determines the senses of words," usage is of many, while custom may be of one. Usage implies longer establishment than custom; hence we may peak of a new custom, but not a new usage. In the case of wishing to express a common mode lately adopted, we ought to say a new use— a new use of the word in that sense, or a new employment. Technically, custom differs from prescription in being local, while prescription is personal. Generally it is length of time that gives force to custom, and extent of practice to usage. There is more sense, reflexion, and reason in usage; more of mere repetition and habit in custom. Hence usage furnishes a stronger plea of justification than custom, which may have been adopted without inquiry, and continued without reason, or even against it. HABITUDE (Fr. habitude, Lat. habitudo) expresses the passive or quiescent side of habit. As habit involves a mode of acting, so habitude is a mode of being. VOGUE (Fr. vogue) is the popular way or fashion at a particular time. The word is now obsolete except in the phrase "in vogue." To be in Vogue is to be in popular acceptance, and combines the ideas of approval and general use. "But considering these Sermons bore so great a vogue among the Papists, I will here give a taste of them."-STRYPE. "Old Courtiers devoted by an habitude of slavery to the will of a muster."-HURD. "Of things once received and confirmed by use, long usage is a law sufficient."— HOOKER. "The speeches on both sides indicated that profound reverence for law and scription which has long been characteristic preof Englishmen."-MACAULAY. Ꭰ DAILY. DIUrnal. These adjectives, which are both formed from the Lat. dies, a day (diurnus, belonging to the day), are DAMP. MOIST. HUMID. All these terms are employed to express the smallest degree of infusion or suffusion of liquid. Anything which is not dry must be in some degree damp, moist, or humid. But we use the term DAMP of that which has contracted a state of wet foreign to itself, as a damp house, damp clothes. When we say of a thing that it is damp, we almost always imply that it might better have been otherwise, unless we have damped it expressly (cf. Ger. dampf, fog, steam, vapour). MOIST (O. Fr. moiste, Lat. musteus) means normally and naturally damp, and therefore has not the unfavourable sense attached to damp. If we said the ground was moist, we should probably mean in a favourable condition for vegetation; if we said it was damp, we should probably mean that DAMSEL. GIRL. MAID. LASS. DAMSEL is the O. Fr. damoisel, Lat. dominicellus. Both damsel and GIRL (0. Low Ger. gör, a child) were at one time ambisexual, or used to designate children without distinction. MAID (cf. A. S. magden), is a word of which the root-meaning is not very clear, and LASS is the feminine form of lad, and a contraction of Laddess. The DAMSEL is of some pretension to birth and distinction. The GIRL is no more than the correlative of boy, the MAID is the chaste or unmarried girl, and the LASS, like lad, has no pretension of rank. DANGER. PERIL. HAZARD. RISK. JEOPARDY. VENture. DANGER (Fr. danger) is the liability or exposure to evil of any kind. Danger is general and contingent, and may be remote. It is the generic dition. That which is in peril is on the way to be destroyed, that which is in danger is on the way to be lost, forfeited, or taken away. HAZARD (Fr. hasard, risk, orig. the condition of any game of dice) good possessed and exposed to danger of destruction or loss. It is the risk of entire deprivation of the thing hazarded, and applies only to things, not persons. Hence people hazard their lives, their property, their reputation; but they do not hazard, but endanger or imperil, themselves. "Hence passionate and unreasonable men call it courage to hazard their lives in their own private quarrels, where contempt of danger is, on the contrary, neither reasonable nor just; because neither is the danger at all needful to be run into, nor is the benefit proposed to be obtained by it in any manner equal to the evil hazarded."CLARKE, Sermons. The essence of HAZARD is in its fortuitous character, so that sometimes this predominates to the exclusion of all others, and we speak of the "hazard of the die" as implying the chance of gain as well as loss. This is not the case with either PERIL or DANGER. RISK (Fr. risque, a risk; Sp. risco-1, a reef; 2, risk: BRACHET) is hazard of loss only. We run the risk of losing, but we never speak of the risk, but of the chance of winning. "How often, whether wrong or right, JEOPARDY (Fr. jeu parti, a divided game, one in which the chances were equal on both sides) may exclude all voluntary agency, which is implied in HAZARD and RISK, and, unlike PERIL, is applicable to things of value as well as to persons. A man's property, or life, or himself, may be in jeopardy. "But by the way there is a great quick sand And a whirlpool of hidden jeopardice; Therefore, Sir Palmer, keep an even hand, For twixt them both the narrow way doth lie," SPENSER. VENTURE (for adventure, orig. aventure; Fr. aventure) is purely voluntary, and denotes a meeting of hazard, peril, jeopardy, or risk, with the hope that chance may be in one's favour. "Wise venturing is the most commendable part of human providence."--HALIPERILOUS. FAX. DANGEROUS. For the etymology, see DANGER. Both terms denote exposure to evil, with this difference :- - DANGEROUS expresses what evidently exposes to ill without modification, or any alternative but that of escape; PERILOUS what exposes to peril, that is, to danger which is great of its kind, but not certain, and which may even lead to the gaining of some great success or good. So a malady is simply dangerous, not perilous. A dangerous undertaking had better be avoided at once. A perilous undertaking falls to the lot of the brave or the audacious, and they may possibly reap from it honour, reward, or substantial gain. Dangerous relates principally to the pernicious nature of the result, perilous to the complicated nature of the state or the undertaking. In proportion to the dangerous the evil augments, in proporti to the perilous the chances multipl DARE. VENture. We DARE (A. S. ic dear, I dure) as against danger; we VENTURE (for adventure) as against risk. The bold man dares, the hopeful man ventures, the rash man may do either. DARK. OLSCURE. DIM. GLOOMY. OPAQUE. Of these, the most comprehensive is Dark (A. S. deorc), which denotes any degree of absence of light or colouring, with metaphorical meanings in addition; as, unintelligible, mysterious, difficult, unhopeful, degraded or ignorant, iniquitous, and the like. "For as that which sees does not cease to exist when in the dark all objects are removed, so that which perceives does not necessarily cease to exist when by death all objects of perception are removed." CLARKE. OBSCURE (Lat. obscurus) denotes any degree or kind of darkness which interferes with the distinct perception of objects. It is opposed to what is clear, as dark is opposed to what is light. In its secondary sense, as darkness stands for ignorance, so obscurity for uncertain knowledge. "When all the instruments of knowledge are forbid to do their office, ignorance and obscurity must needs be upon the whole soul."-SOUTH. DIM (A. S. dim) denotes lack of brightness in something capable or supposed capable of it, and is opposed to bright. DIM, unlike DARK, is not applicable to locality, but, on the other hand, is applicable as an epithet to light itself. Dimness stands to obscurity as the cause to the effect. "Shedding a dim religious light." MILTON GLOOMY (A. S. glóm, twilight) is a purely subjective term, denoting what has no exister but n ourselves. Any oppressive kind or degree of darkness is gloom. "His Holy Spirit doth in our religions intercourse with Him insinuate a lightsome serenity of mind, doth kindle sweet and kindly affections, and doth scatter the gloomy clouds of sadness."-BARROW. OPAQUE (Fr. opaque, Lat. opacus) is a scientific term, denoting that kind of substance which resists the transmission of rays of light, and is opposed to translucent and transparent. "Through this opaque of Nature and of This double night, transmit one pitying ray, To lighten and to cheer." DATE. PERIOD. ERA. EPOCH. TIME. AGE. GENERATION. Of these, the most general is TIME (A. S. tíma), which means unmeasured duration, or any specific measure or point of it. "This consideration of duration, as set out by certain periods, and marked by certain measures or epochs, is that I think which most properly we call time.". LOCKE. ten; DATE (Fr. date, L. Lat. dătă; Lat, datum, a thing given, sent forth writas datum Romæ, written at Rome; from dare, to give) is a point, and not a duration of time, bearing reference to the whole historic cours of time within which it occurs. Any writer, therefore, who mentions the rising or setting of any star, at any particular time of the year with respect to the sun, furnishes us with data sufficient to determine the time in which he wrote." -PRIESTLEY. "For precious friends hid in death's dateless night." SHAKESPEARE. PERIOD (Gr. Tepíodos) is, properly, a recurrent portion of time, or such a portion as is measured by some recurrent phenomenon, as a revolution of one of the heavenly bodies. Hence, more generally, an interval, definite or indefinite, and sometimes the end or limit of such an interval. A period is, as were, an expanded point of time, or a stage in history, which may itself be included among other stages. "The particular periods into which the whole period should be divided, in my opinion, are these: 1. From the fifteenth to the end of the sixteenth century. 2. From thence to the Pyrenean treaty. 3. From thence down to the present time." -BOLINGBROKE. ERA (Lat. era, sing.; and this from plur. ara, items in an account) is used both for a fixed point of time, and for a succession of years dating from that point. It is conventional, and indicates a mode of computing time peculiar to some community or body of persons. "I incline to this opinion, that from the evening ushering in the first day of the world to that midnight which began the first day of the Christian era there was 4003 years seventy days and six temporary hours, and that the true nativity of our Saviour was full five years before the beginning of the vulgar Christian era, as is demonstrable by the time of Herod's death."-USHER. EPOCH (Gr. Oh, a pause; and, from an astronomical use of the word, an epoch) is an era constituted by the inherent importance of an event, while an era may be arbitrary. Hence epoch is less formal than era. The capture of Constantinople is an epoch in the history of Mahometanism; but the Flight of Mahomet is its era. It is obvious that an epoch might be constituted an era. AGE (Fr. age) and GENERATION (Lat. generationem, a begetting) have nearly the same meaning; but AGE is taken broadly for such periods as coincide with the joint lives of human beings, and so is ex. tended to mean a century, while GENERATION rather refers to the average duration of individual life, and fre quently means thirty years. "In divers ages and nations divers epochs of time were used."-USHER. "Ancient learning may be distinguished into three periods. Its commencement, or the age of poets; its maturity, or the age of philosophers; and its decline, or the age of critics."-GOLDSMITH. "For behold from henceforth all genera tions shall call me blessed."-Bible. DAUB. SMEAR. DAUB (Fr. dauber, in the sense of "to plaster;" and this from Lat. dealbare-SKEAT, Etym. Dict. But see also LITTRE and BRACHET) denotes the process of applying moist matter, or, in an unfavourable sense, un seemly colouring matter, to several points of the surface in succession. SMEAR (A. S. smérian) is to cover continuously and over a considerable space with unctuous or other like matter. A badly-painted landscape or portrait is said to be daubed; a badly-painted door might be said to be smeared. "Another daubed it with untempered mortar."-Bible. "But if that honest license now you take, The streets, and make a dreadful fire by Taking these words in reference solely to their physical application, their characteristic differences are as follows: DEAD (A. S. deúd) denotes the absence of life from bodies, both capable and incapable of it, as a dead man, dead matter. "Seek him with candle, bring him deaa or living."-SHAKESPEARE. LIFELESS (or wanting life) from bodies capable of it, as a "lifeless corpse." "Nor can his lifeless nostril please With the once ravishing smell." COWLEY. INANIMATE (Lat. Inănĭmātus-in-, not, and anima, life) from bodies in capable of it; as, "Trees and rocks, and other portions of the inanimate creation." "We may in some sort be said to have a society even with the inanimate world."BURKE. DEFUNCT (Lat. defungi, part. defunctus, to discharge) is by its inherent signification, namely, one who has discharged the offices of life, applicable to those only in whom the endowment of life exists in its higher forms. "Seeing the soul of man is permanent, and subsists after the death of the body, and yet the body also belongs essentially to the constitution of man, when the body is defunct, either the soul must remain perpetually in a state of separation and, as it were, of widowhood, or the body must be recalled to life, and again united to it."BISHOP BULL. DEADLY. MORTAL. FATAL. Using these terms, not in any metaphorical, but in their literal and physical meanings, the distinctions are as follow:-DEADLY means capable of producing death. "Gods! I behold a prodigy. My spear MORTAL (Lat. mortalis, mortem, death) denotes that which is liable to produce or suffer death. Hence it is used as a strong epithet of feelings. A mortal hatred is literally one which would kill its object. "Louis XIII. mortally hated the Cardinal de Richelieu; but his support of that minister against his rivals was the source of all the glory of his reign, and solid foundation of his throne itself."-BURKE. FATAL (Lat. fātālis, fātum, fate) means actually productive of death. A poisoned arrow is a deadly weapon, evenwhile it remains in its quiver. Men are mortal, or receive mortal wounds, as being or having what tends to death. A blow is fatal on which death follows inevitably. "Where's the large comet now whose So fatal to our monarchy became, Insatiate with our ruin and our blood?" DEATH. DEPARTURE. DECEASE. DEATH signifies the act of dying or the state of the dead. DEPARTURE is the Fr. départ, the quitting life. DECEASE (Lat. decessus, decedere, to depart) is etymologically the same. DEMISE (Lat. dimittere, part. dimissus, to discharge, release) is the laying down or resigning of life and possessions. DEATH is the simplest and broadest, being applicable to the extinction of life both in animals and plants, to which the others are inapplicable. It may be calm or violent, natural, or self-inflicted. DEPARTURE is a term under which lies the idea of social life, and, in spirits of the highest faith, indicates the hope of re-union, as well as a point of arrival, or future state beyond the grave. The suicide and the aged, or the sick calmly awaiting their end,depart; not those who die on the scaffold or in battle. DECEASE is the term we use when we think of the death of another as an epoch of his existence, or of our own, and in connexion with personal events preceding, accompanying, or following it; yet a violent death is not called a decease. DEMISE is employed of the death of illustrious persons, as peculiarly of royalty, in reference to the bequeathing of titles or estates to successors and heirs. Happy to whom this glorious death ar rives, More to be valued than a thousand lives, "Although when the Divine Providence does itself offer us a just occasion of leaving this world (as when a man chooses to suffer death rather than commit wickedness), a wise man will then indeed depart joyfully, as out of a place of sorrow and darkness into light; yet he will not be in such haste as to break his prison contrary to law, but will go when God calls him, as a prisoner when dismissed by the magistrate or lawful power."-CLARKE. "The Romans had the custom to deify and adore their emperors, most of them after their decease, and some of them during their lives, even though they were the vilest of mankind."-JORTIN. "So tender is the law of supposing even a possibility of his (the king's) death, that his natural dissolution is generally called his demise, demissio regis vel coronæ, an expression which signifies merely a transfer of property."-BLACKSTONE |