Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Supplement, Volume 2.djvu/354

 R A S

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larger, and fmaller jointed pods. 2. The raphaniflrum with white ftriated flowers, and fmall articulated ftriated pods. 3. The white flowered field raphaniflrum. 4. The yellow flowered field raphaniflrum ; and 5. The rapba- niflrum with the largeft ftriated and articulated pods. Town. Inft. p. 230.

RAPHANUS, radijb, in botany, the name of a genus of plants, the characters of which are thefe. The flower con- fifts of four leaves, difpofed in form of a crofs. The pift.il arifes from the cup, and becomes at length a long horn-like pod, very thick and fpungy, and filled with two rows of roundifh feeds, feparated by a very thin intermediate mem- brane.

The fpecies of radijb, enumerated by Mr. Tourncfort, are thefe. r. The great orbicular or round radijh. 2. The white flowered great orbicular or round radijb. 3. The black radijb. 4. The fmaller or common garden radijb. Town. Inft. p. 229.

The Athenians expreflfld the cabbage by the word po^**©-, rapbanus, but all the other Greeks called the radijh by that name. Pliny not obferving this has run into ftrange errors. See the article Raphanis,

RAPISTRUM, in botany, the name of a genus of plants, the characters of which are thefe. The flower confifts of four leaves, and is of the cruciform kind ; and the piftil which arifes from the cup, finally becomes an unicapfular hufk of a fomewhat globofe figure, which contains a fingle feed. The fpecies of rapiflrum, enumerated by Mr. Tournefort, are thefe. 1. The fingle feeded rapiflrum of Cafpar Bau- hine. 2. The greateft round leaved fingle feeded rapiflrum of Cornutus ; and 3. The field rapiflrum, with pointed, auriculated leaves. Toum. Inft. p. 21 j.

RAPPE, in zoology, a name given by fome to the capita fluviatilh rapax of Gcfner, more frequently known by the name of the corvus pijeis. JVillugbby's Hift. Pifc. p. 256. See the article Corvus pifcis.

RAPUNCULUS, rampion, in botany, the name of a genus of plants, the characters of which are thefe. The flower confifts of only one leaf, and is of the bell fhape, but very wide open at the mouth, and fo deeply divided into feg- ments, that it appears a ftar fafhioned one. The piftil is divided into two horns, and the cup afterwards becomes a membranous feed vefiel, divided into three cells, and con- taining a number of very fmall feeds.

The fpecies of this plant, enumerated by Mr. Tournefort, are thefe. 1. The blue fpiked rampion. 2. The deep vio- let coloured flowered rampion with ipottcd leaves. 3. The white flowered fpotted rampion. 4. The yellow flowered ■ fpiked garden rampion. 5. The round headed long leaved rampion. 6, The Cretic pyramidal rampion, called by many authors pctromerula. 7. The alpine horned rampion. 8. The grafs leaved rampion. 9. The fcabious headed blue flowered rampion, called by fomc Jbeeps fcabious. 10. The white flowered fcabious headed rampion. Toum. Inft. p. 1 13.

RAPUNTIUM, in botany, the name of a genus of plants, the characters of which are thefe. The flower confifts of one leaf, and is of a tubular form, fulcated, and divided into feveral long and narrow fegments, in the manner of fingers. The piftil is enclofcd in the cup, which after- wards becomes a dry fruit, divided into three cells, and con- taining numerous, and ufually very fmall feeds affixed to a placenta divided into three parts.

The fpecies of rapuntium enumerated by Mr. Tournefort are thefe. 1. The great fpiked fcarlet flowered rapuntium, called the red cardinal flower. 2. The great fcarlet Ame- rican rapuntium with white lines in the flowers. 3. The blue flowered American rapuntium. 4. The white flowered American rapuntium. 5. The golden red leaved American rapuntium with a fmall blueifh flower. 6. The talleft American rapuntium with Cirfium leaves and greenifh flow- ers. 7. The fhining Cirfium leaved American rapuntium with double fcarlet conglobated flowers. 8. The purple flowered American rapuntium with throatwort leaves. 9. The fmall violet coloured burning rapuntium. io. The purplifh blue burning rapuntium. n. The white flowered burning rapuntiufn. 12. The leffer narrow leaved African rapuntium with violet coloured flowers. 13. The pinafter leaved ./Ethiopian rapuntium with hooded, violet coloured flowers. 14. The coronopus leaved /Ethiopian rapuntium with hooded blue flowers. 15. The blue hooded flowered ./Ethiopian rapuntium with dentated leaves. 16. The low Canada rapuntium with toad flax leaves. Toum. Inft. p. 163.

RARUM, nonfpiffum, in the antient mufic. See the ar- ticle APYCNON, avrvxsM,

RASA, a word ufed by fome authors to exprefs refin of any kind. See Resin.

RASAK.ETI, a name given by fome of the chemifts to as ujhvn, or burnt copper.

RASCEFA, a word ufed by the Arabian phyficians to ex- prefs the wrift or ankle.

RASE, rafarium, in our old writers, feems to have been a

meafure of corn now difufed : toll fliall be taken by the f>afi 9 and not by the heap or cantel. Ordin. for bakers, &c. c. 4, Pat. 12 Ed. 3. Blount.

Rase, in the manege. To raft or glance upon the ground, called in French razer le tapis, is to gallop near the ground, as our Englifh horfes do.

RASILIS erugo, in the materia medica of the antients, one of their kinds of verdigreafe. It was prepared in the following* manner : they fet fome fharp vinegar over the lire iii a ftrong earthen vefiel, and covered it with a brafs pot invert- ed, well cleaned, and without any vent hole. And after fomc time the veflcls were to be feparated, and the ver- digreafe which was found concreted on the infide of the brafs pot, was fcraped oft, and put up for ufe.

RASPBERRY, in botany, the Englifh name of a fpecies of rubus. See the article Rubus.

The rafpberry bufh is often found wild in fome of our northern counties, but is cultivated in gardens throughout England for the delicacy of its fruit. We have three kinds common about London. 1. The common. 2. The late red; and, 3. The white rafpberry.

Thefe fhrubs fend up great plenty of fuckers from their roots, and arc very eafily propagated by them, they mould be ta- ken up in October, and before they are replanted their fibres fhould be fhortened ; but the buds, which arc at a fmall diftance from the Item of the plant, mull not be cut off, becaufe thefe produce new fhoots the next fummer. They fhould be planted two feet afunder, and fet in rows, which fhould be five feet diftant from one another. The foil they thrive in beft is in a frefh fandy loam, which fhould neither be too moift nor over dry. The time for dreflino; them is in October, when all the old wood which produced fruit the preceding fummer fhould be cut down to the ground, and the young fhoots fhortened to about two feet in length. The fpaces between the rows fhould then alfo be dug up, and fome other rotten dung buried in them. In the fummer they muff be kept clean from weeds, and once in three or four years there fhould be new beds made* and the old ones deftroyed, for they fcldom bear well after that time. Miller's Gardners Dicl.

RASPECON, in ichthyology, a name given by fome to the uranofcope or ftargazer. It is properly a fpecies of the tra- chinus j and is diftinguifhed byArtcdi, under the name of the trachinus, with feveral cirri or beards growing from the lower jaw. See Trachinus.

RASSE coronde, in natural hiftory, a name given by the Cey- lonefe to a peculiarly fine kind of cinnamon, which is the bark of a tree, growing no where but in that ifland. The name they give it fignifies fharp or biting cinnamon. This choice kind is exported annually, in con- fiderable quantity, by the Dutch Eaft-India company, who prohibit the mixing any other kind of cinnamon with it under a very fevere penalty. Phil. Tranf. N° 4.09.

RASTIS, a word ufed by fome chemical writers as a name for tin. See Tin.

RASTOL, or Rasoes, a name given by fome of the che- mical writers to copper.

RASTUL, a word ufed by fome of the chemical writers to exprefs fait in general.

RASURA ; a word ufed by the pharmaceutic writers, to ex- prefs the fhaving woods, or other hard fuhftances, to make them readily yield their virtues by decoction. Phyficians alfo ufe it to exprefs the corrofion of acrid humours.

RAT, in zoology. See the article Mus.

Rat, in the fea language, is ufed to exprefs a part of the fea, where there are rapid and dangerous currents, or counter currents.

RAT-goofe, in zoology, the name of a fmall fpecies of wild gooje, common in fome of the northern counties of England. See the article Goose.

Mujk Rat. See Musk.

RAT-tails, or Arrests, in the manege, fignify callous hard fwellings upon the hinder legs under the hough, running along the finew. See the article Arrests.

RAT-taikd. A horfe Is thus called that has no hair upon his tail. See Horse.

RAT-tailed worms, in natural hiftory, a fpecies of &y-worms, with long tails, refembling thofe of rats, whence they have their name. They are of feveral fizes, and found alfo in different places, but all change into two winged flies, having very much the refemblance of bees, and commonly called bee flies. See Tab. ofInfe£ls, N049. and Reaumur's Hift. Inf. Vol. 4. p. 439. See the article DRONE-fly.

RATIO (Cyd.) — When a ratio is given, expreffed in large numbers, it is often very ufeful to find an approximated .value of it, in fmaller numbers. Mr. Huygens and Dr. Wallis have given methods for this purpofe, but that of Mr. Cotes, being the rnoft convenient in practice, we fhall here infert it. Suppofe the ratio 2,718281828495 to 1, or of 1 to 0,367879441171 were propofed to be reduced to fmaller terms, fo that no lefs numbers fhall exprefs it nearer. The operation may be as follows ;

Rath;