PEP 
PENTSTEMON, in botany, a genus of 
the Didynamia Angiospermia class and or- 
der. Natural order of Personatae. Essen- 
tial cliaracler : calyx tive-leaved ; corolla 
bilabiate, ventricose ; rudiment of a fifth 
stamen bearded above ; capsule two-cell- 
cd. There are two species, viz. P. laeviga- 
ta, smooth pentstemon, and P. pubescens, 
hairy pentstemon. 
PENULTIMA, or penulHmate syllable, 
in grammar, denotes the last syllable but 
one of a word ; and hence the anti-penulti- 
mate syllable is the last but two, or that 
immediately before the penultima. 
PENUMBRA, in astronomy, a partial 
shade observed between the perfect sha- 
dow and the full light in an eclipse. It 
arises from the magnitude of the sun’s body; 
for were he only a luminous point, the sha- 
dow would be all perfect ; but by reason of 
the diameter of the sun, it happens that a 
place which is not illuminated by the whole 
l)ody of the sun, does yet receive rays from 
a part thereof. See Astronomy. 
PEPLIS, in botany, purslane, a genus 
of the Hexandria Mouogynia class and or- 
der. Natural order of Calycanthema;. 
Salicarise, Jussieu. Essential character : ca- 
lyx bell-shaped, with a twelve-cleft mouth ; 
petals six, inserted into the calyx ; capsule 
two-celled. There are two species, viz. P. 
porlnla, water purslane, and P. tetrandria. 
PEPPER, in natural history, an aroma- 
tic berry, of a hot dry quality, chiefly used 
in seasoning. See Piper. 
We have three kinds of pepper, at this 
time in use in the shops; the black, the 
white, and the long pepper. 
Black pepper is the fruit of a plant of the 
Diandria Trigynia class, without any flower 
petals ; the fruit itself is roundish and ru- 
gose, and disposed in clusters : it is brought 
from the Dutch settlements in the East 
Indies. 
The common white pepper is factitious, 
being prepared from the black in the fol- 
lowing manner ; they steep this in sea wa- 
ter, exposed to the heat of the sun for seve- 
ral days, till the rind or outer bark loos- 
ens; they then take it out, and when it is 
half dry, rub it till the rind falls otF ; then 
they dry the white fruit, and the remains 
of the rind blow away like chalk A great 
deal of the heat of the pepper is taken off 
by this process ; so that the white kind is 
filter for many purposes than the black. 
However, there is a sort of native white 
pepper, prbduced on a species of the same 
plant, which is muclt better than the fac- 
VOL. V. 
PE 11 
titiou.s, and indeed little inferior to the 
black. 
The long pepper is a dried fruit of an 
inch, or an inch and a half in length, and 
about the Ihickness of a large goose quill : 
it is of a brownish-grey colour, cylindrical 
in figure, and said to be produced on a 
plant of the same genus. 
Pepper is ptincipally used by us in food, 
to assist digestion; but the people in the 
East Indies esteem it as a stomachic, and 
drink a strong infusion of it in water by 
way of giving them an appetite : they have 
also a way of making a fiery spirit of fer- 
mented fresh pepper with water, which they 
use for the same purpose. They have also 
a way of preserving the common and long 
pepper in vinegar, and eating them after- 
wards at meals. 
Pepper u-.ifer, ^ liquor prepared in the 
following manner, for microscopical obser- 
vations : put common black pepper, grossly 
powdered, into an open vessel, so as to 
cover the bottom of it half an inch thick, 
and put to it rain or river water, till it 
covers it an inch ; shake or stir the whole 
well together at the first mixing, but never 
disturb it afterwards : let the vessel be ex- 
posed to the air uncovered ; and in a few 
days there will be seen a pellicle or thin 
skin swijnming on the surface of the liquor, 
looking of several colours. 
This is a congeries of nntlti hides of small 
animals ; and being examined by the micro- 
scope, will be seen all in motion : the ani- 
mals, at first sight, are so smiill as not to 
be distinguishable, unless to the greatest 
magnifiers; but they grow daily till they 
arrive at their full size. Their numbers are 
also continually increasing, till the whole 
surface of the liquor is full of them, to a 
considerable depth. When disturbed they 
will sometimes all dart down to the bot- 
tom, but they soon after come up to the 
surface again. The skin appears soonest in 
warm weather, and the animals grow, the 
quickest; but in the severest cold it will 
succeed, unless the water freezes. 
About the quantity of a pin’s head of this 
sctira, taken up on tlie nib of a new pen, or 
the tip of a hair pencil, is to be laid on a 
plate of clear glass ; and if applied first to 
the third magnifier, then to the second, 
and finally to the first, will show tlie differ- 
ent animalcules it contains, of several kinds 
and shapes, as well as sizes. 
PEPPERMINT, a species of mint. S?e 
Mentha. 
PERAMBULATOR, a machine for 
M 
