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Distribution, in Archite&ure. Diftrihition of the plan, is the dividing, and difpenfing the feveral Parts, and Pieces, which compofe the Plan of a Building. Sec Buid-
ING.
Distribution of Ornaments, is an equal, orderly pla- cing of the Ornaments in any Member of Architecture. See Ornament.
DISTRIBUTIVE Juftice, is that whereby we give every Perfon what belongs to him. See Justice.
DISTRICT, the Territory, or Extent of Jurifdiction of a Judge. See Jurisdiction.
A Judge, or Officer cannot judge, or aft out of his own DiftriS. See Judge.
District, is properly the Place wherein a Man has the Power of diftraining ; or, the Circuit, or Territory, wherein one may be compell'd to appear.
Where we fay, Hors defon Fee ; others fay, Extra 23;'- ftriclam fuum.
DISTRINGAS, a Writ direfled to the Sheriff, or other ' Officer, commanding him to diftrain one for a Debt to the King; or for his Appearance at a ccrtainDay. See Distress.
D1SVELLOPED, in Heraldry, is ufed much in the fame Senfe with Difplay d. Thus Colours faid in an Army to be flying, are in Heraldry faid to be difvelloped.
DITCH, in Fortification, call'd alfo Fofs, and Moat, a Trench dug round the Rampart, or Wall of a fortified Place between the Scarp and Counterfcarp. See Moat.
Some Ditches are dry ; others full of Water : Each whereor have their Advantages.
The Earth dug out of the Ditch ferves to form the Ram- parr. See Rampart.
The Ditch fhould be of fuch Breadth as that the Talleft- Tree may not reach over it, i. e. from 15 to ic Fathoms; Tho' the Rule others give for the Dimenfions of the Ditch, is, that it afford Earth enough to build the Rampart of due Magnitude.
The Space between the Rampart and Ditch, being about € Foot, is call'd the Berm, or Lift. See Berm.
DITHYRAMBIC, belonging to the Dithyrambus ; as Dithyrambic Verfe, Dithyrambic Poet, Dithyrambic Heat, S$c.
A Compound, Dithyrambic Word, Mr. Dacier obferves, has fometimes its Beauty and Force. Some Moderns call Compofitions in the Tafte of the Ode, only not diftinguifh'd into Strophes, and confifling of all Kinds of Verfe indiffe- rently, Dithyrambic Odes. See Dithyrambus.
Dithyrambic 'Poetry owes its Birth to Greece, and the Tranfports of Wine. It favours firongly of its Original 5 as admitting of no Rules, but the Sallies of a fiery Imagina- tion. And yet Art is not quite excluded ; but delicately applied, to guide and reftrain the Dithyrambic Impetuofity, and only indulge it in Flights that are pleafing. In effect, what our Poets fay of the Ode, is more true of the Dithy- rambus, than of the Ode, that its Diforder is an Effect of Art. See Pindaric.
DITHYRAMBUS, in the ancient Poetry, a Hymn in Honour of Bacchus, full of Tranfport, and Poetical Race.
The Meafure, which is what diftinguifhes this Kind of Poetry, is faid to have been invented by Dithyrambus, a Theban ; but Pindar attributes it to the Corinthians ; and the modern Etymologifts furnilh us with another Origin of the Word.
In effect, the Verfe might be call'd thus from the God it was confecrated to, who himfelf was call'd Dithyram- bus ; Either on Account of his having been brought twice into the World, according to the Fable of Seinele and Ju- piter, or on A ccount of his having triumph 'd twice 5 the Word being a Compound of Jit, twice, and df iapftt, 'tri- umph.
Be this as it will, the Ancients, as we are told by Ariftotle and Horace, gave the Appellation Dithyrambus to thofe Verfcs wherein none of the common Rules, or Meafures were obferv'd, much like thofe call'd by the French Vers Libres, by the Italians Verfi Sciolti, and by the modern Greeks, Poli- tic!, a Name they give to Profe, which thefe Verfes re- ferable more than Poetry. See Pindaric.
We have now no Remains of the Dithyrambi of the an- cient Poets, fo that we cannot fay precifely what their Mea- fure was : All we know is, that it was very bold, and ir- regular. The Poets not only took the Liberty to forge new Words for the Purpofe, but made double, and compound Words, which contributed very much to the Magnificence of the Dithyrambus.
Horace has fometimes imitated 'em. Dacier, Fa. Corn- mire, and fome other modern Writers, have comnofed Latin Pieces of all Kinds of Verfe indifferently, according as the Subject, and Words prefented themfelves,. without any Order, ° r Dl fe° ution into Strophes, and call 'em Dithyrambi.
DITONE, Ditonvm, in Mufic, an Interval comprehend- ing two Tones. See Interval, and Tone.
The Proportion of the Sounds that form the Ditone is 4 to 5 ; and that or the Semi-ditone, as 5 to 6. Fa Parran. makes the Ditone the 4th Kind of fimple Concords,' as com- prehending two Tones, a greater, and a leffer : Others make it the firft Difcord ; dividing the Ditone into iS equal Parts, or Comma's, the Nine on the acute Side make the greater Tone, as affined by Salomon d.e Caux.
The Word is form'd of jvj fj twice, and tIpis, Tone.
DITRIGLYPH, in Architecture, the Space between two Triglyphs. SeeTRlGLYPH.
DIVAL, in Heraldry, the Herb Night-Jhade, ufed by fuch as blazon with Flowers and Herbs, inftcad of Colours and Metals, for Sable, or Black. See Sable.
D1VALIA, in Antiquity, a Feaft held among the ancient Romans on the 21ft of December, in Honour oi the Goddefs Angerona ; whence the Divalia were alfo call'd Ange- ronalia.
This Feaft was eftablifh'd on Occafion of a Difeafe which deftroyed Man and Beaft : That Difeafe was a Kind of Squmancy, or Inflammation and Swelling of the Throat, call'd in Latin Angina ; whence the Appellation Angeronalia, as Macrobius relates Lib. I. Saturn. C. 12. See Angerona- lia.
On the Day of this Feaft, thePontifices pcrform'd Sacrifice in the Temple of Volufia, or the Goddefs of Joy and Plea- lure, who was the fame with Angerona ; and fuppofed to drive away all the Sorrows and Chagrins of Life.
DIVAN, a Council-Chamber, or 'Court wherein Juftice is adminiftred, in the Eaftcrn Nations, particularly among the Turks.
Travellers relate Wonders of the Silence, and Expedition of the Divans of the Eaft.
We fay, The Grand Vizier has held a Divan; meaning, he has affembkd the Grandees of the Port, to deliberate of the Affairs of the Empire.
Divan is an Arabic Word, fignifying an Ffirade, or the fame with Sofa in the Turkip Dialect. See Sofa.
TheWotd is alfo us'd for a Hal!, in the private Houfes of the Orientals : The Cuflom of China does not allow the receiving of Vifits in the inner Parts of the Houfe, but only at the Entry, in a Divan contriv'd on Purpofe for Ceremo- nies. Le Comfte.
DivAN-Begui, or Beghi, one of the Minifters of State in Perfia. The Divan-Begui is the Controller of Juftice : His Place is the laft of the fix Minifters of the fecond Rank, who are all under the Etmadauler, or firft Minifter.
To the Tribunal of the Divan-Begui Appeals lye from Sentences pafs'd by the Governours. He has a fix'd Stipend, or Appointment of 50000 Crowns, that he may render Juftice gratis. AH the Sergeants, Ulhers, S?c. of the Court, are in rhe Service of the Divan-Begui. He takes Cognizance of the Criminal Caufes of the Cams, Governours, and other great Lords of Perfia, when accufed of any Fault, and re- ceives Appeals from the Daruga.
There are Divan-Beghi's not only at Court, and in the Ca- pital, but alfo in the Provinces, and other Cities of the Empire. He is not confin'd by any other Law, or Rule in the Acimi- niftration of Juftice, but the Alcoran ; which, too, he inter- prets at Plcafure. He only takes Cognizance of Criminal Caufes.
DIVERGENT, or DIVERGING Lines, in Geometry, are fuch whofeDiftance is continually incrcafing. SccLine.
Lines which converge one Way, diverge the°oppofite Way! Sec Converging.
Divergent, or Diverging, in Opticks, is particularly applied to Rays, which iH'uing from a radiant Point, or ha- ving in their Paffage undergone a Refraftion, or Reflection do continually recede further from each other. See Ray. '
In which Senfe the Word is oppofed to Convergent, which implies the Rays te approach each other ; or to tend to a Centre, where being arrived, they interfect, and if conti- nued further, become diverging. See Converging.
Concave GlaOls render the Rays diverging ; and Convex ones, converging. See Lens.
Concave Mirrors make the Rays converge; and Con- vex ones, diverge. See Mirror, and alfo Convexity, Concavity, Ray, Refraction, and Reflexion.
'Tis demonftrated, in Opticks, that as the Diameter of a pretty large Pupil does not exceed 2"' or j of a Digit ; Di- verging Rays, flowing from a radiant Point, will °cnter the Pupil, parallel, to all Intents and Purpofes, if the Diftancc of the radiant from the Eye be 40000 Feet. See Light.
Diverging Hyperbola, is one whofcl.egs turn their Con- vexities towards one another, and run towards quite con- trary Ways. See Hyperbola.
DIVERSION, in War, is when you attack an Ennemy in one Place, where he is weak, and unprovided, with t)efign to make him call his Forces from another Place, where he was going to make an Irruption.
The Romans had no Way to drive Hannibal out of Italy, but to make a Diverfwn, by attacking Carthage.
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