His father removing into the Transvaal, he fought as a field-cornet at
Majuba. As member of the Volksraad (1889-97) he helped to draw the two
Dutch republics together, and in the South African War commanded first in
Natal, and then in the west under Cronje, whose rescue at Paardeberg he
attempted, but unsuccessfully. After March, 1900, he distinguished himself
by his attacks on the British lines of communication, and by his skill in
evading capture. He became commander-in-chief of the Free State forces, and
was the only undefeated Boer general at the end of the war, after which he,
with Louis Botha and Delarey, came to Europe to collect funds for his
countrymen. A member of the Legislative Assembly and Minister of
Agriculture, Orange Free State, from 1907 to 1914, he joined the rebellion
at the outbreak of the European War. Captured at Waterburg on 1st Dec., he
was sentenced to a fine of L2000 and six years' imprisonment, but was soon
released. He published _The Three Years' War_ in 1902.
DEWEY, George, American naval officer, born at Montpellier, Vermont, 26th
Dec., 1837, died 16th Jan., 1917. He began active service in the
Mediterranean squadron, and in 1862, under Farragut, he was present at the
passage of Forts Jackson and St. Philip. Lieutenant-commander in 1865,
commander in 1872, he was in command of the Asiatic squadron in 1898, when
he destroyed the Spanish fleet at Manila on 1st May. He was made Admiral of
the Navy and was thanked by Congress. From 1900 till his death he was
President of the General Board of the Navy.
DEWEY, John, American philosopher and psychologist, born at Burlington,
Vermont, 20th Oct., 1859. Educated at the University of Vermont, he
received his Ph.D. degree from Johns Hopkins University. Professor of
philosophy at the Universities of Minnesota, Michigan, and Chicago, where
he was also director of the School of Education, he became professor of
philosophy at Columbia University in 1904. He is one of the two (William
James being the other) American leaders of _pragmatism_, a philosophical
conception according to which questions that have no bearing on experience
and on life have no significance whatever, and are meaningless. (See
_Pragmatism._) His works include: _Outlines of a Critical Theory of Ethics_
(1881), _Study of Ethics_ (1894), _My Pedagogical Creed_ (1897), _The
School and Society_ (1900), _Studies in Logical Theory_ (1903), _How we
Think_ (1909), _Interest and Effort in Education_ (1913), _Democracy and
Education_ (1916), _Letters from China and Japan_ (1920).
DE WINT, Peter, English landscape painter in water-colours, born 1784, died
1849. He studied in the schools of the Royal Academy, where he occasionally
exhibited; but most of his pictures were shown in the exhibitions of the
Water-colour Society. English scenery was his favourite subject. He
occasionally painted in oil with marked success. Several of his pictures
are in the National Gallery and the Victoria and Albert Museum.
DE WITT, Jan, Grand-Pensionary of Holland, celebrated as a statesman and
for his tragical end, was the son of Jacob de Witt, burgomaster of Dort,
and was born in 1625. He became the leader of the political party opposed
to the Prince of Orange, and in 1652, two years after the death of William
II, was made Grand-Pensionary. In 1665 the war with England was renewed,
and conducted by De Witt with great ability till its termination in 1665.
In 1672 Louis XIV invaded the Spanish Netherlands and involved Holland in
war. De Witt's popularity, already on the decline, suffered still further
in the troubles thus occasioned, and he felt it necessary to resign his
office of Grand-Pensionary. At this time his brother Cornelius, who had
been tried and put to torture for conspiring against the life of the young
Prince of Orange, lay in prison. Jan de Witt went to visit him, when a
tumult suddenly arose amongst the people, and both brothers were murdered,
20th Aug., 1672. De Witt was a man of high character, simple and modest in
all his relations.--Cf. Motley, _History of the United Netherlands._
DEW-POINT, the temperature at which the air is saturated with the
water-vapour which it contains. If the temperature of the air falls to the
dew-point, dew is deposited. The dew-point is determined by means of an
instrument called a hygrometer. When the air is 'dry', the dew-point is
low, and evaporation proceeds rapidly, whilst a 'moist' atmosphere is one
whose temperature is near the dew-point, and in which evaporation takes
place slowly.
DEWSBURY, a town, England, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, and 30 miles
south-west of the town of York, chiefly engaged in the manufacture of heavy
woollen cloths, including blankets, carpets, rugs, flannels, and baizes. In
1862 it was made a municipal borough; in 1867 a parliamentary borough,
returning one member. Pop. of municipal borough, 53,351.
[Illustration: A, Dexter chief point.]
DEXTER, a term meaning on the right-hand side, chiefly used in heraldry.
The _dexter chief point_ is a point in the right-hand upper corner of the
shield, being in the dexter extremity of the chief.
DEX'TRINE, or BRITISH GUM, (C_6H_{10}O_5)_x_, a generic name applied to
soluble gummy substances intermediate between starch and glucose. They are
prepared from starch by the aid of dilute mineral acids or of enzymes, and
are usually named according to the colour they give with iodine, e.g.
erythro-dextrine, &c. When heated with dilute acids, they are transformed
into glucose. They are white, odourless substances, and are good
substitutes for gum-arabic. Dextrine is used in calico printing for
thickening colours; for the preparation of gums, and for stiffening cloth.
DEXTRO-COMPOUNDS, bodies which cause the plane of a ray of polarized light
to rotate to the right. Dextrine itself, dextro-glucose, naturally
occurring tartaric acid, malic acid, cinchonine, and many other bodies have
this property; while others, which have the opposite effect, of causing the
plane to rotate to the left, are called _laevo-compounds_.
DEY, an honorary title formerly bestowed by the Turks on elderly men, and
assumed by the rulers (under the Turkish Sultan) of Algiers, Tripoli, and
Tunis.
DHALAK (dh[.a]-l[.a]k'), an archipelago of the Red Sea, belonging to the
Italian territory of Eritrea. It consists of nearly 100 islets, mostly
uninhabited, clustering round the Island of Dhalak-el-Kebir, which is about
35 miles long by 30 miles broad. This island possesses a pearl-fishery.
DHAR (dh[:a]r), a small native state in Central India, with an area of
about 1740 sq. miles. The soil is fertile, and yields wheat, rice, and
opium. Pop. 169,474.--The capital is of the same name, is surrounded by a
mud wall, and has some striking buildings. Pop. 19,000.
DH['A]RANGAON, a town of Hindustan, in Khandesh district, Bombay. Pop.
15,000.
DHARMS['A]LA, a hill station with military cantonments, in Kangra district,
Punjab, India. Pop. 6170.
DHARWAR, the chief town of Dharwar district, in the Bombay Presidency,
Hindustan, a straggling place with some trade. There is a fort well planned
and strongly situated, but now falling into ruins, and military cantonments
at 2 miles' distance. Pop. 32,000.--The Dharwar district has an area of
4535 sq. miles; pop. 1,051,314.
DHAWALA'GIRI, or DHAUL['A]GIRI, one of the highest peaks of the Himalayas,
in Nep['a]l; height, 26,828 feet.
DHOLE (d[=o]l), the Cingalese name for the wild dog of India (_Cyon
dukhunensis_). It is distinguished from the genus Canis or dog proper by
its having one molar fewer in either side of the lower jaw. It is of a
fox-red or rufous-fawn colour, in size between a wolf and a jackal, and
hunts always in packs.
DHOLERA (dh[=o]-l[=a]'r_a_), a town of Hindustan, Bombay Presidency, on a
stream entering the Gulf of Cambay, an important cotton-mart. Pop. 10,190.
DHOLKA, a town of Hindustan, Bombay Presidency, probably one of the oldest
towns in Gujarat. Pop. 16,700.
DHOLPUR, native state of Central India, R['a]jput['a]na; area, 1155 sq.
miles; pop. 263,188.--The capital is also called Dholpur. Pop. 9750.
[Illustration: Arab Dhow]
DHOW (dou), an Arab sea-going vessel, ranging from a comparatively small
size up to 200 tons burden, with one mast and a large triangular (_lateen_)
sail. It is used for merchandise and is often employed in carrying slaves
from the east coast of Africa to Arabia.
DH['U]LI['A], a town of Hindustan, Khandesh district, Bombay Presidency.
Pop. 22,000.
DIABASE, originally an equivalent of diorite; then used for chloritic
igneous rocks of the Intermediate series of various grain; and now usually
for a type of dolerite in which the felspar is embedded in augite.
DIABE'TES is a disease characterized by great thirst, a voracious appetite,
and the passage of large quantities of saccharine urine, while there is
usually marked emaciation and debility. As a rule the skin is dry and the
patient does not perspire. Skin irritations (pruritus) of an intense type
occur frequently and cause much discomfort. Constipation is the rule, but
the digestion usually remains good, and enormous quantities of food are
taken without causing disturbance.
Acute and chronic forms are recognized, but there is no essential
difference, except that in the former the patients are younger, the course
more rapid, and the emaciation more marked. Beyond the large quantity, the
outstanding feature of the urine is the presence of sugar, varying from 2
per cent in mild cases to 10 per cent in severe cases.
The disease is due to disturbance in the carbohydrate metabolism, with the
result that these carbohydrates are not properly assimilated, but passed as
sugar in the urine. Much research has been undertaken to find what organ or
organs of the body cause this defect in metabolism, and recent work in
connection with the pancreas has established a definite relationship
between cells in that organ and the disease.
In treatment the main consideration is to reduce the carbohydrates in the
dietary, and many diets have been produced for this purpose.
Diabetic patients may take:--liquids: clear soups, lemonade, coffee, tea,
cocoa (without sugar), soda-water, and such like waters or milk (in
moderation); animal foods: fish of all sorts, fresh meat, poultry, game,
eggs, butter, cream-cheese; vegetables: lettuce, tomatoes, spinach,
radishes, asparagus, water-cress, cucumbers, chicory, mustard; fruits:
lemons, oranges, and in moderation currants, plums, cherries, pears, apples
(tart), melons, raspberries, strawberries, nuts: bread: gluten bread,
almond or coco-nut biscuits. A substitute for bread is one of the greatest
difficulties, as many gluten foods are very unpalatable.
Further, it is important to observe strict personal hygiene and to take
moderate exercise, lead a regular, quiet life in an equable climate, and
above all to avoid worries of any sort. In acute cases the disease may run
a very rapid course, coma frequently supervening a few days before death,
but chronic cases may live for ten to twenty years.
DIABETIC SUGAR. Sugar is present in normal urine in very small amount--so
small that it cannot be detected by the ordinary tests. In diabetes the
percentage of sugar in the urine may rise, in mild cases, to 1-1/2 to 2 per
cent, and in severe cases it may reach to 10 per cent.
DIABLERETS (d[=e]-[.a]b-l[.e]-r[=a]), LES, a mountain group of the Bernese
Alps, Switzerland, between the cantons Vaud and Valais. The highest peak
has a height of 10,620 feet.
DIACHYLON (d[=i]-ak'i-lon), a substance prepared by heating together oxide
of lead or litharge, olive-oil, and water, until the combination is
complete, and replacing the water as it evaporates. It is used for curing
ulcers, and is the basis of many plasters.
DI'ADEM (Gr. _diadein_, to bind round), an ancient ornament of royalty. It
was originally a head-band or fillet made of silk, linen, or wool, worn
round the temples and forehead, the ends being tied behind and let fall on
the neck, as seen in old representations of the diadem of the Indian
Bacchus. In later times it was usually set with pearls and other precious
stones. The term is also used as equivalent to crown or coronet.
DIAE'RESIS, a separation of one syllable into two, also the mark (") by
which this separation is distinguished, as in _aerial_.
DIAGNO'SIS, in medicine, the recognition of diseases by their distinctive
signs or symptoms; the discovery of the true nature and seat of a disease.
[Illustration: Diagonal Scale]
DIAG'ONAL SCALE, a scale which consists of a set of parallel lines drawn on
a ruler, with lines crossing them at right angles and at equal distances.
One of these equal divisions, namely, that at the extremity of the ruler,
is subdivided into a number of equal parts, and lines are drawn through the
points of division obliquely across the parallels. With the help of the
compasses such a scale facilitates the laying down of lines of any required
length to the 200th part of an inch. The length 1.67 inches, for example,
is given by EF in the figure. Similarly AB = .91 inch, CD = .84 inch.
DIAG'ORAS, ancient Greek poet and philosopher, born in Melos, an island of
the Cyclades, and flourished about 425 B.C. He spent a great part of his
life in Athens. Like his teacher, Democritus, he attacked the prevailing
polytheism, and sought to substitute the active powers of nature for the
divinities of the Greeks. On this account he had to leave Athens.
DI'AGRAM (Gr. _diagraphein_, to describe), a figure or geometrical
delineation applied to the illustration or solution of geometrical
problems, or any illustrative figure in which outlines are chiefly
presented, and the details more or less omitted.
[Illustration: Sun-dial]
DIAL, or SUN-DIAL, an instrument for showing the hour of the day from the
shadow thrown by a _stile_ or _gnomon_ upon a graduated surface while the
sun is shining. This instrument was known from the earliest times amongst
Egyptians, Chaldeans, and Hebrews. From those Eastern nations it came to
the Greeks. It was introduced into Rome during the first Punic War. Dials
are of various construction, horizontal, inclined, or upright, the
principle in every case being to show the sun's distance from the meridian
by means of the shadow cast by the stile or gnomon. The stile is made
parallel with the earth's axis, and may be considered as coinciding with
the axis of the sun's apparent diurnal motion. Consequently, as the sun
moves westwards the shadow of the stile moves round opposite to it, in the
same direction, falling successively on lines drawn to represent the hours
of the day. The dial, of course, gives true solar or _apparent_ time,
which, except on four days of the year, is somewhat different from _mean_
time. Dials are now rather articles of curiosity or ornament than of
use.--BIBLIOGRAPHY: Leybourn, _The Art of Dialling_; Dawbarn, _The
Sun-dial_.
DI'ALECT, the language of a part of a country, or a distant colony,
deviating either in its grammar, vocabulary, or pronunciation, from the
language of that part of the common country whose idiom has been adopted as
the literary language, and the medium of intercourse between well-educated
people. Although the use of provincial dialects becomes inconvenient after
a language has acquired a fixed literary standard, the study of such
dialects is always valuable to the philologist for the light they throw on
the history of the language. The diffusion of education and of printed
books has much relaxed the hold which the provincial dialects of various
countries once had on the people, and in general it may be said that the
educated classes of any country now speak each of them a uniform language.
DIALEC'TICS (Gr. _dialektice_, from _dialektos_, discourse, dialogue), a
philosophic term originally signifying _investigation by dialogue_. It was
first used by Plato to designate the Socratic method. Afterwards it came to
denote the art of inference or argument, and in this sense was synonymous
with _logic_. The term is used in Kant's philosophy to mean the logic of
appearance, or that logic which treats of inevitable tendencies towards
error and illusion in the very nature of reason.
DI'ALLAGE, an altered form of the mineral augite, with a lamellar
structure, and a submetallic lustre on its planes of separation.
Schillerstein, or schiller spar is a similar product of the allied but
rhombic mineral hypersthene. It forms diallage rock, and enters into
serpentine rock.
DIALLING, the art, of making sundials; also the art and practice of
mine-surveying, in which the theodolite and magnetic needle are employed.
DI'ALOGUE, a conversation or discourse between two or more persons. The
word is used more particularly for a formal conversation in theatrical
performances, and for a written conversation or composition, in which two
or more persons carry on a discourse. This form was much in favour amongst
the ancient philosophers as a medium for expressing their thoughts on
subjects. The _Dialogues_ of Plato are the finest example. Many of the
great French and Italian writers have used this form. In the seventeenth
century Fontenelle and F['e]nelon both wrote _Dialogues des Morts_, a title
borrowed from Lucian. Landor's _Imaginary Conversations_ (1821-8) is the
best production of this kind in English.
DIAL'YSIS, the process by means of which a crystalline substance may be
separated from a colloidal body. Certain substances are capable of passing
through parchment, others are not, e.g. a solution containing sugar and
silicic acid may be separated by placing the solution in a parchment-paper
tube suspended in water; the silicic acid remains in the parchment tube,
and the sugar passes through into the surrounding water. The solution is
said to be dialyzed.
DIAMAGNET'IC, a term applied to substances which, when under the influence
of magnetism and freely suspended, take a position at right angles to the
lines of magnetic force. From the experiments of Faraday it appears that
all matter is subject to the magnetic force as universally as it is to the
gravitating force, arranging itself into three divisions, the
_ferromagnetic_, _paramagnetic_, and _diamagnetic_. Among the former are
iron, nickel, cobalt, magnetic oxide of iron, and Heusler's alloy. The more
feebly magnetic bodies are classed as paramagnetics, and those which behave
as described above are called diamagnetic substances. Among the latter are
bismuth, antimony, cadmium, copper, gold, lead, mercury, silver, tin, zinc,
and most solid, liquid, and gaseous substances. A diamagnetic body is one
which is not so magnetic as the medium in which it is suspended. The action
of bismuth, the strongest diamagnetic substance, is weak when compared with
the magnetic action of iron.
DIAMANTI'NA, a town, Brazil, in the diamond-mining district in the state of
Minas Geraes, the inhabitants of which are almost all engaged in the gold
and diamond trade. Pop. about 14,000.
[Illustration: Diameter]
DIAM'ETER (Gr. _dia_, through, and _metron_, measure), the straight line
drawn through the centre of a circle and terminated by the circumference.
It thus divides the circle into two equal parts, and is the greatest chord.
The length of the diameter is to the length of the circumference of the
circle as 1 to 3.14159265..., the latter number being an interminable
decimal. The name is also given to any chord of a conic which passes
through its centre.
[Illustration: Diamonds, rough and variously cut]
DI'AMOND, the hardest and one of the most valuable of gems, and the purest
form in which the element carbon is found. (See _Carbon_.) It crystallizes
in forms belonging to the regular or cubic system, the most common being
the regular octahedron and rhombic dodecahedron (twelve faces). The finest
diamonds are colourless, perfectly clear, and pellucid. Such are said to be
of the finest _water_. But diamonds are often blue, pink, green, or yellow,
and such are highly prized if of a decided and equal tint throughout. The
hardness of the diamond is such that nothing will scratch it, nor can it be
cut but by itself. The value of a diamond is much enhanced by cutting
facets upon it inclined at certain angles to each other so as to produce
the greatest possible play of colour and lustre. What is called the
_brilliant_ cut best brings out the beauty of the stone. Its upper or
principal face is octagonal, surrounded by many facets. But this form of
cutting requires an originally well-shaped stone. For other diamonds the
_rose_ cut is used. In this form six triangles are cut on the top so that
their apices meet in a point called the summit. Round this are disposed
other facets. Stones which are too thin to cut as rose-diamonds are cut as
_table_-diamonds, which have a very slight play of colour. In the cut, fig.
1 is the diamond in its rough state; fig. 2 is the vertical, and fig. 3 the
lateral appearance of a brilliant; fig. 4 the vertical, and fig. 5 the
lateral appearance of a rose-cut diamond; in fig. 6 the flat portion _a_ in
a cut stone is called the _table_; the part _a b b_, which projects from
the setting, is the _front_, the part _b b c_, sunk in the setting, is the
_back_ or _culasse_, while the line _b b_ is the _girdle_. The art of
cutting and polishing the diamond was unknown in Europe till the fifteenth
century, and the stone itself was not nearly so highly valued in the Middle
Ages as the ruby. Diamonds are valuable for many purposes. Their powder is
the best for the lapidary, and they are used for jewelling watches, and in
the cutting of window- and plate-glass. When used as a glazier's tool the
diamond must be uncut. Inferior kinds of diamonds are also extensively used
by engineers in rock-boring, and by copperplate engravers as
etching-points. Diamonds are obtained from deposits of various kinds,
mostly alluvial (sands, clays, &c.), being separated by washing. They have
been found in India, Borneo, and other parts of the East; sometimes in N.
America and Australia; Brazil has produced large numbers; but the chief
diamond-field of to-day is in Cape Province, the centre being Kimberley.
Diamonds were discovered here in 1867, and since then the output has
amounted to over L183,000,000 in value. The diamonds are no longer obtained
by mere surface workings, but the excavations have been carried down to a
depth of 2000 feet. 'River diggings' are also carried on on the banks of
some of the rivers. Some of the S. African diamonds are very large. One of
them, the Cullinan diamond, discovered in 1905, is a monster of 3025
carats, of very good colour, being by far the largest diamond known. A
celebrated diamond is the Koh-i-noor (Mountain of Light), an Indian stone
belonging to the British crown. Its history extends over five or six
centuries. It weighed at one time 280 carats, but by cutting has been
reduced to about 106 carats. The Orlov diamond, which belonged to the
Emperor of Russia, weighed 194 carats; the Pitt diamond, among the French
crown jewels, weighs 136-1/2 carats.--BIBLIOGRAPHY: A. Jeffries, _A
Treatise on Diamonds and Pearls_; H. Emanuel, _Diamonds and Precious
Stones_; E. W. Streeter, _Precious Stones and Gems_; _idem_, _The Great
Diamonds of the World_; G. F. H. Smith, _Gem-Stones_; P. A. Wagner, _The
Diamond Fields of Southern Africa_.
[Illustration]
DIAMOND-BEETLE, _Entimus imperialis_, a handsome South American insect
belonging to the family Curculionidae or weevils. It is spangled with
golden-green on a black background.
DIAMOND HARBOUR, a port on the left bank of the Hugli River, about 38 miles
by the railway from Calcutta, formerly much used as an anchorage for ships
waiting for the tide.
[Illustration: Diana. From a statue in the British Museum]