the inventor, and was at once put into practical and successful use in the Clark Institution at Northampton, Mass.

Debatable Land.-A tract of land situated on the western border of England and Scotland, and for many years the residence of thieves and banditti. It was at one time claimed by both kingdoms. It was divided by royal commissioners appointed by the two crowns in 1542, but its unsavory reputation clung to it for a long time afterward. It is frequently referred to in the works of

Sir Walter Scott.

Debt, Imprisonment for.-During late years the laws of most countries bearing upon imprisonment for debt have been greatly modified. In England the old harsh laws concerning debtors, which made the issuance of 101,000 writs for debt in one year, 1825, possible, were abolished in 1838; and in 1869, by the passage of the 66 Debtor's Act," still more lenient regulations were adopted. Imprisonment is still possible there, in certain cases, as when it is believed a debtor intends leaving the country, or when a debtor refuses, when he is able, to settle a claim decided against him by the courts, or when there is palpable evidence of premeditated fraud. The imprisonment cannot continue, however, longer than a specified time-usually one year. Imprisonment for debt was abolished in France by a decree of March 9, 1793, was re-enacted several years later, was again abolished in 1848, and was again reestablished the same year. Since that time, however, the law has been greatly modified, and now imprisonment is permitted for a limited period only, and certain classes are exempted from the law; as, for instance, those under twenty years or over seventy years of age, ecclesiastics, and women not engaged in commerce. In France, as in most all continental countries, the entire cession of the property of the debtor to his creditors will procure immunity from personal process, even though it may not cover the amount owed. New York was the first State in the United States to abolish imprisonment for debt. This was done in 1831, and the example was shortly followed by the other States; and though there is great difference in the insolvent laws of the several States, they all permit debtors their freedom except in cases wherein dishonesty or peculation render the debtor also amenable to the Penal Code. Both in Greece and in Rome, in ancient times, the creditor had a claim to the person of the debtor. In Rome, thirty days after judgment was pronounced against the debtor he was given into the hands of his creditor, who kept him sixty days in chains, exposing him on three market-days, and proclaiming his debt. If no one stepped in to release him, the debtor, at the end of that time, might be sold for a slave or put to death. If there were several creditors, the letter of the law permitted them to cut their debtor in pieces, sharing him in proportion to their claims. The common practice, however, was to treat him as a slave and make him work out the debt. The children in his power. in accordance with the constitution of society at Rome, followed his condition.

December.-In the old Roman calendar, before the time of Julius Cæsar, the year began with March, and that which is now twelfth was then the tenth month; hence the name decem, ten. It was called midwinter month and yule-month by the Anglo

Saxons.

Decemviri.-The most famous body known under this title were the ten patricians who were appointed as a sort of legislative committee to draw up a code of laws at Rome, and who were intrusted with the whole government of the State during the year for which they were to hold office. The experiment proved eminently successful, the work of legislation was carried on with zeal and success, and the State was governed with prudence and moderation. At the expiration of the year, their labors not being quite finished, a new body of Decemviri was appointed-only one, the notorious Appius Claudius, belonging to the previous commission. The new Decemviri acted in a most tyrannical manner. Every species of outrage was committed on the persons and families of the plebeians, and when their term of office expired they not only refused to retire, but to allow successors to be appointed. They were finally driven from office, and the tribunes and other ordinary magistrates of the republic were reappointed. One of the last outrages, which aroused the indignant populace to overthrow them, was the tragic fate of Virginia, related by Macauley in his "Lays of Ancient Rome.'

Decisive Battles of the World.-The most decisive battles that have been fought from the fifth century B. C. to the beginning of the nineteenth century are, according to Prof. Creasy, the battle of Marathon, B. C. 490; the defeat of the Athenians at Syracuse, B. C. 413; the battle of Arbela, in which the Greeks under Alexander the Great defeated the Persians, B. C. 331; the battle of the Metaurus, in which the Romans overthrew the Carthaginians, B. C. 207; victory of the German tribes under Arminius over the Roman legions under Varus, A. D. 9; battle of Chalons, when the Romans under Etius repulsed Attila, the King of the Huns, A. D. 451; battle of Tours, in which the Franks under Charles Martel overthrew the Saracen Turks, who had invaded western Europe, A. D. 732; battle of Hastings, by which William the Conqueror became ruler of England, October 14, 1066; victory of the French under Joan of Arc over the English at Orleans, April 29, 1429; defeat of the Spanish Armada by the English naval force, July 29 and 30, 1588; battle of Blenheim, in which the allied armies of Great Britain and Holland defeated the French and Bavarians, August 2, 1704; battle of Pultowa, in which the Russians under Peter the Great defeated the Swedes under Charles XII, July 8, 1709; battle of Saratoga, in which the American army under General Gates defeated the British under General Burgoyne, October 17, 1777; battle of Valmy, when the armies of Prussia and Austria were defeated by the French, September 20, 1792; battle of Waterloo, when the allied forces of the British and Prussians defeated

the French under Napoleon, June 18, 1815. From the battle of Waterloo to the present date only four important battles have been fought that of Gettysburg, Pa., by which the invasion of the North by the Confederate army was checked, July 1, 2 and 3, 1863; battle at Chattanooga, in which the Confederates in the Southwest were defeated by the Northern troops, November 23 and 25, 1863; battle of Sedan, in the Franco-Prussian war, September 1, 1870, and the battle of Plevna, in the Russo-Turkish war, when Osman Pasha surrendered, December 10, 1877.

Della Cruscan School.-The Della Cruscan school of so-called poetry came into existence at Florence about the year 1785. At that time a number of English people resident at Florence published, under the title of "The Florence Miscellany," a collection of verses written by themselves. These productions were insipid, affectatious and silly in the extreme; yet they found a crowd of admirers and imitators. The Della Cruscans (so-called from an academy at Florence) printed their effusions in England in two daily newspapers, called The World and The Oracle, and one of the brotherhood-a Mr. Robert Merry-came over from Florence and “immediately announced himself by a sonnet to Love." According to Gifford, "the fever now turned to a frenzy; Laura, Maria, Carlos, Orlando, Adelaide and a thousand other nameless names caught the infection, and from one end of the kingdom all was nonsense and Della Crusca." Gifford produced in 1794 his Baviad," and in 1796 his "Mæviad;" and those poems, by their keen satire, completely killed the Della Cruscan school.

Delphi, Temple at.-The edifice known to have existed at Delphi, Greece, at the beginning of the historic period, is said to have been the work of two architects named Trophonius and Agamedes. In 548 B. C., this temple having been destroyed, the Amphictyons undertook to build another for the sum of 300 talents, of which the Delphians were to pay one fourth, and the remainder was to be contributed by other cities of Greece. The temple is said to have been of the Doric order without, and the Ionic within. The front was built of Parian marble, and the sculptured decorations were rich and beautiful. The arches above the entrances were adorned with representations of legends of mythology, and similar adornments were carved on the panels of the walls. Images and statues in brass and marble enriched the interior, and the golden shields taken at Marathon, and also in battles with the Gauls, adorned the architraves. The attempts of the Persians in 480 B. C., and of the Gauls in 279 B. C., to rob the temple, were both, it was said, prevented by the miraculous interference of Apollo, and the sacred character of the place long protected it from other would-be plunderers. It was, however, eventually plundered by Sulla, and again by Nero, who silenced the oracle. It was restored by Hadrian, and then despoiled of many of its most beautiful works of art by Constantine the Great, and finally destroyed in the latter part of the fourth century.

Department of Justice, Salaries in.-The salaries of the officials of the Department of Justice of the United States are as follows: Attorney-General, $8,000 per annum; Solicitor-General, $7,000; three Assistant Attorney-Generals, $5,000 each, and one at $4,000; Chief Clerk, $2,450; Solicitor of the Treasury, $4,500; Solicitor of Internal Revenue, $4,500.

Dervishes are members of religious orders in Mohammedan countries, somewhat resembling the Christian monks. They are divided into many different brotherhoods and orders, and it is difficult to say when they originated. Tradition refers the origin of these orders to the earliest times of Islam, making the califs Abubekr and Ali founders of such brotherhoods; but it is more probable that they arose later. The dervishes live mostly in well-endowed convents, called Tekkije or Changah, and are under a chief with the title of Sheik, i. e., elder." Some of the monks are married and allowed to live out of the monastery, but must sleep there some nights weekly. Their devotional services consist in meeting for worship, prayers, religious dances, and "mortifications of the flesh." As the convent does not provide them with clothing, they are obliged to work more or less. Many Mohammedan princes and Turkish sultans have held dervishes in high respect and bestowed rich endowments on their establishments, and they are still held in high veneration by the people. The orders are generally named after their founders. The Kadris, founded in 1165, are commonly known as "the howling dervishes," from the excited chant of their religious services; and the Mevelevis, founded in 1273, are called the "dancing dervishes."

Deus ex Machina.-The tragic poets of Greece, in conformity with the popular mythological beliefs of their age, instead of bringing about the denouement of their plots by natural means, had often recourse to a more expeditious mode, viz.: the intervention of a god, who descended upon the stage by a mechanical contrivance and abruptly solved whatever difficulty barred the proper termination of a piece. Hence, whenever a person or incident is introduced arbitrarily in modern tragedy or comedy merely to remedy some inartistic negligence in its construction, such a contrivance is metaphorically called a Deus ex machina.

Dew. For any assigned temperature of the atmosphere there is a certain quantity of aqueous vapor which it is capable of holding in suspension at a given pressure. Conversely, for any assigned quantity of aqueous vapor held in suspension in the atmosphere there is a minimum temperature at which it can remain so suspended. This minimum temperature is called the dewpoint. During the daytime, especially if there has been sunshine, a good deal of aqueous vapor is taken into suspension in the atmosphere. If the temperature in the evening now fails below the dew-point, which after a hot and calm day generally takes place about sunset, the vapor which can be no longer held in suspension is deposited on the surface of the earth, sometimes to be

seen visibly falling in a fine mist. Another form of the phenomenon of dew is as follows: The surface of the earth, and all things on it, and especially the smooth surfaces of vegetable productions, are constantly parting with their heat by radiation. If the sky is covered with clouds, the radiation sent back from the clouds nearly supplies an equivalent for the heat thus parted with; but if the sky be clear, no equivalent is supplied, and the surface of the earth and things growing on it become colder than the atmosphere. If the night also be calm, the small portion of air contiguous to any of the surfaces will become cooled below the dew-point, and its moisture deposited on the surface in the form of dew. If the chilled temperature be below 32 degrees Fahr., the dew becomes frozen, and is called hoar-frost. The above two phenomena, though both expressed in Our language by the word "dew"-which perhaps helps to lead to a confusion of ideas on the subject are not necessarily expressed by the same word. For instance, in French, the first phenomenon the falling evening dew-is expressed by the word serein; while the latter-the dew seen in the morning gathered in drops on the leaves of plants or other cool surfaces-is expressed by the word rosee. Similar to rosee is the moisture which condenses on the outside surface of pitchers or glasses of ice-water. The air in immediate contact is cooled below the dew-point and deposits the suspended moisture.

Diamonds, Celebrated.-The discoverer of diamonds is unknown. From references in "Exodus" it is apparent that the diamond was a precious stone in Egypt in those early times; and even before that it was known in India, where probably it was first obtained. The name is a corruption from the Greek word adamant, meaning untamable, unconquerable. The art of cutting and polishing diamonds, although long practiced in India and China, was not known in Europe till after the middle of the fifteenth century, when it was introduced by Louis von Berguen, of Bruges. Some particular diamonds, from their unusual magnitude, or from circumstances of their history, are of more than usual interest. The largest diamond certainly known is that belonging to the Rajah of Mattan, weighing 367 carats. It is eggshaped, with an indented hollow near the smaller end. Many years ago the Governor of Borneo offered for it $500,000, two war brigs fully equipped, a number of cannon, and a quantity of pow der and shot; but the rajah refused to part with it, the fortunes of his family being supposed to be connected with it, and the Malays ascribing to water in which it had been dipped the power of healing all diseases. Perhaps the most famous diamond is the Koh-i-noor, once a boasted possession of the Great Mogul, and now belonging to the Crown of Great Britain. It is said to have weighed 900 carats in the rough; but now, after various cuttings, weighs 106 carats, and is estimated to be worth $2,000,000. The Orloff diamond, belonging to the Russian Emperor, and which