TALE. Information; disclosure of any thing secret.
Tale, Ind. An Indian coin equal to six shillings and eight pence.
TALEBEARER. One who gives officious or malignant intelligence. With respect to the interior economy of military life, a talebearer is the most dangerous creature that could insinuate itself among honorable men; and however acceptable domestic information may sometimes seem to narrow minds, it will be found even by those who countenance the thing, that such means of getting at the private sentiments of others, not only defeat their own ends, but ultimately destroy every species of regimental harmony. The only way to secure a corps from this insidious evil, is for commanding officers to treat those with contempt, who would endeavor to obtain their countenance by such base and unofficer-like conduct. For it is a known axiom, that if there were no listeners, there would be no reporters.
TALENT. Count Turpin, in his essay on the Art of War, makes the following distinction between genius and talent:—Talent remains hidden for want of occasions to shew itself; genius breaks through all obstacles: genius is the contriver, talent the workman in military affairs. Talent is properly that knowlege acquired by study and labor, and ability to apply it; genius takes, as by intuition, a glance of whatever it is occupied on, and comprehends at once without labor the true character of the subject; genius must however not be devoid of acquired knowlege.
TALK. The Indian tribes of the United States, on public occasions, such as treaties, depute persons to deliver discourses to those with whom they treat, and those discourses are called Talks: they often abound with eloquence.
To TALK. To make use of the powers of speech. Officers and soldiers are strictly forbidden to talk under arms.
TALLOW. A well known name for the fat of animals. It is used as a combustible in the composition of fireworks. See [Laboratory].
TALON, Fr. In architecture, an ornamental moulding, which is concave below and convex above.
Talon renversé, Fr. An ornamental moulding which is concave above. This word is likewise applied to many other things, as the upper part of a scythe, &c. the end of a pike, &c.
Talon d’un cheval, Fr. A horse’s heel, of the hind part of his hoof. Talon literally means heel.