of Greece, and their dialect was that of the country rustics. Our own Bloomfield and Robert Burns are examples of British Doric.

"The Doric reed once more
Well pleased, I tune."
Thomson Autumn. 3-4.
Doricourt A sort of Tremaine of the eighteenth century, who, having over-refined his taste by the "grand tour," considers English beauties insipid. He falls in love with Letitia Hardy at a masquerade, after feeling aversion to her in her assumed character of a hoyden. (Mrs. Cowley, The Belle's Stratagem.)

Dorigen A lady of high family, who married Arviragus out of pity for his love and meekness. She was greatly beloved by Aurelius, to whom she had been long known. Aurelius, during the absence of Arviragus, tried to win the heart of the young wife; but Dorigen made answer that she would never listen to him till the rocks that beset the coast of Britain are removed "and there n'is no stone yseen." Aurelius, by the aid of a young magician of Orleans, caused all the rocks to disappear, and claimed his reward. Dorigen was very sad, but her husband insisted that she should keep her word, and she went to meet Aurelius. When Aurelius saw how sad she was, and heard what Arviragus had counselled, he said he would rather die than injure so true a wife and noble a gentleman. So she returned to her husband happy and untainted. (See Dianora.) (Chaucer: Franklines Tale.)

Dorimant Drawn from the Earl of Rochester; a witty, aristocratic libertine, in Etherege's Man of Mode.

Dorinda in the verses of the Earl of Dorset, is Catherine Sedley, Countess of Dorchester, mistress of James II.

Dormer Window The window of an attic standing out from the slope of the roof. (O. French, dormeor =a sleeping room formerly fitted with windows of this kind.)

"Thatched were the roofs, with dormer windows."
Longfellow: Evangeline, part i. stanza 1.
Dornock Stout figured linen for tablecloths; so called from a town in Scotland, where it was originally made.

Dorothea (St.), represented with a rose-branch in her hand, a wreath of roses on her head, and roses with fruit by her side; sometimes with an angel carrying a basket with three apples and three roses. The legend is that Theophilus, the judge's secretary, scoffingly said to her, as she was going to execution, "Send me some fruit and roses, Dorothea, when you get to Paradise." Immediately after her execution, while Theophilus was at dinner with a party of companions, a young angel brought to him a basket of apples and roses, saying, "From Dorothea, in Paradise," and vanished. Theophilus, of course, was a convert from that moment.

Dorset Once the seat of a British tribe, calling themselves Dwr-trigs (water-dwellers). The Romans colonised the settlement, and Latinised Dwr-trigs into Duro-triges. Lastly came the Saxons, and translated the original words into their own tongue, dor-sætta (water-dwellers).

Dorsetian Downs The Downs of Dorsetshire.

"Spread the pure Dorsetian downs
in boundless prospect."
Thomson: Autumn.
Dositheans A religious sect which sprang up in the first century; so called because they believed that Dositheus had a divine mission superior to that of prophets and apostles.

Doson A promise-maker and a promise-breaker. Antigonos, grandson of Demetrios the besieger, was so called.

Doss A hassock stuffed with straw; a bed - properly, a straw bed; whence the cant word for a lodging- house is a dossingken. Dossel is an old word for a bundle of hay or straw, and dosser for a straw basket. These words were common in Elizabeth's reign. The French dossier means a "bundle."


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