D E S 
706 
ing 40,000 livres, out of his favings, to his fath.er, who 
was burdened with a large family. He was admitted into 
the French academy in 1723, and foon after purchafed a 
{'mail eftate at Fortoifeau near Melun, which became 
his refidence. Cardinal Fleury made him the offer of 
going to Ruffta as ambaffador, but he declined it. He 
continued to write for the ftage, and produced his two 
bed pieces, Le Pkilofophc Marie, and Lc Glorieux ; the lat¬ 
ter of which ranks among the mod edeemed French co¬ 
medies dnce the days of Moliere. Though he wrote 
feveral more pieces, they did not augment the reputation 
he had already acquired ; yet Le DiJJipateur, not afted till 
after his death, has feveral points of excellence. He en¬ 
tirely abandoned theatrical writing at the age of fixty, 
and thenceforth employed his pen in the fervice of reli¬ 
gion, and in combating the infidelity of the age. He 
died in 1754, at the age of feventy-four. His memory 
was honoured with the permidion of printing an edition 
of his works at the Louvre, four volumes, 4to. 1757 : 
fince reprinted in ten volumes nmo. As a comic writer, 
he is reckoned to be inferior to Regnard in gaiety and 
humour, to Moliere in truth and nature, and in unforced 
pleafantry; but in the opinion of many he deferves a 
place next to them. 
To DESTRO'Y, v. a. [ dcjlruo , Lat. defrvire, Fr.] To 
overturn a city; to raze a building; to ruin.—The Lord 
will dejlroy this city. Gen. xix. 14.—To lay wafte ; to 
make dcfolate.—Solyman fent his army, which burnt 
and dejlroycd the country villages. Knolles .—To kill.—A 
people, great and many, and tall as the Anakims ; but 
the Lord defrayed them before them, and they fucceeded 
them, and dwelt in their dead. Dent. ii. 21.—To put an 
end to ; to bring to nought.—Do we not fee that lloth- 
ful, intemperate, and incontinent, perfons dejlroy their bo¬ 
dies with difeafes, their reputations with difgrace, and 
their faculties with want ? Bentley. 
DESTROY'ER, f. The perfon that deftroys or lays 
wafte; a murderer : 
Triumph, to be ftyl’d great conquerors, 
Patrons of mankind, gods, and Ions of gods ! 
Dcfroyers rightlier call’d, and llayers of men. Milton. 
DESTROYING, f. Deftruftion.—For only in defray¬ 
ing I find eafe. Milton. 
DESTRUC'TIBLE, adj. [from dejlruo, Lat.] Liable 
to deftruftion. 
DESTRUC'TIBILITY, /. I.iablenefs to deftruftion. 
DESTRUC'TION,/ [defruttio, Lat.] The aft of de- 
ffroying ; lubverfion ; demolition. Murder; maffacre : 
5 Tis fafer to be that which we deftroy, 
Than by defruElion dwell in doubtful joy. Shakefpcarc. 
The date of being deftroyed ; ruin ; murder fuffered : 
If that your moody difeontented fouls 
Do through the clouds behold this prefent hour, 
Even for revenge mock my dcJlruElion. ShakeJ'peare. 
The caufe of deftruftion; a deftroyer; a depopulator : 
as a confirming plague.—The defruHion that walteth at 
noon-day. Pfahnx. ci.6.—[In theology.]Eternal death.— 
Broad is the way that leadeth to dejlritclion. Mdttk. 
DESTRUCTIVE, adj. [defrutiivus, low Lat.] That 
which deftroys ; wafteful ; canting ruin and devaftation ; 
that which brings to deftruftion : 
In ports and roads remote, 
DfruElive fires among whole fleets we fend. Dr'yden. 
With of .—He will put an end to fo abfurd a p raff ice, 
which makes our mod refined diverfions defrutdiyc of all 
politenefs. Addifon .—With to .—Excefs of cold, as well 
as heat, pains us; becaufe it is equally defruclive to that 
temper which is neceffkry to the prefervation of life, l.ockc. 
DESTRUCTIVELY, adv. Ruinoufly ; mifehievouf- 
ly ; with power to deftroy.'—What remains but to breathe 
out Mofes’s wiflt > O that men were not 1b dfrutlively 
foolifh ! Decay of Piety. 
D E T 
DESTRUC'TIVENESS, f. The quality of deftroying 
or ruining.—The vice of profeffors exceeds the defrudi- 
ivenefs of the mod hoftile affaults, as inteftine treachery is 
more ruinous than foreign violence. Decay of Piety. 
DESTRUCTOR,yf Deftroyer; confumer.—Helmont 
wittily calls the fire the defruttor and the artificial death 
of things. Boyle. 
DESUD.A'TION, f. [ dfudatio, Lat.] A profufe and 
inordinate fweating, from what caufe foever. 
DESUETUDE, f. \_defietudo , Lat.] Ceffation to be 
accuftomed ; difcontinuance of praftice or habit.—We 
fee in all things how dfuctude does contrafl and narrow 
our faculties, fo that we can apprehend only thofe things 
wherein we are converfant. Government of the Tongue. 
DESUL'TOR, f. in antiquity, a vaulter or leaper, 
who, leading one horfe by the bridle, and riding another, 
jumped from the back of one to the other, as they ran 
their courfes or heats. This praftice required great dex¬ 
terity, being performed before the ufe of either faddles 
or ftirrups. The cuftom was praftifed in the army when 
neceffity required it; but chiefly amongft the Numidians, 
who always took with them two horfes, changing them 
as they tired. The Greeks and Romans borrowed the 
praftice from them ; but only ufed it at races, Sec. The 
Sarmatcc were great mafters of this exercife, and the 
Huffars have drill fome remains of it. 
DE'SULTORY, or Desultorious, adj. \_dfultorius , 
Lat.] Roving from thing to thing; unfettled; imme- 
thodical ; unconftant- Dcfultorious is not in ufe.—’Tis 
not for a dcfdlory thought to atone fora lewd cottrfe of 
life ; nor for any thing but the fuperindticing of a vir¬ 
tuous habit upon a vicious one, to qualify an effeftual 
converfion. L’EJlrange. —Let but the lead: trifle crofs his 
way, and his dcfultorious fancy prelently takes the feent, 
leaves the unfinifhed and half-mangled notion, and {kips 
away in purfuit of the new game. Norris. 
DESUL'TURE,/! [from dfultoryf A leaping; a leap 
from one horfe to another. Scott. 
To DESU'ME, v.a. \_dcfmo, Lat.] To take from any 
tiling; to borrow.—Laws, if convenient and ufeful, are 
never the worfe though they be defamed and taken from 
the laws of other countries. Hale. 
DESUMP'TION, f. The aft of choofing, or taking 
from or out of. 
DESUNNE'Y, a river of Wales, in the county of 
Merioneth, which runs into the Irifti Sea five miles, 
fouth-eaft from Surnabugh Point. 
DES'VRES, or Desurenes, a town of France, in the 
department of the Straits of Calais, and chief place of a 
canton, in the cliftrift of Boulogne : nine miles fouth-eaft 
of Boulogne, and fixteen weft-fouth-weft of St. Omer. 
DESWAR'TE, a river of Brabant, which runs into 
the Demer, near Died. 
To DETA'CH, v.a. [ detacher , Fr.] To feparate; to 
difengage ; to part from fomething.—The heat takes 
along with it a fort of vegetative and terreftrial matter, 
which it detaches from the uppermoft ftratum. IVcodward. 
—To fend out part of a greater body of men on an expe¬ 
dition.—If ten men are in war with forty, and the latter 
detach only an equal number to the engagement, what 
benefit do they receive from their fuperiority l Addi.'on. 
DETACH'MENT,/. A body of troops fent out from 
the main army.—Tiie czar difpatched inftruflions to fend 
out detachments of his cavalry, to prevent the king of 
Sweden’s joining his army. Tatler. 
To DETA'IL, v. a. [ dctaillcr , Fr.] To relate particu¬ 
larly; to particukirife; to difplay minutely and diftinft- 
ly.—They will perceive the miftakes of thefe philofo- 
phers, and be able to anfwer their arguments, without 
my being obliged to detail them. C/icyne. 
DETA'IL, f. [detail , Fr.] A minute and particular 
account.—I was unable to treat this part of my fubjeft 
more in detail, without becoming dry and tedious. Pope „ 
To DETA'IN, v. a. \_detinco , Lat.] To keep that which 
belongs to another.— Detain not the wages of the hire- 
lingj 
