Denison, George Anthony, archdeacon of Taunton, born in Notts; was charged with holding views on the eucharist inconsistent with the teaching of the Church of England, first condemned and then acquitted on appeal; a stanch High Churchman, and equally opposed to Broad Church and Low; b. 1805.

Denison, John Evelyn, Speaker of the House of Commons from 1858 to 1872, brother of the above (1800-1873).

Denman, Lord, Lord Chief-Justice of England from 1832 to 1850, born in London; was along with Brougham counsel for Queen Caroline (1779-1854).

Denmark (2,182), the smallest of the three Scandinavian kingdoms, consisting of Jutland and an archipelago of islands in the Baltic Sea, divided into 18 counties, and is less than half the size of Scotland; is a low-lying country, no place in it more above the sea-level than 500 ft., and as a consequence has no river to speak of, only meres or lakes; the land is laid out in cornfields and grazing pastures; there are as good as no minerals, but abundance of clay for porcelain; while the exports consist chiefly of horses, cattle, swine, hams, and butter; it has 1407 m. of railway, and 8686 of telegraph wires; the government is constitutional, and the established religion Lutheran.

Dennewitz, a village in Brandenburg, 40 m. SW. of Berlin, where Marshal Ney with 70,000 was defeated by Marshal Bülow with 50,000.

Dennis, John, a would-be dramatist and critic, born in London, in constant broils with the wits of his time; his productions were worth little, and he is chiefly remembered for his attacks on Addison and Pope, and for the ridicule these attacks brought down at their hands on his own head, from Pope in "Narrative of the Frenzy of John Dennis," and "damnation to everlasting fame" in "Dunciad"; he became blind, and was sunk in poverty, when Pope wrote a prologue to a play produced for his benefit (1657-1734).

Dens, Peter, a Catholic theologian, born at Boom near Antwerp; author of a work entitled "Theologia Moralis et Dogmatica," a minute and casuistic vindication in catechetical form of the tenets of the Catholic Church, and in use as a text-book in Catholic colleges (1690-1775).

Dentatus, M. Curius, a Roman of the old stamp; as consul gained two victories over rival States and two triumphs in one year; drove Pyrrhus out of Italy (275 B.C.), and brought to Rome immense booty, of which he would take nothing to himself; in his retirement took to tilling a small farm with his own hand.

Denver (134), the capital of Colorado, U.S., on a plain 5196 ft. above the sea-level; originally founded as a mining station in 1858, now a large and flourishing and well-appointed town; is the centre of a great trade, and a great mining district.

Deodar (25), a small protected independent State in the NW. of Gujarat, India.

Deodoraki, a glacier in the Caucasus Mountains.

Deparcieux, French mathematician, born at Cessoux, dep. of Gard; known for the "Tables" which bear his name, containing a reckoning of the chances of longevity for different ages (1703-1768).

Department, a territorial division in France instituted in 1790, under which the old division into provinces was broken up; each department, of which there are now 87, is broken up into arrondissements.

Depping, a learned French historian, born at Münster; wrote a "History of Normandy," and on "Trade of Europe with the Levant" (1784-1853).

Deptford (101), a town on the S. bank of the Thames, partly in Kent and partly in Surrey, now forming part of London; once with an extensive Government dockyard and arsenal, the site of it purchased by the Corporation of London as a market for foreign cattle; is now the central station for the Electric Light Company.

De Quincey, Thomas, a great English prose writer, born in Manchester; son of a merchant called Quincey; his father dying, he was under a guardian, who put him to school, from which in the end he ran away, wandered about in Wales for a time, and by-and-by found his way to London; in 1803 was sent to Oxford, which in 1807 he left in disgust; it was here as an anodyne he took to opium, and acquired that habit which was the bane of his life; on leaving Oxford he went to Bath beside his mother, where he formed a connection by which he was introduced to Wordsworth and Southey, and led to settle to literary work at Grasmere, in the Lake District; here he wrote for the reviews and magazines, particularly Blackwood's, till in 1821 he went up to London and published his "Confessions" under the nom de plume of "The English Opium-Eater"; leaving Grasmere in 1828 he settled in Edinburgh, and at Polton, near Lasswade, where he died; is characterised by Stopford Brooke as "owing to the overlapping and involved melody of his style one of our best, as he is one of our most various miscellaneous writers"; he was a writer of very miscellaneous ability and acquirement (1785-1859).

Derbend (14), capital of Russian Daghestan, on the W. of the Caspian Sea, 140 m. NW. of Baku.

Derby (94), county town of Derbyshire, on the Derwent, with manufactures of silk, cotton hosiery, lace, porcelain, &c.; it is the centre of a great railway system.

Derby, Charlotte Countess of, wife of the 7th Earl who was taken prisoner at Worcester in 1651, and was beheaded at Bolton; famous for her gallant defence of Lathom House against the Parliamentary forces, which she was obliged to surrender; lived to see the Restoration; d. 1663.

Derby, 14th Earl of, British statesman, born at Knowsley Hall, Lancashire; entered Parliament in 1820 in the Whig interest, and was hailed as an accession to their ranks by the Whigs; supported the cause of reform; in 1830 became Chief Secretary for Ireland under Earl Grey's administration; introduced a coercive measure against the Repeal agitation of O'Connell; contributed to the passing of the Reform Bill in 1832; seceded from the Whigs in 1834, and became Colonial Secretary in 1845 under a Conservative administration, but when Sir Robert Peel brought in a bill to repeal the Corn Laws, he retired from the Cabinet, and in 1848 became the head of the Protectionist party as Earl of Derby, to which title he succeeded in 1851; was after that Prime Minister three times over, and it was with his sanction Disraeli carried his Reform Act of 1867, though he spoke of it as "a leap in the dark"; he resigned his Premiership in 1868, and the last speech he made was against the Irish Disestablishment Bill; was distinguished for his scholarship as well as his oratory, and gave proof of this by his scholarly translation of the "Iliad" of Homer (1797-1869).

Derby, 15th Earl of, eldest son of the preceding; entered Parliament as Lord Stanley in 1848; was a member of the three Derby administrations, in the first and third in connection with foreign affairs, and in the second as Secretary for India, at the time when the government of India passed from the Company to the Crown; became Earl in 1869; was Foreign Secretary under Mr. Disraeli in 1874, but retired in 1878; in 1885 joined the Liberal party, and held office under Mr. Gladstone, but declined to follow him in the matter of Home Rule, and joined the Unionist ranks; was a man of sound and cool judgment, and took a deep interest in economical questions (1826-1893).

Derby Day, the last Wednesday in May, or, as may happen, the 1st of June, being the second day of the Summer Meeting at Epsom, on which the Derby Stakes for colts and fillies three years old are run for, so called as having been started by the 12th Earl of Derby in 1780; the day is held as a great London holiday, and the scene is one to which all London turns out. The stakes run for are £6000, of which the winner gets £5000.

Derbyshire (520), a northern midland county of England, hilly in the N., undulating and pastoral in the S., and with coal-fields in the E.; abounds in minerals, and is more a manufacturing and mining county than an agricultural.

Derg, Lough, an expansion of the waters of the Shannon, Ireland, 24 m. long, from 2 to 6 broad; also a small lake in the S. of Donegal, with small islands, one of which, Station Island, was, as the reputed entrance to St. Patrick's Purgatory, a place of pilgrimage to thousands at one time.

Dervishes, a name given to members of certain mendicant orders connected with the Mohammedan faith in the East. Of these there are various classes, under different regulations, and wearing distinctive costumes, with their special observances of devotion, and all presumed to lead an austere life, some of whom live in monasteries, and others go wandering about, some of them showing their religious fervour in excited whirling dances, and others in howlings; all are religious fanatics in their way, and held sacred by the Moslems.

Derwentwater, one of the most beautiful of the Cumberland lakes, in the S. of the county; extends S. from Keswick; is over 3 m. long, and over 1 m. broad; is dotted with wooded islands, and is overlooked by Skiddaw; it abounds with perch.

Derwentwater, Earl of, a Jacobite leader; was 3rd Earl and the last; several warrants were issued for his apprehension in 1714; he joined the Jacobite rising in 1715; was taken prisoner at Preston, and beheaded on Tower Hill, London, next year, after trial in Westminster Hall, confession of guilt, and pleadings on his behalf with the king.

Derzhaven, Gabriel, a Russian lyric poet, born at Kasan; rose from the ranks as a common soldier to the highest offices in the State under the Empress Catharine II. and her successors; retired into private life, and gave himself up to poetry; the ode by which he is best known is his "Address to the Deity" (1743-1816).

Desaix, Louis Charles Antoine, a distinguished French general, born at the Château d'Ayat, Auvergne, of a noble family; entered the army at 15; commanded a division of the Army of the Rhine in 1796, and after the retreat of Moreau defended Kehl against the Austrians for two months; accompanied Bonaparte to the East, and in 1799 conquered Upper Egypt; contributed effectively to the success at Marengo, and fell dead at the moment of victory, shot by a musket-ball; he was an upright and a chivalrous man, known in Egypt as "the just Sultan," and in Germany as "the good general" (1768-1800).

Desaugiers, Marc, a celebrated French composer of songs and vaudevilles; "stands second to Béranger as a light song-writer," and is by some preferred to him (1772-1827).

Desault, a French surgeon, born in dep. of Haute-Saône; his works contributed largely to the progress of surgery (1714-1795).

Desbarres, Joseph Frederick, military engineer and hydrographer, aide-de-camp of General Wolfe at Quebec; fortified Quebec; surveyed the St. Lawrence; revised the maps of the American coast at the outbreak of the American war; died at Halifax, Nova Scotia, aged 102 (1722-1824).

Descamps, a French painter, born at Dunkirk; painted village scenes (1714-1791).

Descartes, René, the father of modern philosophy, born at La Haye, in Touraine; was educated at the Jesuit College of La Flèche, where he made rapid progress in all that his masters could teach him, but soon grew sceptical as to their methods of inquiry; "resolved, on the completion of his studies, to bid adieu to all school and book learning, and henceforth to gain knowledge only from himself, and from the great book of the world, from nature and the observation of man"; in 1616 he entered the army of the Prince of Orange, and after a service of five years quitted it to visit various centres of interest on the Continent; made a considerable stay in Paris; finally abandoned his native land in 1629, and betook himself to seclusion in Holland in order to live there, unknown and undisturbed, wholly for philosophy and the prosecution of his scientific projects; here, though not without vexatious opposition from the theologians, he lived twenty years, till in 1649, at the invitation of Christina of Sweden, he left for Stockholm, where, the severe climate proving too much for him, he was carried off by pneumonia next year; Descartes' philosophy starts with Doubt, and by one single step it arrives at Certainty; "if I doubt, it is plain I exist," and from this certainty, that is, the existence of the thinking subject, he deduces his whole system; it all comes from the formula Cogito, ergo sum, "I think, therefore I exist," that is, the thinking ego exists; in which thinking philosophy ere long sums the universe up, regarding it as a void, without thought; Descartes' philosophy is all comprehended in two works, his "Discourse on Method," and his "Meditations" (1596-1650).

Deschamps, Émile, a French poet, born at Bourges, one of the chiefs of the Romantic school (1795-1871).

Deschamps, Eustache, a French poet, born at Vertus, in Champagne; studied in Orleans University; travelled over Europe; had his estate pillaged by the English, whom, in consequence, he is never weary of abusing; his poems are numerous, and, except one, all short, consisting of ballads, as many as 1175 of them, a form of composition which he is said to have invented; he deals extensively in satire, and if he wields the shafts of it against the plunderers of his country, he does no less against the oppressors of the poor (1328-1415).

Desdemona, the wife of Othello the Moor, who, in Shakespeare's play of that name, kills her on a groundless insinuation of infidelity, to his bitter remorse.

Desèze, a French advocate, had the courage, along with advocate Tronchet, to defend Louis XVI. when dragged to judgment by the Convention, and who, honourably fulfilling his perilous office, pled for the space of three hours, an honourable pleading "composed almost overnight; courageous, yet discreet; not without ingenuity, and soft pathetic eloquence"; he was imprisoned for a time, but escaped the scaffold; on the return of the Bourbons he was made a peer (1750-1828).

Desmond, Earldom of, an Irish title long extinct by the death of the last earl in 1583; he had rebelled against Elizabeth's government, been proclaimed, and had taken refuge in a peasant's cabin, and been betrayed.

Des Moines (62), the largest city in Iowa, U.S., and the capital, founded in 1846.

Desmoulins, Camille, one of the most striking figures in the French Revolution, born at Guise, in Picardy; studied for the bar in the same college with Robespierre, but never practised, owing to a stutter in his speech; was early seized with the revolutionary fever, and was the first to excite the same fever in the Parisian mob, by his famous call "To arms, and, for some rallying sign, cockades—green ones—the colour of Hope, when," as we read in Carlyle, "as with the flight of locusts, the green tree-leaves, green ribbons from the neighbouring shops, all green things, were snatched to make cockades of"; was one of the ablest advocates of the levelling principles of the Revolution; associated himself first with Mirabeau and then with Danton in carrying them out, and even supported Robespierre in the extreme course he took; but his heart was moved to relent when he thought of the misery the guillotine was working among the innocent families, the wives and the children, of its victims, would, along with Danton, fain have brought the Reign of Terror to a close; for this he was treated as a renegade, put under arrest at the instance of Robespierre, subjected to trial, sentenced to death, and led off to the place of execution; while his young wife, for interfering in his behalf, was arraigned and condemned, and sent to the guillotine a fortnight after him (1762-1794).

De Soto, a Spanish voyager, was sent to conquer Florida, penetrated as far as the Mississippi; worn out with fatigue in quest of gold, died of fever, and was buried in the river (1496-1542).

Des Periers, Bonaventure, a French humanist and story-teller, born at Autun, in Burgundy; valet-de-chamber of Margaret of Valois; wrote "Cymbalum Mundi," a satirical production, in which, as a disciple of Lucian, he holds up to ridicule the religious beliefs of his day; also "Novelles Recréations et Joyeux Devis," a collection of some 129 short stories admirably told; was one of the first prose-writers of the century, and is presumed to be the author of the "Heptameron," ascribed to Margaret of Valois; d. 1544.

Despre`aux. See Boileau.

Dessalines, Jean Jacques, emperor of Hayti, born in Guinea, W. Africa, a negro imported into Hayti as a slave; on the emancipation of the slaves there he acquired great influence among the insurgents, and by his cruelties compelled the French to quit the island, upon which he was raised to the governorship, and by-and-by was able to declare himself emperor, but his tyranny provoked a revolt, in which he perished (1760-1806).

Dessau (34), a North German town, the capital of the Duchy of Anhalt, on the Mulde, affluent of the Elbe, some 70 m. SW. of Berlin; it is at once manufacturing and trading.

Dessauer, the old. See Leopold of Dessau.

Destouches, a French dramatist, born at Tours; his plays were comedies, and he wrote 17, all excellent (1680-1754); also a French painter (1790-1884).

Detmold (9), capital of Lippe, 47 m. SW. of Hanover, with a bronze colossal statue of Arminius (q. v.) near by.

Detroit (285), the largest city in Michigan, U.S., a great manufacturing and commercial centre, situated on a river of the same name, which connects Lake St. Clair with Lake Erie; is one of the oldest places in the States, and dates from 1670, at which time it came into the possession of the French; is a well-built city, with varied manufactures and a large trade, particularly in grain and other natural products.

Dettingen, a village in Bavaria, where an army of English, Hanoverians, and Austrians under George II., in 1743 defeated the French under Duc de Noailles.

Deucalion, son of Prometheus, who, with his wife Pyrrha, by means of an ark which he built, was saved from a flood which for nine days overwhelmed the land of Hellas. On the subsidence of the flood they consulted the oracle at Delphi as to re-peopling the land with inhabitants, when they were told by Themis, the Pythia at the time, to throw the bones of their mother over their heads behind them. For a time the meaning of the oracle was a puzzle, but the readier wit of the wife found it out; upon which they took stones and threw them over their heads, when the stones he threw were changed into men and those she threw were changed into women.

Deus ex machina, the introduction in high matters of a merely external, material, or mechanical explanation instead of an internal, rational, or spiritual one, which is all a theologian does when he simply names God, and all a scientist does when he simply says Evolution (q. v.).

Deuteronomy (i. e. the Second Law), the fifth book of the Pentateuch, and so called as the re-statement and re-enforcement, as it were, by Moses of the Divine law proclaimed in the wilderness. The Mosaic authorship of this book is now called in question, though it is allowed to be instinct with the spirit of the religion instituted by Moses, and it is considered to have been conceived at a time when that religion with its ritual was established in Jerusalem, in order to confirm faith in the Divine origin and sanction of observances there.

Deutsch, Emanuel, a distinguished Hebrew scholar, born at Neisse, in Silesia, of Jewish descent; was trained from his boyhood to familiarity with the Hebrew and Chaldea languages; studied under Boeckh at the university of Berlin; came to England, and in 1855 obtained a post in the library of the British Museum; had made a special study of the "Talmud," on which he wrote a brilliant article for the Quarterly Review, to the great interest of many; his ambition was to write an exhaustive treatise on the subject, but he did not live to accomplish it; died at Alexandria, whither he had gone in the hope of prolonging his days (1829-1873).

Deutz (17), a Prussian town on the right bank of the Rhine, opposite Cologne.

Deux Ponts, French name for Zweibrücken (q. v.).

Deva, the original Hindu name for the deity, meaning the shining one, whence deus, god, in Latin.

Devanag`ari, the character in which Sanskrit works are printed.

Development, the biological doctrine which ascribes an innate expansive power to the organised universe, and affirms the deviation of the most complex forms through intermediate links from the simplest, without the intervention of special acts of creation. See Evolution.

Dev`enter (25), a town in Holland, in the province of Overyssel, 55 m. SE. of Amsterdam; has carpet manufactures; is celebrated for its gingerbread; was the locality of the Brotherhood of Common Life, with which the life and work of Thomas à Kempis are associated.

De Vere, Thomas Aubrey, poet and prose writer, born in co. Limerick, Ireland; educated at Trinity College, Dublin; wrote poetical dramas of "Alexander the Great" and "St. Thomas of Canterbury"; his first poem "The Waldenses"; also critical essays; b. 1814.

Devil, The, a being regarded in Scripture as having a personal existence, and, so far as this world is concerned, a universal spiritual presence, as everywhere thwarting the purposes of God and marring the destiny of man; only since the introduction of Christianity, which derives all evil as well as good from within, he has come to be regarded less as an external than an internal reality, and is identified with the ascendency in the human heart of passions native to it, which when subject ennoble it, but when supreme debase it. He is properly the spirit that deceives man, and decoys him to his eternal ruin from truth and righteousness.

Devil, The, is an Ass, a farce by Ben Jonson, full of vigour, but very coarse.

Devil-worship, a homage paid by primitive tribes to the devil or spirit of evil in the simple-hearted belief that he could be bribed from doing them evil.

Devonport (70), a town in Devonshire, adjoining Plymouth to the W., and the seat of the military and naval government of the three towns, originally called Plymouth Dock, and established as a naval arsenal by William III.

Devonshire, a county in the S. of England, with Exmoor in the N. and Dartmoor in the S.; is fertile in the low country, and enjoys a climate favourable to vegetation; it has rich pasture-grounds, and abounds in orchards.

Devonshire, Duke of. See Cavendish.

Devrient, Ludwig, a popular German actor, born in Berlin, of exceptional dramatic ability, the ablest of a family with similar gifts (1784-1832).

D'Ewes, Sir Simonds, antiquary, born in Dorsetshire; bred for the bar; was a member of the Long Parliament; left notes on its transactions; took the Puritan side in the Civil War; his "Journal of all the Parliaments of Elizabeth" is of value; left an "Autobiography and Correspondence" (1602-1656).

De Wette, Wilhelm Martin Leberecht, a German theologian, born near Weimar; studied at Jena, professor of Theology ultimately at Basel; was held in high repute as a biblical critic and exegete; contributed largely to theological literature; counted a rationalist by the orthodox, and a mystic by the rationalists; his chief works "A Critical Introduction to the Bible" and a "Manual to the New Testament" (1780-1849).

De Witt, Jan, a Dutch statesman, born at Dort; elected grand pensionary in 1652; like his father, Jacob de Witt, before him, was a declared enemy of the House of Orange, and opposed the Stadtholdership, and for a time he carried the country along with him, but during a war with England his influence declined, the Orange party prevailed, and elected the young Prince of Orange, our William III., Stadtholder. He and his brother Cornelius were murdered at last by the populace (1625-1672).

Dewsbury (73), a town in the West Riding of Yorkshire, 8 m. SW. of Leeds; engaged in the manufacture of woollens, blankets, carpets, and yarns.

Dextrine, a soluble matter into which the interior substance of starch globules is converted by acids or diastase, so called because when viewed by polarised light it has the property of turning the plane of polarisation to the right.

Deyster, Louis de, a Flemish painter, born at Bruges; was of a deeply religious temper, and his character was reflected in his choice of subjects, such as the "Death of the Virgin," "The Resurrection of Christ," &c.; he was a recluse (1656-1711).

Dezobry, Charles, a French writer, born at St. Denis; author of "Rome in the Time of Augustus" (1798-1871).

Dhagoba, a mound with a dome-shaped top, found to contain Buddhist relics.

Dharma, the name given to the law of Buddha, as distinct from the Sangha, which is the Church.

Dharwar (32), a town in the S. of the Bombay Presidency, a place of considerable trade in a district noted for its cotton growing.

Dhwalagiri, one of the peaks of the Himalayas, the third highest, 26,826 ft. high.

Diabetes, a disease characterised by an excessive discharge of urine, and accompanied with great thirst; there are two forms of this disease.

Diab`lerets, a mountain of the Bernese Alps, between the Cantons de Vaud and de Valois.

Diafoirus, Thomas, the name of two pedantic doctors, father and son, who figure in Molière's "Malade Imaginaire."

Diagoras, a Greek philosopher, born in Melos, one of the Cyclades, 5th century B.C., surnamed the Atheist, on account of the scorn with which he treated the gods of the popular faith, from the rage of whose devotees he was obliged to seek safety by flight; died in Corinth.

Dialectic, in the Hegelian philosophy the logic of thought, and, if of thought, the logic of being, of essential being.

Dialogues of Plato, philosophical dialogues, in which Socrates figures as the principal interlocutor, although the doctrine expounded is rather Plato's than his master's; they discuss theology, psychology, ethics, æsthetics, politics, physics, and related subjects.

Dialysis, the process of separating the crystalloid or poisonous ingredients in a substance from the colloid or harmless ingredients.

Diamante, a Spanish dramatic poet, who plagiarised Corneille's "Cid" and passed it off as original; b. 1826.

Diamantina (13), a district in Brazil, in the province of Minas Geraes, rich in diamonds.

Diamond, the name of Newton's favourite dog that, by upsetting a lamp, set fire to MSS. containing notes of experiments made over a course of years, an irreparable loss.

Diamond Necklace, a necklace consisting of 500 diamonds, and worth £80,000, which one Madame de la Motte induced the jeweller who "made" it to part with for Marie Antoinette, on security of Cardinal de Rohan, and which madame made away with, taking it to pieces and disposing of the jewels in London; the swindle was first discovered when the jeweller presented his bill to the queen, who denied all knowledge of the matter; this led to a trial which extended over nine months, gave rise to great scandal, and ended in the punishment of the swindler and her husband, and the disgrace of the unhappy, and it is believed innocent, queen. See Carlyle's "Miscellanies."

Diamond Net, a name given in the Hegelian philosophy to "the connective tissue, so to speak, that not only supports, but even in a measure constitutes, the various organs" of the universe. See Hegelianism.

Diamond State, Delaware, U.S., from its small size and great wealth.

Diana, originally an Italian deity, dispenser of light, identified at length with the Greek goddess Artemis, and from the first with the moon; she was a virgin goddess, and spent her time in the chase, attended by her maidens; her temple at Ephesus was one of the seven wonders of the world. See Artemis.

Diana de Poitiers, the mistress of Henry II. of France, for whom he built the magnificent Château d'Anet, in Eure-et-Loir; she had a great influence over him, and the cruel persecutions of the Huguenots in his reign were due to her instigation (1490-1566).

Diana of France, the Duchess of Angoulême, the natural daughter of Henry II. and the Duchess de Castro (1538-1619).

Diarbekir (42), the largest town in the Kurdistan Highlands, on the Tigris, 194 m. NE. of Aleppo, and on the highway between Bagdad and Constantinople, with a large and busy bazaar.

Diastase, a nitrogenous substance developed during the germination of grain, and having the property of converting starch first into dextrine and then into sugar.

Diavolo, Fra (lit. Brother Devil), Michele Porsa, a Calabrian, originally a monk, who left his monastery and joined a set of bandits, who lent themselves to and conducted insurrectionary movements in Italy; taken prisoner, was hanged at Naples; Auber's opera, "Fra Diavolo," has no connection with him except the name (1760-1806).

Diaz, Barthélemy, a Portuguese navigator, sent on a voyage of discovery by John II., in the command of two ships; sailed down the W. coast of Africa and doubled the Cape of Good Hope, which, from the storm that drove him past it, he called the Cape of Storms; returning to Lisbon he was superseded by Vasco da Gama, or rather subordinated to him; subsequently accompanied Cabral on his voyage to Brazil, and was lost in a storm in 1500.

Diaz Miguel, governor of Porto Rico, born in Aragon; friend and companion of Columbus; suffered from the usual Jealousies in enterprises of the kind, but prevailed in the end; d. 1514.

Diaz de la Peña, a French painter, born at Bordeaux, of Spanish descent; a landscapist of the Romantic school, eminent as a colourist (1809-1876).

Diaz del Castello, historian; accompanied Cortes to Mexico; took part in the conquest, and left a graphic, trustworthy account of it; died in Mexico, 1560.

Dibdin, Charles, musician, dramatist, and song-writer, born in Southampton; began life as an actor; invented a dramatic entertainment consisting of music, songs, and recitations, in which he was the sole performer, and of which he was for the most part the author; wrote some 30 dramatic pieces, and it is said 1400 songs; his celebrity is wholly due to his sea songs, which proved of the most inspiring quality, and did much to man the navy during the war with France; was the author of "Tom Bowling"; left an account of his "Professional Life" (1745-1814).

Dibdin, Thomas, dramatic author and song-writer, son of the preceding; was an actor as well as an author, and a most versatile one; performed in all kinds of characters, and wrote all kinds of plays, as well as numerous songs (1771-1841).

Dibdin, Thomas Frognall, bibliographer, nephew of Charles Dibdin, born in Calcutta; took orders in the Church of England; held several preferments; wrote several works all more or less of a bibliographical character, which give proof of extensive research, but are lacking often in accuracy and critical judgment; was one of the founders of the Roxburghe Club (1775-1847).

Dicæarchus, an ancient geographer, born at Messina, 4th century B.C.; a disciple of Aristotle.

Dick, James, a West Indian and London merchant, born in Forres; bequeathed £113,787 to encourage learning and efficient teaching among the parish schoolmasters of Elgin, Banff, and Aberdeen shires; it is known as the Dick Bequest, and the property is vested in a governing body of thirteen duly elected (1743-1828).

Dickens, Charles, celebrated English novelist, born at Landport, Portsmouth; son of a navy clerk, latterly in great straits; was brought up amid hardships; was sent to a solicitor's office as a clerk, learned shorthand, and became a reporter, a post in which he learned much of what afterwards served him as an author; wrote sketches for the Monthly Magazine under the name of "Boz" in 1834, and the "Pickwick Papers" in 1836-37, which established his popularity; these were succeeded by "Oliver Twist" in 1838, "Nicholas Nickleby" in 1839, and others which it is needless to enumerate, as they are all known wherever the English language is spoken; they were all written with an aim, and as Ruskin witnesses, "he was entirely right in his main drift and purpose in every book he has written," though he thinks we are apt "to lose sight of his wit and insight, because he chooses to speak in a circle of stage fire.... Allowing for his manner of telling them, the things he tells us are always true"; being a born actor, and fain in his youth to become one, he latterly gave public readings from his works, which were immensely popular; "acted better," says Carlyle, who witnessed one of these performances, "than any Macready in the world; a whole tragic, comic, heroic theatre visible, performing under one hat, and keeping us laughing—in a sorry way some of us thought—the whole night"; the strain proved too much for him; he was seized with a fit at his residence, Gad's Hill, near Rochester, on June 8, 1870, and died the following morning; he was a little man, with clear blue intelligent eyes, a face of most extreme mobility, and a quiet shrewdness of expression (1812-1870).

Dictator, a magistrate invested with absolute authority in ancient republican Rome in times of exigence and danger; the constitution obliged him to resign his authority at the end of six months, till which time he was free without challenge afterwards to do whatever the interest of the commonwealth seemed to him to require; the most famous dictators were Cincinnatus, Camillus, Sulla, and Cæsar, who was the last to be invested with this power; the office ceased with the fall of the republic, or rather, was merged in the perpetual dictatorship of the emperor.