570 t) U 0 
Jy perceivable to him, were immediately find 
distinctly apprehended by his scholars: the 
first of these signs indicated an internal ac- 
tion ; the second represented the act of a 
mind that reads internally, or, in other 
words, comprehends what is proposed to it ; 
a third signified that such a disposition is 
possible ; these, taken together, form the 
word “ intelligible a fourth sign transforms 
the adjective into the substantive ; and a 
fifth, expressing negation, completes the 
word required. M. Linguet afterwards pro- 
posed this question, “ What do* you under- 
stand by metaphysical ideas?” which being 
committed to writing, a young lady immedi- 
ately answered on paper in the following 
terms : “ I understand the ideas of things 
which are independant of our senses, which 
are beyond the reach of our senses, which 
make no impression on our senses, which 
cannot be perceived by our senses.” 
Dumbness, periodical. In the German 
Ephemerides is an account of an innkeeper’s 
son affected with a periodical dumbness, 
which had continued for fifteen years. T he 
loss of speech was at first instantaneous, and 
continued only a few minutes; but the dura- 
tion of it began to lengthen every day : so 
that it soon amounted to half an hour, two 
hours, three hours, and at last to 23 hours, 
yet without any order. At last the return of 
speech kept so constant and regular an or- 
der, that, for 14 years together, he could 
not speak except from noon, during the space 
of one entire hour, to the precise moment of 
one o’clock. Every time he lost his speech, 
he felt a sense of something rising from his 
stomach to his throat, but in other respects 
was in good health. Both his Internal and 
external senses also continued sound : he 
heard always perfectly well, and answered 
the question's proposed to him by gestures or 
in writing. The account states, that all sus- 
picion of imposture was removed by his keep- 
ing exactly the same hour, though he had no 
access to any instruments by which time can 
be measured. 
BUM fuit infra ^tatem, a writ that 
lies for him, who, before he came to his full 
age, made a feoffment of his land in fee, or 
for a term of life, or in tail, to recover them 
again from him to whom he conveyed them. 
Bum non fuit compos mentis, a writ 
that lies against the alienee, or lessee, for 
him that not being of sound memory, aliened 
any lands or tenements in fee-simple, fee- 
tail, or for term of life, or for years. 
DUNG-MEERS, in husbandry, places 
where soils and dungs are mixed and digested 
together. For this purpose it is usual to dig 
a pit sufficient to hold the stock of soil the 
husbandman is capable of making; and to 
prepare it at the bottom with stone and clay, 
that it may hold water, or the moisture of the 
dung ; and besides, it should be so situated 
t hat J the sinks and drips of the houses and 
barns mav run into it. Into this pit they cast 
refuse-fodder, litter, dung, weeds, &c. where 
they lie and rot together, till the farmer has 
occasion for it. Where such a pit is wanting, 
it is proper to cover the dung with turf, or 
other' stuff, to prevent the sun and wind from 
drawing off its virtues. See Husbandry. 
DUODENUM, in anatomy, the first of 
the small guts, intestina tenuia, so called 
from its length, which is about twelve fingers 
breadth. 
DUR 
DU BEE, among mathematicians, denotes j 
the ratio of 2 to 1. Thus the ratio of 8 to 
4 is duple, or as 2 to 1 . 
•Swi-DuPLE ratio is just the reverse of 
the former, or as 1 to 2. Such is 4 to 8, or, 
6 to 12. 
DUPLICATE, among lawyers, denotes 
a copy of any deed, writing, or account. 
It is also used for the second letters patent, 
granted by the lord chancellor in a case 
wherein lie had before done the same. Also, a 
second letter written and sent to the same 
party and purpose as a former, for fear 
of the first’s miscarrying, is called a dupli- 
cate. 
Duplicate proportion, or ratio, is 
a ratio compounded of two ratios : thus, the 
duplicate ratio of a to b, is the ratio of a a to 
b I), or of the square of a to the square of b. 
Hence the duplicate ratio ought to be well 
distinguished from double. 
In a series of geometrical proportionals, 
the first term to the third is said to be in a 
duplicate ratio of the first to the second : 
thus in 2, 4, 8, 16, &c. the ratio of 2 to 8 is 
duplicate of that of 2 to 4, or as the square 
of 2 to the square of 4. Duplicate ratio 
is therefore the proportion of squares, as tri- 
plicate is of cubes, &c. and the ratio of 2 to 
8 is said to be compounded of that of 2 to 4, 
and of 4 to 8. 
DUPLICATION, in general, signifies 
the doubling of any thing, or multiplying of 
it by 2: also the folding of anything back 
again on itself. 
The duplication of a cube is a problem fa- 
mous in antiquity x it was proposed by the 
oracle at Delphos, as a means to stop the 
plague, to double Apollo’s altar, which was 
cubical. See Cube. 
DUPLICATURE, among anatomists, a 
term used to denote the folds of any mem- 
brane, or vessel : thus we say, the duplica- 
■tures of the intestines, peritonaeum, &c. See 
Anatomy. 
DUPONDIUS, in antiquity, the weight 
of two pounds; also a piece of money equal 
to two ases in value. 
DURA MATER, in anatomy, one of the 
membranes, as they are called, which sur- 
round the brain. 
DU RATE', in music, a term properly ap- 
plicable to whatever offends the ear by its 
effect. The B natural, on account of its hard- 
ness, was formerly called B durate. There 
are rough or hard intervals in melody; such 
are those produced by the regular series of 
three whole tones, whether ascending or de- 
scending, and such are all false relations. 
DU RANI A, a genus of the angiosper- 
mia order, in the didynamia class of plants, 
and in the natural method ranking under the 
40th order, personatae. The calyx is quin- 
quefid, superior ; the berry tetraspermous ; 
the seeds bilocular. There are three species, 
shrubs of South America. 
DURESS, in law, is where a man is kept 
in prison, or restrained of his liberty, con- 
trary to the order of law ; or threatened to 
be killed, maimed, or beaten ; and if such 
person so in prison, or in fear of such threats, 
make any specialty or obligation by reason 
thereof, such deed is void in law ; and in 
any action brought upon such specialty, the 
party may plead that it was made by duress, 
and so he may avoid the action. Cowel. 
DUT 
Every act of contract mustbealtogtfier tlfe 
act of the understanding, which those are 
incapable of using, who are under restraint 
and terrors ; and therefore the law requires 
the free assent of the parties as essential to 
every contract, and that they be not under 
any force or violence. 2 Bac. Abr. 155. 
DURIO, a genus of the class and order 
polyadelphia polyandry. The calyx is five- 
cleft ; corolla five-petalled ; style one ; sta- 
mina iu five bodies ; pome five-celled. 
There is one species, a tree of the East In- 
dies. 
DUROIA, in botany, a genus of the mo- 
nogynia order, belonging to the hexandria 
class of plants. The calyx above is cylin- 
drical and lobed ; the border six-parted ; 
there are no filaments ; the fruit a hispid ap- 
ple. There is one species, a tree of Suri- 
nam. 
DUTCHY-COURT. See Chancel- 
lor. 
DUTY, in policy and commerce, signifies 
the impost laid on merchandises, at importa- 
tion or exportation, commonly called the du- 
ties of customs ; also the taxes of excise, 
stamp-duties, &c. See Customs, Excise, 
&c. 
There is no task more delicate or difficult 
to a statesman than the laying on of duties or 
imposts. Experience teaches us that a very 
small duty laid on commodities raises the 
price of them considerably to the consumer, 
beyond the gross duty. By the fees given to 
officers ; by tradesmen’s loss of time in at- 
tending upon excisemen, or at custom- 
houses ; by taking away a quarter of our 
traders’ stock for duties ; and forcing them 
to take as great pains on one quarter of their 
stock laid put in goods, in order to live, as 
they would on the whole, if duty-free; by 
tradesmen’s profits on the duty, anu advances 
in all the hands that all taxed goods come 
through to the consumer : as tor example, 
suppose there should be no other tax but 
that on leather, let us see how many ad- 
vances that would make on the price of 
shoes. 
The grazier lays (1) on the beast he fats, 
his advanced price of shoes: he sells to the 
butcher, who takes (2) his profit on the gra- 
zier’s advanced price of the beast ; and raises 
(3) on the hide his advanced price of shoes : 
he sells to the tanner, whose journeymen 
raise (4) their wages, on account of the ad- 
vanced price of shoes; the tanner {pays 
(5) the tax of two-pence per pound on the 
leather ; takes (6) his profit on the before- 
mentioned five advances, and raises (7) his 
advanced price of shoes on the tanned hide : 
he sells to the leather-cutter, who takes (8) 
his profit on the before-mentioned seven ad- 
vances, and raises (9) on the hide he cuts, his 
advanced price of shoes: he sells to the shoe- 
maker, whose journeymen raise (10) their 
wages, on account of their advanced price of 
shoes; the shoemaker takes (11) his profit 
on the before-mentioned ten advances, and 
raises (12) on the slices he n»xkes the ad- 
vanced price of the shoes he wears: he sells 
to the consumer with all these twelve ad- 
vances, highly magnified beyond the bare 
duty. 
So much for the tax on leather only ; but 
the grazier, butcher, tanner, leather-cutter, 
and shoemaker, use soap: that soap, like 
