a town of Ireland, in the county of Cavan, and province of Ulster. W. Long. 7. Ballishannon. N. Lat. 54° 6'.
BALISHANNON, a large town of Ireland, in the county of Donegal, or Tyrconnel, with a good haven. W. Long. 8° 25'. N. Lat. 54° 25'.
BALISTA, a machine used by the ancients for shooting darts; it resembled in some measure our crossbow. The word is Latin, signifying a cross-bow; and is derived from the Greek βάλλειν, to shoot, or throw.
Vegetius informs us, that the ballista discharged darts with such rapidity and violence, that nothing could resist their force: and Athenaeus adds, that Agisistratus made one of little more than two feet in length, which shot darts 500 paces.
In Plate XCVII. is represented the ballista used in sieges, according to the Chevalier Folard: 2, 2, the base of the ballista; 3, 4, upright beams; 5, 6, transverse beams; 7, 7, the two capitals in the upper transverse beam, (the lower transverse beam has also two similar capitals, which cannot be seen in this transverse figure); 9, 9, two poits or supports for strengthening the transverse beams; 10, 10, two straws of cords fastened to the capitals; 11, 11, two arms inserted between the two straws, or parts of the straws; 12, a cord fastened to the two arms; 13, darts which are shot by the ballista; 14, 14, curves in the upright beams, and in the concavity of which cushions are fastened, in order to break the force of the arms, which strike against them with great force when the dart is discharged; 15, the arbor of the machine, in which a groove or canal perfectly straight is formed, and in which the darts are placed in order to their being shot by the ballista; 17, the nut of the trigger; 18, the roll or windlass, about which the cord is wound; 19, an hook, by which the cord is drawn towards the centre, and the ballista cocked; 20, a stage or table on which the arbor is in part sustained.
BALISTEUM, or BALLISTRÆA, in antiquity, a military song or dance used on occasions of victory. Vopiscus has preserved the ballistæum sung in honour of Aurelian, who, in the Sarmatian war, was said to have killed 48 of the enemy in one day with his own hand. Mille, milles, milles, milles, milles, milles decollavit; unus homo milles, milles, milles, milles, milles decollavit; milles, milles, milles vivat, qui milles, milles occidit. Tantum vini habet nemo, quantum fudit sanguinis. The same writer subjoins another popular song of the same kind: Mille Francos, milles Sarmatar, fennel occidimus; milles, milles, milles, milles, milles, milles Perjas querimus. It took the denomination ballistæum from the Greek βάλλειν, jacio, or jacto, to cast or toss, on account of the motions used in this dance, which was attended with great elevations and swingings of the hands. The ballistæa were a kind of popular ballads, composed by poets of the lower class, without much regard to the laws of metre.