Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 7.djvu/350

332 be possessed of property in a foreign land, or contract a foreign alliance for any of his children, and was moreover liable to the infliction of a fine -for any trespass he might commit. The office was maintained, however,. till the last days of the republic, and from time to time was held by men who knew how to make it something more than such an empty simulacrum. (See Cecchetti, II Doge di Venezia, 1864.) In Genoa the institution of the doge dates from 1339, and at first he was elected without any restriction by popular suffrage, and held office for life ; but after the reform effected by Andrea Doria in 1528, the term was reduced to two years, plebeians were declared ineligible, and the appointment was intrusted to the members of t the great and the little councils, who were bound, however, to employ, in proof of impartiality, nearly as complex a machinery as that of the later Venetians.  DOG-FISH, a name applied to several species of the smaller sharks, and given in common with such names as hound and beagle, owing to the habit these fishes have of pursuing or hunting their prey in packs. The Small-spotted Dog-fish or Rough Hound (Scyllium canicuhi) and the Large- spotted or Uurse Hound (Scylliiim catulus) are also known as ground-sharks. They keep near the sea bottom, feeding chiefly on the smaller fisbes and Crustacea; and causing great annoyance to the fishermen by the readiness with which they take bait. They differ from the majority of sharks, and resemble the rays in being ovoviviparous. Their young are brought forth inclosed in semi-transparent horny cases, known on the British coasts as mermaids purses, and these have tendril-like prolongations from each of the four corners, by means of which they are moored to sea-weed or some other fixed object near the shore, until the young dog-fish is ready to make its exit. The larger of these species attains a length of 4 to 5 feet, the smaller rarely more than 30 inches. The Picked Dog-fish (Acantldas vidgaris) is pre-eminently the dog-fish. It is the smallest and most abundant of the British sharks, and occurs in the temperate seas of both northern and southern hemispheres. It rarely attains a length of two feet, the female, as in most sharks, being larger than the male. The body is round and tapering, the snout projects, and the mouth is placed far under. There are two dorsal fins, each of which is armed on its anterior edge with a sharp and slightly curved spine, hence its name &quot; picked.&quot; In order to strike with these spines the fish first bends itself into a bow, and by a quick motion causes them to spring asunder in opposite directions, seldom failing thus to strike the object aimed at. The dog-fish is exceedingly prolific, the female, according to Couch, producing young almost daily for 9 or 10 months in the year. These are not contained in egg cases, as in the ground-sharks, but are produced alive. It is gregarious, and is abundant at all seasons everywhere on the British coasts. In 1858 an enormous scull of dog-fish, many square miles in extent, appeared in the north of Scotland, when, says Couch, &quot; they were to be found floating in myriads on the surface of every harbour.&quot; They are the special enemies of the fisherman, injuring his nets, removing the hooks from his lines, and spoiling his fish for the market by biting pieces out of them as they hang on his lines. Still greater injury is caused to the fisheries in the wholesale destruction of small fishes by this predacious species. They are, however, eaten, both fresh and salted, by fishermen, especially on the west coast of England.  DOGMATIC (Ger. Dogmatik) is the name usually given by modern writers, especially on the Continent, to that branch of theological study which treats of the doctrines of Christianity. As there are considerable varieties in the conception and treatment of dogmatic by different theologians, churches, and schools, it will be best to give an historical account of the origin and usage of the term.

The Greek word 8oy/&amp;gt;ta, from which it is derived, has two meanings, one of which is found in the LXX. and New Testament, while the other is given to it by some of the ancient philosophical writers. According to the former sense, it denotes a decree or ordinance, i.e., a precept as to conduct or observance, proceeding from human or divine authority (Luke ii. 1, Acts xvi, 4, Eph. ii. 15). This is the only meaning in which the word is used in Scripture ; but by Plato, Cicero, Seneca, and others it is employed to denote the doctrines of the philosophers, i.e., principles or theories formulated or accepted in the different schools. In this latter sense the word was used by the early Christian writers, as describing indifferently heathen, Christian, or heretical doctrines, as the case might be ; although some times, when the word was applied to the Christian verities, it may have acquired, from the other use of it, a certain tinge of the idea of authority belonging to the doctrines of the faith. As early as Cyril of Jerusalem (Catech. iv. 2) the distinction was made between the doctrinal and the moral elements of Christianity ; and the term Soy/xa was appropriated to the former, the latter being called rjOixov dgere. But it was not till long afterwards that the adjective, &quot; dogmatic,&quot; was used to distinguish a particular branch of theological study ; for in early times the need of subdivision in the scientific study of Christian truth was not felt, and the name theology was sufficient to describe all works deal ing with that subject in any way. The progress of thought and inquiry in the history of the Church has, however, made it possible and necessary to treat the truths of Christianity in various different ways, from distinct points of view ; and hence different kinds and departments of theology have come to be distinguished. In the 17th cen tury the divines who wrote systems of theology gave different titles to their works, indicating the special manner of their treatment ; e.g., Mastricht, Theologia Theoretico- Practica ; F. Turretin, Theol. Elendica ; Marckius, Com pendium Theol. Did actico-Elencticum ; Quenstedt, Theol. Didactico-Polemica ; Baier, Theol. Positiva. The title Theologia Dogmatica was first adopted by John Francis Buddaaus, a Lutheran divine, in 1724. This ter minology was followed by J. II. Michaelis, Seiler, and others, and from it the word Dogmatik as a substantive came into common use in Germany. In England and America, in so far as any specific designation of the general term theology or divinity has been thought necessary, the title &quot; systematic&quot; has been until recently more current than &quot; dogmatic.&quot; As, however, the division and mutual rela tions of the various theological studies have been very thoroughly discussed in recent times, especially by German theologians, and as the name &quot; dogmatic &quot; has been used by them to denote one principal department of these, there is good reason for its adoption by English writers. Some prefer the form &quot;dogmatics,&quot; after the analogy of &quot;mathematics, &quot; physics,&quot; &c. ; but this seems awkward and needless.

But there is among the best authorities on the subject a considerable difference as to the proper nature and place in the theological sciences of dogmatic. There are two distinct conceptions of its nature, each supported by eminent names, according to one of which it is an historical, and according to the other a philosophical study. The difference may be said to turn on what substantive is to be understood along with the adjective dogmatica. If, according to what was undoubtedly the older usage, we supply theologia, then the name &quot; dogmatic theology &quot; would denote the study of God and divine things in a doctrinal manner, or so as to exhibit its results in a series of doctrines. The epithet dogmatic would indicate, not the subject of the 