banana 
or 10 feet, bearing its oblong fruit in a dense cluster 2 or 3 
feet long and sometimes weighing 70 or 80 pounds. The 
fruit is soft, sweetish, not highly flavored, ami without 
seeds. It is eaten either raw or rooked. Several varieties 
are cultivated, differing in size, color, and tliivor. Ml. r 
fruiting the stem decays, or is cut down, and new shoots 
spring from the root and produce a new crop in a few 
months. The llher of the stem and leaves is of little value. 
The plantain, M. f>afit<liKiitca, is probably only a vanity 
of the same speeics. See M//*rt and ///</////////. Banana 
essence, an artillcial fruit-essence used for flavoring jel- 
lies, ices, and confectionery. It is a mi xlmv of amyl 
acetate and liulyrie ether. -Mexican banana, a iiiLiii. 
sometimes given to a species of tuewt, 1'. li<i<-rata, of 
northern Mexico and the adjacent I'nited Stales, which 
hears a lame, juicy, edible fruit. 
banana-bird (ba-imu'ii-berd), H. A name given 
by early writers to several West Indian and 
tropical Ainenciin species of the large genus 
Icterutt, which contains Ihe American orioles or 
hangnests, more or less nearly related to the 
Baltimore bird, Ictemn i/itllnilit. Thus, under this 
name, Edwards describes a species, afterward the A'a/i- 
llnn'm'* a" -i " ->///".* of llrisson (17W), and the Orivlu* ba- 
/iidiniif I.iinueus(17oB). The Irtrriixli ''/ trri/xot Jamaica 
is also one of the species \vhich have home the name. 
One section of the genus Isti'i-u* has liccn nani.,1 /,'(//////// 
voniK from the implied habit (of banana-eating) of the 
birds composing it; the type of this is the common or- 
chard-oriole of the I'nited States, Icterux spurius. 
banana-eater (ba-nau'a-e"ter), n. A plantain- 
eater; a bird of the genus Muitn/iliai/it. 
banana-quit (ba-uan'a-kwit), n. A name of the 
black and yellow honey-creeper, Certhioln Jl<i- 
reolti, and other species of birds of the same 
genus. 
bananist (ba-uau'ist), . [< banana + -igt.'] 
A banana-bird: a name given to various birds 
besides those of the genus Icterus, as, for ex- 
ample, to Certhiola bananivom of San Domingo. 
bananivorous (ban-a-niv'o-rus), a. [< banana 
+ L. vnrare, eat.] Feeding upon bananas. 
banat, banate (ban'at, -at), n. [Also bannat; 
< ban- + -at, -ate 3 .'] 1. In Hungary, a border 
province ruled by a ban ; the territory or juris- 
diction of a ban ; specifically, the Temesvar 
banat in southeastern Hungary, distinctively 
called the Bauat, formally reunited to Hungary 
in 1860. 2. The office of a ban. 
banatite (ban'a-tit), w, [< Banat + -ite*.] A 
name given by Von Cotta to a variety of dio- 
rite occurring in the Banat, Hungary. 
banausic (ba-na'sik). a. [< Gr. flavavoiK6f, of 
or for mechanics, < fiavavaia, the practice of a 
mechanical art, the habits of a mechanic, < 
ftavavaoc,, mechanical, < fiavvof, a furnace, forge.] 
Merely mechanical ; characteristic of mechan- 
ics or a mechanic. [Rare.] 
By this term [ Americanisms) he [Du Bois-Reymond| 
designates materialistic and banausic tendencies in gen- 
eral, which are more specifically expressed in making 
money-getting the prime object of life, in love of display, 
and in public and private corruption. 
ft S. Hall, German Culture, p. 149. 
bane (bangk), . [< AF. and F. bane (ML. ban- 
cus), bench : see bank 1 ."] In law, a seat or bench 
of justice A court In bane, a court in which the full 
bench of judges is present : as, before the court in bane. 
A sitting In bane, a session of court held by all the judges 
or by a quorum of them. Days in bane. See day*. 
bancal 1 (bang'kal), . [F., prop, adj., bandy- 
legged.] A saber more curved than usual, as 
if in imitation of the simitar ; specifically, the 
saber of this form worn by officers of the first 
French republic and empire, during 1792-1810. 
bancal 2 (bang'kal), n. [E. Ind.] A weight 
equal to about 1 pound, used in India. 
banco (bang'ko), n. [It., a bank, bench, coun- 
ter, < ML. bancus: see fcanfr 1 .] In com., the 
money in which the banks of some countries 
keep or kept their accounts, in contradistinction 
to tie current money of the place. The distinc- 
tion was more necessary when the currency consisted, as 
it often did, of clipped, worn, and foreign coins. Banco 
mark. See mark banco, under inark. 
band 1 (band), . [< ME. band, bande, also 
bond, bonde ( > mod. E. bond, the same word, 
now partly discriminated in use), < AS. "band 
= OS. &and = OFries. band=D. band = OHG. 
MHG. bant, G. band = Icel. Sw. band = Dan. 
baand, a band, a tie, a neut. noun (in D. and G. 
also masc.), developing in later use a great 
variety of particular senses, and merged in ME. 
with the synonymous bend, bende, batnde, < AS. 
bend, rarely bcend, in mod. E. prop, bend, and 
with the slightly different bande, E. band 2 , a 
strip, hoop, etc., derived through the F. from 
the same ult. source, namely, Teut. (AS., etc.) 
bindan (pret. band), E. bind: see bind, bendl, 
bind'*, bend 3 , and cf. bond 1 , band%, band 3 .'] 1. 
Anything which binds the person or the limbs, 
and serves to restrain or to deprive of liberty ; 
a shackle, manacle, or fetter: usually in the 
plural. 
437 
And I'haraoh-ncebob put him in band* at Kihlah. 
i Ki. xxiii. .'. 
And suddenly then- was a nival earthquake, so that the 
foundations of the prison were shaken : and iiumcdiateU 
all tile doors were opened, and every one's Ixitnlx \veiv 
loosed. Acts ivi. 26. 
Did. In chains of adamant .' 
J/rtm. Yes, the strongest hiuti!*. 
/;. ./</,*/<//, Alchemist, iv. 1. 
2. That by which loose things of the same or a 
similar kind are bound together, spc, ilk-ally () 
The' tic of straw used in biinlinu sheaves of wheat or other 
grain. (') 111 '/<>/t///m//'/e/, one of tin; conls, tapes, or 
strips of parchment which hold together the several sec- 
tions of the sewed book. The thread is drawn from with- 
in each section around or over the bands. 
3. That which connects; a connecting piece, 
or means of connection; that which connect- 
or unites the several parts of a complex thing. 
The body, by joints and '/////./. . . . knit together, in 
creaseth with the increase of God. Col. ii. In. 
He [hope] Is a flatterer, 
A parasite, a keeper-back of death, 
Who gently would dissolve the bandg of life. 
Xlnill.. Itich. II., il. 2. 
Specifically (at) In loyic, the copula. [Kare.] 
A simple Axiome is that, the batitl whereof is a Verbe. 
'/'. Xi*?ncer (1628), Logick, p. Kill. (.V. E. D.) 
(h) The metallic sleeve which binds the barrel and stock 
of a musket together. (<) One of two pieces of iron fas- 
tened to tin- liws of a saddle to keep them in place. (</) 
A leaden came. See came'*. (H) A hyphen. 
4. A binding or uniting power or influence : as, 
a band of union. [Now usually 6orf.] 
I drew them with cords of a man, with bandt of love. 
Hos. xi. 4. 
Land of my sires ! what mortal hand 
Can e'er untie the filial band 
That knits me to thy rugged strand? 
Scott, L. of L. M., vL 2. 
5. An obligation imposing reciprocal, legal, or 
moral duties: as, the nuptial bands. [Now 
usually bond."] 
Here's eight that must take hands, 
To join in Hymen's bands. 
Shak., As you Like it, v. 4. 
6f. A binding promise or agreement; a bond 
or security given. 
Adr. Tell me, waa he arrested on a land! 
Dro. S. Not on a band, but on a stronger thing. 
Shak., C. of E., iv. 2. 
You know my debts are many more than means, 
My bands not taken in, my friends at home 
Drawn dry with these expenses. 
Fletcher (and another), Noble Gentleman, I. 1. 
7t. A surety; a bondsman. 
Since faith could get no credit at his hand, 
I sent him word to come and sue my band. 
Churchyard, Challenge (ed. 1778), p. 152. 
8t. A covenant or league. [Scotch.] - False 
bands, in bookbindint/, strips of leather or strands of 
twisted cord, pasted across the Inner side of the backs of 
books, and afterward molded in high relief to give the 
appearance of bands of unusual thickness or strength. 
Raised bands, in bookbinding, strips of leather or braided 
cord of unusual thickness, fastened on the outside of the 
sewed sheets of a hook-back, making a noticeable projec- 
tion on the back, and intended to give increased strength 
to sewing. 
band' 2 (band), n. [< ME. bande, < OF. bande, 
earlier bcnde, mod. F. bande = Pr. benda = Sp. 
banda, renda = Pg. banda = It. banda and 
benda, dial, binda, a band, strip, side, etc., 
in various particular senses, < OHG. bindn, 
binta, MHG. G. binde, i., a band, fillet, tie, 
cravat (cf. D. bind, neut., a crossbeam, joint, 
= Dan. bind, neut., a band, tie, etc.), < OHG. 
bintan, MHG. G. binden, etc., = AS. bindan, E. 
bind. The word is thus ult. cognate with 
feawrfl and with bend 1 , with which it has been 
mixed, but it differs in its orig. formation : see 
band 1 , bend 1 , and the doublet bend?."] 1. A 
flat strip of any material, but especially of a 
flexible material, used to bind round anything ; 
a fillet: as, a rubber band ; a band around the 
head ; a hat-band. 
A single band of gold about her hair. 
Tennyson, Princess, v. 
2. Anything resembling a band in form or func- 
tion, (a) A bandage ; specifically, a swaddling-band. 
Henry the Sixth, in infant bands crown'd king 
Of France and England. Shak., Hen. V., v. 2. 
(6) A border or strip on an article of dress serving to 
strengthen it or to confine it, as at the waist, neck, or 
wrist: as, a waist/"'//-/; a wristband; a neck-franrf. (r) 
\(int. : (I) A strip of canvas sewed across a sail to 
strengthen it. (2) An Iron hoop round a spar, (d) In 
inach., a belt, cord, or chain for transmitting power. Such 
hands generally pass over two pulleys, wheels, or drums, 
communicating motion from one to the other, (e) In 
arch. : (1) Any flat member or molding, broad but of small 
projection : also called fascia, face, or plinth. (2) A tab- 
let or string-course carried around a tower or other part 
of a building. (/) In decorative art, a horizontal strip of 
decoration separated from the general wall-surface by 
parallel lines. (17) A more or less broad space crossing a 
surface, and distinguished from it by difference of color 
or aspect : as, absorption-bamfo in the spectrum. (A) In 
zotil., a transverse stripe of any color. Also called faxia. 
band 
3. The form of collar commonly worn by men 
and women in the seventeenth century in u c---l 
ern Europe. It was originally starched and fixed in a 
half-erect jiosition, nearly like- the mlf. which it Miper 
seded, and was often of lace and of immense si/e. After- 
ward It was turned down uver the shoulders, and called a 
falliii<f-l"in'f. 
This band 
Shews not my neck enough. 
/;. .Idiixiiit, Volume, ill. 2. 
K i-Mii;.' your finger that hath the ruby, or pla> inu with 
Home string of your ////////. li. ./<-// */,,/, i '\ ntliia'n Hcvels, II. 1. 
The next that mounted the St. ILCC ai an I'uder-i 'in/en 
of the liath, a IVrs-.n remarkable am->ti^ the inferior |Vo- 
l>le of that Place for his great Wisdom and his Broad 
/;:<, i 6M, in liohson. p. i.-.-j. 
4. The linen ornament worn about the neck, 
with the ends hanging down in front, by certain 
Protestant clergymen, it was prescribed by (juccn 
l.li/abcth as a part of the even day dress of Anglican 
e t 'rlesia-li, s. |Now only ill the plural.) 
5. In mining, a layer of rock interstratified with 
the coal; sometimes, as in Cumberland, Eng- 
land, the coal itself. Band of rock, a phrase some 
times used for bed of rock. Sei W./.* //////./. Gastroparle- 
tal baud, hypopnaryngeal band, illoparietal band, 
illotiblal band, etc. See the adjectives. 
band-* (band), H. [Early mod. E. also brml, < 
late ME. bande, also bende, < OF. and F. bumli 
= Pr. Sp. It. banda (ML. bandum, bandm ; so 
G. bande, D. bande, now bende, Dan. bande, Sw. 
I in mi, after Rom.), a band or company, < OHG. 
bant, OS. OFries., etc., band, a band or tie, 
the sense of ' company ' being developed first 
in Rom. : see bantl*, band 2 , and cf . the doublet 
bend 3 ."] 1. A company of persons, especially 
a body of armed men ; a company of soldiers, 
or of persons united for any purpose. 
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers. 
Shak., Hen. V., Iv. 8. 
My lord of Somerset, unite 
Your troops of horsemen with his /<////- of foot. 
Shak., 1 Hen. VI., Iv. 1. 
Originally there were usuallyin each considerable society 
[of Methodists) four bands, the members of which were 
collected from the various society classes one band 
composed of married and another of unmarried men, one 
of married and another of unmarried women. All the 
members of society, however, were not of necessity mem- 
bers of bands. Encyc. Brit., XVI. 188. 
Did not Sefior Felipe tell you that he had positively en- 
gaged the same baml of shearers we had last autumn, 
Alessandro's band from Temecula ? 
Mrg. II. Jackson, Ramona, L 
2. In music, a company of musicians playing 
various instruments in combination, in the 
manner of an orchestra: most frequently ap- 
plied to a company of musicians playing such 
instruments as may be used in marching. 3. 
A collection of animals of any kind, as a drove 
of cattle or horses, or a flock of sheep. [West- 
ern U. S.] 
In California every collection of animals of any sort is 
called a band. A herd of cattle, a flock of sheep, a party 
of Indians anything and everything that walks when 
seen in numbers is known as a band, and it is regarded as 
a sure sign of being a ' ' tenderfoot " to use any other tenn. 
if. K. Evening Post (letter), Dec., 188. 
Knights of the band. See knir/ht. Military band, 
a body of musicians enlisted and attached to a regiment 
or military post. 
band 3 (band), v. [< band 3 , n.~] I. trans. To 
unite in a troop, company, or confederacy: 
generally reflexive. 
They band themselves with the prevalent things of this 
world to overrun the weak things which Christ hath made 
choice to work by. Milton, Church-Government, ii. 3. 
Among the sons of mom, what multitudes 
Were banded to oppose his high decree. 
Milton, P.L..V. 717. 
//"//// them into pueblos ; make them work ; and, above 
all, keep peace with the whites. 
Xri. II. Jackson, Ramona, v. 
II. intrans. To unite; associate; confederate 
for some common purpose. 
With them great Ashur also bands, 
And doth confirm the knot. 
Milton, Ps. Ixxxili. 29. 
The great lords 
Banded, and so brake out in open war. 
Tennyson, Coming of Arthur. 
The weak will band against her when she becomes too 
strong. R. H. Stoddard, Guests of State. 
band 4 (band), n. [Local E., perhaps a particu- 
lar use of band 2 , a strip, or possibly of early 
mod. E. bande, < ME. bande, var. of bonde, a 
bound, limit: see /////////.] A ridge of a hill: 
commonly applied in the English lake district 
to a long ridge-like hill of minor height, or to 
a long narrow sloping offshoot from a higher 
hill or mountain. If. E. D. 
band B t. An obsolete or Scotch preterit of bind. 
bandt (band), v. t. [Same as Mml, after ML. 
and It. bandire, a form of ML. bannire, banish, 
