Aurum potabile. Lat.-"Liquid or drinkable gold." Some quacks in ancient times pretended that they could form by a solution of this metal a panacea, or medicine which would cure all diseases. The phrase is now applied to draughts of a different kind, such as are generally prescribed by orthodox ministers for the cure of political heresies.

Auro pulsa fides, auro venalia jura,

Aurum lex sequitur, mox sine lege pudor.

Lat. PROPERTIUS.

"By gold all good faith has been banished; by gold our rights are abused; the law itself follows gold, and soon will there be an end of every modest restraint." The spirit of venality appears to have loosened all the bonds of society.

Auspicium melioris aevi. Lat.-"A pledge of better times."
Aussitôt meurt veau comme vache. Fr. prov.-"A calf dies as
As soon goes the young lamb's skin to the market as

soon as a cow. the old ewe's.

Ausum eum, quae nemo auderet bonus: perfecisse quae a nullo nisi fortissimo perfici possent. Lat. LIvy.-It was said of CINNA, the famous leader of the popular party during the absence of SULLA, the Roman dictator [an extraordinary magistrate of ancient Rome] in the East, "that he attempted those things which no good man durst have ventured on, and achieved those in which none but a valiant and great man could have succeeded." The same remark has been made in reference to the great NAPOLEON.

Aut amat, aut odit mulier; nil est tertium. Lat. PUBLIUS SYRUS. "A woman either loves or hates; there is no intermediate course with her, no medium.” Her passions are ever in extremes.

Aut Caesar, aut nullus. Lat.—“He will be a CAESAR, or a nobody, either cock of the walk, or nothing, or a mere cipher." N.B. "Aut Caesar, aut nullus" may also be translated, "I will attain the highest station, or position, or perish in the attempt."

Aut disce, aut discede; manet sors tertia, caedi. Lat."Either learn, or depart; a third course is open to you, and that is, submit to be flogged." The motto of the school-room of Winchester College.

Aut Erasmi aut Diaboli Lat.—[The work] "either of ERASMUB or of the Devil." "Never, indeed, could the old formula [form, rule, maxim] of conviction, Aut Erasmi aut Diaboli,' be better applied; the book is indubitably the production of that lady or the Devil.'

Aut insanit homo, aut versus facit. Lat. HORACE.-"The man is either mad, or he is making verses." The man has either lost his reason, or he is impressed with the idea that Nature designed him for a Poet; and he is now, in consequence, trying his hand at making verses.

Aut navis, aut galerus. Lat. prov.-"Either a ship or a fur cap, hat, beaver." Something, if you could but tell what. 'Tis either a hare

or a brake-bush.

Aut nunquam tentes aut perfice [better, perficias]. Lat."Either never attempt any thing, or accomplish it, bring it to bear, determine to bring it to a successful issue."

-Aut virtus nomen inane est,

Aut decus et pretium recte petit experiens vir.

Lat. HORACE.—

Either virtue is an empty name, or honor and recompense are due to the man who nobly enterprises."

"If virtue's aught beyond an empty name, Rewards the daring may with justice claim." Autant de têtes autant d'opinions. Fr. prov.-"So many men so many minds."

Autant en emporte le vent. Fr.-"So much does the wind carry away." This is all idle talk.

Autobiographia literaria. Lat.-"The literary account of one's own life, literary self-life writing."

Auto-da-fé. Spanish.-" An act of faith," in other words, burning at the stake. The name given in Spain and Portugal to the burning of Jews and heretics for the love of GOD! "If Cromwell had not braved death for Mr. Hallam and all the rest of us, Mr. Hallam's reason and philosophy might be skulking under a cassock, or flaming in an auto-dafé." N.B. An "auto-da-fé” was a judicial act of the Inquisition, or the judgment it gave in order to condemn those whom it thought worthy of punishment for having infringed religious laws. And also, "the execution of such judgments, or sentences, and particularly of those which condemned its victims to the flames."

Automaton. From a Greek word, signifying self-moved, self-impelled. Any piece of art that seems to move of itself, as a clock, jack, &c.

AVTOVOμa. Gr.-"Self-government, the condition or privilege of being governed by one's own laws."

Autrefois acquit. Fr.-"Formerly acquitted." A plea, by which the culprit states that he has been tried for the same offense, and found not guilty.

Auxilia humilia firma consensus facit. Lat. LABERIUS."Union gives firmness and solidity to the humblest aids." When small states coalesce with unanimity, they are strong in their means. powerful coalitions will, on the contrary, moulder away from disunion.

The most

Avalanche. Fr.-The large and increasing ball of snow, which frequently rolls destruction down the sides of the Alps and other high mountains.

Avant-coureur. Fr.-A "harbinger, forerunner." Avant-courrière has the same meaning.

Avant-garde. Fr.-The "van-guard."

Avant-propos. Fr.-The "preface, or introduction, to a book."

Avaritia senilis quid sibi velit, non intelligo; potest enim quidquam esse absurdius quam quo minus vitae restat, eo plus viatici quaerere? Lat. CICERO.-"What the avarice of old men means I certainly cannot comprehend; for can any thing, indeed, be more absurd than to be adding more and more to one's hoard, according as one's days are drawing nearer and nearer to their close?"

Avarus, nisi cum moritur, nil recte facit. Lat. prov.-"The miser does nothing right, except when he dies, gives up the ghost."

Avec de bon sens, le reste vient. Fr. prov.-"With good sense

other things come as matters of course." Good sense will generally lead to a successful result.

Avec de la vertu, de la capacité, et une bonne conduite, on peut être insupportable; les manières, que l'on néglige comme de petites choses, sont souvent ce qui fait que les hommes décident de vous en bien ou en mal. Fr.-"With virtue, capacity, and good conduct, a man may yet be insupportable; the manners, which one neglects as trifles, are often precisely that by which men decide on you favorably or the reverse; certain modes of behavior, which are often neglected as beneath notice, are frequently what make the world judge well or ill of you." "The sum is guaran

Avec nantissement. Fr.-"With security." teed avec nantissement."

Aventurier. Fr.-An "adventurer," one who has every thing to win, and nothing to lose.

Aver la pera mondo. Ital. prov.-"To have one's pear ready pared." To be born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

Avere su la punta della lingua. Ital.-"To have a thing at one's tongue's end, or at the tip of one's tongue."

Avertissement. Fr.-An "admonition, caution, warning."

-Avidos vicinum funus ut aegros

Exanimat, mortisque metu sibi parcere cogit;
Sic teneros animos aliena opprobria saepe
Absterrent vitiis.

Lat. HORACE.— "As the funeral of a neighbor, the death of an acquaintance, terrifies, almost frightens to death, the sick when eager after food, for food, and compels them, through fear of death, of the grim foe, to observe temperance and caution, to spare themselves, to curb their unruly appetites, and have a care for their health; in like manner do the miseries, which other men bring upon themselves by debauchery, often beget, in tender minds, a horror of vice."

"For, as when neighboring funerals affright
The patient, who indulged his appetite,
And bid him spare himself, we often find
Another's shame alarms a tender mind."

Aviendo pregonado vino, venden vinagre. Span. prov.-" After having cried up, vaunted, boasted of, their wine, they sell us vinegar." This proverb is strongly applicable to those who, having pre-excited attention, are the more ridiculous from their falling off in performance.

Avito viret honore. Lat.-"He flourishes with hereditary honors, with honors transmitted from his ancestors."

Avise la fin. Fr.-" Consider the end."

Avocat. Fr.- "A barrister." N.B. "Avocat" is sometimes confounded with "avoué," a very different word, meaning an attorney.

Avoir de la peine à joindre les deux bouts de l'an. Fr.-"To have some difficulty in making the two ends of the year to meet."

Avoir l'aller pour le venir. Fr. prov.-"To have one's going for one's coming," have one's journey in vain. To have nothing but one's labor for one's pains.

Avoir le cœur haut et la fortune basse. Fr.-"To have more spirit than fortune."

Ağıα victuals."

KUWV Tоv Bowμaтos. Gr. prov.-"The dog is worth his food, 'Tis an ill dog that deserves not a crust. Axiomata. Gr.-"Admitted propositions, established principles [in logic], axioms; general rules, or maxims."

Ayah. A lady's maid in India. The Ayah has no innate taste for dressing, but can usually plait hair well, and contrives to fasten a hook, and to stick in a pin so that it shall soon come out again. She is often the wife of one of the khedmutgars [domestics, whose business in a full establishment is solely to lay the table, bring up the dinner, and wait during the meal], and then the double wages make the service valuable to the worthy couple. Frequently she is an Indo-Portuguese woman, and, though a sad and ugly drab, is in most respects superior to the Mussulman woman.

Ayn wera macket Hera. Frisian prov.-A proverb of great antiquity, which may be rendered, "Own land makes grand," betokening that family honor is represented by being lords of the soil.

Az dy bergen kealje, dan douset it wetter. Frisian prov.— "When the mountains bring forth, the waters dance," that is, One great event is followed by another.

Az ick wist dat myn himbd it wist, dan offere ick it oon't fjoer op. Frisian prov.-"If I knew that my shirt knew it, I would offer it to the fire," that is, If my secret were known even to my own shirt, I would burn it.

B.

Baba Logue. Hindostanee.-Literally, The "children people." It is the name by which the offspring of Europeans of the higher classes are called by the domestics.

Baboo. "Master, Sir." A Hindoo title of respect paid to gentlemen. Merchants, head clerks, &c., in Bengal, are invariably called Baboos.

Bacchantes. Gr. in Roman letters.-Priestesses of BACCHUS [the heathen god of wine], who, by wine and other exciting causes, worked themselves up to frenzy at the festivals of BACCHUS: used also in French for termagants, froward women.

Badaud. Fr.-"Cockney." The badauds of Paris.

Badauderie. Fr.-" Silliness, doltishness, boobyism, a foolish admiration of any thing and every thing."

Badinage. Fr.-"Jocularity, mirth, gayety, merriment, pleasantry." Bagatelle. Fr.-"Vive la bagatelle!" that is, "Long live trifling, or trifles!" "There is a pleasure arising from the perusal of the very bagatelles [literary trifles, light compositions] of men renowned for their knowledge and genius."

Bagne. Fr.-A place where galley-slaves or convicts are kept in chains, where galley-slaves or convicts are shut up after labor.

Bahadoor." A great person, a pompous fellow."

Baia μev, aλha poda. Gr.-"Short [poems] in troth, but [all of them] roses;" compositions of the most exquisite character, of the very highest grade of excellence.

Bal abonné. Fr.-A "subscription ball."

Bal champêtre. Fr.-A "country ball."

Baliverne. Fr.-"Stuff, humbug, nonsense of any kind."

Ban. Slavonic.-"The Ban of Croatia is the third person of the realm of Hungary:" that is to say, The Viceroy, or Lord-Lieutenant of, &c. N.B. Pan, or Ban, in the Slavonic dialect, means Lord. The ruler of Croatia, in the days of CONSTANTINE PORPHYROGENITUS, was styled Pan.

Bande noire. Fr.-"The beaux-esprits of royalism now betook themselves to defending cathedrals, donjons, ruined towers, and feudal castles against the bande noire:" that is to say, The wits, men of wit, geniuses, men of quick parts and ready at repartee [reply], of royalism against [those, whom they had the particularly good taste! to designate] the black gang, black set of fellows, the bad lot [an association of speculators, who bought large estates to sell them in lots, built villages with the materials of deserted mansions, and planted potatoes for human beings in the ancient domain of hares and foxes]. N.B. "Donjon" means the principal tower of a castle, which was usually raised on a natural or artificial mound, and situated in the innermost court. lower part was commonly used as a prison. It was sometimes called the donjon-keep, or tower.

Its

Bandito. Ital.—An "outlaw, outlawed criminal, criminal who banishes himself from society at large." The plural is banditi, with only one t. Barba bagnata mezza rasa. Ital. prov.-"A washed beard is half shaved." Well begun is half done. See Mr. Sheriff MECHI's "Observations on Shaving."

Barbara, celarent, darii, ferio, baralipton. Lat.-This line, which should close with the words que prioris, instead of baralipton, is a hexameter, consisting of words whose vowels indicate the moods in the First Figure of Logicians. Words full of sound, but quite devoid of sense. Applied to bombast.

Barbare loqui. Lat.-"To speak_barbarously." "He insists on the distinction between barbare loqui and incondite loque:" that is to say, between speaking barbarously and speaking confusedly, or in a disorderly, immethodical manner. N.B. A man who writes in a piebald, hybrid [mongrel] diction, or style, made up of German, French, and Latin, for instance, may be said to write barbare, while he who writes without composition or digestion, without due regard to composition or digestion of his subject, may be said to write incondite.

Barbouillage. Fr.-"Scrawl; bad writing; rigmarole; confused discourse. "On ne comprend rien à son barbouillage:" "One can make nothing, neither head nor tail, of his rigmarole."

Bas bleu. Fr.-A "blue-stocking, literary lady." The plural is bas bleus.

Basis. Gr. "Foundation, base." That on which any thing rests. "Now, so long as this work is made the basis [foundation] of any new edition, so long will it go on to be rudis indigestaque moles," that is to say, a chaotic and undigested mass, a rude and unarranged mass [a chaos