Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 7.djvu/154

Rh me. Thou art a great sinner, said he. I replied, Canst thou not tell me something new, Satan ? ; This realism of belief in an evil power near to man, and constantly assailing him, continued more or less all through the 17th century, and was especially strong, as Mr Buckle has shown in his well-known volumes, in Scotland. He has somewhat overcharged his picture ; but he presents at the same time indisputable facts which leave no doubt that the clergy and people alike imagined that &quot;the devil was always and literally at hand that he was haunting them, speaking to them, and tempting them. Go where they would he was there.&quot; With the rise of a rationalistic temper throughout Europe, in the 18th century, this belief in the pervading influence of diabolic agency began to disappear. The sense of the supernatural decayed in all directions, and especially the old belief in the arbitrary control exercised by an evil power over human destiny. And while the religious impulse has gained greatly since then, and shown renewed vigour both in an evangelical and catholic direction, it cannot be said that the earlier faith in the operations of a personal devil has acquired reascendency. It may be still the prevailing opinion of Christendom that there is an evil power working in the world opposed to the divine ; but whether this power is personal, or how far it touches the human will, or again, whether there is a subterranean kingdom of demons with a prince of demons or devil at their held, and how far such a kingdom has any relation to human destiny, are all questions that must be held to be very unsettled, or maintained with very doubtful confidence in any section of the Christian church. It is our business simply to note such a change in the attitude of Christian belief, and not to express any opinion as to its advantage or otherwise. It is too much to speak with M. Reville of Satan as a &quot; fallen majesty ;&quot; but the idea of the devil certainly no longer bulks in Christian thought as it once did, nor is his reign the recognized influence that it once was over human life and experience. (j. T.)

 DEVIL FISH, or SEA DEVIL (Lophius piscatorius), an Acanthopterygian fish belonging to the family Pediculati, so named from its hideous aspect, produced mainly by the enormous size of its head in proportion to the rest of its body. The latter tapers off rapidly towards the tail, and gives the creature the appearance of a gigantic tadpole a resemblance to which it owes the name of frog-fish, applied to it from the earliest times. The cleft of the mouth is also exceedingly wide, measuring 14 inches in a specimen 4| feet-long ; and when the mouth is open the lower jaw protrudes beyond the upper, while both jaws are armed with several rows of formidable teeth. The pectoral fins are broad, and are rendered conspicuous by the prolonga tion of the carpal bones to which they are attached ; the ventral fins are palmate, and are placed far forward on the body. The sea devil is a sluggish fish, and, being at the same time exceedingly voracious, is said to have recourse to stratagem in order to satisfy its inordinate appetite. Three anterior dorsal spines, isolated from the others, and attached to the head in front of the eyes, are so modified as to form long filiform appendages, two of these being articulated to the skull by means of a bony ring, and thus capable of being moved in all directions by appropriate muscles, while the end of the front tentacle is broad and flattened, and of a shining, silvery aspect. Concealing itself in the mud of the sea-bottom, it waves these tentacles aloft, and the silvery extremity of the front filament acts as a bait in tempting the smaller fishes to approach near enough to be seized by the capacious jaws beneath. On this account the creature has received the name of angler, or fishing frog. The lobes, which form a fringe around the anterior part of the body, probably perform, although in a minor degree, the same function as the angling apparatus on the head. Although its prey is usually taken at the bottom, it has been known to ascend and float upon the surface of the water in search of food, and thus sometimes to capture sea fowl. Not unfrequently, also, it lays hold on cod or other fish as these are being drawn up hooked to the fisherman s line, and when caught with other fishes in the net it busies itself in devouring as many as possible of its fellow-prisoners. As a food fish the sea devil is value less, but as the process of its digestion proceeds but slowly, the fishermen often capture it for the fish contained in its stomach. Couch tells of one which, when opened, contained nearly three-fourths of a hundred of herrings, all of them fit for the market. It attains a length of 5 feet, ordinary specimens measuring about 3J feet. It is an inhabitant of the. seas of the temperate regions of Europe, North America, Asia, and Africa.

 DEVISE. See.

 DEVIZES, a municipal and parliamentary borough and market town of England, in North Wilts, situated on the Kennet and Avon canal, 86 miles west of London by rail It stands on a plateau in the centre of the county, near the northern limit of Salisbury Plain. The town, which is of considerable antiquity, consists of a market-place with streets diverging therefrom. Some of the houses retain their antique timber construction. In the middle of the market-place there stands a large cross erected by Lord Sidmouth in 1815. The principal public buildings are the town hall, the corn exchange (a spacious and handsome building), the county jail, the Bear Club charity school, and the churches. St John s Church dates from the reign of Henry I., but has received numerous additions and repairs, and was restored in 1863; it belongs to the Norman. Perpendicular style of architecture. The building is com plete, with nave, transept, chancel, and chantry chapels. St Mary s is also of ancient origin, but was mostly rebuilt in the 15th century. Besides these there are chapels be longing to the various nonconformist bodies. Devizes at one time was famous for its woollen manufactures, but these have long been discontinued, and the only articles now manu factured are silk and snuff. Ale is also brewed. There is, however, a large trade in grain carried on ; and the Devizes corn-market is one of the most important in the west of England. The town is said to have taken its rise after the erection of the formidable castle which once stood there, but has now entirely disappeared. This fortress was built about the year 1132 by Bishop Roger of Salisbury, in the reign of Henry I. In 1138 it was seized by Stephen in his campaign against the bishops, and three years thereafter was taken and held by Robert Fitz Herbert on behalf of Queen Maud. He did not, however, retain possession of it for any length of time. It was eventually dismantled in 1376. During the wars of the common wealth Devizes was unsuccessfully besieged by Waller in 1643, but was taken by Fairfax and Cromwell two years later. It received its borough charter from Maud under the name of De Vies; and it is governed by a mayor, 6 aldermen, and 18 councillors. From the time of Edward III. it was represented in Parliament by two members, but the Reform Act of 1868 reduced its representation to one member. The borough, which has an area of 907 acres, is divided into two wards north and south. Population, in 1851, 6554 ; and in 187-1, 6839.

 DEVONPORT, a municipal and parliamentary borough of England, in the county of Devon, contiguous to the towns of East Stonehouse and Plymouth, the seat of one of the royal dockyards, and an important naval and military station. It is situated immediately above Ply mouth Sound, occupying a triangular peninsula formed by Stonehouse Pool on the east and the Hamoaze on the west. The town proper is inclosed by a line of ramparts 12 feat 