRAMMAR. 



INFLORESCENCE, in botany, a term 

 used to denote the mode of flowering ; 

 the manner in which flowers are sup- 

 ported on their foot-stalks. The various 

 modes in which flowers are joined to 

 the plant by the peduncles or foot-stalk 

 are expressed by different terms. See 

 BOTAHT. 



The various modes of flowering are 

 applicable to those flowers which pro- 

 ceed from the angle formed by the leaves 

 and branches, as is the case in most in- 

 stances, and to such also as terminate the 

 stem and branches. In the first case, 

 flowers are termed " axillaries," that is, 

 proceeding from the arm-pit of the leaf: 

 in the latter " terminates," that is, the- 

 terminating the branches. Inflorescence 

 affords a characteristic mark, by which to 

 distinguish the species of plants, but is 

 not used as a generic difference. 



INFLUENZA, in medicine, a species 

 of contagious catarrh, so named, because 

 it was supposed to be produced by a pe- 

 culiar influence of the stars. The pheno- 

 mena of contagious catarrhs have been 

 much the same with those of the simple 

 kind, but the disease has always been 

 particularly remarkable for this, that it 

 has been the most widely and generally 

 spreading epidemic known. It has sel- 

 dom appeared in any One country of Eu- 

 rope, without appearing successively in 

 most of the others. 



IN FORMA PAUPERIS. When any 

 man, who has a just cause of suit, either 

 in Chancery, or any of the courts of com- 

 mon law, will come before the Lord 

 Keeper, Master of the Rolls, either of the 

 Chief Justices, or Chief Baron, and make 

 oath that he is not worth five pounds, 

 his debts paid, either of the said judges 

 will, in his own proper court, admit him 

 to sue in forma pauperts, or as a poor man, 

 and he shall have counsel, clerk, or at- 

 torney, assigned him, to do his business, 

 without paying any fees. 



INFORMATION, in law, may be de- 

 fined an accusation or complaint exhibit- 

 ed against a person for some criminal of- 

 fence. It differs principally from an in- 

 dictment in this, that an indictment is an 

 accusation found by the oath of twelve 



VOL. VI. 



men, but an information is only the alle- 

 gation of the officer who exhibits it. In- 

 formations are of two kinds; first, those 

 which are partly at the suit of the king, 

 and partly at the suit of a subject ; and 

 secondly, such as are only in the name of 

 the king : the former are usually brought 

 upon penal statutes, which inflict a penal- 

 ty on conviction of the offender, one part 

 to the use of the king, and another to the 

 use of the informer, and are a sort of qui 

 tarn, or popular actions, only carried on by 

 a criminal instead of a civil process. In- 

 formations that are exhibited in the name 

 of the king alone are also of two kinds ; 

 first, those which are truly and properly 

 his own suits, and filed ex offitio by his 

 own immediate officer, the Attorney 

 General; secondly, those in which, though 

 the King is the nominal prosecutor, yet 

 it is at the relation of some private person, 

 or common informer, and they are filed 

 by the Master of the Crown-office, under 

 the express direction of the court. And 

 when an information is filed in either of 

 these ways, it must be tried by a petit 

 jury of the county where the offence 

 arises ; after which, if the defendant be 

 found guilty, he must resort to the Court 

 of King's Bench for his punishment. 

 Common informers, by 18 Elizabeth, c. 5, 

 are to pay costs in case of failure of suit 

 upon informations, unless the judge cer- 

 tifies that there was a reasonable cause 

 for prosecuting. 



INFUSION, in chemistry, is the mace- 

 ration of any substance in water, or any 

 other liquid, hot or cold, in order to ex-; 

 tract its soluble parts. The liquid thus 

 impregnated is called an infusion. In- 

 fusion differs from maceration, in being 

 continued for a longer time, and it caa 

 only be employed Tor substances which 

 do not easily ferment or spoil. See 

 PH ARM ACT. 



INFUSORIA, in natural history, the 

 fifth order of the class Vermes, in the 

 Linnxan system. They are simple mi- 

 croscopic animalcules. There are three 

 divisions : 



A, with external organs, of which there 

 are five genera, t*z. 



Trichoda, 

 Vorticella. 



Branchionus, 



Cere-aria, 



Leucopera, 



B, without external organs, flattened ; 

 four genera : 



Colpoda, Gonium, 



Cyclidium, Parmeciuai, 



Nn 



