\Ar*che"us\, n. [LL. arch[=e]us, Gr. 'archai^os ancient,
primeval, fr. 'archh` beginning. See {Archi-}, pref.]
The vital principle or force which (according to the
Paracelsians) presides over the growth and continuation of
living beings; the {anima mundi} or plastic power of the old
philosophers. [Obs.] --Johnson.