Page:Cyclopaedia, Chambers - Supplement, Volume 2.djvu/804

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XEROMYRON, a word ufcd by the antients to exprefs what they do at other times call in exprefs words a dry ointment. It was a compofition of warm and aromatic drugs, or of other things fit for external ufe, but without the fatty ingredients, by which they were ufually reduced into the form of oint- ments.

XEROPHAGY, Htjfo^uyia, among the antients, the feeding only on dry victuals, which was the practice of the Athlete. Pitijc. in voc.ftiginatio. See Athleta.

XEROTRIBIA, a term ufed by authors to exprefs a dry fric- tion, a rubbing of fome affected part with the hand or other- wife, to recall the warmth and circulation.

XIFINUS, a name given by fome writers to the faphire.

XIMENIA, in botany, the name of a genus of plants defcribed by Plumier, the characters of which are thefe : The cup is a fmall threc-leav'd perianthium ; the leaves of it are corda- ted, and fall with the flower ; the flower is monopetalous, of a bell fhape, and divided into three fegments, which ftand creel, and are oblong, fomewhat convoluted and obtufe at the ends. The germenof the piftil is fmall, and of an oval figure. The fruit is an oval drupa containing only one cell, in which is an oval nut. Plum. p. 21. Linmzi Gen. Plant, p. 521.

XINK^EPPETHIJA, in botany, a name given by fome au- thors to that fpecies of the jujube tree, on the branches of which the gum lacca of the (hops is ufually found. Harm. Muf. Zeyl. p. 40.

XIPHI AS, {Cycl.) in the Linnaan fyftem of zoology, the name of a genus of fillies of the general order of the acanthopterygii or prickly-finned kind.

The characters of this genus are, that the membrane of the gills has eight bones, and the point or extremity of the nofe or fnout of the fifh, is fhaped like a fword, and that it has no belly fins. Linntsi Syft. Nat. p. 54.

According to the Artedian fyftem of ichthyology, the charac- ters^ this genus of fillies are thefe : The branchioftege mem- brane on each fide contains about eight bones, the fnout is extended into a very long and depreffed point, imitating the figure of a fword, and of a bony fubftance ; the body is ob- long and roundifh, the back fin is fmall, and is very low in the middle ; there are no belly fins at all. The air bladder in this fifh is remarkably long, and the anus Very near the tail. Artedi Gen. Pifc. p. 24.

The SwordfiJIi is fo remarkable for the fliape of its fnout, which is extended in form of a fword, that it has been called by all nations by a name expreffive of that character. Its common name Xipbias is from the Greek &<plu a fword, and it is called gladius in Latin, and in Englifh the Swordfijb, It grows to a very confiderable fize, fo as fometirnes to weigh an hundred pounds. It is of a long and rounded body, largeft near the head, and tapering by degrees toward the tail ; its fkin is confiderably rough, its back black, and its belly of a filvery white ; its mouth is of a moderate fize, and has no teeth ; its fnout runs out into the figure of a fword in the up- per jaw, the under is much fhortcr, and terminates in a very lharp point ;. it has one only fin on the back, running almoft the whole length of it ; its tail is very remarkably forked ; it has only one pair of fins at the gills, having none on the belly. It is common in the Mediterranean, and fome other feas, and is efteemed by many a very delicate fifh for the table; The Manner of fifhing for it is the fame at this time, that the old writers have defcribed it to be in theirs, by the harpiiur-iron. milugbb/s Hift. Pifc. p. i6r.

XIPHION, in botany, the name of a genus of plants, the cha- rafters of which are thefe : The flower is liliaceous, confift- mg only of one petal, and much refembling the iris flower. The piftil is in the manner of the iris alfo, ornamented with three petals, and the cup becomes a fruit of the fhape of that ef the iris ; but the root wholly differs from that of the iris, being bulbous, and compofed of a number of coats. The fpecies of Xtpbion enumerated by Mr. Tournefort are thefe : 1. The broad-leav'd blue-flower'd fweet-fcented ftalk- lefs Xipbion. 2. The broad-leav'd ftalklefs Xipbion, with pur- ple fweet-fcented flowers. 3. The broad-leav'd ftalklefs Xi- pbion, with fweet-fcented milk-white flowers. 4. The white- flower'd Xipbioti, with blue edges. 5. The Pcrfian early Xipbion, with variegated flowers. 6. The porcelain Xipbim. 7. The lavender Xipbion. 8. The lavender Xipbion, with blue changeable flowers. 9. The purple, flower'd changeable lavender Xipbion. 10. The broad-leav'd blue-flower'd Xi- pbion, with ftalks. ii. The cauliferous broad-leav'd Xi- pbion, with blackifh purple flowers. 12. The cauliferous broad-leav'd Xipbion, with blue flowers variegated with pur- ple, or with violet-colour'd lines. 13. The broad-leav'd cauliferous Xipbion, with greyifh flowers ftreak'd with vio- let colour. 14. The broad-leav'd cauliferous whitc-flower'd Xipbion. 15. The Xipbion with large fpotted leaves, and purple flowers. 16. The violet-flower'd Xipbion, with large fpotted leaves. 17. The broad-fpotted lcav'd Xipbion, with blackifh purple flowers, white at the top. 18. The broad and fpotted lcav'd Xipbion, with fnow-white flowers. 10. The narrow-leav'd Xipbion, with variegated flowers. 20. The narrow-leav'd Xipbion, with three-colour'd flowers. 2r. The greater yellow Xipbion, with tenders flowers. 22. The

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great Xipbion, with a pale yellow flower. 23. The grcit yellow Xipbion, with mixt flowers. 24. The many-flowee'd changeable colour'd Xipbion. 25. The letter Xipbion, with yellow-fcented flowers. 26. The large tall Xipbion, with changeable yellow flowers. 27. The great but low Xipbion, with yellow changeable flowers. 28. The tall narrow-leav'd changeable flower'd Xipbion. 29. The low changeable Xi- pbion, with (mailer flowers. 30. The middle-fiz'd change- able flower'd yellow Xipbion. 31. The narrow-leav'd Xi- pbion, with blue fweet-fcented flowers. 32. The narrow- leav'd Xipbion, with variegated purplifh blue flowers, -if. The lefler blue-flower'd Xipbion. 34. The violet blue-flow- ered Xipbion. 35. The narrow-leav'd Xipbion, with vioiet- blue flowers. 36. The narrow-leav'd Xipbion, with flowers of a mix'd blue. 37. The white-flowcr'd narrow-leav'd Xi- pbion. 38. The American Xipbion, with blackifh-ycllow flowers. Tourn. Inft. p. 362, feq.

We have feveral fpecies of this beautiful plant cultivated in our gardens, where they are called bulbous Iris's ; and befides thefe, a vaft number of varieties or new flowers, as the florilh call them, are frequently raifed by thofe who propagate them from feeds. The culture of thefe being the fame with that of feveral other plants of the fame fort, which are much va- lued for their flowers, it may not be amifs to give it at large. There mould be great care to fave the feeds of the fineft and ftrongeft flowers, and in September fome fhallow pans or boxes muft be placed with holes at their bottom to let out the moifture, and then filled with light and fine earth. On this the feeds muft be fown pretty thick, and as evenly as may be ; half an inch of the fame earth mult be fifted on thefe, and the boxes mud then be ftt where they may have the morning fun ; and if the weather proves very dry, they muft be gently watered at times. They muft remain in this fituation till October, and then muft be removed to a place where they may have the benefit of the fun as great a part of the day as may be ; here they muft ftand the winter, keeping the boxes very carefully clear from weeds. In the fpring the young plants will appear, and they ihould then be removed to their firft fituation, where they may have only the morning fun; and if the weather be dry* they muft be watered at times. In June their leaves will de- cay, and they muft then have half an inch of frefh earth fifted over them, and be left in their fituation till October, wheii they muft be removed to the fame place as before for the winter.

In the fpring the leaves will appear again, and when they are again perifhed, the earth muft be taken out of the boxes, and fifted to feparate the roots, which muft then be planted at three inches diftance on a bed of the fame light earth ; they muft be buried three inches deep, and in the fpring following muft have about half an inch of frefh earth fifted over them ; the leaves will this year appear and decay as before ; and the following year, in June, they will moft of them flower, when the fineft flowers fhould be marked, that their roots may be taken particular care of. The following year the remainder, which did not flower at firft, will produce their flowers ; fuch of thefe as are finer than the reft, fhould be marked in the fame manner, and the roots of thefe choice kinds be preferved with particular care. Whatever fine or new flower is thus raifed from feed, may be afterwards propagated by off-fets from the roots, which being planted out, will flower the fe- cond year, and often produce even finer flowers than the mo- ther root.

The roots of thefe flowers fhould be taken out of the earth only every other year ) this fhould be done juft when the leaves are decayed, and they fhould not be kept out of ths earth above a fortnight.

The earth in which thefe flowers thrive beft, is a light fandy loam ; and if it be taken up with the turf and the grafs rotted among it before it is ufed, it will be fo much the better. They do not delight in a rich dunged foil, nor fhould they be placed where they are too much cxpofed to the fun ; for be- fides that the flowers foon fade in thefe places, the roots are alfo always found to decay ; but in an caft border, where they may have the fun till eleven o'clock, and where the ground is not too moift nor over dry, they will ftand a long time in flower, and thrive extremely well. Miller's Gard. Dic~t.

XIR, a word ufed by the chemifts to exprefs mercury.

XISINUM, a word ufcd by fome of the chemical writers to exprefs vinegar.

XOCHIOCO rZO, in botany, a name ufed by fome authors for the tree which produces the liquid amber, and is called the fweet gum by the inhabitants of the Weft-Indies. Her- nandez, p. 0,6.

XOCHITENACATL, in zoology, a name given by fome to the toucan, or American great beaked magpy. Ray's Orni- thology. See the article Toucan.

Xochitenacatl Alia, in zoology, the name of a bird defcribed by Nicremberg of the nature of the toucan or Bra(i~ lian magpy.

It is of the fize of a pigeon, its beak is large and thick, and is black and pointed j its wings and tail are variegated with black and white; it has a large black mark reaching from its back to the breaft ; the anterior part of the wings is yellow, the I reft