medium 
observation. Medium Of cognition, n cognition pro- 
ducing other cognition inferentially <>r iiuasi-lnftTentially. 
Medium of form <>r of participation, In logic, *oine- 
tliin^ which partakes of the niiture of loih of two ex- 
tremes. =8yn. 1. -! '>/".</', .t/<-'//r/-/r//, etc. See means. 
H. Middle; middling; mean: as, a man 
of medium size. = Syn. See nuans, n. 
mediumistic (me di-um-ia'tik), a. Of or per- 
taining t<> spiritualistic mediums: as, medium- 
iniif phenomena. 
I'rivnte and unpaid "mediums/' or other persons in 
whotif [irfM'Mi'r ,, if'l,/<, nixtir plH-nimiena oeeur. 
Ainer. Sue. Pi*ych. Itencarch, I. 26u". 
mediumship (me'di-um-ship), n. [< meilium + 
-.</;//<.] The state or condition of being a spir- 
itualistic medium; the vocation or function of 
such a medium. 
Animal magnetism, clairvoyance, wediumship, or mes- 
merism are antagonistic to this science. 
Quoted in Contemporary /fee., LI. 803. 
medium-sized (me'di-um-sizd), a. Of medium 
or middle size ; of an intermediate or of an av- 
erage size. 
mediuB (me'di-us), n. [ML. and NL. use of L. 
median, middle: see medium.'} In music: (a) 
In Gregorian music, an inflection, modulation, 
or deviation from monotone, used to mark a 
partial break in the text, as at the end of a 
clause. It consists of a downward step of a 
minor third. See accent, 8. (ftf) A tenor or alto 
voice or voice-part; a mean. 
The superius, median, tenor, and hassus parts of ... 
Byrd's Uradualia. Athenaum, No. 3190, p. 821. 
Medjidie (me-jid'i-e), n. [Turk, mejidi, < imjiii. 
medjid (see def.), lit. glorious ('Abd-ul-mejitl, 
lit. glorious servant of God), < Ar. mejid, glori- 
ous, < mejd, glory.] 1. A Turkish order of 
knighthood, instituted in 1852 by the sultan 
Abdul-Medjid, and conferred on many foreign 
officers who took part with Turkey in the Cri- 
mean war. 2. A modern silver coin of Tur- 
key, named from the sultan Abdul-Medjid, who 
coined it m 1844. It is equivalent to 20 pias- 
ters, and worth, approximately, 85 cents. 
medjidite (me-jid'it), n. [< Medjid (see def.) 
+ -7e 2 .] In mineral, (named after the sultan 
AbAul-Medjid), a hydrous sulphate of uranium 
and calcium, occurring with uraninite. 
medlar (nied'lar), . [Formerly also medler; < 
MM. medler, meddeler, < OF. mrdler, tnesler, mea- 
lier (F. nfflier), a medlar-tree, < mesle, me/tple, 
F. dial, nitfe, also (with change of orig. m to n, 
as in map, nape 2 , napkin, etc.) OF. "tiesple, neple, 
F. nefle = Sp. ntspera = Pg. nespera = It. nes- 
l>ola, f., the medlar (fruit) ; cf. Sp. nispcro = It. 
nespolo, medlar-tree ; = D. MLG. mispel = OHG. 
mcspila, nexpela, MHG. mettpvl, nespil, G. mispel = 
Sw. Dan. mispel = Bohem. mishpulc, nyshpule 
= Pol. me.tpil, mes- 
, nieszpul = Hung. 
Turk. mitttlimu'la (> 
Serv. iiiHxItmnla), < L. 
mespilus, f., a medlar, 
medlar-tree, < Gr. iifn- 
mtov, neut., a medlar, 
medlar-tree, /nn-i'/r/, 
tho medlar-tree.] 1. 
A small, generally 
busily tree, Mcxpiliix 
aerniitiiiea. related to 
the crab-apple, culti- 
vated in gardens for 
its fruit. It is wild in central and southern 
Europe, but was introduced from western Asia. 
See Mi-spiliix. 
Meddellm In hoote landc gladdest be, 
So it be moist ; thai come also in cold. 
J'alladim, Husbondrie (E. E. T. 8-X p. 121. 
Witwoud grows by the Knight, like a Medlar grafted on 
a ("rali. Contjreve, Way of the World, i. 5. 
2. The fruit of tho above tree, resembling a 
small brown-skinned apple, but with a broad 
disk at the summit surrounded by the remains 
of the calyx-lobes. When first gathered, ic is harsh and 
uneatable, butin the early stages of decay Itacquires an acid 
flavor much relished by some. There are several varieties. 
You'll be rotten ere you he half ripe, and that's the right 
virtue of the medler. Shak., As you Like It, ill. 2. 123. 
The stalk I of the cotton-wool plant!, no bigger than that 
of wheat, but rough as the Beans: the head round and beard- 
ed, in size anil shape of n medlar. Sandii*, Travailes, p. 12. 
Dutch medlar, the common variety of medlar. Japan- 
ese medlar. Same as inquat, 2. Neapolitan or welsh 
medlar. Sec a:anile. 
medlar-tree (mcd'i;|r-tre), . [Cf. ME. mi-dli-- 
tri'i'.'] Same as mnilnr, 1. 
medlar-wood (med'lar-wud), H. Some hard- 
wooded species of MyrtiiK, growing in Mauritius 
and adjacent islands, as M. t<xij>/ni<lis. 
3687 
medle't, ' An obsolete form of mMl< . 
medle'-'t, . [ME., < <)!'. //>/<, mexple, medlar: 
set 1 /iHilliir.] A medlar: perhaps only in the 
compound nn-dli'-tn-e. 
medleet, . and a. An obsolete form of medley. 
medle-treet! " [ME.] Same as medlar-tree. 
A sat and dlncde In a wede, 
Under a faire medlf-tre. 
Beva of Uamloun, p. r>2. (IlaUivrU.) 
medley (med'li), . and . [Formerly also 
mi-ill I/, iniillii' ; < ME. medlee, medle, < OF. 
iiuillir, inenlee, meilee, mellee, F. <%%( >E. nttUe 
and melley} = Sp. mezela = Pg. mescla, a mix- 
ing, orig. fern, of medle, megle, etc., pp. of med- 
ler, megfer, mix: see meddle and men'.] I. n. 
1. A mixture; a mingled and confused mass 
of elements, ingredients, or parts ; a jumble ; 
a hodgepodge. 
Love Is a medley of endearment*, jars, 
Suspicions, quarrels, reconcilement*, wars ; 
Then peace again. Walih. 
They . . . will bear no more 
Tills medley of philosophy and war. 
Addiunn, Cato. 
The ballet had been a favourite subject of court diversion 
since Beaujoyeaulx produced in l."l Le Ballet Comique 
de la Royne, a medley of dancing, choral singing, and mu- 
sical dialogue. Encyc. Brit., XVII. 87. 
2. A musical composition, song, or entertain- 
ment consisting of incongruous or disjointed 
scraps or parts selected from different sources ; 
a melange or potpourri. 3. A fabric woven 
from yarn spun from wool which has been dyed 
of various colors. 
Every Woolen Weaver shall have ... for every yard 
of Medlie Id. Qs. Statute (1609), quoted in Klbton-Turner's 
[Vagrants and Vagrancy, p. 444. 
As Medleya are most made in other shires, as good 
Whites as any are woven in this county, 
Fuller, Worthies, Wilts, II. 436. (Danes.) 
4f. A hand-to-hand fight ; a melley or mel^e. 
As soone as the speres were spente, thel drotigh oute 
thelre swerdes, and ne-gonne the medle on foote and on 
horscbak. Merlin (E. E. T. S.), ill. 4R7. 
= 8yn. 1. Mixettany, Jumble, etc. See mizture. 
H. a. 1. Mingled; confused. 
Qualms at my heart, convulsions in my nerves, 
Within my little world make medley war. Dryden. 
A medley air 
Of cunning and of impudence. 
Wordnvortli, Peter Bell. 
2. Mixed ; of a mixed stuff or color. 
He rood but hoomly in a medlee coote. 
Chaucer, Gen. Prol. to C. T., 1. 328. 
medleyt (med'li), r. /. [< medley, H.] To mix. 
Bis heeir was grete and blakke, and foule medled. 
Merlin (E. E. T. S.), Hi. 635. 
A medled estate of the orders of the Gospel and the cere- 
monies of popery is not the best way to banish popery. 
Quoted in Hooker't Eccleg. Polity, iv. 8. 
M6doc (mc-dok'), n. [From Medoc, a region 
in France, in the department of Gironde.] A 
class of excellent French red Bordeaux wines, 
included under the English term of clarets, 
comprising the finest wines of the Bordeaux 
type, the Chateau Laffitte, Chateau Margaux, 
and Chateau La Tour, as well as many other 
brands of desirable quality and more moderate 
cost. All these wines have a delicate aroma, and a pe- 
culiar slightly bitterish flavor, and when pure are free 
from headiness. 
medrick, madrick (med'rik, mad'rik), n. [Ori- 
gin obscure.] The tern or sea-swallow. 
A medrick that makes you look overhead 
With short, sharp screams as he sights his prey. 
Lotcell, Appledore. 
medrinack (med'ri-nak), M. [Also medrinaqur, 
formerly in pi. mrilrinael's, niedrinackes; appar. 
of native origin.] A coarse fiber from the Phil- 
ippines, obtained from the sago-palm, and used 
chiefly for stiffening dress-linings, etc. Aluiiii- 
ilir. 
medrissa (me-dris'a), n. Same as madrasah. 
medulla (me-dul'S), N. [= F. medulle = Sp. 
iiinliila = Pg. medulla = It. medolla, midollu, < 
L. medulla, marrow, pith, kernel, < medius, mid- 
dle: see medium.] 1. In anat. androo/.: (a) Mar- 
row. [Little used.] (6) The so-called spinal 
marrow; the spinal cord, or central axis of the 
nervous system ; the myelon : more fully called 
medulla spinalis. (c) The hindmost segment 
of the brain, continuous with the spinal cord ; 
the afterhrain or metencephalon; the oblon- 
gata: more fully called medulla oblongata. (d) 
The ventral ganglionic chain of the nervous 
system of some invertebrates, as Vermes, sup- 
posed to be analogous to the spinal cord of verte- 
brates, (f) The pith of a hair. (/) Themyelin. 
or white and fatty covering of the axis-cylin- 
der of a nerve. 2. In lot., the pith of plants. 
Medusa 
(0) In exogen. tin- ..ntii.l . -..lunin of parrachymatous tlt- 
lue about which the wood Is foimed. (6) In hetenimnuas 
lichens, tin- innermost stratum of colorleu tissue compos- 
ing the thallus. It exhibits three well-marked forms : (1) 
the vnnlly, composed of simple or branched entangled fila- 
ments ; (2) the mutaceinu, which is tartareous In appear- 
ance ; (a) the cellulate, which consist* of angular, round- 
ed, or oblong cellule*. Columns of the medulla ob- 
longata. see column. Medulla oblongata. See def. 
1 (c); see also Irrain. Medulla BplnallB. See def. 1 (b). 
medullar (me-dul'ar), . [= F. nifdtilhiire = 
Sp. mi /hi/iir = I'n. mrdiilliir = It. midollare, < 
LL. mftliillaris, situated in the marrow, < L. 
nirilittla, marrow: nee wicrfM/to.] Hanie as wr/- 
ullary. [Rare.] 
Thene little emissaries, united together at the cortical 
part of the brain, make the meitullar part, being a bundle 
of very small, threadlike channels of fibres. 
0. Cheyne. Philosophical Principle!. 
medullary (med'u-la-ri), a. [As medullar.} 
1. In mint, and zoiil., pertaining to marrow or 
medulla, or resembling it in form or position ; 
myelonal: as, medullary substance; & medullary 
cavity; medullary cancer; a medullary foramen. 
2. In but., composing or pertaining to the 
medulla or pith of plants. See phrases below. 
Medullary axis, in lichen*, same as medullary layer. 
Medullary cancer. Same as encephalintl cancer (which 
see, under encephaloid). Medullary cavity, In embryol. : 
(a) The hollow of the primitively tubular spinal cord. 
The primitive medullary earity, which persists as the 
central canal, remains open in the lumbar swelling of 
birds. Geyetibaur, I'omp. Anat., p. 512. 
(6) The hollow of a bone which contains marrow. Medul- 
lary foramen. *x foramen. Medullary furrow or 
groove, in embn/nl., the primitive trace or furrow of a 
vertebrate embryo, or a corresponding formation In an 
Invertebrate: so called from being the site of a future 
medulla. 
As the medullary groove deepens, its edges become more 
sharply defined, and its inner border comes close down to 
the entoderm, thus forcing asunder the two halves of the 
mesoderm. Bvck'i Handbook of Med. Science*, III. 174. 
Medullary layer, in liehenol. See medulla. 2 (ft). 
Medullary plate, in '/'.. one of the lips of the med- 
ullary groove. Medullary rays, the radiating vertical 
hands or plates of parenenymatons tissue in the stems 
of exogenous plants, popularly called the frUter-yraiti. 
Medullary Rays. 
I. Longitudinal radial section through the wood of a branch i.f ma- 
ple one year old : /', pith ; B, Iwuk. z. Longitudinal tangential sec- 
tion of the same wood, showing the ends of the medullary rays. 
There are two kinds the primary, which extend from 
the pith (medulla) to the cortei, and the secondary, which 
are shorter than the primary. The rays ntay be >/</</'''. 
consisting of a single cell or a single layer of supei im- 
posed cells, as In many conifers ; or rronixmmf, consisting 
of more than one layer of superimposed cells, as in most 
dicotyledons. Medullary sheath, in ** , a narrow zone 
made up of the Innermost layer of woody tissue immedi- 
ately surrounding the pith in planta. Medullary tube, 
the spinal cord In the primitive tubular stage. 
medullated (med u-la-ted), a. [< L. medulla, 
marrow, + -ate ' + -erf 2 .] Having a medulla. 
The [spinal) cord will be seen to be mainly made up of 
medullated nerve-flbres. Martin, Human Body, p. 177. 
medullin (me-dul'iii), w. [< L. medulla, pith, 
+ -in2.] A name given by Braconnot to the 
cellulose obtained from the pith or medulla of 
certain plants, as the sunflower and lilac. 
medullispinal (me-dul-i-spi'nal), a. [< L. me- 
dulla, marrow, pith, + xpina, spine: seespiwn/.] 
Pertaining to the medulla spinalis, spinal mar- 
row, or spinal cord. 
The medullifpinal or proper veins of the spinal cord lie 
within the dura mater. lloldrn, Anat (188SX P- '>> 
medullitis (med-u-11'tis), M. [NL., < medulla, 
marrow, + -iW.] In pathoL. same as myelitix. 
medullose (med'u-los), a. [= F. m^diilleux = 
Sp. meditloso = Pg. medulloso = It. midoUoso, < 
L. medullofits, full of marrow, < medulla, mar- 
row, pith : see medulla.] Having the texture 
of pith. Maunder. 
Medusa (me-du'sS), w. [L. iledumi, < Gr. Me'rfor- 
aa, a fern, name, orig. fern, of fifAue, a ruler, 
ppr. of utfatv, rule.] 1. In Gr. myth., one of 
the three Gorgons, the only one of them who 
was mortal. She was slain by Perseus, with the aid of 
Athena; and her serpent-entwined head was so awful 
that its sight turned all beholders to stone. It was after- 
ward borne by Athena on her irgis or on her shield. The 
later artists beautified the grimacing head of Medusa, re- 
taining only the writhing serpents of the legend. See 
(lorynn and agit. 
