unrivaled in Europe in extent, beauty of proportions, and in decorations; the galleries of antiquities, Christian and pagan, and of paintings, statuary, bronzes, medals, vases, and other objects of art. Vatican Council. See COUNCIL, ECUMENICAL. Vat'tel, (EMERICH,) a well-known writer on the law of nations, was b. at Couret, in Neufchâtel, 1714, d. 1767. Vauban, (SEBASTIEN LE PRESTRE,) a famous Fr. soldier, military engineer, and marshal of France, was b. at St. Leger de Fougeret, in the Dept. of Nievre, 1633, d. 1707. Vaucanson, de, (JACQUES,) a noted Fr. mathematician and inventor of automata, b. at Grenoble, France, 1709, d. 1782. Vaucluse, a dept. in the S.-E. of France, bounded on the W. by the Rhone, and on the S. by the Durance, which sepa the British Quarterly Review as an organ of Independenta 1845-65, and wrote several valuable books on history and English Non-conformity; b. in Wales 1795, d. 1868. Vaughan, (SIR WILLIAM, M.D., LL.D.,) founded the settlement of Cambriol, in Newfoundland, and wrote the first poetical book ever written in N. Am.; b. 1577, d. 1640. Vaugh'ay, a tree of southern India, whose bark is used for tanning fishing-nets. Vault, an arched roof, usually constructed of stone or brick work. The simplest kind of V. is the plain wagon or tunnel V., being a simple segmental or semicircular arch, thrown across a longitudinal apartment, and extending from one end to the other. Ordinary bridges show an example of this style of vaulting. Such Vs. were commonly used by the Romans, who also built Vs. with groins-i. e., Vs. intersecting. rates it from the Dept. of Bouches du Rhone; area 1,370 sq. m., pop. 235,411. Vaud, (Ger. Waadt,) a canton which forms the W. corner of Switzerland, between the Jura and Bernese Alps; area 1,240 sq. m., pop. 242,439. The cap. of V. is Lausanne. Vaudeville, originally a popular song with words relating to some story of the day; whence it has come to signify a play in which dialogue is interspersed with songs of this description, incidentally introduced, but forming a part of the drama. Vaudois. See WALDENSES. Vaudreuil, a noble Fr. family, three of whose members PHILIP DE RIGAUD, 1641-1725; PIERRE DE RIGAUD, 16981764; and LOUIS PHILIPPE DE RIGAUD, 1724-1802-figured largely in Canadian history. Pierre V. was Gov.-Gen. of Canada 1755. Vaughan, (CHARLES JOHN, D.D.,) minister and educator; head-master of Harrow School 1844-59; a leader of the "Broad Church" party; Chancellor of the York Cathedral and chaplain-in-ordinary to the Queen; b. 1816. Vaughan, (ROBERT, D.D.,) minister and author; edited Vault'ed, in Bot., arched like the roof of the mouth, as a V. petal. Vault'ing-shaft, a small column, or pillar, supporting the ribs of a Gothic vault. These shafts generally occur in clusters, and may either spring from the ground or be supported on small corbels in the walls. Vau'mure, in old fortresses, a low work un der the wall, in the nature of a fausse-braye. Vauquelin, (JEAN,) a Fr. poet, was b. in 1535, of a noble family, at the château of La Fresnaye, near Falaise; d. 1607. Vaulted I etal. Vautier, (BENJAMIN,) a celebrated genré painter of the Düsseldorf school, b. in Geneva 1830. Vaux, (RICHARD,) statesman, was b. in Philadelphia 1817; recorder of the city 1842-47; mayor 1856-58; Congressman 1889-91; author of several volumes of law reports and legal treatises; for over 30 yrs. inspector of the Eastern Penitentiary of Pa.; d. 1895. Vaux, (ROBERT,) a Philadelphia philanthropist, b. 1768, d. 1836. Vaux, Baron, (THOMAS,) a companion of Wolsey and Henry VIII., and governor of the island of Jersey 1533; b. 1510, d. 1556. Vauxhall, a famous public garden in London, constituted as such immediately after the Restoration, (May, 1660,) and supporting that character for nearly two centuries. It was situated in Lambeth, opposite Millbank, and near the manor called Fulke's Hall-the residence of Fulke de Breauté, a follower of King John-from which is derived the name V. Vaux'hall Nec'tar, a mixture of rum and syrup, with an addition of benzoic acid, or flowers of Benjamin, in the proportion of half a dram to the quart. It was formerly in much repute as a drink, and was taken mixed with water. It was also called British arrack. Vav'asor, or Val'vasor, (derived, like vassal, from Celtic grâs, a youth, or page,") a term of feudal times, more in use on the continent of Europe than in England, employed somewhat loosely, and defined by Camden as the rank next below a baron. Its usual meaning was one who held his lands, not directly of the crown, but of one of the higher nobility. Vay'gach, (also written Vaigatch, Vaigatz, and Waigatz,) an island of the Arctic Ocean, belonging to Russia, stands between the main-land and the island of Nova Zembla, from the former of which it is separated by a strait about 5 m. w. There is no resident population. Ve'da, (Sansk. vid, “know,") the name of the sacred books of the Hindus. These books are of great antiquity, but of uncertain date. There are four books; the oldest is the Rigveda, next the Yajurveda, the Samaveda, and the latest the Atharvaveda. All four are believed by the Hindus to be of divine origin. Rigveda signifies the V. of praise; the Yajurveda, the V. of sacrifice; the Samaveda, the V. of chanting; and the Atharvaveda teaches how to appease, to bless, to curse, etc. Vedân'ta, (Sansk. veda and anta, end;" hence literally, "the end or ultimate aim of the Vedas,") the second great division of the Mimansa school of Hindu philosophy. It is chiefly concerned in the investigation of Brahman, or the Supreme Spirit, and the relation in which the universe, and especially the human soul, stands to it. Vedettes are mounted sentinels, placed about 100 yds. in advance of the outposts of an army, to keep a strict watch upon the enemy's movements, and to signal immediately the approach of danger. They should be placed two together. Veer, in Sailing, is to pass from port to starboard by bringing the stern to windward; the same as "jibing." Ve'ga, (Arab. al waki "the falling" [eagle], the Arabic name of the constellation Lyra,) the star Alpha Lyræ, one of the three brightest in the N. sky. Ve'ga-Car'pio, de, (LOPE FELIX,) a celebrated Span. poet, was b. at Madrid, Nov. 25, 1562; d. 1635. Veg'etable, in a scientific sense, is a term synonymous with plant. Organic nature is divided into the Animal Kingdom and the V. Kingdom. The word V. is derived from the Latin vegetus, lively, or healthy. Vegetation is the term employed to denote the growth of plants. Vegetable Chem'istry, or the Chemistry of Plants, is so extensive a subject that it is impossible here to give much more than an enunciation of its most important proposition without entering into full proofs or details. On submitting to incineration a plant which has been dried at a moderate heat till it ceases to lose weight, we find that the residue, which consists of mineral salts and a little carbon, is much lighter than the original plant, the portion which is burned off, or apparently lost, corresponding to the organic constituents of the plant. Hence every plant, like every animal, is composed of organic and mineral or inorganic constituents. For the names of these constituents, and the chemical analysis of various plants, the reader is referred to any treatise on chemistry. Vegetable Flan'nel, a fabric reputed to have medicinal properties; woven in Germany from the fibrous leaves of the Pinus Sylvestris. Vegetable Physiology embraces the vital phenomena of plants, viz., their digestion, assimilation, circulation, growth, and generation, as distinguished from animals. For a full discussion of these the student must consult a treatise on botany. Vegetable Wax of four different kinds may be extracted from various plants, and used as a good substitute for bees-wax: (1) Myrtle wax from the bay-berry; (2) that of the Carnahuba palm of Brazil; (3) wax from the Ceroxyon andicola of the Andes; (4) Japan wax from the seeds of a species of sumach. Vege'tius Fla'vius Rena'tus, a writer on military tactics of the 4th c., believed to have been a Christian; b. in Rome. Veglia, an island in the Adriatic, 1. 23 m., w. 12 m., belonging to Austria; pop. 15,000. Ve'ii, an ancient city of Etruria, in early times the formidable rival of Rome. Its very site is disputed, but it is now generally thought to be at Isola Farnese, about 12 m. from Rome. The struggle between the two cities is recorded by Roman historians to have commenced as early as the time of Romulus, and to have continued under each of the kings, except the pacific Numa, and always to the advantage of the Romans. Veil. This familiar article of dress is one of the most ancient in use; its origin is lost in remoteness, but we find an allusion to the wearing of Vs. by the Chinese in Ovid, and Juvenal speaks of women as being so delicate as to be overheated by a silken V. Although generally considered portions of female dress, we read in the works of Ambrose (374 A.D.) of "silken garments and Vs. interwoven with gold, with which the body of the rich man is encompassed." Its use is now so extended that it may be found in every part of the civilized world, but almost exclusively confined to women. Veins, in Anatomy, if we except the pulmonary, the portal, and the umbilical V., are the vessels which carry back the venous blood from the capillaries, and, enlarging as they proceed, finally pour it through the ascending and descending vena cava into the right auricle of the heart. Their coats are similar to those of the arteries, but much thinner, and even transparent. They are, however, of considerable strength. The internal coat consists of an epithelial layer, supported on several laminæ of longitudinal elastic fibers. The middle or contractile coat consists of numerous alternating layers of muscular and elastic fibers; the muscular fibers being disposed circularly round the vessel. The muscular fibers are wanting in some parts of the venous system, and specially developed in others, (as, for example, the splenic and portal V., where, perhaps from the physical character of the tissues which they pervade, there may be more than the ordinary resistance to the passage of the blood.) In the vena cave and pulmonary V. near the heart striped muscu lar fibers may be detected, continuous with those in the auricles. The external or areolar fibrous coat consists of connective or areolar tissue, and of longitudinal elastic fibers. Within some of the larger V., as the interior vena cavœ, throughout the whole length, the external iliacs, the azygos, etc., there is also a net-work of unstriped muscular fibers. Veins. See MINING. Veit, (PHILIP,) a distinguished Ger. painter, was b. at Berlin, Feb. 13, 1793, d. 1877. Vejer de la Fronte'ra, a Span. town, in the prov. of Cadiz; pop. 7,662. Vela, ("the Sails" [of the old ship Argo],) one of the three divisions of the huge ship which have been adopted in modern times, the other two being CARINA and PUppis, (q. v.) It is surrounded by Carina, Puppis, Pyxis, Antlia, and Centaurus. The constellation lies wholly in the region of the Milky Way. Velasquez, (DIEGO,) b. in Spain 1470; came to Am. with Columbus 1493; held offices in San Domingo; was Gov. of Cuba; founded Havana 1511; d. 1523. Velasquez, (DIEGO RODRIGUEZ DE SILVA,) one of the most famous of Span. painters, was b. at Seville, in June 1599, of a family of Portuguese origin; d. 1660. Vel'eda, a Ger. prophetess, who lived in the reign of Vespasian; carried captive to Rome A.D. 85. Vele'za-Mala'ga, a town in the S. of Spain, in the modern prov. of Malaga, and 16 m. E. of the city of that name; pop. 15,000. Velez Ru'bio, a Span. town, in the prov. of Malaga; pop. 5,148. Veli'ki-Lou'ki, a town of Great Russia, in the Govt. of Pskov, on the river Lovat, 130 m. N.-W. of Smolensk, one of the most ancient towns of Russia, having belonged to Novgorod before the annexation of that territory to Moscow; pop. 5,059. Veli ́ki-Us'tiug, a trading town of Great Russia, in the Govt. of Vologda, at the confluence of the Jug and the Suchona, 350 m. S.-E. of Archangel; it was founded in the 13th c. by a colony from Novgorod; pop. 7,722. Ve'lish, a town of Poland, engaged in the export of corn, flax, and hemp; pop. 9,562. Velle'ia, or Vele'ia, a town of ancient Liguria, situated among the N. slopes of the Apennines, 18 m. S. by E. of Placentia, (Piacenza.) Velle'tri, a city of southern Italy, in the prov. of Rome, is walled and well built, on a hill 21 m. S.-E. of Rome; pop. 14,800. Vellore, a town and fort of British India, in the Presidency of Madras, in the district of Arcot, 79 m. W. of Madras, on the right bank of the Palar; pop. 38,022. Vello'zia, a genus of plants of the natural order Hamodoraceae, natives of Brazil, South Guiana, and the Mascarene Islands. They are sometimes called Tree Lilies. They are perennials, with trunks closely covered by the withered remains of leaves, branching by forks, and bearing tufts of long, narrow, aloe-like leaves at the extremities of the branches. Some of them are from 2 to 10 ft. h., and the trunk is sometimes as thick as a man's body. The structure of the trunk is very remarkable. It has a slender sub-cylindrical central column, of the ordinary monocotyledonous structure, outside of which are arranged great quantities of slender fibrous roots, which cohere firmly by their own cellu lar surface, and form a spurious kind of wood. In some of the S. districts of Brazil Vs. are found covering large tracts. The flowers of the larger species are about 6 in. in 1., much resembling the white lily of our gardens, and either pure white or of a beautiful purple color. Vellum. See PARCHMENT. Velocim'eter, an instrument invented by Wheatstone, 1840, in which the velocity of projectiles may be measured by means of electricity. Veloc'ipede, a light road-carriage propelled by the feet of the rider. See BICYCLE and TRICYCLE. Velpeau, (ALFRED A. L. M.,) a Fr. soldier and professor of note, b. in France 1795, d. 1867. nomically used by the cabinet maker, for with the improve ments which have been effected in the process of sawing, Va. as thin as paper have been produced. Vener'idæ, a family of lamellibranchiate mollusks, hav ing a regular, closed, bivalve shell; the teeth and lamina of the hinge near together in a single group under the beak, (umbo;) generally three diverging teeth in each valve; a marked oval impression in the front of the beak; the general form similar to that of the cockles, (Cardiacea,) but usually more flattened. Venesec'tion, (occasionally termed Phlebotomy, and popularly known as Blood-letting, or Bleeding,) an incision into a vein for the abstraction of blood. Although the operation may be performed on many of the superficial veins, it is restricted in this country to the veins at the bend of the elbow. Vene'tian Ar'chitecture. This term is applied to the particular phase of the Renaissance developed in Venice. Under the head of ITALIAN ARCHITECTURE the peculiarities of the various schools are pointed out. Velvet, a fabric in which, besides the ordinary warp and weft, which are usually arranged as in twill-weaving, there is also a supplementary weft, consisting of short pieces of silk, cotton, or woolen thread doubled under the regular weft, and brought to the surface in loops, which are so close together as to conceal the regular web. The loops are afterward cut evenly, and the ends thus made constitute a covering resembling a very short fur. In silk Vs. the warp and pile threads are both of silk, which is the strongest used in weaving. Vendée, La, a maritime dept. in the W. of France, bounded on the W. by the Bay of Biscay, on the N. by the Dept. of Loire-Inférieure; area 2,588 sq. m., pop. 442,355. Vene'tian Chalk, a variety of soap-stone or steatite, used sometimes in the manufacture of drawing crayons. Venezuela, a republic in the N.-W. of S. Am., bounded on the N. by the Caribbean Sea, on the W. by the United States of Colombia, (New Granada,) on the S. by Brazil, and on the E. by British Guiana. Lat. 1° 20 to 12° 25' N.; long. 59° 45′ to 73° 17′ W. Within recent yrs. the country has been variously subdivided. In 1854 there were 13 provinces-those of Apure, Barcelona, Varinas, Barquisimeto, Carabobo, Caracas, Coro, Cumana, Guiana, Maracaibo, Margarita, Merida, and Arms of Venezuela. Truxillo-with an aggregate pop. of 945,908. Subsequently, the number of provinces was increased to 21 by subdividing eight of the original provinces. In 1863, after the Federals had conquered the Unionists, a confederation was formed, and the number of States was reduced to seven. The present distribution is into 21 States, Ven'der's Lien, a claim for unpaid purchase money of land after the purchaser has taken possession, and although the conveyance acknowledges the consideration to have been paid. It is enforced, like a mortgage, by foreclosure and sale of the land. In a few States this lien does not exist by law, but it is recognized in most commonwealths, and is of great practical importance in the West. BRAZIL Vendet'ta, (" vengeance,") the term used to denote the practice, as it prevails in Corsica, of individuals taking private vengeance upon those who have shed the blood of their relations. In Corsica, when a murder has been committed, the murderer is pursued not only by the officers of justice whose duty it is to punish offenses against society, but also by the relatives of the slain, upon whom the prevalent views of social duty impose the obligation of personally revenging his death. In such a case the relatives of the murdered man take up their arms and hasten to pursue, and if they can find him to slay, the murderer. If he succeed in eluding a federal district, two national settlements, and eight territheir pursuit the murder may be revenged upon his relatives; tories. The area is 593,943 sq. m., and the pop. 2,323,527. and as the vengeance may be taken whenever an opportunity The cap. is Caracas. The coast-line extends from the delta occurs the relatives of a murderer whose crime is unavenged of the Orinoco to the U. S. of Colombia. The E. coast of V. have to live in a state of incessant precaution. When they go to the fields they take their arms with them and set a watch; at home they have their doors well fastened and their windows barricaded; and since the avenger is never far distant they live, in fact, in a state of siege. Instances are on record of persons who were, as the phrase is, "suffering the V.," having lived shut up in their houses for 10 or 15 yrs., and being, after all, shot on the first occasion on which they ventured out of doors. was discovered by Columbus in 1498; Ojeda and Vespucci followed in 1499. The first settlement was made at Cumana in 1520 by the Spaniards, V. remaining subject to Spain till it claimed independence in 1811. It then returned to Spanish allegiance, but again revolted in 1813, forming with New Granada and Ecuador the republic of Colombia. In 1831 the States separated. In 1895 the discussion revived between England and V. as to the boundaries of British Guiana. In 1896 five commissioners were appointed by the president of the U. S., under direction of Congress, to determine these boundaries-the U. S. holding that the British claims were in disregard of the Monroe doctrine. This commission was, Veneer', (Fr. fournir, "to furnish,") a layer of wood, cut however, not officially recognized by England, leaving the very thin, for the purpose of being glued on to the surface of question open for further arbitration. Before this commisa commoner kind. Only choice kinds of hard woods are sion completed its work Great Britain, through the good offi sawed into Vs., and they are usually attached to deal or ces of the U. S., signed treaties in 1897 with the U. S. and pine, so as to give all the appearance of being made solid. In V. providing for a settlement of the boundary dispute by this way the more costly kinds of furniture-woods are eco-arbitration, See COLOMBIA, Vendôme, a town of France, in the Dept. of Loir-et-Cher, seated on vine-clad hills, on the Loire, which here divides itself into many canals, 45 m. W.-S.-W. of Orleans. by the Milan and Venice R.R. The lagoon of Venice is banked | mud, laced, however, by an intricate net-work of narrow off from the Adriatic by a long, narrow sand-bank, extending channels, from which the sea never retires; while at high S.-W. from the mouth of the Piave to that of the Adige, and divided into a number of islands by narrow sea-passages, six in number. Formerly the chief of these entrances into the lagoon was the Porto di Lido, through which all the great merchantmen of the republic passed direct into the city, and water the whole surface is covered by the sea to the depth of from 1 to 14 ft. The chief of the islands upon which V. is built is called Isola de Rialto, (i. e., rivo alto,) or Island of the Deep Stream. The islands, in many places only shoals afford no good foundations for building; and the city, for the most part, is built upon artificial foundations of piles or stone. The fact that this city of marble palaces seems to rise vision-like from the unsubstantial sea is sufficient to render its aspect at all times more or less fascinating; but in summer and autumn, the seasons of the highest tides, when the Grand Place of St. Mark's is partially flooded, and when the image of each palace is doubled by reflection in that "green pavement, which every breeze breaks into new fantasies of rich tessellation," the city is indeed marvelously beautiful. The Canallazo, or Grand Canal-its tortuous course through the city being in the form of the letter S reversed-divides V. into two unequal parts, and is the main thoroughfare for traffic or pleasure. But the city is subdivided by 146 smaller canals, or rii, as they are termed. These are the waterstreets of V., by means of which passengers can be conveyed to any quarter, for here the canal is the street, and the gondola is the cab or carriage. Access can also be had to all parts of the town by land-across the canals by bridges, and among of Wight, 10 m. S.-S.-E. of Newport. The town is well pro- Ventric'ulites, a genus of fossil sponges, Ventricose that the voice proceeds from the belly. The art of the ventriloquist consists mainly in taking a deep inhalation of breath, and then allowing it to escape slowly, the sounds of the voice being modified and muffled by means of the muscles of the upper part of the throat and of the palate. the houses by narrow lanes, called calli. There are in all 306 to some other place. It does not depend on any peculiar public bridges, and of these three cross the Grand Canal-structure of the organs of voice, but upon practice and dexthe Rialto, a stone structure, and the most famous; and two terity. The name is founded upon the mistaken supposition iron bridges. The Piazza or Square of St. Mark's is the great center of business and amusement, and the locality most frequently visited by travelers in V. It is 576 ft. in l., 269 ft. in greatest w., and 185 ft. in least w. Pop. 149,500. Ve'ni Crea'tor Spir'itus, an ancient and very celebrated hymn of the Roman breviary, which occurs in the offices of the Feast of Pentecost, and which is used in many of the most solemn services of the R. C. Church. Its author is not known with certainty. The V. C. S. must not be confounded with another hymn to the Holy Ghost, "Veni Sancte Spiritus," which somewhat resembles it. The latter belongs not to the breviary, but to the missal, in which it forms a "Sequence" in the mass of Pentecost Sunday and Octave. Veni're, an ancient form of writ, still retained in some of the U. S., addressed to the sheriff, bidding him select a jury. Veno'sa, anc. Venusia, a town of southern Italy, in the prov. of Basilicata, 100 m. E.-N.-E. of Naples; pop. 7,000. Venous Blood. See BLOOD. Vent, or Touch-hole. See GUN. Ventimiglia, a small fortified town of northern Italy, in the prov. of Port Maurice, stands on a promontory on the sea-shore, 18 m. E. of Nice; pop. 4,080. Vent'nor, the principal town on the S. shore of the Isle Ventu'ra de Rau lica, (GIOACCHINO,) General of the Or d of Jesuits 1824; compelled to retire from Rome 1836. He devoted 10 yrs. to study and preaching, in which he possessed great eloquence. He returned with the accession of Pius IX., but after the flight of the pope to Gaeta, 1849, he resided in Paris, and was famed for his eloquence. B. 1792, d. 1861. Ven'ue, the locality assigned in pleadings in actions at law for the acts or circumstances out of which the action. arises. The rule is that the declaration or plaintiff's pleading must set forth some V., which is usually the county where the cause of action arose, and this shows where the trial will take place, if at all. If the other party shows that it would be more convenient and less expensive to try the action elsewhere, then he may apply to the court, or a judge, to change the V., and thus the trial may take place in a different county from that first stated. Ve'nus, the Roman goddess of Love, subsequently identified with the Greek Aphrodite. Originally she does not seem to |