rjr*. 
/'■ 
VER 
facts as proved, and pray the advice of the 
court thereon. A less expensive and more 
speedy mode, however, is, to find a ver- 
dict generally for the plaintiff, subject, ne- 
vertheless, to the opinion of the judge, or 
the court above, or a special case drawn up 
and settled by counsel on both sides. 
VERDITER, a kind of mineral sub- 
stance, sometimes used by the painters, &c. 
for a blue ; but more usually mixed with 
a yellow for a green colour. 
VERDOY, in heraldry, denotes a bor- 
dnre of a coat of arms, charged with any 
kinds or parts of flowers, fruits, seeds, 
plants, &c. 
VERGE, signifies the compass of the 
King’s court, which bounds the jurisdiction 
of the Lord Steward of the Household; 
and which is thought to have been twelve 
miles round. 
The term verge is also used for a stick or 
rod, whereby one is admitted tenant to a 
copyhold estate, by holding it in his hand, 
and swearing fealty to the lord of the ma- 
nor. 
VERGERS, certain officers of the courts 
of King’s Bench and Common Pleas, whose 
business it is to carry white wands before 
the judges. 
There are also vergers of cathedrals and 
collegiate churches, who carry a rod tipped 
with silver before the bishop, dean, &c. 
VERGETTE,, in heraldry, denotes a 
pallet, or small pale ; and hence, a shield 
divided by such pallets, is termed ver- 
gette. 
VERJUICE, a liquor obtained from 
grapes or apples, unfit for wine or cyder ; 
or from sweet ones, whilst yet acid and un- 
ripe. Its chief use is in sauces, ragouts, 
&:c. though it is also an ingredient in some 
medicinal compositions, and is used by the 
wax- chandlers to purify their wax. 
VERMES, in natural history, the last class 
of the animal kingdom, according to the 
Linnaean system. The animals in this class 
are not merely those commonly known by 
the name of worms, but likewise those 
which have the general character of being 
“ slow in motion, of a soft substance, ex- 
tremely tenacious of life, capable of re-pro- 
ducing such parts of their body as may have 
been taken away or destroyed, and inha- 
biting moist places.” There are five orders 
in this class, viz. the 
Infusoria 
Intestina 
Molldsca 
Testacea 
Zoophyta 
VER 
These animals are generally considered 
as the lowest in the scale of animated be- 
ing. The simplicity of their form, the hu- 
mility of their station, and the low degree 
of sense and motion which they seem to en- 
joy, have rendered them objects of but lit- 
tle attention to mankind in general, except- 
ing as they contribute to the supply of their 
wants, or to render themselves formidable, 
by the pain and distress which they occa- 
sion to those bodies which nature seems to 
have destined for their habitation. But, to 
,the curious investigator of the ways of hea- 
ven, every part of the vast creation be- 
comes interesting, and this class of animated 
beings, has, in later times, attracted a con- 
siderable share of attention. To this they 
seem fully entitled, if we consider the num- 
ber of animals which are included under 
the general name of worms : if we observe 
the simplicity of form in some of them, and 
the complicated structure of others; in 
short, if we reflect on the, various modes in 
which they are propagated, and on the sur- 
prising faculty, which many of them pos- 
sess, of spontaneous reproduction : the img- 
gination will be astonished with their num- 
ber and variety, and confounded by their 
wonderful properties. The waters are peo- 
pled with myriads of animated beings, 
which, though invisible to our unassisted 
eyes, are unquestionably endowed with or- 
gans as perfect as the largest animals, since, 
like these, they re-produce others similar 
to themselves, and hold in the scale of na- 
ture a rank as little equivocal, though less 
obvious and obtrusive. The elegance of 
form, and beauty of colour, which some of 
the “ mollusca,” and “ zoophyta ” possess, 
cannot fail to render them objects of admi- 
ration to the most indifferent observer. 
VERMICELLI, a composition of flour, 
cheese, yolks of eggs, sugar, and saffron, re- 
duced to a paste, and formed into long 
slender pieces, like worms, by forcing it 
with a piston through a number of little 
holes 
VERNIER, a scale adapted for the gra- 
duation of mathematical instruments, so, 
called from Pierre Vernier the inventor,. 
Under the article Barometer will be seen 
some account of this scale as applied to that 
instrument, here we shall take it up more 
generally. 
This scale is derived from the following 
principle. If two equal right lines, or cir- 
cular arcs, A B, are so divided, that the 
number of . equal divisions in B is one less 
than the number of equal divisions in A, thea 
