the island of Bourbon, this bird was introduced from Indis by the government. The grakles, however, beginning to examine the newly-sown fields, excited the alarm of the planters, and were exterminated; but it was found necessary, after a few years, again to introduce them, and they are now very numerous, though they do not confine themselves to insect food, but in default of it eat seeds and fruits. They sometimes enter pigeon-houses and feed on the eggs, or even on the newly hatched young. When tamed, they become very pert and familiar, and exhibit a great aptitude for imitating the voices of animals. A G. of this species, kept in a farmyard, has been known to imi. tate most of its ordinary sounds, as those of dogs, sheep, pigs, and poultry.-Some of the grakles are known ag summer birds of passage in the northern parts of America.

GRAZLÆ, n. plu. grăl'lē, also GRALLATORES, n plu. grăl'lă-tō'réz [L. grallator, he that goes on stilts; grallæ, tilts-from gradus, a step]: stilted or long-legged wading birds, such as the stork or crane. GRAL LATORY, a -tér-i, of or pertaining to; also GRAL'LATO'RIAL, a. -tō'ri-al. --The Grallatores are an order of birds, generally characterized by very long legs, the tarsus (shank) in particular being much elon gated, and by the nakedness of the lower part of the tibia, adapting them for wading in water without wetting their feathers. They have also generally long necks and long bills. The form of the bill, however, is various: and in its size, strength, and hardness, it is adapted to the variety of food; some, as snipes, which feed chiefly on worms and other soft animals, having a very soft weak bill, while others, which feed on larger and stronger animals, have the bill proportionately large and strong. The form of the body is generally slender. The greater number of the G. are inhabitants of the sea-coast or of marshy districts. Many are birds of passage. Even those which are not aquatic are generally driven from the districts which they frequent either by frost or drought. Cuvier divided this order into Brevipennes (q.v.), Ostrich, Cassowary, Emu, etc.); Pressirostres (Bustards, Plovers, Lapwings, etc.); Cultrirostres (Cranes, Herons, Storks, Adjutants, Spoonbills, etc.); Longirostres (Snipes, Curlews, Godwits, Sandpipers, etc.); and Macrodactyli (Rails, Crakes, Coots, etc.). The Brevipennes are constituted by some into a distinct order, Cursores, and differ very widely in many respects from the true Grallæ.

GRAM, n. grům [Icel. gramr, wrath]: in OE., angry; wrathful.

GRAM, n. grům: name by which the chick-pea is known in the East, used as food when roasted: see CHICK-PEA.

GRAM, or GRAMME [see GRAMME]: standard unit of French measures of weight; the weight of a cubic centimètre of distilled water at 0' centigrade (corresponding to 32 Fah.): the other weights have received names corresponding to the number of grammes that they contain, or the number of times that they are contained in a gramme: in the former case, the Greek numerals deca, hecto, kilo, my

ria, expressing weights of 10 grammes, 100 grammes, 1,000 grammes, 10,000 grammes; in the latter case, the Roman numerals deci, centi, are prefixed, to express tenths, hundredths of a gramme. Starting from the relation between the English yard and the French mètre, we are enabled to compare the units of weight, and it is found that a gramme 15 432348 grains Troy, from which the equivaTents in English measure for the other weights can easily be found: thus