VINTAINE, Fr. A small rope which masons use to prevent stones from hitting against a wall when they draw them up.
VIOLENCE. Force, attack, assault.
VIRAGO. A female warrior; a scold.
VIRER, Fr. To change, to turn round. This word is used figuratively by the French, viz. Tourner et virer; to beat about the bush; as Tourner et virer quel-qu’un, in an active sense, to pump another.
VIREVAU, Fr. A draw-beam, a capstan.
VIRE-VOLTE, Fr. A quick turning about. It is a term of the manege.
VIROLE, Fr. A ferrule; verrel.
VIS, Fr. Screw, vice, spindle-tree.
| VISIER, | - | |
| VIZIER, | ||
| VIZIR, |
(Visir, Fr.) An officer or dignity in the Ottoman Empire; whereof there are two kinds, the first called by the Turks Vizir Azem, or grand Vizir, first created in 1370 by Amurath the First, in order to ease himself of the chief and weightier affairs of the government. The grand Vizir possesses great powers, especially with regard to military affairs. The orders he issues are so thoroughly discretional, that when he quits Constantinople to join the army, he does not even communicate his intentions to the sultan. This system entirely differs from that which is followed by European generals. When the latter take the field, they proceed upon plans that have been previously digested; and although they may occasionally change their dispositions, yet they never deviate from the essential and governing principles.