Fig.10. Didus ineptus:Hooded Dodo. Fig.12. Diomedea exulans: wandering albatross. Cooper feulp. the male plants, so as to be within the reach of the farina fœcundans. DIOMEDIA, the albatross, in natural history, a genus of birds of the order anseres, of which there are many species. The diomedia exulans, or wandering albatross, is found in many parts of the world, but is very abundant at the Cape of Good Hope. Its length is sometimes four feet, and its extent, from wing to wing, ten. Its sounds are harsh, and thought to resemble the braying of an ass. Its arrival at Kamtschatka is regarded as an infallible presage of the speedy arrival of vast shoals of fish; upon these, however emaciated when it arrives, it fattens within a very short time. It quits Kamtschatka in August, and retires to Patagonia and the Falkland islands, where it builds its nest with earth, on the ground, a foot in height, and of a circular figure. While the female sits, the male is incessant in his assiduities to provide for her subsistence, and both are so tame as to permit any person to push them from their nest, and deprive them of their eggs, without the slightest resistance. See Pl. Nat. Hist. Fig. 12. DIOPTRICS, the science of refractive vision, or that part of optics which considers the different refractions of light in passing through different media, as air, water, glass, &c. See OPTICS. DIPLOMA, an instrument or licence given by colleges, societies, &c. to a clergyman to exercise the ministerial function, or to a physician to practise the profession, &c. after passing examination, or admitting him to a degree, DIPLOMATIC letters. This is the art of reading letters written in cypher, and is founded on a know VOL. II. 170 DIPLOMATIC LETTERS. ledge of the art of writing according to this method of concealment. In examining a piece in newly invented characters we should endeavour to ascertain, whether the number of characters correspond, or nearly so, with the ordinary number of alphabetical letters. We must observe which of the characters, whether taken singly or combined, occur oftenest in the whole specimen; and of these probably the most frequent will represent e, a, i, o; e being much more common than the rest of the vowels, but u & y are even less frequent than many of the consonants. Endeavour next to ascertain the beginning and ending of words which are sometimes distinguished by spaces or points, or the insignificant marks interposed; but however it be done, you must expect these signs to occur after every few letters, and the frequency of their occurrence may serve as some guide. When you have found out the distinction between words, take particular notice of the order, number, frequency, and combination of the letters in each word, and first examine the characters of which the shortest monosyllables are composed. Remember (1.) That no word can be without a vowel, a word of one letter must, therefore, be a vowel, or a consonant with an apostrophe: (2.) That the vowels are more frequently doubled at the beginning of words than the consonants: indeed the latter are only doubled at the beginning of Spanish and Welsh words: (3) That the vowels mostly exceed the consonants in short words; and when the double consonants are preceded by a single letter, that this letter is a Vowel. (4.) That the single consonant which precedes or follows double consonants is 7, m, n, or |