drink, and when they pressed an afflicted person to eat and drink
thereof she turned away her head and spit at it, and said, 'I will
not eat, I will not drink. It is blood.' ... Thus horribly doth Satan
endeavor to have his kingdom and administrations to resemble those of
our Lord Jesus Christ."--Deodat Lawson, _Christ's Fidelity the only
Shield against Satan's Malignity_ (1704).
DEVONSHIRE, according to historic fable, is a corruption of
"Debon's-share." This Debon was one of the companions of Brute, the
descendent of Aene'as. He chased the giant Coulin till he came to a
pit eight leagues across. Trying to leap this chasm, the giant fell
backwards and lost his life.
... that ample pit, yet far renowned
For the great leap which Debon did compel
Coulin to make, being eight lugs of ground,
Into the which retourning back he fell ...
And Debon's share was that is Devonshire.
Spenser, _Faery Queen_, ii. 10 (1590).
DE'VORGOIL (_Lady Jane_), a friend of the Hazlewood family.--Sir W.
Scott, _Guy Mannering_ (time, George II.).
DEWLAP (_Dick_), an anecdote teller, whose success depended more upon
his physiognomy than his wit. His chin and his paunch were his most
telling points.
I found that the merit of his wit was founded upon the shaking of
a fat paunch, and the tossing up of a pair of rosy jowls.--Richard
Steele.
DEXTER, (_Gregory_), the typical Successful Man who is first suitor,
then the generous friend of Anne Douglas, in Constance Fennimore
Woolson's _Anne_.
"A little indifference to outside opinion would
have made him a contented, as he was a successful
man. But there was a surface of personal
vanity over his better qualities which led him to
desire a tribute of universal liking." (1882).
DHU (_Evan_) of Lochiel, a Highland chief in the army of Montrose.
_Mhich-Connel Dhu_. or M'Ilduy, a Highland chief in the army of
Montrose.--
Sir W. Scott, _Legend of Montrose_ (time, Charles I.).
DHUL'DUL, the famous horse of Ali, son-in-law of Mahomet.
DHU'L KARNEIN ("_the two-horned_,") a true believer according to the
Mohammedan notion, who built the wall to prevent the incursions of Gog
and Magog.--_Al Korân_, xviii.
Commentators say the wall was built in this
manner: The workman dug till they found
water; and having laid the foundation of stone
and melted brass, they built the superstructure
of large pieces of iron, between which they
packed wood and coal, till the whole equalled
the height of the mountains [_of Armenia_]. Then
setting fire to the combustibles, and by the use of
bellows, they made the iron red hot, and poured
molten brass over to fill up the interstices.
--Al Beidawi.
DHU'LNUN, the surname of Jonah.; so called because he was _swallowed
by a fish_.
Remember Dhu'lnun, when he departed in wrath, and thought that we
could not exercise our power over him.--_Al Korân_, xxi.
DIAFOIRUS (_Thomas_), son of Dr. Diafoirus. He is a young medical
milksop, to whom Argan has promised his daughter Angelique in
marriage. Diafoirus pays his compliments in cut-and-dried speeches,
and on one occasion, being interrupted in his remarks, says, "Madame,
vous m'avez interrompu dans le milieu de ma période, et cela m'a
troublé la mémoire." His father says, "Thomas, reservez cela pour une
autre fois." Angelique loves Cléante (2 _syl_.), and Thomas Diafoirus
goes to the wall.
Il n'a jamais eu l'imagination bien vive, ni ce feu d'esprit qu'on
remarque dans quelques uns,.... Lorsqui'il était petit, il n'a jamais
été ce qu'on appelle mièvre et éveille; on le voyait toujours doux,
paisible, et taciturne, ne disant jamais mot, et ne jouant jamais à
tons ces petits jeux que l'on nomme enfantins.--Molière, _Le Malade
Imaginaire_, ii.6 (1673).
DI'AMOND, one of three brothers, sons of the fairy Agapê. Though very
strong, he was slain in single fight by Cambalo. His brothers were
Pri'amond and Tri'amond.--Spenser, _Faëry Queen_, iv. (1596).
DIAMOND JOUSTS, nine jousts instituted by Arthur, and so called
because a diamond was the prize. These nine diamonds were all won by
Sir Launcelot, who presented them to the queen, but Guinevere, in a
tiff, flung them into the river which ran by the palace.--Tennyson,
_Idylls of the King_ ("Elaine").
DIAMOND SWORD, a magic sword given by the god Syren to the king of the
Gold Mines.
She gave him a sword made of one entire diamond, that gave as great
lustre as the sun.--Comtesse D'Aunoy, _Fairy Tales_ ("The Yellow
Dwarf," 1682).
DIANA, the heroine and title, a pastoral of Montemayor, imitated from
the _Daphnis_ and _Chloe_ of Longos (fourteenth century).
_Dian'a_, daughter of the widow of Florence with whom Hel'ena lodged
on her way to the shrine of St. Jacques le Grand. Count Bertram
wantonly loved Diana, but the modest girl made this attachment the
means of bringing about a reconciliation between Bertram and his wife
Helena.--Shakespeare, _All's Well that Ends Well_ (1598).
DIAN'A DE LASCOURS, daughter of Ralph and Louise de Lascours, and
sister of Martha, _alias_ Ogari'la. Diana was betrothed to Horace de
Brienne, whom she resigns to Martha.--E. Stirling, _The Orphan of the
Frozen Sea_ (1856).
DIAN'A THE INEXORABLE. (1) She slew Orion with one of her arrows, for
daring to make love to her. (2) She changed Actæon into a stag and set
her own dogs on him to worry him to death, because he chanced to look
upon her while bathing. (3) She shot with her arrows the six sons and
six daughters of Niobé, because the fond mother said she was happier
than Latona, who had only two children.
Dianae non movenda numina.
Horace, _Epode_, xvii.
DIANA THE SECOND OF SALMANTIN, a pastoral romance by Gil Polo.
"We will preserve that book," said the cure, "as carefully as if
Apollo himself had been its author."--Cervantes, _Don Quixote_, I. i.
6 (1605).
DIANA _(the Temple of_), at Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of
antiquity, was set on fire by Herostratos to immortalize his name.
DIANA OF THE STAGE, Mrs. Anne Brace-girdle (1663-1748).
DIAN'A'S FORESTERS, "minions of the moon," "Diana's knights," etc.,
highwaymen.
Marry, then, sweet wag, when thou art king,
let not us that are "squires of the night's body"
be called _thieves_ ... let us be "Diana's foresters,"
"Gentlemen of the shade," "minions of the
moon."--Shakespeare, I _Henry IV_. act i. sc. 2
(1597).
DIANO'RA, wife of Gilberto of Friu'li, but amorously loved by Ansaldo.
In order to rid herself of his importunities, she vowed never to yield
to his suit till he could "make her garden at midwinter as gay with
flowers as it was in summer" (meaning _never_). Ansaldo, by the aid of
a magician, accomplished the appointed task; but when the lady told
him that her husband insisted on her keeping her promise, Ansaldo, not
to be outdone in generosity, declined to take advantage of his
claim, and from that day forth was the firm and honorable friend of
Gilberto.--Bocaccio, _Decameron_, x.5.
The _Franklin's Tale_ of Chaucer is substantially the same story. (See
DORIGEN).
DIARMAID, noted for his "beauty spot," which he covered up with his
cap; for if any woman chanced to see it, she would instantly fall in
love with him.--Campbell, _Tales of the West Highlands_ ("Diarmaid and
Grainne").
DIAV'OLO (_Fra_), Michele Pezza, Insurgent of Calabria
(1760-1806).--Auber, _Fra Diavolo_ (libretto by Scribe, 1836).
DIBBLE (_Davie_), gardener at Monkbarns.--Sir W. Scott, _Antiquary_
(time, George III.).
_Dibu'tades_ (4 _syl_.), a potter of Sicyon, whose daughter traced on
the wall her lover's shadow, cast there by the light of a lamp. This,
it is said, is the origin of portrait painting. The father applied the
same process to his pottery, and this, it is said, is the origin of
sculpture in relief.
Will the arts ever have a lovelier origin than that fair daughter of
Dibutades tracing the beloved shadow on the wall!--Ouida, _Ariadnê_,
i. 6.
DICAE'A, daughter of Jove, the "accusing angel" of classic mythology.
Forth stepped the just Dicaea, full of rage.
Phineas Fletcher, _The Purple Island_, vi. (1633).
DICCON THE BEDLAMITE, a half-mad mendicant, both knave and thief. A
specimen of the metre will be seen by part of Diccon's speech:
Many amyle have I walked, divers and sundry waies,
And many a good man's house have I bin at in my dais;
Many a gossip's cup in my tyme have I tasted,
And many a broche and spyt have I both turned and basted ...
When I saw it booted nit, out at doores I hyed mee,
And caught a slyp of bacon when I saw none spyd mee
Which I intend not far hence, unless my purpose fayle,
Shall serve for a shooing home to draw on two pots of ale.
_Gammer Gurton's Needle_ (1575).
DICIL'LA, one of Logistilla's handmaids, noted for her
chastity.--Ariosto, _Orlanda Furioso_ (1516).
DICK, ostler at the Seven Stars inn, York.--Sir W. Scott, _Heart of
Midlothian_ (time, Greorge II.).
_Dick_, called "The Devil's Dick of Hellgarth;" a falconer and
follower of the earl of Douglas.--Sir W. Scott, _Fair Maid of Perth_
(time, Henry IV.).
_Dick (Mr.)_, an amiable, half-witted man, devoted to David's "aunt,"
Miss Betsey Trotwood, who thinks him a prodigious genius. Mr. Dick
is especially mad on the subject of Charles I.--C. Dickens, _David
Copperfield_ (1849).
DICK AMLET, the son of Mrs. Amlet, a rich, vulgar tradeswoman. Dick
assumes the airs of a fine gentleman, and calls himself Colonel
Shapely, in which character he gets introduced to Corinna, the
daughter of Gripe, a rich scrivener. Just as he is about to elope, his
mother makes her appearance, and the deceit is laid bare; but Mrs.
Amlet promises to give her son £10,000, and so the wedding is
adjusted. Dick is a regular scamp, and wholly without principle; but
being a dashing young blade, with a handsome person, he is admired by
the ladies.--Sir John Vanbrugh, _The Confederacy_ (1695).
DICK SHAKEBAG, a highwayman in the gang of Captain Colepepper (the
Alsatian bully).--Sir W. Scott, _Fortunes of Nigel_ (time, James I).
DICKSON (_Thomas_) farmer at Douglasdale.
_Charles Dickson_, son of the above, killed in the church.--Sir W.
Scott, _Castle Dangerous_ (time, Henry I.).
DICTA'TOR OF LETTERS, Francois Marie Arouet de Voltaire, called the
"Great Pan" (1694-1778).
DICTIONARY (_A Living_). Wilhelm Leibnitz (1646-1716) was so called by
George I.
[Illustration] Longinus was called "The Living Cyclopaedia" (213-273).
[Illustration] Daniel Huet, chief editor of the _Delphine Classics_,
was called a _Porcus Literarum_ for his unlimited knowledge
(1630-1721).
DIDDLER (_Jeremy_), an artful swindler; a clever, seedy vagabond, who
borrows money or obtains credit by his songs, witticisms, or other
expedients.--Kenny, _Raising the Wind_.
DIDERICK, the German form of Theodorick, king of the Goths. As Arthur
is the centre of British romance, and Charlemagne of French romance,
so Diderick is the central figure of the German minnesingers. DIDIER
(_Henri_), the lover of Julie Les-urques (2 _syl_.); a gentleman in
feeling and conduct, who remains loyal to his _fiancée_ through all
her troubles.--Ed. Stirling, _The Courier of Lyons_ (1852).
DIDO, _daughter of Belus, king of Tyre_. She bought "as much land in
Africa as a bull's hide could cover," shred the hide into strings, and
enclosed a large tract. Æneas was wrecked upon her coast, and a love
affair ensued. He deserted her, and she killed herself after watching
his ship until it was out of sight.
DIE'GO, the sexton to Lopez the "Spanish curate."--Beaumont and
Fletcher, _The Spanish Curate_ (1622).
_Die'go (Don)_, a man of 60, who saw a country maiden named Leonora,
whom he liked, and intended to marry if her temper was as amiable as
her face was pretty. He obtained leave of her parents to bring her
home and place her under a duenna for three months, and then either
return her to them spotless, or to make her his wife. At the
expiration of the time, he went to settle the marriage contract; and,
to make all things sure, locked up the house, giving the keys to
Ursula, but to the outer door he attached a huge padlock, and put the
key in his pocket. Leander, being in love with Leonora, laughed at
locksmiths and duennas, and Diego (2 _syl_.), found them about to
elope. Being a wise man, he not only consented to their union, but
gave Leonora a handsome marriage portion.--I. Bickerstaff, _The
Padlock._
DIES IRAE. The name generally given from the opening words to a
mediaeval hymn on the Last Judgment. The author is unknown, but the
hymn is now generally ascribed to a monk of the Abruzzi, in Naples,
Thomas de Celano, who died about 1255.
Dies irae, dies ilia
Sol vet sseclum in favilla
Teste David cum Sibylla.
That Day of Wrath, that dreadful day
When Heaven and Earth shall pass away,
So David and the Sibyl say.
DIET OF PERFORMERS.
BEAHAM sang on _bottled porter_.
CATLEY _(Miss)_ took _linseed tea and madeira._
COOKE _(G.F.)_ drank everything.
HENDEESON, _gum arable and sherry_.
INCLEDON sang on _madeira_.
JOEDAN _(Mrs.)_ drank _calves'-foot jelly and sherry._
KEAN _(C.)_ took _beef-tea_ for breakfast, and preferred a
_rump-steak_ for dinner.
KEAN _(Edm.)_ EMERY and REEVE drank _cold brandy-and-water._
KEMBLE _(John)_ took _opium_.
LEWIS, _mulled wine_ and _oysters_.
MACEEADY used to eat the _lean of mutton-chops_ when he acted, and
subsequently lived almost wholly on a vegetable diet.
OXBERRY drank _tea_.
RUSSELL _(Henry)_ took a _boiled egg_.
SMITH (_W_.) drank _coffee_.
WOOD (_Mrs_.) sang on _draught porter_.
WEENCH and HAELEY took _no_ refreshment during a performance.--W. O.
Russell, _Representative Actors_. 272.
DIE'TRICH (2 _syl_.). So Theod'oric _The Great_ is called by the
German minnesingers. In the terrible broil stirred up by Queen
Kriemhild in the banquet hall of Etzel, Dietrich interfered, and
succeeded in capturing Hagan and the Burgundian King Ghinther. These
he handed over to the queen, praying her to set them free; but she
cut off both their heads with her own hands.--_The Niebelungen Lied_
(thirteenth century.)
_Dietrich (John)_, a laborer's son of Pomerania. He spent twelve years
under ground, where he met Elizabeth Krabbin, daughter of the minister
of his own village, Rambin. One day, walking together, they heard a
cock crow, and an irresistible desire came over both of them to visit
the upper earth, John so frightened the elves by a toad, that they
yielded to his wish, and gave him hoards of wealth, with part of which
he bought half the island of Riigen. He married Elizabeth, and became
founder of a very powerful family.--Keightley, _Fairy Mythology_. (See
TANHAUSER.)
DIETZ _(Bernard)._ Broad-shouldered giant who wears an air of deep and
gentle repose, and comes like a benediction from heaven to the sick
room of Count Hugo in Blanche Willis Howard's novel _The Open Door._
He is a stone-mason who says with a genial laugh,
"I hope if I'm lucky enough to get into the New Jerusalem they talk
about, there'll still be a little building going on, for I shouldn't
feel at home without a block of stone to clip."
His grand simplicity and strong common sense medicine the morbid soul
of the more nobly-born man. His argument against the suicide Hugo
contemplates as an open door out of the world, surprises the listener
profoundly.
"You see, you can never destroy anything. You can only _seem_ to. The
life in us--it doesn't ask us if we want to be born,--it doesn't ask
us if we want to die. It is beyond us, and I don't believe it _can_ be
destroyed" (1889).
DIEU ET MON DROIT, the parole of Richard I. at the battle of Gisors
(1198).
DIGGERY, one of the house-servants at Strawberry Hall. Being
stage-struck, he inoculates his fellow-servants (Cymon and Wat) with
the same taste. In the same house is an heiress named Kitty Sprightly
(a ward of Sir Gilbert Pumpkin), also stage-struck. Diggery's favorite
character is "Alexander the Great," the son of "Almon." One day,
playing _Romeo and Juliet_, he turns the oven into the balcony, but,
being rung for, the girl acting "Juliet" is nearly roasted alive. (See
DIGGORY.)--J. Jackman, _All the World's a Stage_.
DIGGES (_Miss Maria_), a friend of Lady Penfeather; a visitor at the
Spa.--Sir W. Scott, _St. Ronan's Well_ (time, George III.).
DIGGON [DAVIE], a shepherd in the _Shephearde's Calendar_, by Spenser.
He tells Hobbinol that he drove his sheep into foreign lands, hoping
to find better pasture; but he was amazed at the luxury and profligacy
of the shepherds whom he saw there, and the wretched condition of the
flocks. He refers to the Roman Catholic clergy, and their abandoned
mode of life. Diggon also tells Hobbinol a long story about Roffynn
(_the bishop of Rochester_) and his watchful dog Lauder catching a
wolf in sheep's clothing in the fold.--_Ecl_. ix. (September, 1572 or
1578).
DIGGORY, a barn laborer, employed on state occasions for butler and
footman by Mr. and Mrs. Hardcastle. He is both awkward and familiar,
laughs at his master's jokes and talks to his master's guests while
serving. (See DIGGERY.)--Goldsmith, _She Stoops to Conquer_. (1773).
_Diggory_ (_Father_), one of the monks of St. Botolph's Priory.--Sir
W. Scott, _Ivanhoe_ (time, Richard I.).
DIMANCHE, (_Mons_.), a dun. Mons. Dimanche, a tradesman, applies to
Don Juan for money. Don Juan treats him with all imaginable courtesy,
but every time he attempts to revert to business interrupts him with
some such question as, _Comment se porte Madame Dimanche?_ or _Et
votre petite fille Claudine comment se porte-t-ell?_ or _Le petit
Colin fait-il toujours bien du bruit avec son tambour?_ or _Ét votre
petit chien Brusquet, gronde-t-il toujours aussi fort_ ...? and, after
a time, he says he is very sorry, but he must say good-bye for the
present, and he leaves Mons. without his once stating the object of
his call. (See SHUFFLETON.) Molière, _Don Juan_ (1665).
DIMMESDALE _(Arthur)._ Master Prynne, an English physician living in
Amsterdam, having determined to join the Massachusetts Colony, sent
his young wife Hester before him to await his coming. He was detained
two years, and on reaching Boston, the first sight that met his eyes
was his wife standing in the pillory with a young babe in her arms and
with the letter A, the mark of her shame, embroidered in scarlet
on her breast. A young clergyman, the Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale,
regarded by all the people as a saint, too good for earth, was
earnestly exhorting her to declare the name of the child's father, but
she steadfastly refused, and was sent back to prison. Prynne who had
heard in Amsterdam rumors of his wife's infidelity, both to discover
her betrayer and to hide his own relation to his wife, had taken the
name of Roger Chillingworth, and with eyes sharpened by jealousy and
wounded pride, soon discovered that his wife's lover was no other than
Dimmesdale himself. As a physician and under the guise of friendship
he attached himself to the minister, and pursued his ghastly search
for the secret cause that was eating away his life. How it all ended
is shown in that wonderful book where, as in a Greek drama, the fates
of Arthur Dimmesdale, Hester Prynne, Roger Chillingworth, and the
love-child, Little Pearl, are traced in lines of fire.--Nathaniel
Hawthorne, _The Scarlet Letter_.
DINANT', a gentleman who once loved and still pretends to love Lamira.
the wife of Champernel.--Beaumont and Fletcher, _The Little French
Lawyer_ (1647).
DINARZA'DE (_4 syl_.), sister of Scheherazadê, Sultana of Persia.
Dinarzadê was instructed by her sister to wake her every morning an
hour before daybreak, and say, "Sister, relate to me one of those
delightful stories you know," or "Finish before daybreak the story
you began yesterday." The sultan got interested in these tales, and
revoked the cruel determination he had made of strangling at daybreak
the wife he had married the preceeding night. (See SCHEHERAZADE.)
DINAS EMRYS, or "Fort of Ambrose" (_i.e._ Merlin), on the Brith,
a part of Snowdon. When Vortigern built this fort, whatever was
constructed during the day was swallowed up in the earth during the
night. Merlin (then called Ambrose or Embres-Guletic) discovered the
cause to be "two serpents at the bottom of a pool below the foundation
of the works." These serpents were incessantly struggling with each
other; one was white, and the other red. The white serpent at first
prevaled, but ultimately the red one chased the other out of the pool.
The red serpent, he said, meant the Britons, and the white one the
Saxons. At first the Saxons (or _white serpent_) prevailed, but in the
end "our people" _the red serpent_ "shall chase the Saxon race beyond
the sea."--Nennius, _History of the Britons_ (842).
And from the top of Brith, so high and wondrous
steep
Where Dinas Emris stood, showed where
the serpents fought
The white that tore the red, for whence the
prophet taught
The Britons' sad decay.
Drayton, _Polyolbion_, x, (1612).
DINE WITH DUKE HUMPHREY (_To_), to have no dinner to go to. The Duke
referred to was the son of Henry IV., murdered at St. Edmundsbury, and
buried at St. Alban's. It was generally thought that he was buried
in the nave of St. Paul's Cathedral; but the monument supposed to be
erected to the duke was in reality that of John Beauchamp. Loungers,
who were asked if they were not going home to dinner, and those who
tarried in St. Paul's after the general crowd had left, were supposed
to be so busy looking for the duke's monument that they disregarded
the dinner hour.
DINER-OUT OF THE FIRST WATER, the Rev. Sidney Smith; so called by the
_Quarterly Review_ (1769-1845).
DINGLE (_Old Dick of the_), friend of Hobbie Elliott of the Heugh-foot
farm.--Sir W. Scott, _The Black Dwarf_ (time, Anne).
DINGWALL (_Davie_), the attorney at Wolfe's Hope village.--Sir W.
Scott, _Bride of Lammermoor_ (time William III.).
DINIAS AND DERCYLLIS (_The Wanderings, Adventures, and Loves of_), an
old Greek novel, the basis of the romance of Antonius Diog'enês in
twenty-four books and entitled _Incredible Things beyond Thule_ [_Ta
HuperThoulen Apista_], a store-house from which subsequent writers
have borrowed largely. The work is not extant, but Photius gives an
outline of its contents.
DINMONT (_Dandy, i.e._ Andrew), an eccentric and humorous store farmer
at Charlie's Hope. He is called "The fighting Dinmont of Liddesdale."
_Ailie Dinmont_, wife of Dandy Dinmont.--Sir W. Scott, _Guy Mannering_
(time George II.).
[Illustration] This novel has been dramatized by Daniel Terry.
DINNER BELL. Burke was so called from his custom of speaking so long
as to interfere with the dinner of the members (1729-1797).
DIOCLE'TIAN, the king and father of Erastus, who was placed under the
charge of the "seven wise masters" (_Italian version_).
In the _French_ version, the father is called
"Dolop'athos."--_Sandabar's Parables_.
DIOG'ENES, Greek cynic, who carried a lantern at noon, to search for
an honest man.
DIOG'ENES (4 _syl_.), the negro slave of the cynic philosopher Michael
Agelestês (4 _syl_.).--Sir W. Scott, _Count Robert of Paris_ (time,
Rufus).
DI'OMEDE (3 _syl_.), fed his horses on human flesh, and he was himself
eaten by his horse, being thrown to it by Herculês.
DION (_Lord_), father of Euphra'sia. Euphrasia is in love with
Philaster, heir to the crown of Messi'na. Disguised as a page,
Euphrasia assumes the name of Bellario and enters the service
of Philaster.--Beaumont and Fletcher, _Philaster_ or _Love Lies
a-bleeding_ (1638).
(There is considerable resemblance between "Euphrasia" and "Viola" in
Shakespeare's _Twelfth Night_, 1614).
DIONÆ'AN CÆSAR, Julius Cæsar, who claimed descent from Venus, called
Dionê from her mother. Æneas was son of _Venus_ and Anchisês.
Ecce, Dionæi processit Cæsaris astrum.
Virgil, _Eclogues_, ix. 47.
DIO'NE (3 _syl_.), mother of Aphroditê (_Venus_), Zeus or Jove being
the father. Venus herself is sometimes called Dionê.
Oh, bear ... thy treasures to the green recess,
Where young Dionê strays; with sweetest airs
Entice her forth to lend her angel form
For Beauty's honored image.
Akenside, _Pleasures of Imagination_, (1744).