DESCENT

n. De-sesnt'. Gr., Karafiauris. Lat., descensio, des census (from descenders, to descend). Fr., descente. Ger., Senkung (1st def.), Hinabsteigen (1st def.), Descendenz (2d def.). It., disc end i men to. Sp., descenso. 1. The act of moving downward or the state of having moved downward. 2. Ancestral origin. D. of the foetus. Fr., descente de la partie fcetale. Ger., Senkung des Foetus. The subsidence of the foetus toward the close of gestation. D. of the testicles. See DES CENSUS testiculorum. D. of the uterus. See DES CENSUS uteri. Theory of d. See Transmutation THEORY. [s. 538]