OKI 



OKI 



liar properties not to be found in any 

 other kind of silk. 



ORGASM, a quick motion of the blood, 

 whereby the muscles are made to move 

 with great force. 



ORGUES, in the military art, are thick 

 long pieces of wood pointed at one end, 

 and shod with iron, clear one of another ; 

 hanging each by a particular rope, or 

 cord, over the gate -way of a strong place, 

 perpendicularly, to be let fall in case of 

 an enemy. Their disposition is such, 

 that they stop the passage of the gate, 

 and are preferable to herses or portcul- 

 lises ; because these may be either broke 

 by u petard, or they may be stopped in 

 their falling down ; but a petard is useless 

 against an orgue, for if it break one or 

 two of the pieces, they immediately 

 fall down again, and h'll up the vacan- 

 cy ; or if they stop one or two of the 

 pieces from falling, it is no hindrance to 

 the rest. 



ORIGANUM, in botany, marjoram, a 

 genus of the Didynamia Gymnosper- 

 ma class and order. Natural order of 

 Verticillatae. Labiatne, Jussieu. Essen- 

 tial character : strobile four-cornered, 

 spiked, collecting the calyxes. There 

 are twelve species, with several varie- 

 ties. 



ORILLON, in fortification, is a small 

 rounding of earth faced with a wall ; 

 raised on the shoulder of those bas- 

 tions that have casements, to cover 

 the cannon in the retired flank, and 

 prevent their being dismounted by the 

 enemy. 



ORIOLUS, the oriole, in natural his- 

 tory, a genus of birds of the order Picae. 

 Generic character: bill conic, convex, 

 very sharp and strait ; mandibles equal- 

 ly long; nostrils small, and lodged in 

 the base of the bill, and partly cover- 

 ed ; tongue divided and sharp-point- 

 ed. These birds are natives of Ame- 

 rica, are clamorous and voracious, ap- 

 pear in flocks, feed on fruits and grain, 

 and frequently have pensile nests. La- 

 tham enumerates forty -five species; Gme- 

 lin fifty. We shall notice only those 

 which follow : 



O. persicus, or the black and yellow 

 oriole. A variety of this species,' some- 

 what larger than a blackbird, and an in- 

 habitant of South America, is the bird 

 rendered remarkable for building nests 

 in the form of an alembic, and nearly 

 eighteen inches long, of dry grass, hog's 

 bristles, and horse-hair, or, what is called 

 in that country, old man's beard, a sub- 

 stance very like the hair of horses. 



The bottom of this nest is hollow for 

 the length of a foot, the remainder 

 or upper part, for the space of six in- 

 ches, is solid, and it is suspended at the 

 extremity of a branch. It is particu- 

 larly fond of building on trees, near 

 houses, and several hundreds of these 

 nests have occasionally been seen on a 

 single tree. 



O. icterus, or the Banana bird, is found 

 in all the Caribbee islands, feeding on in- 

 sects, and hopping like a magpie. These 

 birds are domesticated in America, for 

 the destruction of insects. In a state of 

 nature, four or five will attack a large 

 bird, and appear, after tearing it in pieces, 

 to divide the spoil with great discri- 

 mination. They will occasionally attack 

 men. Their nests are formed and sus. 

 pended like those of the former spe- 

 cies, to guard against snakes and other 

 animals. 



O. Baltimoreus, or the Baltimore bird, 

 is called by the natives, the fire-bird, 

 and, when its feathers are most bril. 

 liant, naturally excites the idea or sensa- 

 tion of fire. These birds form pensile 

 nests, secure from all depredation. They 

 are about seven inches long, and inhabit 

 North America. 



O. galbula, or the golden oriole, is as 

 large as a blackbird, and of a fine golden 

 yellow, with wings almost entirely black. 

 It is common in several parts of Europe, 

 particularly in France ; but not seen so 

 tar north even as England. It is suppos- 

 ed to winter in Africa. Ils nest is pensile, 

 and the female is extremely attentive to 

 her young, fearing no enemy in their de- 

 fence, suffering herself to be taken in the 

 nest with them, and continuing to sit over 

 them in the cage till she dies. It feeds 

 on insects and fruits, and is considered as 

 a delicacy for the table. 



For the red-rumped oriole, see Aves, 

 Plate X. fig. 6. 



ORION", in astronomy, a constellation of 

 the southern hemisphere, consisting of 

 thirty -seven stars, according to Ptolemy ; 

 of sixty-two, according to Tycho ; and of 

 no less than eighty, in the Britannic cata- 

 logue. The lately improved telescopes have 

 discovered several thousand stars in this 

 constellation : of these, there are two of the 

 first magnitude, four of the second, and 

 several of the third and fourth. The stars 

 of the first magnitude are Regel and Be- 

 telguese. Those of the second are, Bel- 

 latrix, on the left shoulder, and three in 

 the belt, lying nearly in a right line, and 

 at equal distances from each other. 



