844 
V A I 
V A l 
V A P 
the written examination signed by them and 
the justice, and transmitted to the sessions. 
The punishment is public whipping, or 
confinement to the house of correction till 
the next sessions, or any less time ; and if at 
the sessions the court adjudge such person 
a rogue and vagabond, or an incorrigible 
rogue, they ipay order such rogue or vaga- 
bond to the house of correction and hard 
labour for six months, or such incorrigible 
rogue for not less than six months or more 
than two years, and during his confinement 
to be whipped as they shall think fit. And 
if such rogue or vagabond is a male above 
12 years old, the court may, after his confine- 
ment, send him to be employed in his ma- 
jesty’s service : and if such incorrigible rogue 
shall make his escape, or offend a second 
time, he shall be transported for seven years. 
After such whipping or confinement, the 
justice may, by a pass under his hand (of 
which a duplicate shall be hied at the next 
sessions), cause him to be conveyed to the 
place of his last legal residence, and if that 
cannot be found, to the place of his birth ; 
and if they are under fourteen years of age, 
and have parents living, then to the place of 
their abode ; and the parish to which the 
vagrant shall be conveyed, shall employ him 
in some workhouse till he gets some employ- 
ment ; and it lie refuses to work, he shall be 
sent to the house of correction and hard la- 
bom - . 
'The general tenor of the laws respecting 
vagrants, is extremely severe, and very 
justly so ; and it is the duty - of every justice 
of the peace to keep his district free from 
this class, as they are great burthens to the pa- 
rish, and very difficult to be removed. For the 
best account of tiie vagrant-act, vide Burn’s 
Justice, vol. 4, article Vagrant. 
YAH Li A, a genus of plants of the class 
and order pentahdria digynia. The calyx 
is five-leaved ; corolla five-petalled ; cap- 
sule inferior, one-cel led, many-seeded. There 
is one species, a herb of the Cape. 
VALANT1A, a genus of plants in the 
order inonoecia, of the class polygamia, and 
in the natural system arranged under the 4 1st 
order, the asperifolue. There is scarcely any 
calyx ; the corolla Ainonopetalous, flat, four- 
parted ; the stamina four, with small anthe- 
rx ; the hermaphrodite flowers have a pis- 
tillum with a large germen, a bifid style the 
length of the calyx, and one seed ; the pis- 
tU)a of the. male flowers are hardly discern- 
ible. There are 9 species, only one of which 
is a native of Britain, the cruciata ; the stalks 
of which are square, the whole plant hairy, 
the leaves oval and verticillate, four in a 
whorl ; the flowers are yellow, and grow on 
short peduncles out of the ahe of the leaves. 
The roots, like those of the galium, to which 
it is nearly related, will dye red. It is astrin- 
gent, and was once used as a vulnerary. 
VALEN' d IIS’ IANS, in church history, a 
sect of christLn heretics, who sprung up in 
the second century, and were so called from 
their leader Valentinus. The valentinians 
were only a branch of the gnostics, who rea- 
lized or personified the Platonic ideas con- 
cerningthe Deity, whom they called Pleroma, 
or plenitude. Their system was this: the 
first principle is Bythos, i.e. depth, which 
remained many ages unknown, having with 
it Ennoe, or thought, and Sige, or silence • 
from' these sprung the Nous, or intelligence. 
"Inch is the only son, equal to, end alone ca- 
pable of comprehending,- the Bythos; the 
sister of Nous they called Aletheia, 01 - 
truth ; and these constituted the. first qua- 
ternity of aeons, which were the source and 
original of all the rest; for Nous and Ale- . 
theia produced the world and life, and from 
these two proceeded man and the church. 
But besides these eight principal aeons, mere 
were twenty-two more, the last of which, 
called Sophia, being desirous to arrive at the 
knowledge of Bythos, gave herself a great 
deal of uneasiness, which created in her 
anger and fear, of which was born matter. 
But the Hpros, or bounder, stopped her, pre- 
served her in the Pleroma, and restored her' 
to perfection. Sophia then produced the 
Christ and the Holy Spirit, which brought 
the ax>ns to their last perfection, an i made 
every one of them contribute their utmost 
to form the Saviour. Her Enthymese, or 
thought, dwelling near the Pleroma, perfect- 
ed by the Christ, produced every thing that 
is -in the world, by its divers passions. The 
Christ sent into it the Saviour, accompanied 
with angels, who delivered it from its pas- 
sions, without annihilating it ; and thence 
was formed corporeal matter. 
VALERIANA, a genus of plants, of the 
class triandria and order monogynia, and in 
the natural system arranged under the 48th 
order, aggregate. There is hardly any ca- 
lyx; the corolla is nronopetalous, gibbous 
at the base, situated above the germen; 
there is only one seed. Tiiery are 3 1 species, 
only four of which are natives of Britain, the 
officinalis, the olitoria, the rubra, and the 
djoica ; of these only the officinalis is useful. 
The root of this plant is perennial; the stalk is 
upright, smooth, channelled, round, branch- 
ed, and rises from two (o four feet in height ; 
the leaves on the stem are placed in pairs 
upon short broad sheaths ; they are compos- 
ed of several lance-shaped, partially dentated, 
veined, smooth pinna?, with an odd one at the 
end, which is the largest; the, floral leaves 
are spear-shaped and pointed ; the flowers 
are smail, of a white or purplish colour, and 
terminate the stem and branches in large 
bunches. It flowers in June, and common;) 
grows about hedges and woods. 
It is supposed to be the pa of Dioscorides 
and Galen, by whom it is mentioned as an 
aromatic and diuretic: it was first brought- 
into estimation in convulsive affections by 
l' abius Columna, who relates that he cured 
himself of an epilepsy by the root of this 
plant; we are told, however, that Columna 
suffered a relapse of the disorder; and no 
further accounts of the efficacy of valerian in 
epilepsy followed till those published by Do- 
minions Panarolus fifly years afterwards, in 
which three cases of its success are given. 
The advantages said to be derived' from 
this root in epilepsy, caused it to be tried in 
several other complaints termed nervous, 
particularly those produced by increased mo- 
bility and irritability of the nervous system, 
in which it has been found highly serviceable. 
Bergius states its virtues to be antispasmodic, 
diaphoretic, emmenagogue, diuretic, anthel- 
mintic. The root in substance is most effec- 
tual, and is usually given in powder from a 
scruple to a drachm ; its unpleasant flavour 
may be concealed by a small addition of 
mace. A tincture of valerian in proof spirit 
and in volatile spirit is ordered in the Lon- 
don Pharmacopoeia. Cats are very fond of 
the smell of this root, and seeni-to be intoxi- 
cated by it. 
VAI.LISNERIA, in botany, a gmus of 
the diceciadiandria class of plants, with a mo- 
nopetalous tripartite flower ; its fruit is a 'long* 
cylmdraceous, and unilocular capsule, con- 
taining numerous oval seeds. There are two! 
species. 
VALY E, in hydraulics, pneumatics, &c.| 
is a kind of lid or cover to a tube, vessel, or; 
orifice, contrived to open one way ; but! 
which, the more forcibly it is pressed the! 
othei wa), the closer it shuts the aperture J 
like the clapper of a bellows : so tiiat it either! 
admits the entrance of a fluid into the tubeJ 
oi \ essei, and pi events its return ; or per-! 
mits it to escape, and prevents its re-en-i 
trance. 
Valves are of great use in the air-pump, 
and other wind-machines ; in which they are 
usually made of pieces of bladder. In hydrau- 
lic engines, as the emboli orsuckers of pumps, 
t hey are mostly of strong leather, of a round 
figure, and fitted to shut the apertures of the 
barrels or pipes. Sometimes they are made 
of two round pieces of leather enclosed be- 
tween two others of brass; having divers 
perforations, which are covered with another 
piece of brass, moveable upwards and down- 
wards, on a kind of axis, which goes through 
the middle of them all. Sometimes they ara 
made of brass, covered over with leather* and 
lUinished with a line spring, which gives way 
upon a force applied against it ; bur upon the 
ceasing of that, returns the valve over the 
apertuie, See Pump, and Hydrostatics, 
Valve, in anatomy, a thin membrane ap- 
plied on several cavities and vessels of the 
oo-.i), to afford a passage to certain humours 
going one way, and prevent their reflux to- 
wards), he place whence they came. 
VAN, Vant, or Vaunt,* a term derived 
Irom the French avant, or avaunt, signify ini 
before,, or foremost of any thing; thus ue 
.my, the van-guard of an army, &c. 
Van, in sea- language, denotes the fore- 
most division of any naval armament, or the 
part that usually leads the way to battle, or 
advances first in the order of sailing 
Y AND ELL l - A, a genus of plants of the 
class didywamia and order an gi os perm i a, 
i he calyx is quadrilid ; the corolla ringent : 
the two exterior filaments proceed from the 
disc of the lip of the corolla ; the anthers 
are connected ; the capsule is unilocular and 
polyspermous. 1 here are only two species 
known, the diffusa and pratensis. 
, "V Ai\E, in a ship, & c. a thm slip of some 
kind of matter, placed on high in the open 
air, turning easily round on an axis or spin- 
dle, and veered about by the wind, to shew 
its direction or course. 
Y anes, in mathematical or philosophical 
instruments, are sights made to slide and 
move upon cross-staves, fore-staves, qua- 
drants, & c. 1 1 
VANGNESIA, a genus of plants of the 
class and order pentandria monogynia. The 
calyx is five-toothed ; corolla, tube globularj 
with a hairy throat; stigma bilame] late; 
berry inferior, four or five-seeded. There is 
one species, a tree of China. 
VANILLA. See Epidendrum. 
Y APOUR. See Evaporation, and 
fluidity. 
