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A miner. [Prov. Eng.] Holloway.

To examine; to test; to sound. [Obs.] Chaucer. Felix gropeth him, thinking to have a bribe. Genevan Test. (Acts xxiv. ).

d. -- Ground ash. (Bot.) See Groutweed. -- Ground bailiff (Mining), a superintendent of mines. Simmonds. -- Ground bait, bits of bread, boiled barley or worms, etc., thrown into the water to collect the fish, Wallon. -- Ground bass or base (Mus.), fundamental base; a fundamental base continually repeated to a varie…

A yellow amorphous mineral, essentially a hydrated oxide of uranium derived from the alteration of uraninite.

Gumminess; a viscous or adhesive quality or nature. [R.] Floyer.

A mineral consisting of the hydrous sulphate of lime (calcium). When calcined, it forms plaster of Paris. Selenite is a transparent, crystalline variety; alabaster, a fine, white, massive variety.

or grief. Both as uttered and as written, it expresses a great variety of emotions, determined by the tone or the context. When repeated, ha, ha, it is an expression of laughter, satisfaction, or triumph, sometimes of derisive laughter; or sometimes it is equivalent to "Well, it is so." Ha-has, and inarticulate hootin…

That part of a deed which follows the part called the premises, and determines the extent of the interest or estate granted; -- so called because it begins with the word Habendum. Kent.

Fixed or established custom; ordinary course of conduct; practice; usage; hence, prominently, the involuntary tendency or aptitude to perform certain actions which is acquired by their frequent repetition; as, habit is second nature; also, peculiar ways of acting; characteristic forms of behavior. A man of very shy, re…

The inclination or deviation from the vertical of any mineral vein.

A mineral consisting of the arseniate of lime; -- so named in honor of W. Haidinger, of Vienna.

A claylike mineral, occurring in soft, smooth, amorphous masses, of a whitish color.

adical, which, by combination with a metal, forms a haloid salt; especially, chlorine, bromine, and iodine; sometimes, also, fluorine and cyanogen. See Chlorine family, under Chlorine.

One who determines the conditions of a handicap.

To be undetermined or uncertain; to be in suspense; to linger; to be delayed. A noble stroke he lifted high, Which hung not, but so swift with tempest fell On the proud crest of Satan. Milton. To hang around, to loiter idly about. -- To hang back, to hesitate; to falter; to be reluctant. "If any one among you hangs ba…

-- Hanging wall (Mining), the upper wall of inclined vein, or that which hangs over the miner's head when working in the vein.

er. -- Hard solder. See under Solder. -- Hard water, water, which contains lime or some mineral substance rendering it unfit for washing. See Hardness, 3.- Hard wood, wood of a solid or hard texture; as walnut, oak, ash, box, and the like, in distinction from pine, poplar, hemlock, etc.- In hard condition, in excelle…

The cohesion of the particles on the surface of a body, determined by its capacity to scratch another, or be itself scratched;-measured among minerals on a scale of which diamond and talc form the extremes.

Zoöl.) (a) An East Indian fruit bat of the genus Harpyia (esp. H. cerphalotes), having prominent, tubular nostrils. (b) A small, insectivorous Indian bat (Harpiocephalus harpia). Harpy fly (Zoöl.), the house fly.

An opening into, or in search of, a mine. Booby hatch, Buttery hatch, Companion hatch, etc. See under Booby, Buttery, etc. -- To batten down the hatches (Naut.), to lay tarpaulins over them, and secure them with battens. -- To be under hatches, to be confined below in a vessel; to be under arrest, or in slavery, dist…