Driver ant

(Zool.) A species of ant. See For MICIDE. [A. S. drifan ; Ger. treiben ; O. Ger. triban ; Dan. drive ; allied to Sansk. dru , to run, to flow on the ground.] To impel or cause to run forward by force; to move by physical force; to compel or force along; to impel; to hurry on; to push forward; as, to drive a horse, to drive a nail, to drive into the street, . "And the driving is like the driving of Jehu,... for he driveth furiously."-2 Kings ix. 20. -To chase; to hunt; to pursue; to urge toward a snare, trap, corral, or inclosure; as, "to drive the deer with hound and horn." (Chevy Chase.) - To impel a team of horses or oxen to move forward, and to direct their course; to guide or regulate a carriage drawn by horses, mules, .; to impel to greater speed; as, to drive four-in-hand, to drive deer, to drive a buggy, to drive a person home, . "Who drives fat oxen, should himself be fat." - Dr. Johnson. -To force to move on; to hurry forward inconsiderately; to distre ; to constrain; to straiten; to impel by the influence of pa ion; as, driven to beg by nece ity, to drive one mad. "This kind of speech is in the manner of desperate men far driven." - Spenser. -To carry on; to keep in motion; to prosecute; to follow as an occupation or busine ; as, to drive a good trade, to drive a bargain. - To clear by forcing away the contents of. the contrary, to a ume a religious aspect; and in the larger monasteries, among the monks of old, the wa ail bowl was placed at the right hand of the abbot in the refectory. It was handed round to each, and was called Poculum Char it at is . In the English universities a similar cup is still pa ed round, called the grace cup . In the dinners given by the public companies of the city of London, after the cloth has been removed, the Master and wardens rise, and "drink to their visitors in a loving cup, and bid them all heartily welcome!" A silver cup filled with warm spiced wine is then handed round to all present. Some of the drinking-cups belonging to the priesthood in the Middle Ages were of the most costly workmanship. That of Thomas à Becket is still preserved; it is made of ivory, mounted with silver, and studded on the summit and base with pearls. Round the cup is an inscription, "Vinum tuum bibe cum gaudio" (drink thy wine with joy); but round the lid, deeply engraved, is the restraining injunction "Sobrii estote" (be moderate). The word toast , with regard to drinking usages, is comparatively modern; it originated in the practice of putting a piece of toast in a jug of ale. According to "The Tatler," the word toast was first applied to the drinking of healths at Bath, in the reign of Charles II. A celebrated beauty of the time -n. An excursion for exercise, busine , or pleasure, "To drive the country, force the swains away." - Dryden. -To purify and collect by the rapid motion of an air-current; as, to drive feathers. - To urge; to pre to a conclusion, by moral influence; as, to drive an argument home. - To conduct; to take charge of; to set and regulate the speed or course of; as, to drive an engine. (Mining.) To dig a horizontal gallery in a mine. -v. n. To be forced or caused to run along; to be impelled; to be moved by any physical agency or force; as, a ship drives before the wind. - To rush and pre with violence; to move with resistle force; as, troops driving back a mob, a driving storm. was in the large public bath, and a number of her admirers were standing around. One of them took a gla of water from the bath and drank to her health; while another, who was standing by, half tipsy, offered to jump in, saying, that, although he objected to the liquor, he would like to have the toast. From that time the word was applied to drinking the health of any beauty at private parties, and, in time, all sorts of subjects were toasted at public and private feasts. Toasts also began to be accompanied by cheers; and at the present day, at large public banquets, toast-masters are generally appointed, who not only give out the subject of the toast, but lead the cheers which follow. Many drinking usages are connected with domestic events, and seem to have been handed down from ancient times. The custom of drinking at births, christenings, and marriages can easily be accounted for; but the strangest usage of all is the practice of drinking at funerals. The wakes held in Ireland and some parts of Scotland have been long maintained, and are still kept up by habit. They probably owed their origin to the want of excitement among the phlegmatic northern nations, and the long dark nights in a cheerle climate.