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doubles his gift. A promptitude in giving heightens a favor, which may be depreciated by delay.

Bis est gratum, quod opus est, si ultro offeras. Lat. prov.— "That which is necessary is doubly grateful if you offer it of your own accord." Spontaneous bounty is ever most acceptable.

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Bis peccare in bello non licet. Lat. prov.-"It is not permitted to err twice in war.' In hostile operations an error is to be prevented by as much caution as if it were irretrievable.

Bis vincit, qui se vincit in victoria. Lat. PUBLIUS SYRUS.-"He conquers twice who conquers himself in victory." He conquers his enemy by his valor, and subdues himself by his moderation.

Bismillah! Persian.-"In the name of GOD!" An exclamation constantly in the mouths of Mohammedans, who pronounce it on all occasions before commencing even the most common operations of life: it is prayer, invocation, blessing.

Bisogna fa trottar la vecchia. Ital. prov.-"Need makes the old wife trot." The French say, "Besoin fait vieille trotter," which has the same meaning.

Bissextile. From the Latin.-The name given to leap-year, because in that year two successive days were both denominated the sixth before the Calends of March. The Calends were the first day of the Roman month, on which day the people used anciently to be called together for particular purposes.

Bizarre. Fr.-"Whimsical, fantastical."

Bizarrerie. Fr.-"Whimsicalness, strangeness of fancy."

Boca de mel, coraçon de fel. Port. prov.—“A honey tongue, a heart of gall."

Bocado comido no gana amigo. Span. prov.-"A morsel eaten gains no friend."

Bocca truciata mosca non ci entra. Ital. prov.-"A close mouth catcheth no flies."

Boeotum in crasso jurares aëre natum. Lat. HORACE.-"Thou wouldst swear that he had been born in the thick air of the Boeotians," that is, "was as stupid as any Boeotian." Boeotian dullness was proverbial, but how justly, the names of PINDAR, EPAMINONDAS, PLUTARCH, and other natives of this country, will sufficiently prove. Much of this sarcasm on the national character of the Boeotians is no doubt to be ascribed to the malignant wit of their Attic neighbors. "The genius," says Dr. Patrick, "depends much on the climate where a man is born. The people of Boeotia were the most gross and clownish of all Greece, because of the thickness and fogginess of the air there. CICERO, in his book De Fato, says, 'Athenis tenue coelum, ex quo acutiores etiam putantur Attici; crassum Thebis, itaque pingues Thebani et valentes;' that is, 'The climate of Athens is pure, and the air serene; whence the inhabitants have quicker parts, and a more piercing apprehension, than the rest of the Greeks. The heaven, on the contrary, at Thebes, is thick and foggy, its inhabitants dull and of slow capacities.' But experience shows that this remark does not hold good in all cases, and that sometimes the worst climates produce the finest geniuses: witness PINDAR, who breathed the

unpromising air of Thebes, and yet rose to be the prince of Lyrick Poets."

Bois ont oreilles et champs oeillets. Fr. prov.-" Fields have eyes, and woods have ears."

Bombalio, clangor, stridor, taratantara, murmur.

Lat. FARN. RHET.

"Rend with tremendous sounds your ears asunder, With gun, drum, trumpet, blunderbuss, and thunder." Applied to any noisy assemblage.

Bon avocat, mauvais voisin. Fr. prov.-"A good lawyer is a bad neighbor." One of the popular satires on the professors of the law. Bon bourgeois. Fr.-A "substantial, rich, citizen."

Bon diable. Fr.-A “good, jolly, fellow."

Bon fait avoir ami en cour, car le procès en est plus court. Fr. prov.-"Tis a good thing to have a friend in court, as it shortens the process." A friend in court is worth a penny in a man's purse.

Bon gré, mal gré. Fr.-"With a good or ill grace." Whether the individual wills it or not.

Bon guet chasse mal aventure. Fr. prov.-"A good watch, good watching, keeps off ugly customers [thieves, &c.]." Sure bind, sure find. See "Abundans cautela, &c."

Bon jour, bonne oeuvre. Fr. prov.-"A good day, a good work." This corresponds with the English proverb, "The better day, the better deed."

Bon marché tire l'argent hors de la bourse. Fr. prov.-“A good bargain draws the money from the purse." A good bargain is a pick-purse.

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Bon naturel. Fr.-"Good temper, naturally good disposition." Bon pays, mauvais chemin. Fr. prov.-"A good country, a bad road, way." The worse for the rider, the better for the bider. Bon poëte, mauvais homme. Fr. prov.-"A good poet, a bad man." The better workman, the worse husband.

Bon soir. Fr.-"Good evening."

Bon vivant. Fr.-A "high feeder, liver; one who can play a good knife and fork, a good trencher-man." The plural iş “bons vivants.” Bon voyage. Fr.-"A pleasant journey [if by land]:" a "pleasant voyage [if by water]."

Bona fide. Lat." In good faith." Actually, in reality.
Bona fides. Lat.-"Good faith, integrity."

Bona malis paria non sunt, etiam pari numero; nec laetitia ulla minimo moerore pensanda. Lat. PLINY.-"The enjoyments of this life are not equal to its evils, even in number; and no joy can be weighed against the smallest degree of grief or pain." This is the sentiment of a melancholy man. It must, however, be generally admitted that the "compunctious visitings" of human life are such as to outweigh its most valued enjoyments.

Bonarum rerum consuetudo pessima est. Lat. PUBLIUS SYRUS. "The too constant use even of good things is a very bad thing, a dis

advantage, is hurtful, injurious." We should restrain ourselves so as to use, but not to abuse, our enjoyments.

Bonhommie. Fr.-"Good nature, easy humor, simplicity, credulity." Boni pastoris est tondere pecus, non deglubere. Lat. The Roman emperor TIBERIUS.—“ It is the part, duty, of a good shepherd to shear his flock, but not to flay them."

Boni principii finis bonus. Lat. prov.—“A good beginning makes a good ending."

Bonis nocet, quisquis pepercerit malis. Lat. PUBLIUS SYRUS."He who spares the bad, hurts, injures, the good."

Bonis quod benefit, haud perit. Lat. PLAUTUS.-"The kindness which is bestowed on the good is never lost."

fool."

Bonne. Fr.-A "nurse-maid, nursery-maid."

Bonne bête. Fr.-A "silly, foolish, stupid creature, good-natured

Bonne bête s'échauffe en mangeant. Fr. prov.-"A good beast gets heated in eating." Quick at meat, quick at work.

Bonne-bouche. Fr.-A "dainty dish, morsel, delicate bit." Something reserved as a special gratification.

Bonne-chère. Fr.-"Good cheer, entertainment, fare."

Bonne foi. Fr.-"Good faith, sincerity, honesty, plain-dealing."
Bonne fortune. Fr.-"Good fortune."

Bonne la maille qui sauve le denier. Fr. prov.- "Well spent is the halfpenny that saves a penny." That penny is well spent that saves a groat. A penny saved is a penny got.

Bonne renommée vaut mieux que ceinture dorée. Fr. prov."A good name is above wealth, better than riches, better than a girdle of gold."

Bonne table. Fr.-A "good table, good dinners, good spreads." Bonnes gens. Fr.-"Civilized beings, men of the right sort, stamp, good sort of persons."

mot."

Bonnet de nuit. Fr.-A "nightcap."

Bonnet rouge. Fr.-The "cap of liberty," literally, the "red cap."
Bons esprits. Fr.-"Sensible minds."

Bons-mots. Fr.-"Witticisms, jests, jokes." The singular is “bon

Bonum est fugienda aspicere in alieno malo. Lat. PUBLIUS SYRUS. "It is well for those who can see, in the misfortunes of others, the things which they themselves should especially avoid, shun." In this case, without suffering adversity, a reverse of fortune, they acquire that prudence which it inculcates. See "Bene facit, qui, &c."

Bonum magis carendo quam fruendo cernitur. Lat. prov."That which is good is descried more strongly in its absence than in its enjoyment." Compare SHAKSPEARE:—

"That which we have we prize not to the worth,

But being lacked and lost, why, then we rate its value." Bonum summum, quo tendimus omnes. Lat. LUCRETIUS.-"That supreme good, to which we all aspire.”

Bonus. Lat. "The portion of surplus capital distributed at certain periodical intervals among the assurers is usually called a bonus, a term which is well understood, from the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the broker of 'Change Alley, to mean a good thing, so very good, we suppose, that, setting at utter defiance the time-honored rule of grammar, it has been thought entitled to the honor of appearing in 'the most worthy gender:"" that is to say, of capital over and above what may be necessary to satisfy forthcoming claims, expenses of management, &c. Ñ.B. "Surplus" is a word compounded of two Latin words, super, over, or above, and plus, more, and means what remains over after accomplishing a purpose or object. 'BONUS" means a good MAN: the right word for a good THING is BONUM.

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Bonus atque fidus judex per obstantes catervas explicat sua victor arma. Lat. HORACE.--"A good and faithful judge, armed with an upright mind, triumphs over the crowd of enemies, who are always opposed to virtue."

"Perpetual magistrate is he,

Who keeps strict justice full in sight;

Who bids the crowd at awful distance gaze,
And virtue's arms victoriously displays."

Bonus dux bonum reddit comitem. Lat. prov.-"A good leader makes a good follower." A good Jack makes a good Jill.

Boreas. Gr. in Roman letters.-"The north or northwest wind, the

north."

Bos alienus subinde prospectat foras. Lat. prov.-"A strange ox often, ever and anon, looks out for his former quarters,—for the home he has left." Home is home, though it be never so homely.

Bos lassus fortius figit pedem. Lat. prov.-"The ox when weariest treads heaviest."

Bostandgis. The body-guard of the Sultan. They superintend his gardens and palaces, and attend him on his aquatic excursions. They are expert in the use of the oar, and invariably row the Sultan's caïque [a light bark, much used on the Bosphorus].

Bourbons. Fr.-The legitimate Royal Family of France.

Bourgeois. Fr.-A “citizen." N.B. Our English word “burgess” is derived from "bourgeois."

Bourgeoisie. Fr.-"The body of citizens, civic body, citizens, bur

gesses.'

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Bourse. Fr.-The “Exchange." N.B. The term “Bourse" takes its origin from a Mr. Vander Burse, whose house at Bruges was near the place where the merchants assembled for the transaction of business.

Bovorpoondov. Gr.-Turning like plowing oxen; writing after the manner so called, namely, from the left to the right, and continuing the writing from the right to the left uninterruptedly, resembling furrows traced by a plow.

Boutade. Fr.-A “sally, invective.”

Boute-feu. Fr.-An "incendiary, fire-brand."

Brahm. According to the Hindoos, "the almighty, infinite, eternal, incomprehensible, self-existent being; he who sees every thing, though never seen; he who is beyond the limits of human conception; he from

whom the universal world proceeds; whose name is too sacred to be pronounced, and whose power is too infinite to be imagined."

Brahma. At the present day the least important deity of the Hindoo Triad. He is termed the creator, or the grandfather of gods and men.

Brahmuns [commonly written Brahmins].-The Brahmuns are the first and most distinguished race of the Hindoos, mythologically [fabulously] described to have sprung from the head of Brahma.

Breveté. Fr.-" Patented."

Brevi manu. Lat.-Literally, "With a short hand.” “He released the man from duress brevi manu," that is, in double quick time, without the slightest delay. He witnessed the brevi manu execution of a robber,' that is, the summary execution, &c.

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Brevis esse laboro, obscurus fio. Lat. HORACE.-"I labor, strive, to be short, brief, concise [in my style], but I become obscure." An expression applied to authors who, aiming at too great brevity, leave so much unexplained as to become obscure to their readers. Quintilian tells us that Nimium corripientes omnia sequitur obscuritas, that is, Obscurity of expression, or want of perspicuity, follows [is the necessary consequence, result, to] those writers who aim at too great conciseness in their compositions.

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Βριάρεως φαίνεται ων λαγως. Gr. prov. Though a hare, he would forsooth wish to be considered a BRIAREUS," that is, a giant." "BRIAREUS" was a huge and powerful giant, whom the poets represent to have had a hundred arms and fifty heads.

Bride-cake. This word takes its origin from the ancient Roman custom of Confarreation, a marriage ceremony in token of the most firm alliance between man and wife, in the common participation of a cake of wheat or barley: "this ceremony," says BLOUNT, "is still retained in part with us by that which we call the bride-cake, used at many weddings:" but whatever were the ingredients of the ancient bride-cakes, the modern are made of such costly articles, that the wealthy now-a-days seem to vie with each other more in the extravagance of the composition than in a knowledge of the institution.

Brochure. Fr.-A "pamphlet."

Brogues." This," says LEMON, "is another instance how strangely the sense of words will alter in course of time: thus, all our dictionaries tell us that brogues signify Irish wooden shoes: but SHERING tells us that there was a Danish king who acquired the surname of Loth-brocus, ita Regnerus, a vestibus hirsutis, quibus indutus, duos inusitatae magnitudinis serpentes occidit, ut Saxo refert, agnominatus est; nominis vero rationem ita explicat Stephanius; ab hirsutis Braccis dictus est Lodbrog, quasi Loden-brog [that is, he was surnamed Loth-brocus, on account of the leather breeches his Majesty wore]; brog enim braccas, sive femoralia, nostra lingua denotat:" and SAMMES calls them his fur-leather breeches; because perhaps dressed with the fur or hair on: brog, therefore, signifying femoralia, seems to have been contracted from bracca, quasi brog-ga; but now, brog, and brogue, appear so very much alike, that they seem to be one and the same.

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