walnutwood

& a. A. As subst.: The wood of the walnut-tree (q. v.). B. As adj .: Made of the wood of the walnut-tree; as, a walnut - wood table. wal-pürg-îne, wal-purg-ite (w as v), subst. [After the Walpurgis-lode, in which it was found; suff. -ine, -ite ( Min .).] Mineral.: A triclinic mineral, occurring in thin, scale-like crystals, with various other uranium compounds, at the Wei er Hirsch mine, near Schneeberg, Saxony. Specific gravity, 58; luster, somewhat adamantine to greasy; color, wax-yellow. Composition: A hydrated arsenate of bismuth and uranium, with the suggested formula 4R2O3AsO5+ 5HO, in which R2O3=the oxides of bismuth and uranium. Wal-purg-is (Was V), s . (See compound.] Walpurgis-night, s. The eve of May 1, which has become a ociated with some of the most popular witch superstitions of Germany, though its connection with Walpurgis, Walpurga, or Walburga, a female saint of the eighth century, is not satisfactorily accounted for, her feast falling properly on Feb. 25. On this night the witches were supposed to ride on broomsticks and he-goats to some appointed rendezvous, such as the highest point of the Hartz Mountains or the Brocken, where they held high festival with their master, the devil. wal-rŭs, subst . [Orig.from Scand in avian; cogn. with Sw. vallro ; Danish hvalros ; Icel. (in an inverted form) hro - hvalr =a horse-whale, the name being given (it is suggested) from the noise made by the animal sometimes resembling a neigh; A. S. hors- whæl =horse-whale, a walrus. ( Skeat .)] Zoology : Trichechus rosmarus ; called also the Morse, Sea-horse, and Sea-cow. The Walrus is now confined to the regions within the Arctic Circle, though its extinct ancestors had a much wider geographical range. It is a large carnivorous marine mammal, ordinarily from ten to twelve feet long, with a girth of nearly as much; "it is said that it sometimes attains a length of twenty feet" ( Van Hoeven ); muzzle abruptly truncated, with long and remarkably strong bristly moustaches; small eyes; external ear wanting, though the orifice is distinctly visible: body large and sack like, tapering toward the tail; hind limbs short, connected by a membrane which covers the tail, fore limbs strong and stumpy, all with five digits. The hide is of a tawny-brown color, with difficulty penetrated by bullets, and has been likened to a tough, flexible coat of mail. The upper canines are developed in adults of both sexes into immense tusks, each from fifteen inches totwo feet long, and weighing ten pounds and upward. In some individuals the points, converge toward, and in others they diverge from each other. This was one reason why Fremery wished to adopt two species; but Sun devall has shown that scarcely two skulls can be examined without minute differences in the size and direction of the tusks being perceived. The most important function of these tusks is digging shell-fish, the favorite food of the Walrus, out of the banks and mud of shoal-water. They are also employed to raise the body out of the water, by digging them into ice-floes, which probably gave pine, pit, sire, sir, marine; gō, pot, walt rise to the legend of the Rosmarine (q. v.); and they form terrible weapons of offense, as by a quick turn of the neck the animal can strike upward, downward, or sideways with equal dexterity. Walruses are gregarious, and are found on the sea shore and on ice-floes; some keep guard while those of the main body sleep, and when danger threatens the sentinels awaken the others by bellowing. They are said to be monogamous, and the female brings forth atnine months one calf, usually on the icefloes. In disposition they are quiet and inoffensive, unle attacked or during the love-season, or if their young are in danger, when they become desperately aggre ive, and furiously attack the hunters on the ice or in boats. The habitat of the Walrus and its numbers, owing to reckle slaughter by sealers and whalers, are fast decreasing, and the few remaining seek unfrequented spots in high latitudes inacce ible to sealers. At one time there was a considerable trade in Walrus hunting, but it is now at a very low ebb; the tusks alone have any commercial value at the present time; but formerly Walrus-hides were used for various purposes, such as machine-bands, . *walt, adj . [A. S. wealt = unsteady; unwealt = steady, from wealtan to roll.] Naut .: An old term equivalent to crank. ( Smyth .) *walt, v. i . [WALT, a.] To roll over; to totter, to fall, to throw, to rush. [WELTER.] wal-ter, v. i. [WALT, a.] *1. To roll, to welter. IMG:content-0640.jpg:[blocks in formation]