0/2 
PEN 
PEN 
Penthorum fedoides, or American penthorum, the only 
fpecies. Stalks about a foot high. Leaves oblong, alter¬ 
nate. Flowers greenifli-yellow in terminating clufters, 
making little appearance j they are alternate, pedicelled, 
afcending ; the fegments of the calyx for the molt part al¬ 
ternately larger and fmaller; antherae red; ftyles none; 
capfule undivided, compofed of five partial capfules, ven- 
tricofe at bottom, rounded-five-cornered, ftarred at top, 
five-beaked, opening five ways between the beaks : beaks 
filiform, fhort, conical at the bafe, with a fmall head at 
top, fpreading out horizontally. Seeds irregular like 
fawduft, or linear acuminate, (hagreened with raifed dots, 
rufefcent, fattened to the partitions on every fide. Native 
of Virginia. Biennial, according to Miller, who culti¬ 
vated it in 1768. Others reckon it to be perennial. It 
flowers at the end of July, and the feeds ripen in the au¬ 
tumn. 
PENT'HOUSE, f. [from pente, Fr. and honfe.'] A filed 
hanging out aflope from the main wall.—This is the 
penthovfe under which Lorenzo defired us to make a (land. 
Shakefpeare's Merck, of Veil. —The Turks, lurking under 
their penthovfe, laboured with mattocks to dig up the 
foundation of the wall. Knollcs. —Thofe defenfive engines, 
made by the Romans into the form o f petithoiifes to cover 
the aflailants from the weapons of the befieged, would he 
prefently batter in pieces with (tones and blocks. Wilkins. 
Sleep (hall neither night nor day 
Hang upon his pcnthoufe lid. Skaltefpeare. 
My pcnthoufe eye-brows and my (baggy beard 
Offend your fight; but thefe are manly figns. Dri/den. 
The chill rain 
Drops from Lome penthovfe on her wretched head. Rowe. 
PEN'TICE, f. [ appeniis , Fr. pen dice, Italian. It is 
commonly fuppofed a corruption of penthovfe; but per¬ 
haps pentice is the true word. It was alfo written pendice, 
after the Italian word.] A (loping roof.— Climes that fear 
the falling and lying of much (now, ought to provide 
more inclining penlices. Wotton. 
And o’er their heads an iron pendice vaft 
They built by joining many a fliield and targe. Fairfax. 
PEN'TICLE, f [another name for] Pendice : 
Their targets hard, above their heads they threw, 
Which join’d in one, an non pendice make, 
That from the dreadfull (form preferv’d the crew: 
Defended thus, their fpeedy courfe they take. 
And to the wall without refiftance drew ; 
For that ftrong penticle protected well 
The knights, from all that flew, and all that fell, Fairfax. 
PENTICOT'TA, a town of Hindooftan, in the circar 
of Cicacole : thirty-two miles fouth-weft of Coflimcotta. 
PENTIDATI'LO, a tow n of Naples, in Calabria Ultra: 
twelve miles fouth-eaft of Reggio. 
PEN'TILE, J'. A tile formed to cover the (loping part 
of the roof : they are often called pantiles.— Pentiles are 
thirteen inches long, with a button to hang on the laths ; 
they are hollow and circular. Moxon. 
PEN'TIMA, a town of Naples, in Abruzzo Citra : five 
miles north-weft of Sulmona. 
PENT'LAND FRITH', the ftrait which feparates the 
main land of Scotland from the Orkney Iflands. It is 
fometimes called Pi&land Frith ; and indeed the latter is 
confidered by many writers to be its proper and original 
appellation. This ftrait is about twelve miles acrofs ; 
and is remarkable for the impetuofity and oppofition of 
its currents, from the meeting tides of the Atlantic and 
Northern oceans. So ftrong are thefe currents at times, 
that no veffel can navigate againft them, however favour¬ 
able the wind may be. Hence the navigation of this 
frith is fo peculiarly dangerous and difficult, that few vef- 
fels attempt to pafs it without die afliftance of an experi¬ 
enced pilot. Its dangers are alfo greatly augmented by 
feveraj whirlpools, of w'hich thofe moft ufually fatal are 
the Wells of Swinnaand the Swalchie of Stroma, near the 
northern fide of that ifland. On its fouthern (hore is ano¬ 
ther very hazardous fpot, called the “Merry Men of Mey,’’ 
from the Mey, the name of a gentleman’s refidence on 
the oppofite coaft of Caithnefs. Here, from the concuf- 
fion of the oppofing tides, the fea is agitated in a very 
awful manner, even in the fined weather. From thefe 
concurrent caufes, it is impoflible at any time to call an¬ 
chor in any part of this frith ; which, notwithftanding, is 
annually entered by between three and four thoufand 
veflels. The number, however, will no doubt rapidly de- 
creafe, now that the Caledonian Canal is opened for na¬ 
vigation. Many of the- natives of the Caithnefs coaft, and 
of the iflands, are faid to derive their livelihood folely 
from the produce of the numerous (hips which are foun¬ 
dered, or dafhed to pieces, in their paffage through this 
frith. 
PENT'LAND SKER'RIES, three.fmall iflets, or holms, 
at the eaftern entrance to the Pentland frith ; four miles 
north-eaft from Dunglby head. Being from their fitua- 
tion extremely dangerous to mariners, a lighthoufe is 
placed upon the largeft of them : it was eretted in 1794. 
PENT'LAND HILL'S, a range or ridge of eminences, 
which extend from a place about four miles fouth- weft of 
Edinburgh, towards the confines of Peebles-fnire and 
Lanarkftiire. Some of thefe hills are of confiderable ele¬ 
vation ; particularly the weftern fummits, two of which, 
called Capelaw and Caerketan-craig, rife to the height of 
nearly 1500 feet above the level of the fea. Logan-houfe 
hill even exceeds 1700 feet above the fame level. Ttie 
eaftern divifion, near Edinburgh, however, feldom reaches 
much above one-half that elevation ; in fome places it is 
nearly flat on the top, and affords excellent pafturage for 
large flocks of (heep. Several dreams, noted in fong, take 
their rife among thefe hills ; as the North Elk, Glencrofs, 
and Logan water; the two latter of which difpute the 
honour of being the fcene of Allan Ramfay’s Gentle 
Shepherd. Each of thefe vales is accordingly diftinguilhed 
by the name of “ Habby’s Hough;’’ and both are fre¬ 
quently vifited by poetical parties from the Scottifh me¬ 
tropolis during the fummer months. The compofition 
of the Pentland hills is principally granite, but on the 
north fide of the Logan fummit is a rock of a very Angu¬ 
lar character, which has obtained the appellation of 
“ Petunfe Pentlandica,” from its refemblance to the fub- 
ftance employed in the manufadture of Chinefe porcelain. 
PENTONVILLE. See the article Islington, vol. xi. 
p.438.—We may juft mention, that the White-Conduit 
fpring (p. 437) was, in 1822, entirely covered over, and 
the building was inhabited by a poor family. 
PENTOWEN POI'NT, a cape on the fouth coaft of 
Wales, in the Briftol Channel. Lat. 51. 45. N. Ion. 4. 
15. W. 
PEN'TRIDGE, a village in Dorfetlhire, by Cranborn- 
chafe, on the borders of Wiltftiire. On Penbury-Hill, 
near this place, is an extenfive profpeft. Hanley-Six¬ 
penny is a village about two miles from Pentridge, and 
alfo on the borders of Wiltftiire, between Blagdon-Park 
and Cranburn-Chafe. In the latter, that is, about 3 miles 
off, the parilhioners are allowed one day in the year to 
hunt deer. It had formerly a market. 
PEN'TRY, a village of Caermarthen, South Wales; 
with fairs on the 12th of May and 10th of Oflober. 
PENTSTE'MON, f. [from the Gr. vrevie, five, and mp.cc, 
a ftamen ; becaufe this genus is diftinguilhed from its al- 
. lies by having a fifth ftamen, more or lefs perfedl, in ad¬ 
dition to the four unequal ones which make the charac¬ 
ter of the clafs.] In botany, a genus of the clafs didyna- 
mia, order angiofpermia, natural order of perfonatae. 
Generic charafters —Calyx : perianthium one-leafed, 
five-parted, permanent: fegments lanceolate,, almoft 
equal. Corolla: one petalled, two lipped ; tube longer 
than the calyx, gibbou s above at the bafe, wider at top, 
3 and 
