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It is not only important, but, in a degree necessary, that the people of this country, should have an American Dictionary of the English language; for, although the body of the language is the same as in England, and it is desirable to perpetuate that sameness, yet some differences must exist. Language is the expression of ideas; and if the people of one country cannot preserve an identity of ideas, they cannot retain an identity of language. |
IBIS, n. [Gr. and L.] A fowl of the genus Tantalus,and grallic order, a native of Egypt. The bill is long, subulated,and somewhat crooked; the face naked,and the feet have four toes palmated at the base. This fowl was much valued by the Egyptians for destroying serpents. It is said by Bruce not now to inhabit Egypt, but to be found in Abyssinia.
The ibis of the Egyptians is a species of the genus Scolopax. It was anciently venerated either because it devoured serpents, or because the marking of its plumage resembled one of the phases of the moon,or because it appeared in Egypt with the rising of the Nile.
The ibis is common in Egypt during the overflowing of the Nile.
Any bird of the genus
Ibis and several allied genera, of the family
Ibidæ, inhabiting both the Old World and the New.
Numerous species are known. They are large, wading birds, having a
long, curved beak, and feed largely on reptiles.
* The sacred ibis of the ancient Egyptians (Ibis Æthiopica) has the head and neck black, without feathers. The plumage of the body and wings is white, except the tertiaries, which are lengthened and form a dark purple plume. In ancient times this bird was extensively domesticated in Egypt, but it is now seldom seen so far north. The glossy ibis (Plegadis autumnalis), which is widely distributed both in the Old World and the New, has the head and neck feathered, except between the eyes and bill; the scarlet ibis (Guara rubra) and the white ibis (G. alba) inhabit the West Indies and South America, and are rarely found in the United States. The wood ibis (Tantalus loculator) of America belongs to the Stork family (Ciconidæ). See Wood ibis. | ||||||||