mantra (man tra)

[Skt., thought, a hymn or text of the Vedas, a spell, a charm, He [the Brahman] may play the mountebank or the conjurer, and with a stock of mantras and charms proceed to the curing of murrain in cattle, pip in chickens, and short winded ne in old women. J. W. Palmer, The New and the Old, p. 375. Mantuan (man'tū-an), a. and n. [L. Man- tuan us , of Mantua, Mantua (see def.).] I. a. or to the province or former duchy of Mantua, in northern Italy: frequently with reference to Virgil (born near Mantua) or his works. And let your comment be the Mantuan Muse. Pope , E ay on Criticism, 1. 129. Ages elaps'd ere Homer's lamp appear'd, And ages ere the Mantuan swan was heard. Cowper , Table-Talk, 1. 557. manucaptor See key1, 4. (b), and keyboard. (b) In organs, a keyboard for the hands: opposed to pedal: as, an organ with two manuals. Abbreviated M. -4. A fire-engine worked by hand, as distinguished from the more modern steam fire-engine. See fire -engine.