Brack les ham Beds

pl. (Geol.) The name given in England to that part of the Eocene deposits overlying the London Clay series. The B. appear to be the equivalent of the Calcaire gro ier. They are generally fo iliferous, and are particularly observable at Alum Bay in the Isle of Wight. Brack'ney, in Pennsylvania, a post-office of Susque hanna co. Bra'con, n. BRACON'IDE, n. pl. ( Zool.) A genus and fam. of Hymenopterous insects, allied to, but distinguished from the true Ichneumons by the hiatus which exists in them between the mandibles and the clypeus. Bract, Bractea; pl. BRACTS, or BRACTER, ( brakt.) (Gr. bracho, I crepitate.] ( Bot. ) A floral leaf, or modified leaf from the axil of which a flower-bud arises. Strictly speaking, the term bract should only be applied to the leaf from which the primary floral axis, whether simple or branched, springs; while the leaves which are produced on the axis between the bract and the outer envelope of the flower should be distinguished as bract lets or bracteoles. In ordinary descriptions, however, the term bract is used to indicate either kind of floral leaf. Bracts are sometimes large, and similar to the ordinary leaves of the plants upon which they are placed, as in the white dead-nettle. Such bracts are termed leafy, and can only be distinguished from the true leaves by their position with regard to the flower-stalk or flower. In general, however, bracts differ greatly from ordinary leaves. When the flower is se ile, the bracts are often applied closely to the calyx, and may thus be confounded with it. Again, when bracts become colored, they may be easily mistaken for parts of the corolla. In some instances they form part of the fruit, becoming incorporated with other organs; thus, the cones of the fir and the strobili i of the hop are composed of bracts arranged spirally, and enclosing fertile flowers; and the IMG:content-0724.png:[blocks in formation] 1. c. of tilia. c, involucel. 2. d, of campanule. 3. sium; a, involuare; scales on the fruit of the pine-apple are of the same nature. When bracts grow in a whorl or circle round a single flower, as in the mallow, or a head of flowers, as in the daisy, they are said to form an involucre; and when they grow at the base of a partial umbel, they are said to form an involucel ; when a number grow together, as in the cup of the acorn, they then constitute a cupule . Though the bract is generally a small and in conspicuous organ, it occasionally acquires a considerable size, and may actually surround all the flowers of IMG:content-0725.jpg:[ocr errors] IMG:content-0726.png:[blocks in formation] Bractle , a. Destitute of bracts. Brad. [A.S.) An initial syllable meaning Broad , as Bradford, broad ford. Brad, n. [Dan. braad , a goad or sting; Scot. brod.] A nail that, instead of a head, has a slight projection on one side of the top. Bradley, in Arkansas , a S.S.E. county, containing 958 sq. m. It is drained by the Saline and Moro Rivers. Surface, level. Soil , fertile, producing cotton and indian corn. Cap . Warren. -A post-office of the above county. Bradley, in Illinois , a post-village of Jackson co., 14 m. S.W. of Pinckneyville. Bradley, in Maine , a township of Penobscot co., on the Penobscot River, 45 m. N. by E. of the city of Ban- gor. Brad'ley, in Michigan , a post-village of Allegan co. Brad'ley, in Tenne ee , a county in the S.S.E. part of the State, touching Georgia. Area , 400 sq. m. Surface, hilly. Soil , fertile and well irrigated. Cap . , Cleveland. Pop . (1890), 13,600. Brad'leysvale, in Vermont , a former twp. of Caledo- nia co., now Concord and Victory twps., E ex co. Bradley ville, in low a , a post-village of Page co. Bradley ville, in Mi ouri , a post-village of Taney co. Brad'ock Down, n. A place near Liskeard, in Corn- wall, England, where, about the middle of Jan., 1643, Sir Ralph Hopton, with inferior numbers, defeated the Parliamentary army, with trifling lo on his part, taking 1,250 prisoners, and all the enemy's guns, . Brad's haw, JOHN, an eminent Puritan, who was pres- ident of the High Court of Justice which tried and con- demned King Charles I. B. in Cheshire, England, in 1586. In 1649, he was Chief Justice of Chester, and when the trial of the king was determined upon, B's resolute character pointed him out for president, which office, after a slight hesitation, he accepted. His deport- ment on the trial was lofty and unbending, in conformity to the theory which rendered the unhappy monarch a criminal and amenable; and everything was done, both for and by him, to give weight and dignity to this unex- ampled tribunal. On Cromwell's acce ion to the pro- tec to rate, he was deprived of his judgeship, but on the restoration of the Long Parliament, was elected pres- ident of the Council of State. B. died in 1659, and on his death-bed a erted, that if the king were to be tried and condemned again, he would be the first to agree to it. B. was magnificently buried in Westminster Abbey, whence, after the Restoration, his body was ejected as being that of a regicide, and hanged on a gibbet at Ty- burn, with those of Cromwell and Ireton. Bradford, a large and important parliamentary bor ough of England, W. Riding, co. York, 31 m. W. by S. of York, 8 W. of Leeds, and 183 N.N.W. of London. It is a well-built, paved, and lighted town, with some fine public buildings and literary institutions, among which St. George's Music Hall is a fine edifice in the Italian style, capable of accommodating 3,350 persons. There is also a fine park here for the use of the citizens. B. is densely populated, and the production of worsted, yarn, and stuffs forms the leading industry. Besides this staple, Bradtville, ( brat'vil ,) in Wisconsin , a post-village of the cotton and iron manufactures command an extensive trade. Large iron foundries (celebrated for their boiler and iron-plates the world over) are established at Bowl- ing and Low Moor, in the immediate vicinity of this town. Pop . (1891), 216,361. Bradford, in Alabama , a flourishing post-village of Coosa co., on So chap a toy Creek, 50 m. N. by E. of Mont- gomery Manf. Cottons. Brad'ford, in Indiana , a post-village of Harrison co., 12 m. N.N.E. of Corydon. Brad'ford, in low a , a post-village and township of Chick a saw co., 30 m. N. of Cedar Falls. Bradford, in Kentucky , a P. O. of Bracken co. Brad'ford, in Maine , a post-township of Penobscot co., Bradford, in Vl ., a thriving p.-twp. of Orange co., on the W. bank of the Connecticut River, 30 m. S. W. of Montpelier. Bradford, in Wisconsin , a township of Rock co. Bradford, in prov. of Ontario, a post-village of Sim- coe county, near Lake Simcoe, 41 miles N.N.W. of Toronto. Brad's haw, in Tenne ee, a post-village of Giles co., 70 m S. of Nashville. Bra'dy, in Michigan , a post-township of Kalamazoo co., 70 m. S.W. of Lansing. -A township of Saginaw co. Brady, in Ohio , a flourishing township of Williams county. Brady, JAMES T., a distinguished lawyer of the city of New York, one of the most fluent, witty, and eloquent members of that bar. He was an a ociate of Daniel Webster in the celebrated "India Rubber Case." B. 1815, D. 1869. Brady po'da, BRAD'YPODS, n. pl . [Gr. bradys, slow, and pous , podos , a foot.] ( Zool .) The Sloth family, order Edentata , the general character of which are described under the word, AI, q . v .-The Megatherium , Megalonyx and Mylodon , huge extinct sloth-like animals, whose remains are found in the superficial deposits of South America, and also in those of the U. States, specially in S. Carolina and Georgia, belong to the Bradypoda. Brad'ypus, n. [Lat.] ( Zool .) The name of the genus Sloth, family Bradypoda . Bra'dy's in Wisconsin , a post-village of Rich land co. Brady's Bend, in Pennsylvania , a post-township of Let him fear this, for it will come to pa , That every braggart shall be found an a .' Shaks . Armstrong co., on the W. bank of the Allegheny river, -a. Boastful; vainly ostentatious. 15 m. N.N.W. of Kit tanning. Pop . (1898) 1,340. Brady's Creek, in Texas , flows E. into San Saba river, San Saba co. Brady's Mill, in Maryland , a vill, of Alleghany co. Bradyville in Ohio , a post-village of Adams co., 8 m. from the Ohio River. Bradyville, in Tenne ee , a post-village of Cannon co., 56 m. E.S.E. of Nashville. Brae, ( brā , ) n. (See BRAY.) A declivity; a sloping piece of ground. (Almost exclusively confined to Scotland.) "Except where greenwood echoes rang, Amang the braes o' Ballochmyle." Burns . crack, to crash: Swed. and Goth. brag i , a scald, an emi- nent poet.] Literally, to crack; to make a noise; spe- cifically, to bluster, to boast; to vaunt: to swagger; to talk big. (Often followed by of ; and sometimes, but im- properly, by on.) "Yet lo in me what authors have to brag on, Reduc'd at last to hi in my own dragon." - Pope. Bradfordsville, in Kentucky , a post-village of Ma- rion co., on the Rolling fork of Salt River, 60 m. S. by W. -n. A boast or boasting; a vaunt. The American Dictionary and Cyclopedia Knudstorp. Here it was that he signalized himself in 1572, by the discovery of a new star in the constellation Ca iopeia. He soon after violently offended his relations by marrying a country girl, when the king interposed his authority to produce a reconciliation. In 1574 he lectured on astronomy at Copenhagen, and soon after, having travelled through several parts of Europe, he determined to settle with his family at Basle. The Danish king, Frederick II., unwilling to have his country deprived of a subject who was an honor to it, determined to retain him at home, by providing him with every convenience for his studies, and rewarding him according to his merits. He therefore presented him with the island of Huen, or Ween, in the Sound, for the erection of an observatory, gave him an ample pension, and a canonry in the Cathedral of Roskilde. He enjoyed this situation, and these advantages, about twenty years, during which period he strenuously applied himself to the cultivation of astronomical science. The death of Frederick II. interrupted his studies, and being deprived of his pension and canonry by the ill offices of envious and illiberal courtiers, he left Denmark, and ultimately settled at Prague, under the patronage of the Emperor Rodolph, who was a lover of science and learned men. This prince provided for him most magnificently; and he began to occupy himself with his usual pursuits, and gathered around him a number of mathematical students, among whom was the celebrated Kepler. He had not long enjoyed these advantages, when he was seized with a disease, which terminated in death, 1601. B. is known as the inventor of a new hypothesis to explain the motions of the planetary bodies. His scheme was a kind of medium between the ancient system of Ptolemy and that which had been advanced by Copernicus. He supposed the earth to be fixed motionle in the centre of the universe, around which he imagined the sun to revolve in a year, and the moon in a month; the other planets performing their course around the sun, and being carried with it in its revolution around the earth; and the whole of this system, together with that of the firmament or orb of the fixed stars, was supposed to have a diurnal motion also. The obvious difficulties in this scheme, and its inferiority to the simpler, and now generally received, system of Copernicus, have led some to undervalue the abilities of Tycho, who, it ought to be recollected, had for his object the formation of an hypothesis, which would explain the celestial phenomena without admitting the revolutionary motions of the planet we inhabit. Neither does the fame of Tycho rest upon the merits or the ingenuity of his theory, for he was a skilful practical astronomer, and made many important observations on the stars, contained in the works published by himself, and in the famous Rodolphine Tables of his disciple Kepler. Brahil'ov, or Brail'off, in Turkey in Europe. See IBRAIL. Brah'ma, (bra'ma.) [Sans. probably from the root brih , to grow, to expand; whence briha , wriha , to move intensely, hence to raise, to produce, to create.] ( Hin doo Myt.) The name of the first of the three gods who constitute the Trimurti , (Fig. 247) or triad of principal Hindoo deities. The epithets applied to this divinity are very numerous, some of the most usual being Swayambhu, the self-existing: Parameshti, who abides in the most exalted place: Pitamaha , the great father; Pra japati , the lord of creatures, Lokesa , the ruler of the world, .: Brahm , the e ence of the Supreme Being in the abstract, devoid of personal individuality, to whose name so much reverence is attached that it is considered criminal to pronounce it, is said to have given birth to Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva simultaneously; and to hare allotted to the first the province of creating , to the second that of preserving, and to the third that of destroying. Accordingly, ever since the creation of the world, B. has had little or nothing to do, and it will not be till the 10th avatar , or incarnation, that his services will be put in Fig . 406. - BRAHMA. learned or sacerdotai cla , and its members have maintained a more extensive sway than the priests of any other nation. Their chief privileges consist in reading the Vedas , q. v., in instituting sacrifices, in imparting religious instruction, in asking alnıs, and in exemption from capital punishment. The whole life of the B. is devoted to the study of the sacred writings. Their importance dates from a time later than that of the early Vedic hymns, in which Brahma himself is not known as a god, and the B. appears as one among a number of priests in no way his inferiors. After the promulgation of the Code of Menu , q. v., the B. gradually established their supremacy. Of ancient Brahmani cal science the principal remains are their astronomical and trigonometrical methods, both of which have given rise to frequent and learned discu ion. Among the modern B. we look it vain for the deep learning that characterized the ancient members of this order; for, with the exception of metaphysical disquisitions, which have ever been a favorite study among them, the learning of the present race of B. is exceedingly meagre. Their morals also are woefully deteriorated; and while they are the sole depositaries and ministers of a religion which in point of purity of morals yields only to the Christian, their conduct is characterized by the most vile and licentious practices; a spirit of avarice, falsehood, and revenge is everywhere visible; and in many cases superstition and fanaticism have been exchanged for infidelity and atheism. See also BRAMO SOMAJ.