VENEER, a thin sheet of wood or other material used as a sort of plating to give a handsome exterior finish to articles of cabinet or other work, which are made of a groundwork of cheaper and it may be of stronger materials. The art of veneering is not of modern invention, but according to Pliny was introduced about his time, and was used for reducing the cost of the enormously expensive tables of rare woods which were much sought after by the wealthy Romans. The veneers were formerly cut with thin hand saws and pit saws from blocks of wood; and in 1806 Mr. Brunel patented a method of splitting them off in large sheets by means of a horizontal blade composed of several pieces of steel placed exactly in a line on their lower surfaces, but with their edges slightly rounded and very keen. A short sawing motion was given to the blade while the block of wood was steadily brought by machinery under its action. One slice being taken off, the block was raised up exactly the thickness of the veneer, and the operation was renewed to separate another layer. For straight-grained pliant woods the machine answered very well, and it had the advantage of converting all the wood into veneers without waste, which in the methods now in use amounts to about of the whole wood. Still a more perfect apparatus was needed for general use. This was at last provided in the circular saw, the kinds of which used for this purpose, sometimes 20 feet in diameter, are noticed in the article Saw, vol. xiv. p. 375. The machinery for carrying the block and adjusting it for each new cut is necessarily of the nicest construction, admitting of the most exact measured movements of the smallest extent, as may well be conceived when it is understood that as many as 100 veneers have been obtained from wood only an inch thick, and that in ordinary operations each block of 6 inches width is expected to furnish as many as 15 sheets to the inch thickness; each block of a foot width, 14 sheets; of 2 feet, 12 sheets; of 3 feet, 10; of 4 feet, 9; and of 5 feet, 8. The work is done in establishments usually connected with saw mills, and known as veneer mills.-The sheets as produced, rough on both sides, are ready for the cabinet maker. As required for use, he shapes them for the surfaces they are to cover, and roughens them still more with an iron toothing plane, doing the same thing also to the face of the work upon which they are to be laid, in order that the glue which is to fasten them together may obtain a firm hold. He also shapes a wooden cover for the veneer to come between it and the clamps, which are to hold the veneer fast down until the glue has hardened. This cover, called a caul, is made to fit the face of the work exactly, if this is curved having a corresponding curvature, &c. The clamps are wooden bars long enough to extend entirely over the work. They are laid across it in pairs, one bar on each side, and are secured together by

iron screw bolts and nuts at the ends. The surface of the work is warmed, and is brushed over with thin glue. The veneer and caul are both well heated, and one side of the former, also covered with glue, is laid down upon the other glued surface; the heated caul is laid upon the back of the veneer, and the clamps are screwed down, the pairs a few inches apart. The glue is kept in a fluid state by the heat, and the excess of it is pressed out by the clamps. In cases where the clamps cannot be conveniently adjusted, other methods are resorted to for obtaining the required pressure, as by means of numerous braces extended from the caul to some fixed object, as the wall or ceiling of the building. Another method of laying veneers is by means of a very wide and thin hammer called the veneering hammer, for which a block of wood 3 or 4 inches square is sometimes substituted. The veneer being properly placed is rubbed down by hand, several men working at it if it is of large size. The veneering hammer, furnished with a projecting edge of sheet iron or steel, is next pressed down upon the veneer, working from the centre toward the edge. Several men are occupied in this together, and the surface of the veneer is kept covered with hot size to keep the glue beneath fluid, and also to lessen the friction of the hammers. If on tapping the surface with the hammer the sound indicates imperfect contact, more hot size is added and the work of the hammer is repeated. Sometimes it is necessary to apply a hot iron over spots where the glue has set, and extend this gradually toward the edge, so as to form a channel way along which the excess may be pressed out. The outer surface of the veneer is finally dressed by means of planes and scrapers, and polished with a brush or polisher, in the usual method of polishing ornamental woods.-Veneers of ivory and of bone are used for some purposes; and in Paris a pianoforte was some time ago entirely covered with a single sheet of ivory cut in a spiral from an elephant's tusk. The manufacturer advertised to supply such sheets 150 inches long and 30 wide. In the United States department of the great exhibition of 1851 there was a veneer of this kind 40 feet long and 12 inches wide.The inlaying of thin strips of wood or veneers in wood of other colors has been treated in the article BUHLWORK.-A remarkable variety of veneering has been recently introduced into the United States, called "pressed work." Any number of veneers are laid together, the grain of each one at right angles to that of the adjacent layers, and all being well saturated with glue are strongly compressed until the whole is united firmly in one mass. For curved work the pressure is applied upon the mass placed while hot in moulds. By this method the backs of chairs are made in graceful curves and of great strength, the crossing of the grain preventing all danger of splitting. Strong plain wood, as black walnut, may be used for

the inner layers, while the outer may be of rosewood or other highly ornamental wood. The tops of tables thus made are not liable to warp, and the method has been successfully applied to the construction of tables for sewing machines. Dished or spheroidal pressed work may be made in any desired curves by cutting the veneers into strips of varying width according to the part of the mould into which they are to be pressed.-Ornamental surface in relief has been given to veneers by pressing them between two moulds or dies, and filling the concavities on the hollow side with mastic or some plastic substance. Before pressing them, the surface to be in relief is smoothed and polished, and paper is pasted over the other. The dampness of the paste favors the adjustment of the wood to the irregularities of the die, from which the veneer is not removed until all moisture has disappeared.

VENETIA, in ancient geography, a district of Cisalpine Gaul, and after the division by Augustus a separate region of Italy, bounded by the Carnic Alps, the Timavus (now Timavo), the Adriatic, and the Athesis (Adige). It was a fertile territory, the principal productions of which were wool, sweet wine, and race horses. The inhabitants, the Veneti or Heneti, were reputed to be descendants of the Paphlagonian Heneti, brought to the shores of the Adriatic by Antenor, a Trojan hero, the legendary founder of Patavium (Padua). Others supposed them to be kindred to the Celtic Veneti in Gallia Lugdunensis; but they not only spoke a different language from that of the Celts, but also lived in continual hostility to the Gallic tribes in their neighborhood. According to Herodotus, they inhabited Illyria. Modern critics are inclined to regard them as Slavi, of the same branch as the Vends or Vindes in the neighboring Illyrian provinces of Austria. They early entered into an alliance with Rome, and subsequently became her subjects without resistance. Under the early emperors they enjoyed great prosperity, but during the 3d, 4th, and 5th centuries their territory was frequently devastated by the invading barbarians. The invasion of the Huns, under Attila, drove many of them to the islands and lagoons of the Adriatic, where they became the founders of Venice. (For modern Venetia, see VENICE.)

of the art in Italy. Having acquired considerable reputation in Perugia and elsewhere, he was invited in conjunction with Andrea Castagno to paint a chapel in the church of Sta. Maria Novella in Florence. The latter painter, inflamed with jealousy at the superior effects produced by Domenico's method, and by the admiration which his works excited, succeeded in acquiring from him his secret, and then assassinated him. Domenico was buried in the church which had been the scene of his last labors, but the works executed by him there have long since perished. III. AGOSTINO (DE MUSIS or Muzi), an Italian engraver, born in Venice probably in the latter part of the 15th century, died subsequent to 1536. He was a pupil of Marc' Antonio Raimondi, whom he aided in many of his plates from Raphael's designs, and whose style he followed. Subsequent to the death of Raphael he worked alone, producing many admirable portraits, beside prints after Raphael, Giulio Romano, and other masters. His "Skeletons, or Burying Place," after a design by the sculptor Bandinelli, is considered his masterpiece. He also made spirited copies on copper of several of Albert Dürer's woodcuts. He is said by Strutt to have been the first engraver who practised stippling.

VENEZUELA (It. diminutive of Venezia), a republic of South America, occupying the N. E. portion of the continent, extending from lat. 1° 12' to 12° 25′ N. and from long. 59° 45' to 73° 17′ W. It is bounded N. by the Caribbean sea, E. by the Atlantic ocean, British Guiana, and Brazil, S. by Brazil, and W. and S. W. by New Granada. Its area is 426,712 sq. m. It is divided into the following 21 provinces:

Maracaybo.
Margarita
Merida...
*Tachira..

42.882 Maracaybo..

14,000

*Guarico... *Aragua.. Coro Cumana.. Guayana.

Total..

50,671

62,116 Merida..

44,788 Trujillo.. 945,408

According to the latest enumeration, the total population is 1,564,433. The principal towns are Caracas, the capital, on the Guaire, an affluent of the Chico; Valencia, near the lake of the same name; Barcelona, on the coast of the Caribbean sea; Maracaybo, on the lake of the same name; Cumana, near the gulf of Cariaco; Barquisimeto, on an affluent of the Portuguesa

*Formed since 1854 by the subdivision of the provinces to which they are joined in the table.

river; Guanare, on the Guanare river; San Carlos, on the San Carlos, a branch of the Portuguesa; Araure, on the Acarigua; Puerto Cabello and La Guayra, both on the coast; and Asuncion, on Margarita island.-The coast line of Venezuela extends from the New Granadian boundary, in long. 73° 17′ W., to the mouth of the Amacura river, at the S. E. point of the delta of the Orinoco, a distance of 1,584 m., of which about 150 m. are washed by the Atlantic ocean, and the remainder by the Caribbean sea and the gulf of Paria. The Atlantic coast is very low, and is occupied by the delta of the Orinoco, whose 13 or 14 mouths by the deposit of their alluvium form numerous islands, which are soon covered with trees and shrubs. The peninsula of Paria separates the gulf of that name from the Caribbean sea. This landlocked gulf has bold and rocky shores, with several small harbors on the S. shore of the peninsula. The gulf of Cariaco is a fine roadstead, protected by the peninsula of Araya, opposite which lies the island of Margarita, 40 m. long and 20 m. broad in its widest part. The rocky shores continue, though at a less elevation, from Cumana to Barcelona, a distance of 72 m., with several good harbors. From Barcelona to Cape Codera is a low, marshy coast, 128 m. in length. Beyond Cape Codera the coast range approaches the shore, and the mountains rise like a wall from the water's edge. There are several tolerable harbors, though open to the northers, along this line, the most important of which is that of La Guayra, the port of Caracas. From Puerto Cabello to Coro the shores are again low and sandy, but occasionally covered with mangrove trees or other bushes. The peninsula of Paraguana is connected with the mainland by a long spit, 3 m. wide, consisting mainly of low hills of sand, without shrub or tree. The peninsula has a central mountain summit, 1,320 feet in height, called El Cerrito de Santa Aña. There are several small harbors along its shores. From the peninsula W. to the lake of Maracaybo the coast is again low and sandy, much of it covered with swamps and lagoons; and this condition continues beyond the lake as far as Cojoro, where it rises again, and continues its elevation to the W. line of the republic. With the exception of the table lands of the N. E. and that portion of the coast lying along the gulf of Coro, Venezuela is abundantly watered. The Orinoco, its largest river, runs its course of 1,500 m. mainly in the republic, has over 400 navigable tributaries, is more than 3 m. wide at the distance of 560 m. from its mouth, drains 250,000 sq. m. of territory, and discharges its waters into the Atlantic and gulf of Paria by numerous mouths, one of them 60 m. in width. Its largest tributaries are, on the S. side, the Ventuari, the Caura, and the Caroni: on the N. side, the Meta and the Apure, with its hundred affluents. The S. and S. E. portion is drained by affluents of the Rio Negro, which is united to the Orinoco by the

Cassiquiare and the Essequibo. In the N. a great number of small streams flow into the Caribbean sea and Lake Maracaybo, a few of which, such as the Catatumbo, Zulia, Escalante, Motatan, Guarapiche, Neveri, Unare, Tuy, and Tocuyo, are navigable. The principal lakes are Maracaybo, containing 8,400 sq. m., Valencia, Tacarigua, and Guanipe.-Venezuela has 3 distinct mountain systems, beside some isolated peaks, viz.: the Andes, and their prolongation in the coast range; the Sierra de Bergantin, in the N. E.; and the mountainous region of the S. E., which forms a part of the Sierra de Parima. The Andes of Venezuela are the northernmost portion of the eastern Andes of New Granada. Just before entering Venezuela, near the town of Pamplona, they divide into two branches; one runs N. and terminates in the peninsula of Goajira, near Chichibacoa, taking where it enters Venezuela the name of the Sierra de Perija, and further N. that of the Montes de Oca; the other, turning N. E., terminates on the bank of the river Cojedes, S. of Barquisimeto, though the coast range, which commences on the opposite bank of the river, and spreads out into a wide table land, extending at some points to the Caribbean sea, may claim to be a portion of it. The N. branch of the Andes attains no great height, the loftiest summit of the Sierra de Perija not exceeding 4,200 feet; the N. E. branch is more elevated. The Sierra Nevada de Merida, in the province of Merida, is the only summit which rises above the line of perpetual snow, its two peaks being respectively 15,310 and 15,342 feet above the sea. The Picacho de Mucuchies and the Salado both attain a height of over 14,000 feet, and the paramos or table lands of Agrias, Zumbador, Batallon, Apure, Portachuelo, Niquitao, and Rosas are more than 10,000 feet above the sea level. The coast range is lower, its highest table land only reaching the altitude of 4,500 feet, and its loftiest peaks, the Silla de Caracas and the Picacho de Naiguata, 8,808 and 13,480 feet respectively. The highest summits of the Sierra de Bergantin, the mountainous district of the N. E., are Turumiquire, 6,863, the Cerro Pionia, 6,860, and the Arrempuja, 5,820 feet above the sea. The table lands of the district are from 3,000 to 4,000 feet high. The most mountainous portion of Venezuela is that lying S. and E. of the Orinoco, a vast, and much of it an unexplored territory. The Parima or Pacaraima range, which forms the boundary between Venezuela and British Guiana and Brazil, sends its offsets westward in 4 distinct spurs, beside several confused groups and isolated summits. At the N. the Imataca mountains extend N. W. from the Essequibo to the Orinoco, uniting with the Piacua range. Below, and trending more to the N. N. W., are the Arimagua mountains, extending from the Mazaruni to the Curuvini river; and parallel with them, but higher, are the Merumeh and the Usupamo mountains, the latter throwing out two spurs, the Rinocote and

the Carapo mountains; while below the 5th parallel a confused mass, known as the Maigualida, Maravaco, and Unturan ranges, fill up the whole region. The peaks of this region are less elevated than those of the Andes, Maravaco, the loftiest, attaining an altitude of only 10,500 feet, while no other much exceeds 8,000, and the table lands are from 3,000 to 4,000 feet high. The face of the country presents mainly but two aspects: the extensive table lands, which according to their elevation are named llanos, paramos, mesas, and punos, dotted here and there with peaks of considerable elevation; and the low, flat, marshy lands of the coast and river and lake basins, overflowed during a part of the year, but some of them, especially in the interior, abundantly fertile during the remainder. The Andes in the N. W., like most of that chain, are granitic, and where they subside in the N. into the coast range, metamorphic. Along the coast near Coro, and westward to the gulf, the surface rocks are of the carboniferous era, and coal of good quality, asphaltum, and petroleum are to be obtained in abundance. The basin of the Orinoco and its principal affluent, the Apure, are entirely secondary, and the mesas are mainly underlaid with calcareous rock. The mountains of the S. E. exhibit the rounded forms of the tertiary strata. The delta of the Orinoco is wholly of alluvial and diluvial formation. The soil of Venezuela is for the most part fertile. The mesas are too arid to be productive, and some portions of the coast are sandy and sterile. The llanos, in the dry season, present the appearance of a desert, but the first fall of the tropical rains changes them into verdant plains. Many of them are for a part of the rainy season overflowed, and form temporary lakes. The portions too high to be thus submerged yield a rich pasture for vast herds of cattle and horses. The mountainous district of the S. E. is well adapted to grain. It is divided into 3 climatic regions. The lowlands, those which do not rise more than 2,000 feet above the sea level, are called tierras calidas, or hot regions; these comprise the greater part of the inhabited portion of the country, and have a uniform temperature, ranging from 80° to 90° F., the average of the year being 82°. The dry season is comparatively healthy, and epidemic diseases are rare. The rainy season is unhealthy, especially to strangers. The lands between 2,000 and 7,000 feet high are called tierras templadas, or temperate regions, and have a uniform temperature of 70° to 80° F., the annual average being 71°. This region, except where inundated, is usually healthy. The punos or lofty table lands constitute the tierras frias, or cold regions, and are mostly uninhabited. The average annual temperature is 49° F. The dry season or summer commences when the sun enters the southern hemisphere, and the rainy on his return to the northern. During the latter period the winds are south-easterly, and the rain falls daily and with tropical violence for months. There is a

period, however, about midsummer, in which no rain falls for about 30 days; this is called the little summer of St. John. During the dry season the wind is generally from the N. E.— Venezuela is rich in minerals, though, owing to the influence of the climate and the unsettled condition of the country, they have not been so largely brought into market as in some of the other South American states. At the first discovery of the country it yielded great quantities of gold; but the surface diggings after a time were exhausted, and now but little gold is mined. The mines, of Los Teques, Apa, and Carapa have been abandoned for 200 years. Silver was also abundant in the early history of the country; the silver mine of Guanita was once famous, and in the present century there have been found rich silver ores in the mountains of Merida and at Carupano, but they have not been worked to any great extent. The copper mines of Aroa, 70 m. S. W. from Puerto Cabello, are very productive, and the ore yields a large percentage of pure metal. The tin mines of Barquisimeto, once the property of the Spanish crown, and a source of great revenue, have been abandoned. Good iron and lead ores are found. Coal is abundant and of good quality at several points on and near the coast, particularly in Coro. On the Barcelona river, 9 m. from the city of Barcelona, are mines of cannel coal, said to be equal to the best English. Salt is produced in large quantities from the salt mines of the peninsula of Araya and the salines of Paraguana and the gulf of Maracay bo. Sesquicarbonate of soda, the trona of commerce, is yielded abundantly by a small lagoon at Lagunillas in Merida. Asphaltum and petroleum are found in the vicinity of Lake Maracaybo. There are also numerous mineral and thermal springs, some of them of a temperature of 212° F.-The climate and soil are well suited to the growth of a most luxuriant vegetation. The region below the level of 3,000 feet is the country of palms, and nowhere on the American continent do they attain a more colossal size, or yield more desirable products. The Indian sago palm flourishes on the lowlands; the chiquichiqui furnishes the material for cordage from its fibrous tufts; the yagua provides an abundant oil; the chaguarama yields material for thatch and excellent laths; the royal palm attains its vast size even in the temperate region, where are found also the wax palm and one or two other species. The cocoa palm is very abundant, and considerable quantities of its oil are exported. The varieties of the cactus are almost innumerable, and often of great beauty. The sensitive plant and the pineapple also abound; and among the fruit-bearing trees are the palo de vaca or cow tree, the tamarind, and the various species of anona and laurus. Of the forest trees, the colossal bauhinia, the bombax ceiba or silkcotton tree, the mahogany, curare, satinwood, rosewood, black and white ebony, the various caoutchouc-yielding trees, the copaiba, a spe