VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA 254 VONDEL In the case of a war of magnitude the United States has always relied on its volunteer soldiery. During the Civil War, including re-enlistments, there were 2,656,533 men in the field — the great body of whom were volunteers. They were paid by the National Government, but the States appointed field and line officers. For an account of the volun- teers in the United States in the World War, see United States, section United States in the War. VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA, a re- ligious and philanthropic body; organ- ized from former members of the Sal- vation Army in March, 1896, by Com- mander and Mrs. Ballington Booth and consisting of several central societies and numerous self-supporting posts and outposts. The head officer is elected by the members as commander-in-chief, and by the directors as president. There are four branches of philanthropic work: (1) The sociological branch, which pro- vides homes for destitute men. In 1920 the homes located in various cities fur- nished lodging for over 200,000 persons. (2) Homes for friendless young women. (3) The tenement work for the worthy poor. (4) The philanthropic branch, working among unprotected children. The Prison League is an important de- partment of Volunteer activity. There are branches in most States. The homes for the reception of discharged prisoners are known as Hope Halls. A large ma- jority of the ex-convicts who have been sheltered by these homes and provided with situations have made good records for themselves. There was an aggregate attendance of 927,045 persons at the hall meetings and 2,287,985 at the open air meetings. VOLUSENUS FLORENTIUS, Florence Wilson, or Wolsey), a Scot- tish humanist; born near Elgin at the opening of the 16th century. Having received his early education in Scotland (probably at Aberdeen), he seems to have proceeded to the University of Paris. Like his contemporary and per- sonal friend George Buchanan, he culti- vated classical learning in preference to the logic and philosophy of the school- men, and attained a mastery of Latin which gives him a place with the first scholars of his time. After acting as tutor to a son (spoken of as a nephew) of Cardinal Wolsey, he eventually be- came principal of a school at Carpentras, near Avignon, a position he owed to the favor of Cardinal Sadoleto. In 1546, on his way home to Scotland, Volusenus died at Vienne in Dauphine, lamented by Buchanan in a Latin quatrain, which proves the strength of their friendship. His chief work is his "The Tranquility of Mind," written in the purest classical Latin, every page of which reveals the essential refinement and moral beauty of his nature. VOLVOX, in botany, the typical genus of Volvocinex, with one species, V. globator. To the naked eye it resembles a minute pale green globule floating about in the water. Under the micro- scope it is seen to be a spherical mem- branous sac, studded with innumerable green points, really apertures giving exit to cilia, which enable it to roll over and over in the water. Within the sac are various dense globules, generally gTcen in summer, but often of an orange color in autumn and early winter. They are zoospore-like bodies, each sending a pair of cilia through separate orifices. There is a reddish brown spot and a contractile vacuole. They are found abundantly in clear pools on open commons and similar localities. VOMER, in anatomy, a small thin bone in the median line, forming the posterior and principal portion of the partition be- tween the nostrils in man. It exhibits many modifications in the different classes of vertebrata. In fishes an im- portant character is the presence or absence of teeth on the vomer (that is, along the middle line of the roof of the mouth). The bone is so named from the fact that in man it bears some re- semblance to a plowshare. In palseontol- ogy> a genus of Carangidse, allied to CaranXy from the Chalk of Comen in Istria. VONDEL, JOOST VAN DEN (von' del), a Dutch dramatic poet; born in Cologne, Germany, Nov. 17, 1587. His is the greatest name in Dutch literature, and he has often been called "The Dutch Shakespeare." He began his literary career with the drama "The Pasha," produced in 1612 before the Rhetorical Chamber, of which he was a member. He wrote the tragedy "Palamedes," and "The Amsterdam Hecuba," a free version of Seneca (1625) ; many translations from the classics and versions of classical originals, and the Biblical dramas, "Adam in Banishment," "Solomon," "Samson," "Noah," "Jerusalem De- stroyed," "King David in Exile," "Joseph in Egypt," etc. The dramatic poem "Lucifer," the greatest of his works, is considered by many Dutch critics to be an allegorical account of the revolt of the Netherlands against Philip of Spain. His collected works, together with a life of the poet, were published at Amsterdam (1850-1869) in 12 volumes. He died in Amsterdam, in 1679.
