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ce commended to a cleric (usually a bishop) who enjoyed the revenue until a pastor was provided. A living so held was said to be held in commendam. The practice was abolished by law in 1836. There was [formerly] some sense for commendams. Selden. Partnership in commendam. See under Partnership.

An officer whose business is to provide food for a body of troops or a military post; -- officially called commissary of subsistence. [U. S.] Washington wrote to the President of Congress . . . urging the appointment of a commissary general, a quartermaster general, a commissary of musters, and a commissary of artiller…

ier, the crier of a town or city. -- Common divisor (Math.), a number or quantity that divides two or more numbers or quantities without a remainder; a common measure. -- Common gender (Gram.), the gender comprising words that may be of either the masculine or the feminine gender. -- Common law, a system of jurispru…

who are below the rank of nobility; the commons. The commonalty, like the nobility, are divided into several degrees. Blackstone. The ancient fare of our kings differed from that of the commonalty in plenteousness only. Landon.

Provisions; food; fare, -- as that provided at a common table in colleges and universities. Their commons, though but coarse, were nothing scant. Dryden.

al tithes in kind. -- Commutation ticket, a ticket, as for transportation, which is the evidence of a contract for service at a reduced rate. See 2d Commute, 2.

To divide; to mark out into parts or subdivisions. [R.] The crystal surface is comparted all In niches verged with rubies. Glover.

One of the parts into which an inclosed portion of space is divided, as by partitions, or lines; as, the compartments of a cabinet, a house, or a garden. In the midst was placed a large compartment composed of grotesque work. Carew.

d is read with reference to a mark on the box representing the ship's head. The card is divided into thirty-two points, called also rhumbs, and the glass-covered box or bowl containing it is suspended in gimbals within the binnacle, in order to preserve its horizontal position. -- Surveyor's compass, an instrument use…

t stipulated for in contracts for the sale of real eatate, in which it is customary to privide that errors in description, etc., shall not avoid, but shall be the subject of compensation. Compensation balance, or Compensated balance, a kind of balance wheel for a timepiece. The rim is usually made of two different expa…

Legal capacity or qualifications; fitness; as, the competency of a witness or of a evidence.

Divided into squares of alternate tinctures in a single row; -- said of any bearing; or, in the case of a bearing having curved lines, divided into patches of alternate colors following the curve. If there are two rows it is called counter-compony.

compartments of different classes. [Eng.] -- Composite number (Math.), one which can be divided exactly by a number exceeding unity, as 6 by 2 or 3.prime number. -- Composite photograph or portrait, one made by a combination, or blending, of several distinct photographs. F. Galton. -- Composite sailing (Naut.), a com…

To divide into chambers or cells. Woodward.

cerns himself in the happiness of his subjects. They think themselves out the reach of Providence, and no longer concerned to solicit his favor. Rogers.

defendant is concluded by his own plea; a judgment concludes the introduction of further evidence argument. If therefore they will appeal to revelation for their creation they must be concluded by it. Sir M. Hale.

Secret reasons . . . equally conclusive for us as they were for them. Rogers. Conclusive evidence (Law), that of which, from its nature, the law allows no contradiction or explanation. -- Conclusive presumption (Law), an inference which the law makes so peremptorily that it will not allow it to be overthrown by any co…

Concurrence; coöperation. [Obs.] The divine providence is wont to afford its concourse to such proceeding. Barrow.

tion, spontaneous union, or coalescence of separate particles of matter in one body. To divide all concretes, minerals and others, into the same number of distinct substances. Boyle.

rms; that which gives new strength or assurance; as to a statement or belief; additional evidence; proof; convincing testimony. Trifles light as air Are to the jealous confirmations strong As proofs of holy writ. Shak.