BURGLARY. 
habits, appearance, and height, to the smooth- 
leaved species. Both are very cumbrous weeds, 
endowed with very prolific powers of propaga- 
tion, and making war of exactly the same kind 
upon farmers as docks and the larger thistles; 
and they require to be combated by stubbing, so 
as to prevent their going to seed—Another spe- 
cies, called the smaller, growing to the height of 
about two feet, is common as a biennial weed in 
some other countries of Europe.— Burdock is 
also the popular name of a curious annual grass, 
about a foot in usual height, which was intro- 
duced to Great Britain from the East Indies in 
the latter part of last century. This grass con- 
stitutes a genus of itself, and is called by Lin- 
nus Cenchrus lappaceus, and by Desvaux Cen- 
totheca lappacea. 
BURDOCK (Smart). See Burweep. 
BURGLARY. A term in criminal law, sup- 
posed to be derived from the German éurg, ‘a 
house,’ and larron, ‘a thief, or the Latin (afro. 
It is defined to be a breaking and entering the 
mansion-house of another, in the night, with in- 
tent to commit some felony within the same, 
whether such felonious intent be executed or 
| not. This is the modern signification of the 
| term, which formerly applied, also, to the break- 
ing into a church, fort, or town; and the break- 
ing into a church is said, by Sir William Black- 
stone, to be, undoubtedly, burglary. Both 
breaking and entering are considered necessary 
to constitute the offence. The opening a door 
or window, picking a lock, or unlocking it with 
| a key, raising a latch, or loosing any fastenings, 
constitutes a breaking. Likewise, knocking at 
the door, and, on its being opened, rushing in, 
has been so considered. So, if a lodger in the 
same house open and enter another’s room; or if 
a servant conspire with a robber and let him into 
the house, it will be such a breaking of the 
house, as, if done with intent to commit a felony, 
will be burglary. The breaking and entering 
must, however, be in the night, to make it bur- 
glary; and, according to Lord Hale’s opinion, if 
there be enough of daylight in the evening, twi- 
light or dawn for discerning a man’s face, it will 
not be burglary. But this does not extend to 
moonlight, since such a construction would se- 
cure impunity to many burglaries. The break- 
ing open of a barn, shop, shed, or other building, 
is not burglary, unless it be appurtenant to a 
dwelling-house. A chamber in a college, or-in 
the London inns of court, is, for this purpose, 
considered to be a mansion-house. The British 
statute 7 & 8 Geo. IV., cap. 29, makes the punish- 
ment death; and this statute, pursuing that of 
12 Anne, cap. 7, makes the committing a felony 
in a house, and breaking out of it by night, bur- 
glary. This statute of Geo. IV. also alters the 
definition of the crime, by substituting dwelling 
for mansion-house. It also defines what shall be 
considered as part of the house, saying, that no 
BURNET. 
pied with the dwelling-house, shall be deemed a 
part of it for this purpose, ‘ unless there shall be 
a communication’ with the house ‘ by means of 
a covered and enclosed passage.’ This act also 
provides that, “ if any person shall break and en- 
ter a house and steal,” &c., or “ shall steal any 
property in any dwelling- house, any person 
therein being put in fear,” or “ shall steal to the 
value of £5,” he shall suffer death; and it does 
not appear, by Mr. Collier’s edition of the crimi- 
nal statutes, 1828, that any distinction is made, 
in this section, as to the offence being by day or 
night. This crime is punishable, under the 
French code (Penal. lib. 3, tit. 2, c. 2, s. 1, No. 
381, 383), either by death or by hard labour for 
life, according to the circumstances of aggrava- 
tion. 
BURGUNDY PITCH. The resin of the Nor- 
way spruce fir. It is obtained by making inci- 
sions through the bark to the alburnum. Flakes 
of it are formed by concretion at the edges of the 
wounds; they are detached, and fresh incisions 
made, once a fortnight during summer, and they 
are melted with water in large boilers, and after- 
wards strained through coarse cloths under a 
press. The greater portion of the Burgundy 
pitch brought to Great Britain, is imported in 
casks from the neighbourhood of Neufchatel. 
An adulterated kind of it, or artificial imitation, 
is very generally sold in the shops under the 
name of common Burgundy pitch; but this may 
easily be distinguished by its friability, and by 
its want of the proper odour, unctuosity, and 
viscidity. The genuine sort somewhat resem- 
bles yellow resin, but is opaque, unctuous, and 
agreeably fragrant. Burgundy pitch is .some- 
what extensively used by farriers in some of their — 
ointments, and especially in making ‘ charges’ 
and strengthening plasters. 
BURNBAKING, or Burnpeatine. See Parine 
and Burnina. 
BURNET, —botanically Poteriwm: A genus | 
of evergreen herbaceous plants, of the rosaceous | 
tribe. The common or Sanguisorba species, 
Poterium sanguisorba, constitutes a large portion 
of the natural herbage of the South Downs, and | 
grows wild on other chalky hills of England; it, 
at the same time, possesses considerable impor- 
tance in cultivation as both a salad and a forage 
plant; and it gives the botanical name poterium 
or ‘ cup’ to the whole genus, in consequence of 
its being used in cool tankards or cooling drinks. 
Tts stem is angular, smooth, and leafy, and usually 
attains a height of about two feet; its leaves are 
smooth, pinnate, and glaucous - green; and its 
flowers are green, and appear in July,—some of 
them barren, and having elegant crimson stamens 
somewhat like silk tassels. 
The leaves of this plant are used in Britain as 
both a winter and a spring salad, and as a small 
culinary herb; and is in very high esteem as a 
salad among the French and the Italians,—so 
high indeed among the latter, that an Italian 
building within the same curtilage, and occu- 
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