Dijon (dē-zhōn; Lat. Castrum Divonense), a town in Eastern France, capital of the department of Côte-d'Or, in a fertile plain, at the foot of a range of vine-clad slopes, formerly surrounded by ramparts, which now furnish beautiful promenades. At some distance it is surrounded by a series of forts. Some of the buildings belong to the period when Dijon was capital of the dukedom of Burgundy, the chief being the cathedral of St. Bénigne, a building of vast extent with a lofty wooden spire above 300 feet high; the churches of Nôtre Dame and St. Michael; the ancient palace of the Dukes of Burgundy, now used as the hôtel de ville and museum; and the palais de justice, formerly the Parliament House of Burgundy. Dijon is the birth-place of Bossuet. It has important educational institutions and a valuable library. Industries: woollens, hosiery, candles, mustard, vinegar, chemicals, paper-hangings, tanneries, foundries, machine factories, cotton- and oil-mills. The trade is considerable, particularly in the wines of Burgundy. Pop. 76,847.
Dike, or Dyke (connected with the Gr. teichos, wall), a word variously used in different localities to represent a ditch or trench, and also an embankment, rampart, or wall. It is specially applied to an embankment raised to oppose the incursions of the sea or of a river, the dikes of Holland being notable examples of work of this kind. These are often raised 40 feet above the high-water mark, and are wide enough at the top for a common roadway or canal, sometimes for both. The Helder Dike, one of the largest, is about 6 miles in length and costly in upkeep. See Embankment.
Dike, or Dyke, in geology, a term applied to intrusive igneous masses, such as basalt, which fill up veins and fissures in the other rocks, and sometimes project on the surface like walls through their superior resistance to weathering.
Dilapidation, in English ecclesiastical law, is where an incumbent of a church living suffers the parsonage-house or outhouses to fall down, or be in decay for want of necessary repairs; or it is the pulling down or destroying any of the houses or buildings belonging to a spiritual living, or destroying of the woods, trees, &c., appertaining to the same. An outgoing incumbent (or his heirs) is liable for dilapidation to his successor. In general, the term is applied to the act of allowing or causing any lands, houses, &c., to become waste or to decay.
Dilem´ma (from Gr. di-, double, and lēmma, proposition, assumption), in logic, a form of argument used to prove the falsehood or absurdity of some assertion, as in the following instance: If he did so he must be either foolish or wicked; but we know he is neither foolish nor wicked; therefore he cannot have done so. The two suppositions, which are equally untenable, are called the 'horns' of the dilemma.
Dilettante (di-let-ta˙n´tā), an Italian
expression, signifying a lover of the arts and sciences, who devotes his leisure to them as a means of amusement and gratification, being thus nearly equivalent to amateur. It is also used in reference to the trifler and dabbler in art and science. In 1734 a number of gentlemen founded in London a Dilettanti Society, which published a splendid work on Ionian Antiquities, 1769, 1881 (4 vols.); Specimens of Ancient Sculpture, 1809, 1835.
Dilke, Sir Charles Wentworth, English writer and politician, son and grandson of men well known in their day, was born in 1843, died in 1911. He graduated at Cambridge, and was called to the Bar. His first work, Greater Britain, the result of a tour round the world from 1866 to 1867, became very popular. In 1868 he was elected member of Parliament for Chelsea, and he remained so up to 1885. After a few years' retirement (due to a divorce case) he became member of Parliament for Forest of Dean. He was Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs, President of the Local Government Board, &c. He succeeded his father as owner of the Athenæum, and became the proprietor of Notes and Queries. The Present Position of European Politics, and Problems of Greater Britain, are among his works.
Dill, an umbelliferous plant, Anēthum graveŏlens, a native of the southern countries of Europe, the fruits, commonly but erroneously called seeds, of which are moderately warming, pungent, and aromatic, and are employed medicinally as a carminative.
Dillenia´ceæ, an order of plants, chiefly fine trees, inhabiting the East Indies, allied to Ranunculaceæ and Magnoliaceæ.