DAN 
with Ills fifty Tons, they were pfomifed in marriage to 
their coufins; and before the celebration of their nup¬ 
tials, Danuus, who had been informed by an oracle that 
he was to be killed by the hands of one of his fons-in- 
law, made his daughters folemnly promife that they 
would deftroy their hufbands. They were provided with 
daggers by their father, and all, except Hypermneltra, 
Itained their hands with the blood of their coufins the 
firft night of their nuptials; and, as a pledge of their 
obedience to their father’s injunctions, they prefented 
him each with the head of the murdered fons of JEgyp- 
tus. Hypermneftra was fummoned to appear before her 
fath'er, and anfvver for her difobedience in differing her 
hufband, Lynceus, to efcape; but the unanimous voice 
of the people declared her innocent, and (he dedicated 
a temple to the goddefs of Perfuafion. The fillers were 
purified of this murder by Mercury and Minerva, by or- 
* der of Jupiter ; but, according to the more received opi¬ 
nion, they were condemned to fevere punifhment in 
hell, and were compelled to fill with witter a velfel full 
of holes, fo that the water ran out as loon as poured into 
it, and therefore their labour was infinite, and their ptt- 
nilhment eternal. The names of the Danaides and their 
hufbands, were as follows, according to Apollodorus : 
Antymone married Enceladus; Automate, Buliris; A- 
gave, Lycus; Scea, Dayphron ; Hippodamia, filer; Rho- 
dia, Chalcedon; Calyce, another Lynceus; Gorgophone, 
Proteus; Cleopatra, Agenor ; AlteYia, Chaetus ; Glauee, 
Aleis; Hippodamia, Diacorytes; Hippomedufa, Alc- 
menon ; Gorge, Hippothous ; Iphimedufa, Euchenor ; 
Rhode, Hippolitus; Pirea, Agoptolemus; Circeftis, Do- 
rion ; Pharte, Eurydanias ; Mneflra, Hlgius ; Evippe, 
Arigius ; Anaxibia, Archelaus; Nelo, Melac-hus; Clite, 
Clitus ; Stenele, Stenelus ; Chryfippe, Chryfippus; An- 
tonoe, Eurylochus; Theane, Phantes; Eleclra, Perif- 
tenes ; Eurydice, Dryas ; Glaucippe, Potamon ; Autho- 
lea, Cilfeus; Cleodora, Lixus; Evippe, Imbrus; Era- 
ta, Bromius; Stygne, Polyclor; Bryce, Chtonius; Ac- 
tea, Periphas; Podarce, CEneus; Dioxippe, -lEgyptus ; 
Adyte, Menalces ; Ocipete, Lampus ; Pilarge, Idmon; 
Hippodice, Idas; Adiante, Daiphron; Callidia, Pan- 
dion ; Gime, Arbelus ; Celena, Hixbius ; Hyperia, Hip. 
pocorilles. The heads of the fons of iEgyptus were 
buried at Argos; but their bodies were left at Lerna, 
where the murder had been committed. Strabo. Paufanias. 
DANARA'KIE, a town of Perfia, in the province of 
Irak : fixty miles ealt of Ifpahan. 
DA'NAUS, a fon of Belus and Ancliinoe, who, after 
his father’s death, reigned conjointly w'ith his brother 
vEgyptus on the throne of Egypt. Some time after, a 
difference arofe between the brothers, and Danaus 
fet fail with his fifty daughters in quell of a fettle- 
rhent. He vifited Rhodes, where he confecrated a fta- 
tue to Minefva, and arrived fafe on the coaft of Pelo- 
ponnefus, where he was hofpitably received by Gela- 
nor, king of Argos. Gelanor had lately afcended the 
throne, and the firft years of his reign were marked with 
diffenfions with his fubjecls. Danaus took advantage of 
Gelanor’s unpopularity, and obliged him to leave the 
crown. In Gelanor, the race of the Inachidae was ex- 
tinguifhed, and the Belides began to reign at Argos in 
Danaus. Some authors fay, that Gelanor voluntarily 
refigned the crown to Danaus, on account of the wrath 
of Neptune, who had dried up all the waters of Argolis, 
to punifh the impiety of Inachus. The fuccefs of Da¬ 
naus invited the fifty fons of oEgyptus to embark for 
Greece. They were kindly received by their uncle, 
who, either apprehenfive of their number, or terrified 
by an oracle which threatened his ruin by one of his 
fons-in-law, caufed his daughters, to whom they were 
promil’ed in marriage, to murder them the firft night of 
their nuptials. His orders were executed. Hyperm¬ 
neftra alone fpared the life of Lynceus. See Danaides. 
Danaus, at firft, perfecuted Lynceus with unreinitted 
fury, but he was afterwards reconciled to him, and he 
Vol. V. No. 297. 
DAN 581 
acknowledged him for his fon-in-law and fucceflor, after 
a reign of fifty years. He died about 1425 years before 
the Cbrillian era, and after death he was honoured with 
a fplendid monument in the town of Argos, which ftilL 
exi.ed in the age of Paufanias. According to ./Efchy- 
1 us, Danaus left Egypt, not to be prefent at the mar¬ 
riage of his daughters with the ions of his brother, a- 
connection which he deemed unlawful and impious. The 
fhip in which Danaus came to Greece, was called Ar- 
■ mais, and was the firft that had ever appeared there. It 
is laid that the ufe of pumps was firft introduced into 
Greece by Danaus. Apollodorus. 
DAN'BURY, a polt town of the American States, in 
the county of Fairfield, in Connecticut. It was fettled 
in 16S7, and contains two churches, a court-houfe, &c- 
On its ftreams are iron works, and feveral mills. Mr. 
Lazarus Beach prefented to the mufeum in Nevv-York, 
a quire of paper, made of the afbeftos, at his paper-mill 
ill Danbury, March 1792, which the liotteft fire would 
not confume: feventy miles north-eaft of New-York, and 
thirty-three north-weft by weft of New-Haven. This 
town, with d large quantity of military (lores, was burnt 
by the Britifh army on the 26th of April, 1777. 
DAN'BY, a townfhip of the American States, in Rut¬ 
land county, Vermont, and contains, by the cenfus, 120 6 
inhabitants : thirty-two miles north of Bennington. 
To DANCE, v. n. [danfer , Fr. dan<;ar, Span; as fome 
think from tanza, Arab, a dance ; as Junius, who loves, 
to derive from Greek, thinks, from hyr.cr^.'} To move 
the perfon or limbs in meafure ; to move with Heps cor- 
refpondent to the found of inftruments.—What lay you 
to young Mr. Fenton r he capers, he dances, he has eyes, 
of youth, he writes verffes. Shakcfpearc. 
To DANCE Attendance, v. n. To wait with fupplenefs 
and obfequioufnefs.—Men are fooner weary to dance at¬ 
tendance at the gates of foreign lords, than to tarry the 
good leifure of their own magiftrates. Raleigh . 
It upbraids you 
To let your father’s friend, for three long months, 
Thus dance attendance for a word of audience. Dry den. 
To DANCE, v. a. To make a dance; to put into a 
lively motion.—In peftilences, the malignity of the in- 
fefting vapour danceth the principal fpirits. Bacon. 
Thy grandfire lov’d thee well; 
Many a time he danc'd thee on his knee. Shakefpeare, 
DANCE,/] A motion of one or many in concert, re¬ 
gulated by mufic„—The honourable!! part of talk is t® 
give the occafion, and again to moderate and pafs to 
fomewhat elfe; for then a man leads the dance. Bacon. 
But you, perhaps, expeCt a modilh feaft, 
With am’rous fongs and wanton dances grac’d. Dryden. 
The late Dr. Adam Smith, in his Philofophical Obfer- 
vations on the affinity between mufic, dancing, and poe¬ 
try, and other imitative arts, publiffied among bis pod- 
humous Effays, in 1795, has made the following inge¬ 
nious remarks: “ After the pleafures which arife from 
the gratification of the bodily appetites, there feem to 
be none more natural to man than mufic and dancing. 
In the progrefs of art and improvement they are, per¬ 
haps, the firft and earlieft pleafures of his own inven¬ 
tion ; for tliofe which arife from the gratification of the 
bodily appetites cannot be fald to be of his own inven¬ 
tion. No nation has yet been difeovered fo uncivilized 
as to be altogether without them. It feems even to be 
amongft the mod barbarous nations that the ufe and 
practice of them is both moll frequent and moll univer¬ 
sal, as among the negroes of Africa, and the favage tribes 
of America. In civilized nations, the inferior ranks of 
people have very little leifure, and the fuperior ranks 
have many other amufements; neither the one nor the 
other, therefore, can fpend much of their time in danc¬ 
ing. Among favage nations, the great body of the peo¬ 
ple have frequently great intervals of leifure, and they 
7 I have 
