Dry´burgh Abbey, a monastic ruin in Scotland, consisting of the nave's western gable, the gable of the south transept, and a fragment of choir and north transept of an abbey founded in 1150 on the banks of the Tweed, about 5 miles E.S.E. of Melrose. It is celebrated as the burial-place of Sir Walter Scott and his family.
Dry Cell, originally a cell of the Leclanché type, in which the solution of sal-ammoniac was replaced by a paste containing this substance. The formulæ or recipes from which dry cells are now made up are numerous, although the electrodes, as a rule, remain the same as in the Leclanché cell. The E.M.F. of the cell is about 1.5 volts, and three dry cells are used to light up a small 'flash' lamp. A battery of dry cells forms a convenient and portable means of supplying a small current at voltages up to 100.
Dry´den, John, English poet, was descended from an ancient family, his grandfather being Sir Erasmus Dryden of Canons Ashby, Northamptonshire. Born near Aldwinkle, Northamptonshire, in 1631, he was admitted a King's scholar at Westminster under the celebrated Dr. Busby, whence he went to Trinity College, Cambridge, being elected to a scholarship there. After leaving the university, he went to London, where he acted as secretary to his cousin Sir Gilbert Pickering, a favourite of Cromwell; and on the death of the Protector he wrote his Heroic Stanzas on that event. At the Restoration, however, he hailed the return of Charles II in Astræa Redux, and from that time his devotion to the Stuarts knew no decay. In 1661 he produced his first play, The Duke of Guise; but the first that was performed was The Wild Gallant, which appeared in 1663 and was not a success. This was followed by The Rival Ladies, and The Indian Queen, a tragedy on Montezuma in heroic verse, written in collaboration with Sir Robert Howard, whose sister, Lady Elizabeth Howard, Dryden married in 1663. He followed up The Indian Queen with The Indian Emperor, which at once raised Dryden to the highest pitch of public estimation, an elevation which he retained till his death. The great fire of London put a stop for some time to theatrical exhibitions. In the interval Dryden published the Annus Mirabilis, an historical account of the events of the year 1666, one of the most elaborate of his productions. In 1668 he also published his celebrated Essay on Dramatic Poesy—the first attempt to regulate dramatic writing. In 1668 The Maiden Queen, a tragi-comedy, was represented. This was followed in 1670 by The Tempest, an alteration from Shakespeare, in which he was assisted by Sir William Davenant. It was received with general applause, notwithstanding the very questionable taste and propriety of the added characters. Dryden was shortly afterwards appointed to the offices of Historiographer Royal and Poet Laureate, with a salary of £200 a year. He now
became professionally a writer for the stage, and produced many pieces, some of which have been strongly censured for their licentiousness and want of good taste. The first of his political and poetical satires, Absalom and Achitophel (Monmouth and Shaftesbury), was produced in 1681, and was followed by The Medal, a satire against sedition; and Mac Flecknoe, a satire on the poet Shadwell. In 1682 he published a poem called Religio Laici, wherein he maintained the doctrines of the Church of England. On the accession of James in 1685 Dryden became a Roman Catholic, a conversion the sincerity of which has been not unreasonably regarded with suspicion, considering the time at which it occurred. At court the new convert was received with open arms, a considerable addition was made to his pension, and he defended his new religion at the expense of the old one in a poem, The Hind and the Panther. Among his other services to the new king were a savage reply to an attack by Stillingfleet, and panegyrics on Charles and James under the title of Britannia Rediviva. At the Revolution Dryden was deprived of the offices of Poet Laureate and Historiographer, and of the certain income which these offices secured him. During the remaining ten years of his life he produced some of his best work, including his admirable translations from the classics. He published, in conjunction with Congreve, Creech, and others, a translation of Juvenal, and one of Persius entirely by himself. About a third part of Juvenal was translated by Dryden, who wrote an essay on satire which was prefixed to the whole. His poetic translation of Virgil appeared in 1697, and, soon after, the well-known lyric Alexander's Feast, and his Fables. He died 1st May, 1700, in the sixty-ninth year of his age, and was buried in Westminster Abbey. Dryden is unequalled as a satirist among English poets, and the best of his tragedies are unsurpassed by any since written. His poetry as a whole is more remarkable for vigour and energy than beauty, but he did much to improve English verse. He was also an admirable prose writer. Personally he was modest and kindly. The whole of his works, edited by Sir W. Scott, were published in 1818 (18 vols. 8vo); they were republished with additional notes, &c., by Professor Saintsbury (1882-93).—Bibliography: R. Garnett, Age of Dryden; Sir A. W. Ward, History of English Dramatic Literature; Cambridge History of English Literature (vol. viii).
Drying-machine, a machine consisting of any number of steam-heated cylinders up to thirty or even more, each about 22 inches in diameter, and used in bleachworks, dye-houses, and in cloth-finishing departments; used as a separate machine to dry fabrics which contain a certain amount of moisture left in at some previous operation, but often used in conjunction with a starching-mangle or similar apparatus. All the cylinders are in a horizontal plane, and usually in two rows, but such rows may be disposed either in horizontal or vertical frames. Floor-space is economized in the latter arrangement, and two or more groups of two rows per group may be provided for. Each cylinder is provided with some type of safety air-valve, which yields to allow air to enter in proportion as the steam is condensed in the cylinder, and so prevents the latter from collapsing. The condensed steam is withdrawn either by means of siphons or revolving scoops, so that the interior may be as dry as possible. The long length of cloth, either from the squeezing-rollers of the starch-mangle or from a loose or rolled state of cloth from some other machine, is conducted over guide-rollers, then under and over the two rows of steam-heated cylinders, and finally led from the last cylinder to the roller of a plaiting-down apparatus, or otherwise delivered. Both sides of the cloth thus come into direct contact with half the number of cylinders as it is drawn through the machine, and the dried cloth is ultimately delivered by the plaiting-down apparatus in folds ready for the subsequent operations.
Drying-oils, linseed and other oils, which are the bases of many paints and varnishes. When exposed to the air, they absorb oxygen, and are converted into a transparent, tough, dry mass or varnish.
Dry-point, a method of engraving generally regarded as part of etching, but more closely allied to line engraving. Instead of the copper being covered with etching ground and the lines bitten with acid, a pointed instrument is drawn across it, which incises a fine line with a more distinct burr on each side than that raised by a graver. This burr helps to give a characteristic quality to the line, but is rapidly worn away by printings. Dry-point may be used by itself, but is frequently combined with etching proper.
Dry-rot, a well-known disease affecting timber, occasioned by various species of Fungi, the mycelium of which penetrates the timber, destroying it. Merulius lacrymans, which is found chiefly in fir-wood, is the most common and most formidable dry-rot fungus in Britain; while Polypŏrus destructor is equally destructive in Germany. P. vaporarius may also cause dry-rot. Damp, unventilated situations are most favourable to the development of dry-rot Fungi.
Various methods have been proposed for the prevention of dry-rot; that most in favour is thoroughly saturating the wood with creosote, which makes the wood unfit for vegetation, but proper ventilation is the surest safeguard.